Hal Jordan: The Green Lantern Appreciation 2021

[SJNeal]

I think sometimes oddly enough it can almost feel like an obligation of sorts, where you feel like you "have" to go back and read some of the old stuff because you're invested in the franchise and you've heard some particular run is lauded as being iconic, but that sense of obligation is what can sometimes make you postpone it indefinitely too. The GL/GA run is a good example of that for me because I've thought of reading that stuff for so long and I still haven't done it because I just don't like feeling as if I "have" to read it. Also given some of the things I've seen and heard about Hal's portrayal there, I don't believe I'm even going to like it much. Same way I haven't gone back to watch the Adam West Batman show because I've seen every other Batman related outside media and I often think to myself I "should" go back to watch that but I honestly don't think I'll like it a lot. lol

Absolutely. That mentality has also led to a dozen long boxes worth of unread comics in a storage unit I only visit 4x a year. It took me years to finally realize it's impossible to read/buy everything, and not doing so isn't a betrayal of your favorite characters. Silly, I know...

[SJNeal]

This might sound crazy, but I prefer the Englehart run over Johns.

Not crazy at all. Up until a few years ago I'd have said I preferred Jones over Johns, but now that just feels problematic...

[Frontier]

Roger Stern is my favorite Spider-Man writer. I love his Marvel stuff. I recommend getting any of his Spidey stuff from the 1980s.

I wonder if this is why you don't seem too into Mary Jane as a character.

[silly]

I do try and go back and get stuff from pre-my time. At least when DC makes it available in some form (whether trade or digitally). I have most of the trades that makeup WW's publication from 1987 to 2011 for instance

In regards to Hal, I have the Green Lantern: Sector 2814 trades from a few years back that had the Len Wein and Englehart runs and I'll probably get the Silver Age collections over the holidays.

Is that the time when Hal quit the Corps? I only have a few issues from that period.

[Bored at 3:00AM]

Is that the time when Hal quit the Corps? I only have a few issues from that period.

Yeah, it had gun-totin', jetpack wearin' Hal Jordan squaring off against The Predator with one of the better twists in GL history for my money.

[Mutatis_Mutandis]

Yeah, it had gun-totin', jetpack wearin' Hal Jordan squaring off against The Predator with one of the better twists in GL history for my money.

I liked what the story was going for but that gun-toting look was somewhat over-the-top and funny, lol. Couldn't they have tried to give him a cooler look. But it did show that Hal was a hero, with or without a ring, which was cool. He also does some cool detective work piecing together what's going on with chunks of people's memories missing iirc.

[j9ac9k]

As you both came into your Hal fandom around the same era, have either of you ever gone back and read anything that came before? I know when I first started reading comics, I felt this need to "catch up" and would go back and collect as many back issues as was financially feasible. This applied to pretty much every character, not just Hal/GL, so I'm just curious if similar mindsets still exist amongst fans or if my mentality is strictly pre-internet, or pre-everything-gets-a-collection-6-months-after-release.

There were definitely a few titles I scrounged through dusty longboxes for back in the day and Green Lantern was one of them, once I started getting into Hal. (I really got into him just after "Crisis" when DC was getting a lot of attention) I've even had a few dreams of flipping through boxes looking for issues of GL to fill the holes in my collection! I then bought the Broome/Kane collections once I was in a better financial situation.

[Anthony Shaw]

It’s pretty good from what I’ve read so far.

Not really Hal, but it’s very interesting reading this version of John long before the DCAU.

That run has my favorite versions of Hal & John.

I was a big fan of Englehart's Cap & Falcon (before he lost his mind with Snap Wilson).

Same. I think Englehart managed to juggle Hal, John, and Guy brilliantly without either feeling like they were getting the short-end of the stick. The build-up to issue #200 is probably by favorite run of GL comics.

Yes, indeed. All three were unique, and felt like heavyweights. Still, it was no doubt that Hal was the man.

Not crazy at all. Up until a few years ago I'd have said I preferred Jones over Johns, but now that just feels problematic...

Hal vs Mongul will always be epic.

I wonder if this is why you don't seem too into Mary Jane as a character.

You may have me confused with another poster. Stern was the one who brought MJ back after a long hiatus.

[Frontier]

You may have me confused with another poster. Stern was the one who brought MJ back after a long hiatus.

I remember a discussion about civilian love interests and you seemed to think MJ was an example of why you aren't into them. I know Stern never saw her as an endgame ship.

[Anthony Shaw]

I remember a discussion about civilian love interests and you seemed to think MJ was an example of why you aren't into them. I know Stern never saw her as an endgame ship.

I honestly don't recall posting that. I do believe a LI helps ground, and humanize a protagonist.

That is, provided the protagonist is not a humanoid garden tool.

[SJNeal]

There were definitely a few titles I scrounged through dusty longboxes for back in the day and Green Lantern was one of them, once I started getting into Hal. (I really got into him just after "Crisis" when DC was getting a lot of attention) I've even had a few dreams of flipping through boxes looking for issues of GL to fill the holes in my collection! I then bought the Broome/Kane collections once I was in a better financial situation.

Omg I had a recurring dream for months when I started my first LCS pull box - I'd show up every week and whatever book I was most anticipating was the one they forgot to pull!

I was a very cynical adolescent/teen.

[Johnny]

Twitter is a toilet, but occasionally it can still be fun.

[j9ac9k]

Vampires are sexy, whadyagonnado? :shrug:

[Gaius]

Twitter is a toilet, but occasionally it can still be fun.

Vampires are sexy, whadyagonnado? :shrug:

Yeah, but vampire or not, that statement applies to all versions of Hal.

[SiegePerilous02]

Lol maybe DC vs. Vampires ain't completely bad.

It's making people realize that Hal is worthy of their thirst.