DC Comic's Next "Green Lantern" Event Shines in October

The Guardians of the Universe, it seems, are finally embracing to their emotions.  And, beware, Lanterns: the Guardians don't appear to need you anymore.

Announced today via DC's The Source, a new Green Lantern event is happening at DC Comics, and it's spanning all power ring-based titles that have been relaunched with the New 52 - Green Lantern, Green Lantern Corps, Green Lantern: New Guardians, and Red Lanterns.

Get ready for "Rise of the Third Army," starting this October with Green Lantern #13!

"The Third Army," it appears, is a reference to these new white, mouthless beasts with "a curious resistance to death" shown in the above art by Ivan Reis, being the third force the Guardians created to police the galaxy. (The Manhunters and the Green Lantern Corps are, of course, the first two.)

There are few things to take from this image:  the center spot for the mysterious, new Green Lantern, the notable lack of Hal Jordan and Sinestro, and the Guardians' apparent rage.  They were never ones for emotion, so it'll be interesting to see how this plays out later this year.

Teasing "The Third Army," venerable DC scribe and DC Entertainment's Chief Creative Officer Geoff Johns said:

Absolute power corrupts absolutely--and the Guardians time is finally here. The Lantern titles spent the first year of DC COMICS-THE NEW 52 re-establishing themselves, but it all comes back together with year 2 starting with GREEN LANTERN #0 and leading into October's #13's - which share an amazing cover by Ivan Reis. In October, the Guardians' Third Army rises to replace the Green Lantern Corps - but how is horrifying and why will change the Guardians and their ancient mission forever. As we discover what the Third Army actually means, our strongest Lanterns are targeted for absolute destruction. From Atrocitus to Guy Gardner to our newest Green Lantern from Earth - who may have been wrongly chosen - all their darkest secrets and failures will come to light.

Welp, consider me appropriately teased.  More info of "Rise of the Third Army" will no doubt find its way to the public with a certain comic convention happening next week - we'll be sure to keep our ears to the ground and report with updates.

NYCC 2011: DC All Access Panel - Green Lantern

New York Comic Con 2011 saw the return of the talented minds behind DC's multiple Green Lantern comic book series.  At the DC All Access - Green Lantern panel, GL editor Brian Cunningham, Geoff Johns (writer, Green Lantern), Peter Tomasi (writer, Green Lantern Corps), and Tony Bedard (writer, Green Lantern: New Guardians) sat down to give the fans some insight into what can be expected from the three titles in the near and distant future.

Moderator and SVP Sales Bob Wayne, Editor Brian Cunningham, Geoff Johns (writer, Green Lantern), Peter Tomasi (writer, Green Lantern Corps), and Tony Bedard (writer, Green Lantern: New Guardians)

Kicking off the discussion with Green Lantern proper, Geoff Johns delved into the relationship between Hal Jordan and Sinestro.  With Sinstro reinstated as a Lantern and Hal drummed out for having too much Willpower, all is not well in the world of the Green Lanterns. Hal wants his ring back and Sinestro wants to get rid of the ring. Now that they are in opposite positions, the pair will be addressing the personal issues that have caused so much tension between them in the past.  Johns also teased that the Justice League will attempt to intervene by approaching the Guardians directly.  Not wanting to give too much away, Johns switched gears and focused on the upcoming Green Lantern Animated Series, due to launch on November 11th on Cartoon Network.  He stated that the first arc will deal with Hal and the Corps encountering the Red Lanterns for the first time.  A tie-in comic is also in the works, which will continue and expand on the show's stories.  Once the individual storylines have been established, the comic will then provide more connectivity to the series.

Preview page from the upcoming Green Lantern Animated Series tie-in comic

Moving the discussion over to Green Lantern Corps, writer Peter Tomasi came out and talked about what to expect from his book.  According to Tomasi, the New 52 relaunch has not affected his storytelling.  "We haven't torn everything down from previous stories," he stated.  "We just want to make everything accessible to new and old readers alike."  He also made quick mention of a looming threat to the Corps, The Keepers.  These mysterious new bad guys are the ones who possessed the power batteries before the Guardians took them away.  Needless to say, The Keepers aren't pleased.

Tony Bedard, writer of Green Lantern: New Guardians came out next to talk about the newest addition to the GL publication family.  At the forefront of GL:NG is Kyle Rayner, the youngest of Earth's GL's, who, according to the New 52, has only been a Lantern for two years.  Bedard went on to say that, "Kyle may not ever be as strong as Hal, but he's capable of doing things across the entire spectrum that others just couldn't."  An exciting prospect to say the least.  Again, not wanting to give too much away, Bedard mentioned that the mystery of why all those rings are choosing Kyle at the same time will be unfolding throughout the first year of GL:NG's run.  He also revealed that fan-favorite Larfleeze, the Orange Lantern, will return in issue #4 of the book.  Geoff Johns added that we will finally hear the Orange Lantern oath.  Tony Bedard closed with the statement that he is not concerned with giving origin stories to the characters, but instead is focusing on developing the characters themselves.

Preview page from Green Lantern: New Guardians, featuring Sinestro Corps bruiser, Arkillo

Speaking on the subject of Red Lanterns, editor Brian Cunningham revealed that the first stories in that book will take Atrocitus across the universe, discovering there are a multitude of situations that demand his attention.  Tony Bedard added that this will be something new for Atrocitus, since all he wanted in the previous story arc was to kill the rogue Guardian, Krona.  Denied that opportunity, Atrocitus is looking for "an eye for an eye and then some."  

During the Q&A portion of the panel, Geoff Johns shared his thoughts on the director's cut of the Green Lantern movie.  In addition to a multitude of interviews with the creative team from the comics, the new cut features additional scenes that, according to Johns, "added more heart to Hal's story."

To close out the panel, Geoff Johns dropped a huge bomb on the crowd, asking them to keep it secret, at least for the next 15 minutes.  As he prepped to head over to the Robot Chicken panel, he revealed that he was working with RC creators Seth Green and Matt Senreich on a DC Comics special, similar to RC's successful Star Wars specials.  Look for it in 2012!

With the future of Green Lantern in capable hands, I'm looking forward to the upcoming stories, on both the page and screen!

Review: Green Lantern - New Guardians #1

The final week of #1s from the New 52 has arrived, and with it, a new title from the ever-expanding Green Lantern line.  Green Lantern: New Guardians #1 further explores the multiple corps, but how bright is the future of this new tale?

Hal Jordan now shares the spotlight with Sinestro in Green Lantern.  Guy Gardner and John Stewart can be seen in Green Lantern Corps.  So, naturally, Kyle Rayner gets to be the focal point of GL: New Guardians.  The issue opens with a brief retelling of Kyle’s origin, being sought out by Ganthet to be the “Last of the Green Lanterns” following the destruction of the Corps.  Originally seen in the New Dawn arc in 1994, we can assume that this momentous event now takes place within the last 3-5 years, the time span into which the history of the DCnU has been compressed.  After being reminded of the humble beginnings of the artist-turned-space cop, we jump to present day to check in on members of the other six Lantern Corps.  In a series of vibrant pages from artists Tyler Kirkham, Batt, and Nei Ruffino, we see seemingly random members of the Red Lanterns, Sinestro Corps, and Star Sapphires spontaneously lose their rings, leaving them vulnerable at key moments.

On Earth, we reconnect with Kyle as he flies around, doing the superhero thing.  Writer Tony Bedard takes a few humorous jabs at Kyle, having a kid ask him a bunch of snide questions about why he isn’t “the Green Lantern from Coast City” and why his uniform is different.  Immediately following the encounter with the obnoxious youngster, Kyle is recruited by the three rings we saw desert their owners earlier, as well as rings from the remaining corps.  The rings are followed by representatives from most of the Corps, including Arkillo (Sinestro Corps), Bleez (Red Lanterns), Munk (Indigo Tribe), and Fatality (Star Sapphires), all of whom accuse him of stealing the rings.  At this point, Kyle Rayner and the reader are in the same position – neither has any idea what is going on.

It seems like not a lot happens in this issue.  It’s pretty flat.  Rings abandon their owners and flock to Kyle, making him the target of every corps.  It’s over before you realize it.  The mystery and unanswered questions will obviously capture the attention and curiosity of fans, but there is no guarantee that a new reader will be prepped to dive into the pre-established world of the emotional spectrum and the fanatics that inhabit it.