Comic Reviews by Walt

Rage of the Red Lanterns Prologue: Blood Feud
Writer: Geoff Johns
Pencils: Shane Davis
Inks: Sandra Hopoe
Colors: Nei Ruffino
Letters: Rob Leigh
Associate Editor: Adam Schlagman
Editor: Eddie Berganza
Covers: Davis, Hope, Ruffino

This one-shot opens with the “birth”–an origin of sorts–of the first of the Red Lanterns, in a sequence taking place between the first two issues of Final Crisis. We then cut to Hal Jordan reeling from the deicide, spending time with family…when he receives word that Sinestro’s execution orders have been handed down. Feeling unable to share thoughts on this with a new friend, Hal seeks out his old friend–Carol–who was actually part of his life when he first met Sinestro (as particularly revealed in the recently-concluded Secret Origin arc in the main GL title). While this is going on, we see Green Lantern Ash finding the upper husk of the Anti-Monitor, relaying the info to the scarred Guardian, and pursuing the trail. The Red Lanterns rise, recruited by Atrocitus, to feed their hatred and rage. As several Green Lanterns ‘escort’ Sinestro to his homeworld for execution, the group is ambushed…just before the Red Lanterns debut, ambushing the ambushers and ambushees alike. Finally, yet another player arrives in the thick of things, revealing to Hal a key ingredient to the survival of the Blackest Night.

Other than an editorial note indicating this issue’s timing in the Final Crisis series, and the references to events within that series that involved Hal (but nothing of his detention by the Alpha Lanterns?), this issue would have been perfectly titled had it been titled Green Lantern: Rage of the Red Lanterns or Rise of the Red Lanterns or some such–aside from whatever interaction crops up regarding Final Crisis and ties to the Blackest Night, this seems to deal a whole lot more with Green Lantern than Final Crisis itself.

The art is quite good here…I rather enjoyed it, and it has a certain tone that made it perfectly believable as something fitting into the current Green Lantern series. Aside from some questionable-looking blood placement, I have no particular complaint visually.

The writing being by Geoff Johns is certainly why this feels so much like a special issue of Green Lantern, as he is the writer of that book, and writes this with plenty of purpose and eye toward the ongoing title and how it plays in the greater DC Universe. This story picks up on certain seeds sown throughout the last couple years, and moves key points along as if it were anything but a one-shot tied to an event. We get some good moments between various characters, and I found it especially interesting the exploration of Hal’s feelings regarding the impending execution of his old friend and mentor.

While I fail at present to see what bearing this issue will actually have on Final Crisis, it very much is important to what’s been unfolding in Green Lantern and setting things along the course to the Blackest Night. As such, I don’t recommend this as a tie-in to Final Crisis…I recommend it to anyone keeping up with the GL books and reading with an eye toward next summer’s event.

Story: 8.5/10
Art: 8/10
Whole: 8/10

Filed under: Comic Reviews 2008, DC, Final Crisis (Event), Final Crisis: Rage of the Red Lanterns | Tagged: Comic Reviews 2008, DC Comics, Final Crisis, Final Crisis: Rage of the Red Lanterns, Geoff Johns, Red Lantern, Red Lanterns | Leave a comment »