Injustice 2 #27 – Tom Taylor, Writer; Xermanico, Artist; J. Nanjan, Colorist
Rating: Ray – 8/10
Injustice 2 #27 abruptly switches gears and heads to space, as the Injustice 2 series catches up with Hal Jordan for the first time since the end of the first volume. Hal was a loyalist to Superman to the end, eventually being corrupted by the Sinestro Corps and becoming a mass murderer of Green Lanterns including Mogo. Now, he faces justice, being spared by the Guardians due to his remorse and sent to a distant prison colony to atone through hard labor.
It’s been so long since that story went down that when Guy Gardner showed up to taunt him, I briefly forgot about the last time they met – and was as startled as anyone when Guy turned into the maimed specter that Hal last saw him as. This is pretty much a pure Green Lantern comic, with Taylor delving into the property’s history and bringing in some more obscure characters. This includes Soranik Natu, as the ruthless warden of the prison colony. She’s definitely written better than she was last time we saw her.
Of course, this issue isn’t going to be all about Hal’s atonement, because that would be boring. No, several wild cards are right around the corner, starting with Sinestro. One of the worst war criminals of the Superman era, he’s now been taken into custody as well and is serving his sentence under his daughter’s watch. He wastes no time trying to unnerve her and Hal, and she has her own agenda – finding the truth about her mother. The big threat of this issue, though, comes in the form of the Red Lanterns, making their move against Sinestro. The first appearance of a Red comes in the form of Dex-Starr, being a very bad kitty indeed and knocking the Lanterns down even more in numbers.
Dex-Star is usually played for laughs, but this issue portrays him as a thoroughly dangerous Red Lantern. Moving away from the ongoing power struggle on Earth, this is a very compelling Green Lantern comic. Can Hal achieve redemption? We’ll see, but I suspect it may come with death.
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Disclaimer: GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
