John Stewart: Green Lantern Appreciation 2020

[Hi-Max]

Hmm...the article brings up a possibility that I didn't entertain: That the plans for John Stewart could involve giving him some other role or power. I used to think such a thing would be bad, but whether that would be a good thing for him or not all depends on the execution. GL has brand recognition, but it's SO overcrowded with characters that it can be difficult for a character like John Stewart to get spotlight because writers have so many options for who they want to write about, and as we've seen in recent history, they can just make their own Lantern if they want. Furthermore, Hal Jordan is always there, and even if John Stewart manages to break out in some fashion, I don't think he'll ever get completely over Hal Jordan. We've actually seen this in history. Even if some people in power WANT to push John Stewart as GL, those people could be in one minute and out the next, and whoever comes in after them could have completely different ideas. This affects all characters of any role at the company, but potentially more so for a character like John Stewart, whose hero identity has SO MANY derivatives.

[SecretWarrior]

Wait what? They are making him NOT a Green Lantern? What did I miss?

He's still a Green Lantern and there are no plans (that we're aware of) to change him to something else. The writer of the article linked above thinks that wouldn't be a bad idea, but that would be a HORRIBLE idea.

[HandofPrometheus]

The only part that I don't like is the idea that giving John different powers will make him a bigger character. Dick Grayson and James Rhodes are not A-listers or any less tied to another franchise because of a power or name change. Taking the S symbol off of Steel's suit doesn't change the fact that he's a Superman character and always will be. Making Kyle Ion shifted the focus away from him. DC should be treating John like Marvel treats Carol Danvers or Scott Lang or Hope Van Dyne or Kamala Kahn. Anything else is trying to undermine the thing he was sold to us as when we were growing up-- a top 5 hero in the room making the big decisions.

DC is stubborn in making everyone shine. Marvel can do it because they don't care. Marvel would give everyone in a family a solo comic. Even if it's not an ongoing, at least it's a mini or a 12 issue book.

Unpopular opinion here but if giving John a new costume, name, and even power set just to make him bigger then screw it I'm in. I love him as a GL but DC has been sitting on their ass too much with John.

[SecretWarrior]

DC is stubborn in making everyone shine. Marvel can do it because they don't care. Marvel would give everyone in a family a solo comic. Even if it's not an ongoing, at least it's a mini or a 12 issue book.

Unpopular opinion here but if giving John a new costume, name, and even power set just to make him bigger then screw it I'm in. I love him as a GL but DC has been sitting on their ass too much with John.

Hmm...the article brings up a possibility that I didn't entertain: That the plans for John Stewart could involve giving him some other role or power. I used to think such a thing would be bad, but whether that would be a good thing for him or not all depends on the execution. GL has brand recognition, but it's SO overcrowded with characters that it can be difficult for a character like John Stewart to get spotlight because writers have so many options for who they want to write about, and as we've seen in recent history, they can just make their own Lantern if they want. Furthermore, Hal Jordan is always there, and even if John Stewart manages to break out in some fashion, I don't think he'll ever get completely over Hal Jordan. We've actually seen this in history. Even if some people in power WANT to push John Stewart as GL, those people could be in one minute and out the next, and whoever comes in after them could have completely different ideas. This affects all characters of any role at the company, but potentially more so for a character like John Stewart, whose hero identity has SO MANY derivatives.

Show me one instance of any character in John's position taking a different identity and becoming even a top 10 franchise. Nightwing can't even claim that as he falls under the Batman rubrique and isn't even the highest selling Bat book. On top of that, he still appears as Robin in outside media.

Not every Batman or Iron Man or Superman character has a book just because they don't call themselves Batman or Iron Man or Superman. They don't get any more focus. John's branding is as Green Lantern. The Big 5 franchises are Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, and Flash-- Notice that Nightwing, War Machine, and Steel are not such franchises. Trying to change John's identity as a Green Lantern comes across as an attempt to undermine his popularity and branding. People want to see Bruce Wayne as Batman, not Black Bat. People want to see Clark Kent as Superman, not Steel. People want to see Diana Prince as Wonder Woman, not as Fury. And people want to see John as Green Lantern, not as anything else. He hit popularity as Green Lantern. That's who he is and who he's still being marketed as in the mainstream. Nothing is going to change that. Carol Danvers is like the 8th Captain Marvel, and not even the first female one, yet Marvel understands the power of branding. Again, DC should be treating John like Marvel treats Carol Danvers or Scott Lang or Hope Van Dyne or Kamala Kahn.

All is takes is editorial commitment.

[Hi-Max]

Not every Batman or Iron Man or Superman character has a book just because they don't call themselves Batman or Iron Man or Superman. They don't get any more focus. John's branding is as Green Lantern. The Big 5 franchises are Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, and Flash-- Notice that Nightwing, War Machine, and Steel are not such franchises. Trying to change John's identity as a Green Lantern comes across as an attempt to undermine his popularity and branding. People want to see Bruce Wayne as Batman, not Black Bat. People want to see Clark Kent as Superman, not Steel. People want to see Diana Prince as Wonder Woman, not as Fury. And people want to see John as Green Lantern, not as anything else. He hit popularity as Green Lantern. That's who he is and who he's still being marketed as in the mainstream. Nothing is going to change that. Carol Danvers is like the 8th Captain Marvel, and not even the first female one, yet Marvel understands the power of branding. Again, DC should be treating John like Marvel treats Carol Danvers or Scott Lang or Hope Van Dyne or Kamala Kahn.

It's clear to me that you think in absolutes...and only Sith deal in absolutes.
So going back and forth about this with you (which is all it would be) isn't really worth it for me.

[SecretWarrior]

It's clear to me that you think in absolutes...and only Sith deal in absolutes.
So going back and forth about this with you (which is all it would be) isn't really worth it for me.

Again, show me one instance of any character in John's position taking a different identity and becoming even a top 10 franchise. Like I said, Nightwing can't even claim that as he falls under the Batman rubrique and isn't even the highest selling Bat book. On top of that, he still appears as Robin in outside media.

Does Vixen have a book? Bumblebee? Guardian? Steel? Any Black character outright owned by DC?

I'm tired of people trying to undermine John in these not so subtle ways.

Thanks for smearing me as a Sith. Don't let the door hit you on the way out.

[chief12d]

Hmm...the article brings up a possibility that I didn't entertain: That the plans for John Stewart could involve giving him some other role or power. I used to think such a thing would be bad, but whether that would be a good thing for him or not all depends on the execution. GL has brand recognition, but it's SO overcrowded with characters that it can be difficult for a character like John Stewart to get spotlight because writers have so many options for who they want to write about, and as we've seen in recent history, they can just make their own Lantern if they want. Furthermore, Hal Jordan is always there, and even if John Stewart manages to break out in some fashion, I don't think he'll ever get completely over Hal Jordan. We've actually seen this in history. Even if some people in power WANT to push John Stewart as GL, those people could be in one minute and out the next, and whoever comes in after them could have completely different ideas. This affects all characters of any role at the company, but potentially more so for a character like John Stewart, whose hero identity has SO MANY derivatives.

I think I mostly agree with you, but it's worth considering that John has been baked into the public consciousness as a GL. Let's say he takes the name Darkstar (which I believe others have suggested in the past) from now on. How would DC drive home the point to audiences that is John is Darkstar? And how do you solidify that status quo for actual comic fans?

[SecretWarrior]

Yes, let's call a Black character "Darkstar" and have another Black character codenamed according to their race. Let's start calling Aquaman White Fish and an Asian character Yellow Peril while we're at it, lol. Just sounds weak.

[SecretWarrior]

[Sodam Yat]

I kind of agree with what SecretWarrior is saying here. John Stewart serves better as a Green Lantern and nothing else. Using him other than a Green Lantern diminishes his character. If he becomes anything other than a Green Lantern and is written well, he will never get the popularity he would get today. Not only this, but he will not be part of the core Justice League team. He will be replaced by someone else. So all of those cool promotional materials seeing John with the top DC brands will be gone. It will even be harder for the DC guys to sell the character in multimedia (assuming if they're trying to push him) because he would become as an unknown among the general audience. Creating a new identity isn't easy. Even characters like Nightwing is still not in the top 5 core DC characters brands, despite decades of character growth. I understand that we are a little anxious and desperate to see a John Stewart solo, but I think it will do more harm than good for the character if he's no longer a Green Lantern.

[SecretWarrior]

[Sodam Yat]

Nice to see John front and center.

[Marvell2100]

I kind of agree with what SecretWarrior is saying here. John Stewart serves better as a Green Lantern and nothing else. Using him other than a Green Lantern diminishes his character. If he becomes anything other than a Green Lantern and is written well, he will never get the popularity he would get today. Not only this, but he will not be part of the core Justice League team. He will be replaced by someone else. So all of those cool promotional materials seeing John with the top DC brands will be gone. It will even be harder for the DC guys to sell the character in multimedia (assuming if they're trying to push him) because he would become as an unknown among the general audience. Creating a new identity isn't easy. Even characters like Nightwing is still not in the top 5 core DC characters brands, despite decades of character growth. I understand that we are a little anxious and desperate to see a John Stewart solo, but I think it will do more harm than good for the character if he's no longer a Green Lantern.

Very true. Giving John a name change isn't going to suddenly make him a viable character.

Keep John in Justice League. Keep him as leader and show him being a leader, making decisions that lead the team to victories. Make sure to keep the heavy hitters on the team i.e., Superman Wonder Woman and make sure that they respect Johns leadership. Don't have Batman step in and take over or undermine him by going off and doing his own thing during John's leadership.

But at some point they're going to have to have a book strictly for John to continue developing his character. He can't just be John Stewart, leader of the JL or John Stewart, head of the GL Corps. At some point, he's gotta be John Stewart, a man with a life outside of being a GL or JL and make sure to give him an LI.

[dkrook]

DC is stubborn in making everyone shine. Marvel can do it because they don't care. Marvel would give everyone in a family a solo comic. Even if it's not an ongoing, at least it's a mini or a 12 issue book.

Unpopular opinion here but if giving John a new costume, name, and even power set just to make him bigger then screw it I'm in. I love him as a GL but DC has been sitting on their ass too much with John.

Hard yes of agreement with you. They have yo-yoed him around as the second best GL for the last 10 years trying to rub him out in favor of Hal. As I type this there's a book given to top talent for the purpose of highlighting Hal Jordan GL. John is just a floater.

[SecretWarrior]

We're under new management, who seem to be promoting him-- For all the reasons already listed, John is Green Lantern.