Morrison on Green Lantern

[SiegePerilous02]

This last issue was beautiful.

Any nay sayers still saying these stories could have been told with another GL need to GTFO already. This one was a Hal story through and through. If Morrison is turning out stories this solid to great with Hal, that means Hal has more depth to him than people give him credit for.

[Johnny]

You didn't enjoy the issue in which Hal punches out God and arrests the entire planet Earth for being intoxicated? That issue was all comedy.

The 2000AD comparison is apt. Each issue is a different genre and tone. Some are horror, some are farce, some are fairy tales. The beauty of Hal Jordan's character is that he's such an elegantly simple archetype, the superhero space cop, that you can slot him into almost any kind of story and he'll work because the guy isn't fazed by anything. Whatever you throw at him, he'll dive in and get the job done.

It's both a throwback and radical because mainstream escapist fiction doesn't really do this anymore, where the focus is so squarely on examining the psychology of the protagonist. This isn't really able that. Hal Jordan isn't riddled with self-doubt or haunted by past trauma anymore. This isn't to say he's without depth, but what Morrison has done is show how complicated a guy like that, who's seen and done things beyond imagination, while putting him in increasingly complex situations to see how he'll respond.

[silly]

This last issue was beautiful.

Any nay sayers still saying these stories could have been told with another GL need to GTFO already. This one was a Hal story through and through. If Morrison is turning out stories this solid to great with Hal, that means Hal has more depth to him than people give him credit for.

True.

The stories in TGL are all owned by Hal Jordan.

[HsssH]

Last issue was probably my favourite single issue that I have read in a while. Masterpiece.

[Johnny]

This last issue was beautiful.

Any nay sayers still saying these stories could have been told with another GL need to GTFO already. This one was a Hal story through and through. If Morrison is turning out stories this solid to great with Hal, that means Hal has more depth to him than people give him credit for.

It's the same old BS that people come up with to hate on a character they don't like. And when there's an acclaimed story from a great run like this where those shitty claims have absolutely no merit, they stay silent because there's nothing to say. It can be quite amusing to see actually.

[SiegePerilous02]

It's the same old BS that people come up with to hate on a character they don't like. And when there's an acclaimed story from a great run like this where those shitty claims have absolutely no merit, they stay silent because there's nothing to say. It can be quite amusing to see actually.

I actually saw a review that said it was a great comic, but said it was a "shame Morrison is writing about the worst GL."
They don't see the disconnect here. If he's writing great stories built around Hal, logically that means he has a lot to work with, but screw logic.

It's petty BS. DC could do more for all the Earth GLs, but Hal's the franchise lead like Clark, Bruce and Diana are for theirs. At worst he's still above Barry, where there is a little more of a gray area between him and Wally, but it's not even close between Hal and the others. Get over it already.

[Johnny]

I actually saw a review that said it was a great comic, but said it was a "shame Morrison is writing about the worst GL."
They don't see the disconnect here. If he's writing great stories built around Hal, logically that means he has a lot to work with, but screw logic.

It's petty BS. DC could do more for all the Earth GLs, but Hal's the franchise lead like Clark, Bruce and Diana are for theirs. At worst he's still above Barry, where there is a little more of a gray area between him and Wally, but it's not even close between Hal and the others. Get over it already.

That's the funniest part to me since I only see this with Hal. If it's anyone other than Hal, you will never see a review that praises the story but claims the book is using the "wrong" Lantern. And if the author does happen to still dislike whoever the other Lantern is, they would never mention it, while they find Hal to be an easy target so those "professionals" always choose to go after him. But I digress, the latest issue was unbelievable.

[SiegePerilous02]

That's the funniest part to me since I only see this with Hal. If it's anyone other than Hal, you will never see a review that praises the story but claims the book is using the "wrong" Lantern. And if the author does happen to still dislike whoever the other Lantern is, they would never mention it, while they find Hal to be an easy target so those "professionals" always choose to go after him. But I digress, the latest issue was unbelievable.

And this issue specifically wouldn't work with anyone else, because Hal has the closest bond to his ring and Myrwhydden was long established as being inside Hal/Abin's ring. So they'd have to jump through a lot of hoops and make up a new ring wizard to do it with any of the other Earth Lanterns, and it wouldn't be nearly as effective because there is no history (as obscure as it is)

[Talon1load]

Hal doesn’t have Abins ring anymore though. The ring he has no was forged from his will power.

[Bored at 3:00AM]

Hal doesn’t have Abins ring anymore though. The ring he has no was forged from his will power.

The ring is more than its physical vessel. It's an energy construct that's been destroyed and recreated many times now. Hal reforged it with his own will most recently, yes, but the "magic" of the ring, and all it contains, just keeps getting passed on to a new physical vessel over and over.

[Mutatis_Mutandis]

That's the funniest part to me since I only see this with Hal. If it's anyone other than Hal, you will never see a review that praises the story but claims the book is using the "wrong" Lantern. And if the author does happen to still dislike whoever the other Lantern is, they would never mention it, while they find Hal to be an easy target so those "professionals" always choose to go after him. But I digress, the latest issue was unbelievable.

It's especially amusing considering how much praise Morrison has had for Hal in his interviews as far as his depth of character is concerned. It's not like anyone forced Grant to go with Hal so all this "Morrison is writing about the worst GL" seems like an especially tedious, frustrating and roundabout way to say, "Morrison is not writing about my favourite GL!"

And yeah, equating Hal with Barry is ridiculous. Barry had a complete story arc and was given a satisfying heroic finale (Barry fans may disagree, of course). What was done to Hal in '94 is not very different from what is being done to Wally today. Besides, Hal was never really *gone* from the DCU in a significant way. He was technically 'dead' for what - 4 years? - before reappearing as the Spectre? And even during that time, they brought back a time travelling younger Hal in the comics.

Anyway, I think Morrison has unearthed a lot of fascinating, never-before-explored aspects in Hal, especially by taking into consideration his whole history (and his often contradictory personalities), and hopefully this run will create new fans.

[AngryComicBookNerd]

The ring is more than its physical vessel. It's an energy construct that's been destroyed and recreated many times now. Hal reforged it with his own will most recently, yes, but the "magic" of the ring, and all it contains, just keeps getting passed on to a new physical vessel over and over.

Yeah come to think of it, his ring has been through a lot. IIRC wasn't Kyle's first ring made from the broken remains of Hal's ring right before he became Parallax?

[Bored at 3:00AM]

Yeah come to think of it, his ring has been through a lot. IIRC wasn't Kyle's first ring made from the broken remains of Hal's ring right before he became Parallax?

Yes, and those events have a whole new meaning now that we know the relationship between Hal and his ring.

There was also the moment when Hal got his ring back during the Crisis that originally felt odd, but makes perfect sense now.

Morrison has really done his research

[numberthirty]

Hal doesn’t have Abins ring anymore though. The ring he has no was forged from his will power.

The ring is more than its physical vessel. It's an energy construct that's been destroyed and recreated many times now. Hal reforged it with his own will most recently, yes, but the "magic" of the ring, and all it contains, just keeps getting passed on to a new physical vessel over and over.

I tend to agree with what's in blue.

If there have been indicators that it is not the case, I can't really recall them off of the top of my head.

[j9ac9k]

Bored's explanation is a great "no-prize" answer, but I don't think writers have felt the need to go to such lengths to explain it because they've either just made mistakes from not knowing continuity or just outright ignoring it (Hal was wearing Malvolio's ring). I think the real answer is just that some people like to fetishize the ring (the non-sexual use of the word) and its connection to Hal - that it's not as special unless it's the same literal ring that Abin Sur gave him. (hence the scene during the Crisis tie-in when Hal got his ring back) I get it and don't mind it - the ring is not just the ring, it's the office and his life as a Lantern that's the relationship, the ring is just a powerful literary device and it has more power when it's the same ring.