Pre-Johns Green Lantern: Best stories.

[HandofPrometheus]

There are 3 trades that I really enjoyed also that collect the issues leading up, during and after Crisis on Infinite Earths. It gives you a little of everything. Hal quiting the corps. John taking over over for the first time. The return of Guy Gardner. It was all sorts of crazyness. The trades are called Green Lantern of Sector 2814. These 3 trades cover issue 172-200 of the first Green Lantern series.

The holy trinity *chefs kiss*

[K7P5V]

My personal favorite is...

"Funeral for a Hero"

[Blacula]

I’m ALSO going to recommend these 3 trades. Great era! Possibly the last great Hal era, pre-Johns. I liked a lot of his intervening stories but never loved any of them as much as this one.

I thought the Moore stories were all good too, as was that 3 part Bronze Age Tales of the Green Lantern Corps mini.

For an off-beat choice, I recommend all of Hal’s team ups in Brave and the Bold and DC Comics Presents. They were usually pretty strong.

Oh and one more: I LOVED that Parallax one-shot that Ron Marz wrote to tie in with Final Night. It was a beautiful way to send off the character.

[j9ac9k]

My personal favorite is...

"Funeral for a Hero"

Damn, Kyle ... he was makin' his move on Carol even back then.

[Zero Hunter]

The first story arc of Green Lantern Volume 3 (issue 1-8) is a great story with art by Pat Broderick. It has Hal, John, and Guy facing off with a Guardian who has lost his mind. It picks up a little while after the end of the last series with the Green Lantern Corps being basically gone besides just the few on Earth.

The main reason you don't hear much about this era anymore is because of the writer of the series at the time Gerald Jones is a really creepy guy who did time in prison for child porn. DC has kind of gone out of their way not to reprint many of the books he worked on in the past these days because of the that. Completely understandable to be honest. It does suck because in the early 90's he was the one writing pretty much everything Green Lantern related. From the main Green Lantern title to the Mosaic series to the Guy Gardner: Reborn mini to the first year or so of the Guy Gardner ongoing Jones was writing it all. This was all well before he was arrested, but it does put kind of stink factor over the whole era.

[j9ac9k]

Aside from the Mad Guardian arc, I was never a big fan of these stories anyway. I was not a fan of Broderick's art, I disliked "wandering bum" Hal, not a fan of the white hair, didn't like drunk hicks being able to use the rings (glad Johns made it a lot more difficult for just anyone to use them), didn't like how Guy was able to goad Hal into fighting him and didn't like Hal being presented as the parental "stiff elder statesman" of heroes because they wanted to age him up and differentiate him from the other GL's, so y'know YMMV.

[Blacula]

Aside from the Mad Guardian arc, I was never a big fan of these stories anyway. I was not a fan of Broderick's art, I disliked "wandering bum" Hal, not a fan of the white hair, didn't like drunk hicks being able to use the rings (glad Johns made it a lot more difficult for just anyone to use them), didn't like how Guy was able to goad Hal into fighting him and didn't like Hal being presented as the parental "stiff elder statesman" of heroes because they wanted to age him up and differentiate him from the other GL's, so y'know YMMV.

I agree. While the series as a whole was passable IMO, the countdown to Emerald Twilight really began with issue #1 of it.

[LifeIsILL]

I don't know how people can dislike the 90s Green Lantern run, which was pretty mature, just told good stories and didn't try to depend on some flashy crap for the most part like Michael Bay Geoff Johns who came after.

[Vampire Savior]

I don't know how people can dislike the 90s Green Lantern run, which was pretty mature, just told good stories and didn't try to depend on some flashy crap for the most part like Michael Bay Geoff Johns who came after.

I suppose because they feel it doesn't have the best depiction of Hal Jordan because he has gray temples and started out as a hobo. I can also understand people not liking Pat Broderick's art. It has its weak points, like sometimes his characters are just ugly, but on the other hand, sometimes Broderick did really strong work, and I liked how detailed it was.

People act like Hal was doubting himself and his desire to be a Green Lantern the whole run, but that just isn't true. It was only the first arc, which was about 8 or so issues, and there isn't anything wrong with a character having an internal conflict. The 90s run was really good (relatively speaking, I have gone back and read this stuff fairly recently, and I don't know if I think ANY Green Lantern comics are REALLY good), but I admit it deteriorated when Andy Helfer stopped editing the books and Kevin Dooley took over. From all accounts, Jones and Dooley just did not have a good working relationship, and it greatly affected the quality of the work they were producing. That, and Andy Helfer was a pretty creative guy on his own, it seemed. I remember reading that the whole Mad Guardian abducting cities thing was his idea.

[married guy]

Emerald Dawn
Emerald Dawn II
Tales of the GLC
Green Lantern Corps: Recharge
Green Lantern (vol 3) #66-75
Green Lantern (vol 3) #129-161 Judd Winick's run on the title stirred the pot at the time, but I think he did a STELLAR job.
Sinestro Corps War For me, the high point of Geoff Johns' take on the mythos.

[Dr. Ellingham]

The first story arc of Green Lantern Volume 3 (issue 1-8) is a great story with art by Pat Broderick. It has Hal, John, and Guy facing off with a Guardian who has lost his mind.

For my money it's one of like 3 good arcs that actually utilize multiple human Green Lantern's in the same story. Most of the time, multiple GLs together tend to be ornamental, rather than functional. Credit to Andrew Helfer, it was his idea.

[poroto678]

Well I love everything related to Kyle Rayner.

Marz' run. Winnick's run. They are so awesome cuz he was a GL, but he spent most of his time in NYC trying to pay the bills. He was DC's Peter Parker, but without all the whining and the lame-ass villains. He had an awesome girlfriend, he was on the League.
Aw man, what a great era.

I remember very fondly:
- When his assitant Terry gets beat up and the leaves the planet with Jenny.
- Everytime he went to Warrior's to hang out with Guy and Alan.
- The Alexander Nero getting the yellow ring arc.
- When he became Ion
- Every team-up with Wally West or Connor Hawke.

Great time man.

[EmeraldGladiator]

The first story arc of Green Lantern Volume 3 (issue 1-8) is a great story with art by Pat Broderick. It has Hal, John, and Guy facing off with a Guardian who has lost his mind. It picks up a little while after the end of the last series with the Green Lantern Corps being basically gone besides just the few on Earth.

The main reason you don't hear much about this era anymore is because of the writer of the series at the time Gerald Jones is a really creepy guy who did time in prison for child porn. DC has kind of gone out of their way not to reprint many of the books he worked on in the past these days because of the that. Completely understandable to be honest. It does suck because in the early 90's he was the one writing pretty much everything Green Lantern related. From the main Green Lantern title to the Mosaic series to the Guy Gardner: Reborn mini to the first year or so of the Guy Gardner ongoing Jones was writing it all. This was all well before he was arrested, but it does put kind of stink factor over the whole era.

This, I consider this the 2nd best run on Green Lantern period (behind Geoff's). Took the franchise from cancelled and excelled enough to grow it to 3 monthlies and a quarterly. Green Lantern from issue #1 though the end of the Third Law storyline were pitch perfect, all the while alternating between all three protagonists with their individual storylines and artists. It also spawned Green Lantern Mosaic which for me is the best take on John Stewart and the best merging of the Green Lantern mythos and a Vertigo like mentality ever. It is a real shame because the authors legal issues probably mean Mosaic and this run on GL will not get the attention and respect they deserve.

[j9ac9k]

If I remember correctly:
-- the first storyline was mostly about catching up with the characters after the last series ended, with more emphasis on Hal.
-- then they (remember when there were only three earth Lanterns??) got together for the Mad Guardian storyline
-- then each had their own storyline, taking over the title for a few months each
-- then they all got together again for a storyline centered on Alan Scott.

This was a great formula for a GL title, regardless of how one felt about the execution of each arc. (unfortunately, I wasn't a big fan of Bright, Broderick or Staton)