I’d venture a guess that part of the reason we all come back to mainstream comics is their cyclical nature. As much as fans gripe about wanting something fresh and new, there’s also comfort in returning to the status quo — and that’s what we get in DC Comics‘s Green Lantern: Fractured Spectrum #1.
Written by Jeremy Adams with art by V. Ken Marion, the book picks up after several big, over-arching stories that scattered the Green Lanterns across the cosmos for at least a year, if not longer. Now — and spoilers past this point — the Corp is back on Oa, the Central Power Battery is back, and even those little blue rascals the Guardians have returned. There are some changes, for sure, including the Guardians being reduced to an advisory capacity. And Jessica Cruz, once too terrified to leave her own apartment is now giving big speeches to the assembled Corps.
But the large majority of the issue is spent resetting the table, reorienting us with our main Green Lanterns, and setting up the next bunch of mysteries, as well as the new “Fractured Lantern” storyline. While there is a big storyline set up here, a lot of it is riffing on pre-established storylines, with multiple colors on the spectrum, the secrets of the Guardians once again rearing their ugly heads, and Hal Jordan at the center of it all.
I don’t say that dismissively, though, as Adams is an able enough writer to make this reset feel light and pleasing. Yes, it’s a bit of playing the hits. But there’s plenty that gets teased here, from everything perhaps not being totally right with the returned from the dead Kilowog, to those numbskulls in the Green Lantern Corps once again trusting a robot to guard their power battery (see any number of storylines involving the Manhunters for more on that).
And beyond that, there’s also yet another villain with yet another color — this time it’s The Sorrow, an ex of Carol Ferris’s, who is grey — but like with the previous colors, will allow Adams and company to delve into some potentially nuanced discussions of emotion.
Will this once again lead to the destruction of Oa, the dissolution of the Green Lantern Corps, and the betrayal of the Guardians? Gosh, I hope not. There’s playing the hits, and there’s playing the hits. But for anyone who has been out on Green Lantern books for the past few years (for whatever reason), if you’re looking to hop on board and get a sense of the status quo for all the major players? This is the perfect book to pick up to get up to speed, quick.
Green Lantern: Fractured Spectrum #1 Rating:
Green Lantern: Fractured Spectrum #1 Official Synopsis:
Following the events of the Civil Corps, a new era in Green Lantern mythology begins! Once again, Oa has become the epicenter of the Green Lantern Corps, bringing justice to the furthest corners of the galaxy. But a new threat has emerged: beings that manifest uncontrolled parts of the emotional spectrum have randomly appeared throughout the universe. Dubbed Fractal lanterns, Hal and a reformed Green Lantern Corps set off to police this strange new phenomenon while uncovering a sinister plot that could eliminate the very essence of sentient life.
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