Green Lantern #5 has to be my favorite one of the series so far. Jeremy Adams and Xermanico come together to remind us why Hal Jordan is a top-tier hero in the DC Universe. Being able to call Green Lantern by his secret identity is one of the main reasons Hal is a premier hero – it isn’t just his power set that defines him, but his personality. In this issue, there is a moment where Hal Jordan rallies people to rise above fear and be more, which is a great power in itself, to move people. Not only do we get a powerful character moment, but we also see some wild goings-on within the Emotional Spectrum.
As you can see from our preview, Sinestro takes to the media to call out humanity. It is very interesting to see what Sinestro is saying about humanity in these current days. I like that this current story arc is very grounded, and Sinestro’s calling out these flaws on people helps to dig in deeper with an attack on the character along with his physical attack. Jeremy Adams sets up an interesting set of actions for Sinestro that plan to produce enough fear that might jumpstart Sinestro’s yellow ring. Could this work? Could the fear people make create energy for the ring to work? It doesn’t seem too far-fetched, as the black rings do something similar.
Jeremy Adams then sets up Hal Jordan with a plan to stop Sinestro that will require some feats. As I mentioned earlier, the speech Hal gave people worldwide to counter Sinestro was a beautiful moment. Adams’ words were profound and played perfectly off the earlier criticisms of Sinestro’s speech. It is delightful to see how the two counterpoints work with and against each other and how Sinestro divides people and tears them down while Hal lifts and unites them. The scene harkened back to Green Lantern Vol. 4 #25, but played beyond it as it felt like Hal learned from that moment and knew how to work with people in a different light.
I don’t want to leave out the art, as Xermanico and Romulo Fajardo Jr. create a fabulous feast for the eyes. Xermanico perfectly captures the expressions of fear, hopelessness, inspiration, and determination, elevating the script to a higher level. When Hal changes to GL and flies off to save the day, Xermanico crafts one of the best images of a heroic Hal. It’s a cover-worthy image that showcases the steel will of Hal Jordan. Fajardo’s colors rise to the challenge of playing in a world of a color-lit hero; the dog fight scenes between Hal and the drones illuminated the energy and explosions perfectly to showcase the intensity in those moments.
The Wayward Son saga continues with part two as a backup for this issue. Things move a bit faster as characters are introduced in the last issue, and Pete Tomasi shows how obsessed Sinson is. A little light is shed on how Sinson got placed in the orphanage, leading to quite the butting of heads between Sinson and Nagaf. David Lafuente and Tamra Bonvillain play consistently in the world they have built. The darker tones in the orphanage give it a bleak feeling, and with this issue, I find myself rooting more for Sinson. Overall, Green Lantern #5 is a wonderful issue that plays with great characters, new and old, that inspires you not to back down.
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