Writer: Geoff Johns

Artist Doug Mahnke

Oa, The Guardian’s chambers. Ganthet, having recently been lobotomized by his fellow guardians (See my review of Green Lantern: New Guardians #2) tells his fellow guardians what he’s learned. Over his time serving in different Corps he’s learned that each army that has been created (The Mahunters and The Corps) have had the capacity for fault. That in the end, they have failed. So Ganthet decides it’s time to sanction “The Third Army”.

Meanwhile, things are finally heating up for Hal Jordan, erstwhile Green Lantern of sector 2814. Sinestro has given him a proxy ring that he can turn on and off at whim. Using that as leverage he’s sealed a deal that ensures Hal’s help in overthrowing his Corps in return for a permanent ring. Together they take off for Korugar, and when they reach it, Hal learns a few new tricks from his old mentor. Sinestro then reveals the failsafe he built into the battery, if a Green Lantern were to enter the main battery, it would automatically shut down. Sinestro instructs Hal to wait until sunset, and then once Sinestro has engaged the corpsmen, to take his lantern battery to the Central yellow battery. As they lie in wait a Korugaran woman named Arsona attacks a corpsmen, prompting Sinestro to break the plan and attack. Hal makes it to the central battery but all does not go well for him. Pick up the issue to find out the thrilling to be continued moment!

I’m really digging this story. As slow as it started in issue one, it’s beginning to pick up steam in a break-neck way. We’re seeing some insanely cool interactions between Sinestro and Hal and we’re being introduced to, what I can only assume will be pants wettingly awesome/terrifying, The Third Army.

Firstly, Hal and Sinestro are one of my favorite team-ups to date. The banter and constant one upping is really great. I won’t go into the over used, “They secretly, deep down, respect each other” angle, but there’s one line that I really like. Hal asks Sinestro why HIM? Why Hal? Sinestro says, “Because as surprising as it is to even me, I can trust you. Especially since I control the off switch on your ring.”

I’m also digging the angle that Sinestro is some kind of Ring genius. He’s doing things with his ring that we’ve never seen before and that’s just exciting to me to see what’s next.

The art by Mahnke continues to be good. There are a couple of panels in here that are really sweet, one of which is Hal socking old Sinestro right in the kisser. Otherwise, still good.

Overall I feel like Green Lantern has finally hit it’s stride. Three issues in and it’s go go go. With The Sinestro Corps still at large and alive, and the mysterious Third Army coming into being, we’ve got a lot to look forward to

5 out of 5


Michael Knoll is a contributing writer at Champion City Comics

Writer: Tony Bedard

Artist: Tyler Kirkham

New Guardians picks up right where the last issue left off with Kyle Rayner surrounded by members of the Red, Indigo, Violet, and Sinestro Corps. And that’s not even covering all the RINGS. One from each Corps. The other lanterns, intent on killing Rayner, fight Kyle and each other to the death. Saint Walker arrives and manages to help Kyle escape and get to OA where he seeks out Ganthet for advice. Upon entering the Guardians chambers he finds that there’s something rotten on the planet OA. Meanwhile back on Earth the other lanterns have decided to team up and go after him, even though that means breaking the ban that The Guardians seem to have put on their planet. The issue ends with The Guardians attacking Kyle to seize the rings, and interrogate him. Somehow the rings make their way onto Kyle’s fingers and we are treated to a pretty awesome splash page.

One thing that I’m starting to wonder about is, what’s Kyle’s motivation in all this. Not the New Guardians, but as a Green Lantern. He tells Saint Walker that he sees Ganthet as a mentor/ father figure, but so far we haven’t really glimpsed much of Kyle’s character.

The art by Kirkham continues to be solid, and his respective splash pages are fairly impressive. The aforementioned splash page with Kyle wearing all the rings is ranked up there on my most favorite comic art.

The story is getting pretty heavy, and I’m loving it! At the outset I didn’t know what they meant by New Guardians. I’d heard that Rayner was going to be leading a team of Lanterns from each Corps, but it seems like they might be usurping The Guardians! Only time will tell.

4.5 out of 5

Michael Knoll is a contributing writer at Champion City Comics 

Writer: Tony Bedard

Pencils: Tyler Kirkman

Tony Bedard introduces us to The New 52’s Kyle Rayner, a down-and-out art student who is selected by the Guardian Ganthet to become the newest Green Lantern. Ganthet travels to Earth after rising from a pile of dead Guardians, surrounded by dead Corpsmen, on what appears to be a destroyed Oa. No explanation is given. Kyle immediately takes to the ring and begins saving the day all over Earth. The focus quickly shifts all across space as members of the Sinestro, Red Lantern, and Star Sapphire Corps’ are suddenly rejected by their rings, resulting in the deaths of all but the Star Sapphire. Back on Earth, Kyle has just saved a group of construction workers and stopped their crane from destroying the street below. All of the sudden, one of every color ring appears, offering themselves to him. They are all closely followed by members of their respective corps all threatening to kill Kyle, thinking he is behind the mysterious occurrence.

The art by Tyler Kirkman is pretty cool. It reminds me of the art in The Walking Dead, but it's colored and a sort of a muted color at that. It gives the book a really cool feel.

To be honest, I’ve been looking forward to a book like this for a long time. The various corps playing off each other with their different, and sometimes contradicting, disciplines means some awesome character interactions and development. I’m not sure about Kyle being the leader of this new group, but I’m open to it. The art is solid, and the story is promising.


5 out of 5.


Michael Knoll is a contributing writer at Champion City Comics.