John Stewart: Green Lantern Appreciation 2020

[TheManhunterfromMars]

So, this new writer... any ideas what it means for John Stewart? He said something? By the way I´ve found this, Lord Green Lantern and Lady Hawkgirl from Justice Lords:
90281818_10207459575244682_8073123668353351680_n.jpg

Also, John Stewart with green mask and more afro facial features, if it interests you:
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[Frontier]

They've been going with a Big 5 approach recently, and I really like it.





Besides the added humor and diversity the Brave and the Bold bring, I always found the Trinity dynamic boring. World's Finest was a fun buddy cop idea, but the Trinity is usually written in a way in which they all seem too perfect.

In my opinion, these five should be the core Justice League team, and then you can have small satellite teams (like JLU) that are more specialized (JL Dark, JLA, JLI, Young Justice, The Terrifics, Outsiders, etc.) that fall under the same banner and operate in the same base.

This makes me wonder. Can writers not use Aquaman because of what's going on in his own book? Did Snyder explain away where J'onn and Kendra are?

For me, five just doesn't feel very Justice League. They're a pantheon, not a new team on the block.

I think the line up they're using now is good, but I'd add one more female. If it was up to me, it'd be Shayera, because I love the JL cartoon. Snyder fumbled by using Kendra instead, in my opinion. Not that it really matters, because I don't even like what he did with Hawkgirl. I don't like the idea of an oversized Justice League, or one that is filled with a bunch of C-list DC heroes, so I'd keep the line up to 6 or 7.

I actually don't even like the Justice League B-teams, like Odyssey and Dark. Preferably, they would go under their own names. It's not like they even sell that great using the Justice League name. Justice League B-books never sell that well, so I would just give them their own names for the sake of the teams having their own identities, and to keep the Justice League from getting watered down.

I doubt those B-Books would have lasted as long as they did without attaching themselves to the bigger Justice League branding, and even with the Justice League name I'd say both titles still have a strong sense of identity in comparison to the main League.

[TheManhunterfromMars]

I think the same as you. For me Justice League it must be bigger, like it used to be pre Flashpoint, without many of the classic JL members except the ones without a solo book (J´onn, John, Kendra) and sporadic cameos of classic Leagues. About J´onn and Kendra, I know some people has wondering about them to Snyder, but he didn´t say anything, I´m worrying they aren´t on Death Metal maybe, or at least not first two issues.

[SecretWarrior]

The reason the Trinity exists is because of the pantheon approach. There are so many characters you have to treat some as a list and everyone else as b list. Can't stand that. Just use a smaller roster or let folks know who the team within the team is instead of misleading people. I'm not buying a title that treats my favorite characters as b list.

[Frontier]

The reason the Trinity exists is because of the pantheon approach. There are so many characters you have to treat some as a list and everyone else as b list. Can't stand that. Just use a smaller roster or let folks know who the team within the team is instead of misleading people. I'm not buying a title that treats my favorite characters as b list.

I don't think writers are trying to deliberately mislead people, I don't think when writers concoct a roster they think of it as A-list or B-list (if anything they might think they're elevating B-listers), but sometimes runtime or pacing issues get to the point where there are only so much focus you can give on certain characters...and I think for the most part people aren't in favor of limited rosters because it limits the amount of characters you can focus on or feature.

[SecretWarrior]

I don't think writers are trying to deliberately mislead people, I don't think when writers concoct a roster they think of it as A-list or B-list (if anything they might think they're elevating B-listers), but sometimes runtime or pacing issues get to the point where there are only so much focus you can give on certain characters...

It may not be the intention, but it's the result. They also choose to focus on the same characters for some level of continuity between arcs, i.e. the "Trinity." That group has been around since the 90s, and no writer has successfully put another character on that level.

and I think for the most part people aren't in favor of limited rosters because it limits the amount of characters you can focus on or feature.

I think bigger rosters limit who you can focus or feature for the reason you wrote above.

Having lots of small teams, allows for actual development of characters who need it. You can still have crossovers or guest stars or rotate the rosters. But de facto creating a-list, b-list, and c-list characters prevents fans from giving certain characters a chance, since they're clearly not important to the universe overall. Like, when was the last time Red Tornado got any development? The Question? Hawk and Dove? What's the value of these IPs when you're not even trying to enhance their fanbases?

Also, if there is an elevated core group-- whether that be the Trinity, like in the current comics, or the JL founders, like in JLU, then I'd like to see it actually be more diverse, rather than relegate minority characters to b-list status by default.

[Frontier]

It may not be the intention, but it's the result. They also choose to focus on the same characters for some level of continuity between arcs, i.e. the "Trinity." That group has been around since the 90s, and no writer has successfully put another character on that level.

That doesn't mean they are incapable of focusing on other characters though.

Like, for instance, the main team on Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes was 8-members strong, and while we didn't get the full team together until close to the midpoint of the series, I think the show did a good job of focusing on each and every character and featuring them well. Not every episode had the whole team together but not ever story needed it. Same with Justice League.

I think bigger rosters limit who you can focus or feature for the reason you wrote above.

I think that depends on the team and what kind of approach the writers take with it.

Having lots of small teams, allows for actual development of characters who need it. You can still have crossovers or guest stars or rotate the rosters. But de facto creating a-list, b-list, and c-list characters prevents fans from giving certain characters a chance, since they're clearly not important to the universe overall. Like, when was the last time Red Tornado got any development? The Question? Hawk and Dove? What's the value of these IPs when you're not even trying to enhance their fanbases?

I think the issue of the concept of a-list, b-list, or c-list characters is different from whether it is a factor in a team book. Because there's no guarantee writers would even have those characters on a team to begin with, but a wider Justice League would probably have a better chance of featuring them at some point.

The Question is currently featured in a few comics, actually. Not in any team books though.

[Sodam Yat]

There is one MAJOR issue and this goes back to DC's antics of the past. 4 of the Big 5 have their books. Previous folks have at least sniff solo shots beyond the first try or gotten minis.

If that is your big 5-Number 5 better be treated the same as the rest. Lets see a solo or mini shot. Lets see him in other books as guest star. Lets see him with a one shot or a mini from an event. Like we saw with the King from some African country, a guy who talks to birds, a biracial web slinger & some Marvelous Captain.

Justice League should NOT be the only place to get a decent John. It needs to be spread out because as we have seen there are a LOT of folks whose best stuff is not in trades, especially under a certain writer whose in prison.

I think there's still time for that. The good thing I see so far is that John Stewart does have a strong presence in the Justice League book. But he still needs his own book. It still lead up to new readers probably being interested in reading his own series. I mean, Mark Russell reiterated again recently about how he pitched for a John Stewart/Katma title:

Screenshot 2020-03-14 22.53.44.jpg

https://twitter.com/Manruss/status/1...246446593?s=20

Man, his pitch sounded promising. A romantic comedy? That sounds like an interesting take on the character. I would buy that series so fast! It's a shame that DC didn't green lit it. This happened when Dan Didio was at DC. I wouldn't be surprised he was one of the guys who shot down that pitch. A real shame. Thank goodness that he's gone. Hopefully there will be a brighter future for John Stewart and Wally West, now that Dan Didio can't hurt those characters no more.

[SecretWarrior]

The Lightsmith



The Emerald Architect

[SecretWarrior]

I think there's still time for that. The good thing I see so far is that John Stewart does have a strong presence in the Justice League book. But he still needs his own book. It still lead up to new readers probably being interested in reading his own series. I mean, Mark Russell reiterated again recently about how he pitched for a John Stewart/Katma title:

Screenshot 2020-03-14 22.53.44.jpg

https://twitter.com/Manruss/status/1...246446593?s=20

Man, his pitch sounded promising. A romantic comedy? That sounds like an interesting take on the character. I would buy that series so fast! It's a shame that DC didn't green lit it. This happened when Dan Didio was at DC. I wouldn't be surprised he was one of the guys who shot down that pitch. A real shame. Thank goodness that he's gone. Hopefully there will be a brighter future for John Stewart and Wally West, now that Dan Didio can't hurt those characters no more.

Azzarello and Chang's All-Star Green Lantern was also supposed to star John. Based on the pitches we know about and DC's plans to kill off John, it seems like there might have been attempts to sabotage him during Didio's tenure. Hopefully his departure means better things for John.

[SecretWarrior]

Fine, if there's a 7+ version of the League, no reason John can't be treated like a member of the Trinity. Just call the varsity team "The Big Four" or the "Big Five" or something.

[SecretWarrior]

Role Model

[SecretWarrior]

Michael Jai White as John Stewart

[Vordan]

Thought John had a pretty good showing in the last JL issue. He was the one who came up with the plan to beat Eradicator and helped to coordinate the team. I liked seeing him in a leadership role.

Azzarello and Chang's All-Star Green Lantern was also supposed to star John. Based on the pitches we know about and DC's plans to kill off John, it seems like there might have been attempts to sabotage him during Didio's tenure. Hopefully his departure means better things for John.

Woah what the hell is this about an Azz All-Star GL story? You got any more info about this? Azz can be hit or miss but a cosmic Stewart story with Azz writing sounds insane, I would definitely have checked it out.

[Sodam Yat]

Thought John had a pretty good showing in the last JL issue. He was the one who came up with the plan to beat Eradicator and helped to coordinate the team. I liked seeing him in a leadership role.

I agree. John's leadership and competence really showed in this issue. Barry and Diana even acknowledged John's competence here. You can tell that Robert Venditti is very fond of John Stewart. It's so obvious. By him leaving after just a few issues, makes me a bit disappointed he won't be writing Justice League. So it worries me, because I don't know how the next writer will write John. I'm just hoping that John still has a strong presence. Hopefully he's still written well.