The Green Lantern #7 – Grant Morrison, Writer; Liam Sharp, Artist
Ratings:
Ray – 10/10
Ray: It seems like in every big run of his, Grant Morrison will do one experimental issue that challenges the nature of a comic and leaves people either thrilled or confused. Not all of them work, like the Batman/Joker prose issue, but when they do something spectacular happens. That’s the case with The Green Lantern #7, a brilliant mix of poetry, high fantasy storytelling, and a traditional comic book. When we last left off, Hal had seemingly sacrificed himself to stop the Blackstars from causing a cosmic catastrophe, but in reality, he was still alive – but somewhere else, in a mysterious realm where a strange dwarf told him of someone named Myrwhydden. This issue doesn’t pick up from that cliffhanger, though.
Rather, it throws us into a strange world where our point of view character is a young wizard named Pengowirr. Surrounded by mysterious and hostile creatures in a world of blue and green, she tries to stay quiet to avoid the rage of the world’s master – Myrwhydden.
The first five pages of the issue have no dialogue, just chronicling her journey through a fascinating prose story. Then Hal Jordan crash-lands in the world, and the story starts to take on more of a traditional comic feel. Hal is a fish-out-of-water, trying to figure out this weird world with Pengowirr’s help. It’s no surprise that they develop a connection, but the truth is a lot more complicated than it appears. The cover gives away where this story is taking place – inside Hal’s ring – but the true identities of Myrwhydden and Pengowirr are some of the best twists I’ve seen in some time. And I can’t say enough about the brilliant work Liam Sharp does here. He’s coloring himself for the first time in a while, and it works – giving the work a surreal but still ultra-detailed vibe. I don’t know if we’ll ever see these characters again, but I do know that in only one issue, Morrison and Sharp introduced us to one of the most fascinating new worlds in some time. We need more comics with this level of creativity.
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Disclaimer: GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
Myrwhydden appeared in the Silver Age GL comic, somewhere around #24, “The World Within The Power Ring!”
Hal was right…he’s been there before. But Morrison loves his deep dives and always adds more to the original than was there. Great issue!