Al Ewing’s Absolute Green Lantern #14 is a masterclass of reaping and sowing, with deep-seated moments from earlier issues coming to fruition. However, in this particular case, from one issue to the next the reader gets the immediate sense of doom hovering over the Lanterns as Tomar Re has kidnapped them and declared their final destination is none other than Rann.
The Lanterns, who have found themselves all together again, regroup and recollect what they can remember of Hector Hammond and his larger-than-life scheme. Of course, as they barrel through space in the Green Lantern, Hammond seems to becoming less of a present problem and more of post-space problem.
DC
However, back on Earth, Chase, Baz, and the unconscious Todd Rice have their work cut out for them to get away from Hammond’s clean up crew. In a flash, they’re out and racing away, Cameron Chase rightfully saying they’re not the ones in any real danger, thinking instead of Jo and Hal on their way to who knows where.
Tomar Re has kidnapped the group, determined to kill Mogo and nothing will stop him until he achieves this, diving a bit into his own Red Lantern backstory.
Tragedy, something intrinsic to most, if not all, stories about people striving to be better than they are, always lies in the wings. Inevitably, especially with Ewing’s work, the idea of suffering and who has out-suffered whom, is touched upon. But the answer is never as simple as someone who clearly saw worse than another, instead pain is layered.
DC
Of course, those who want to stop great suffering sometimes cause their own. Tomar Re’s plan to stop Mogo involves killing an unknown number of people trapped in the Green Lantern, and Stewart rightly brings up sacrificing innocent people to destroy Mogo cannot be the only way.
…which gets him, Guy Gardner and Hal Jordan sent outside the ship to deal with the Rann Backstars alone.
The issue leaves Tomar Re wildly underestimating Jo and her strength, a spectacular show of inner power one would expect to find in Jo Mullein, no matter the universe.
Every issue of Absolute Green Lantern continues to pull the viewer further and further, more pieces of the larger picture at work nearly on display. I particularly enjoyed the reminder of Hammond’s scant power in the universe at large. He may be a major player on Earth, but leave the atmosphere and there are much larger, much more dangerous forces at work.
Sid Kotan’s art, along with Pressy’s colors and Lucas Gattoni’s letters continue to pull the comic together in a vivid flash of intensity. Through the focus on each character’s own color, even without speech bubbles the expression and tone of the work speaks for itself.
If you’ve hesitated to pick up Absolute Green Lantern, or you’ve fallen a bit behind (no shame!), I cannot encourage everyone enough to read it. With the understanding of the core of each character placed into the Absolute universe, Ewing plays with character identities that would normally not receive the same amount of care and attention in the main universe. Absolute Green Lantern is the under-sung joy of the Absolute Universe.
You must be logged in to post a comment.