John Stewart: Green Lantern Appreciation 2021

[SecretWarrior]

https://www.deviantart.com/jasric

[Sodam Yat]

https://www.deviantart.com/jasric

This looks nice!

Did you read first issue of Green Lantern yet?

[SecretWarrior]

I did-- And I really liked it!

I'm a writer myself, so I have a lot of empathy for RedJack. The first issue or two in a series (or Act 1 and Act 2a) are tough, since you're trying to keep a reader's interest while doing a bunch of necessary set up and exposition, which can get boring quick. Glad DC allowed this to be a longer issue to get a bunch of that out of the way. It seems like Redjack is arranging so many different elements so that a longer run can be supported by several intersecting storylines. That makes it easier to make sure that there's something engaging regularly happening, even when more set up has to happen down the line. Multiple plot threads, when handled well, can add a certain depth to storytelling too, since the universe doesn't start to feel like it revolves around one person, which I like.

The characterizations have been great so far. John is established as a highly capable leader, so his choices will no doubt ripple across the universe. Baz is getting some development, and it seems like he may develop a friendship with John. That'll be interesting, since I remember Baz being a cautious and questioning GL, which is why he carries a sidearm in case his ring fails. He comes across as self reliant, so how he meshes with leadership may show us different sides to both those positions. I never thought Keli would stick around this long, but the tiny powerhouse is often a fun idea. I think there was a mention of Jo too, and it seems like she'll continue to be an investigator. If that's right, it'll be interesting to see how her storyline intersects with the others. Every GL who showed up seemed to get their due.

I like how the United Planets is being used to set up intrigue and mystery. Good writing almost always comes down to interesting relationships, and Redjack is finding ways to make relationships interesting. I like the idea of the various paramilitary organizations in the universe trying to establish their authority. Lots of interesting conflict there.

I like how we see the new Thanagarian subtly reflecting her culture, from using the sun to her advantage when approaching John and Hal, to the language she uses about sunsets. You can tell Redjack has put a lot of thought into the smaller details like that.

Writers tend to have certain ticks you can pick up on that allow you to tell who the writer is without even having to read the credits. Like Snyder loves filling his dialogue with fun facts he's picked up while doing research, lol. It seems like Redjack loves picking up obscure or unrelated DCU references and making them fit together in new ways. I like that. I wasn't expecting magic to pop up, but it looks like there's going to be an opportunity to link Alan closer to the Corps. I like how so many of the ceremonial robes mirrored Alan's costume. What I liked even more was John choosing to wear the Kryptonian ceremonial corps uniform that looks like the Kryptonian dress in Byrne's Man of Steel book.

Given all the thought that went into the first issue, you can tell Redjack is writing from a place of passion and that he has a vision. He's also great at dialogue and pacing. This is a strong start, and I'm happy to see where things go next.

If there's one thing I'd like to see it's this-- Johns has this way of advertising his future story arcs so that readers stay on past the first few issues. Blackest Night was hinted at early in his GL run. The fourth issue of Aquaman ended by laying out the future of the run. The first few pages of Shazam were essentially an illustrated log line... I think that should be standard practice in comics.

Keep up the good work, Thorne!

[Sodam Yat]

Excellent review!

I didn't know you're a writer. You mentioned things I haven't thought of. It makes sense. It does seem like a bunch of elements are made to expand to multiple storylines in a longer run.

That's one good thing about Geoff Johns. He does know how to advertise to get new readers on the book.

[Vordan]

I remember Venditti teased a bunch of arcs at the end of his first HJ&tGLC arc as well. Some never happened but I always enjoy it when writers do that. It lets you know there’s a long term plan, even if the plan gets adjusted or thrown out, they’re not just making it up as they go. Would love to get a tease of what the long term plan is for John.

[Frontier]

I remember Venditti teased a bunch of arcs at the end of his first HJ&tGLC arc as well. Some never happened but I always enjoy it when writers do that. It lets you know there’s a long term plan, even if the plan gets adjusted or thrown out, they’re not just making it up as they go. Would love to get a tease of what the long term plan is for John.

(Cries for Evil Star) .

[Sodam Yat]

I remember Venditti teased a bunch of arcs at the end of his first HJ&tGLC arc as well. Some never happened but I always enjoy it when writers do that. It lets you know there’s a long term plan, even if the plan gets adjusted or thrown out, they’re not just making it up as they go. Would love to get a tease of what the long term plan is for John.

I agree. It brings more excitement and shows the fans that writers are heavily invested in the characters they're writing.

[Anthony Shaw]

https://www.deviantart.com/jasric

That is a fantastic visual. The visual symbolizes, to me, that John should not be Earth-bound unless he is with the League.

[Jabare]

Honestly, I wouldn't mind if they condensed his sector to something between the size of the Milky Way Galaxy and our solar system. Throw in a plot point about why this area is so important if need be.

Otherwise, it just nags me to have a GL on one planet all the time when their mandate appears to be to safeguard much more than that. (Pretty sure sector 2814 has at least 140 planets, don't quote me.)

That doesn't mean there can't be adventures or storylines outside of that.

[SecretWarrior]

I actually feel like removing the limit on one or two GLs per sector is a good idea for that reason, among others. I'm sure some sectors need more GLs than others just based on the number of planets and their distance from one another. They can also play roles besides "protector." There's GL leadership, GL diplomats, GL explorers, GL wetworks/black ops (the "Corpse"), GL internal affairs, etc. That would resolve the too many Earth GLs thing and allow for different types of storytelling with the different lanterns, like Jo seems to be the designated "Jack Reacher" of the group now. There could be other sectors out there with just as many or more GLs. I think this may have been what RedJack was hinting at with the "Crux Worlds" or whatever. I guess we'll have to wait and see.

[SecretWarrior]

[Sodam Yat]

There has been some teases that no Green Lantern is safe and how many are going probably going to die. I remember Redjack not being really fond of a fixed number of lanterns being assigned to each sector. So I'm sure we're going to see some big changes on how the Green Lanterns are going to patrol the universe, especially given the fact that the United Planets is a newly established cosmic governance.

[Sodam Yat]

[Vordan]

Loved that Prankster story.

The redesigns were pretty cool, I like John having longer hair.

[Frontier]

Where's the first image from?