Green Lantern: Blackstars #1 - DC Comics
Written by Grant Morrison
Art by Xermanico
Colors by Steve Oliff
Letters by Steve Wands
Cover by Liam Sharp
The Green Lantern Corp is dead. Just typing that out feels bizarre, but you saw what happened in The Green Lantern #12. Now is the time of the Blackstars and a new rule of law in the universe. Is Hal Jordan finally too far gone this time? Let's take a look inside Green Lantern: Blackstars #1.
When you're talking about Controllers, it's pretty obvious that they want control. Parallax and Belzebeth set out to gain that, and in quite brutal fashion. We see what they're capable of right away, and it soon becomes clear that their sights are set on something much bigger. We get to find out not only who they are doing this for, but what the next target will be. This is a pretty big name, and they waste no time going after them. I didn't expect to see the battle play out in this first issue, but that's exactly what we get. One thing is very clear, these Blackstars are no joke and they have a clear vision of what they intend to do. Belzebeth does have one rather shocking piece of news for Hal, and it does actually provide a glimmer of hope for fans of our once great hero. We're left to wonder of the image on the final page will knock that barrier down completely or not.
I really had to put my tap dancing shoes on for this one, because spoiling just a couple of things could help me explain this story a lot better. I do give Morrison a lot of credit for getting right to the point, and also leaving no doubt as to how fierce these Blackstars really are. A lot of credit for that also goes to the art team, because those visuals early on sold that point pretty well. You do see some very small fractures start to form for Hal though, and that is where the greatest of the intrigue lies. Since there are only three issues in this mini-series, I feel like it won't take long to find out which side he ends up ultimately choosing. I was a bit on the fence with this issue until that last page actually. It was a great continuation of Morrison's story in The Green Lantern, but I just wasn't feeling the hook until the end. Now showing what a force the Blackstars are, and Hal's looming future, that ended up drawing me in quickly. This story is intense, brutal and a nice departure from your everyday Green Lantern story.
RATING: PULL / BUY