The Green Lantern Annual #1 – Grant Morrison, Writer; Giuseppe Camuncoli, Layouts; Trevor Scott, Finishes; Steve Oliff, Colorist
Ratings:
Ray – 9/10
Ray: It’s a major change of pace for Grant Morrison’s The Green Lantern run in The Green Lantern Annual #1, an oversized story, as Hal comes home from space and cosmic threats to deal with something even more implacable – a dysfunctional family. Morrison goes into some DCU deep cuts here as he digs up the obscure members of Hal’s family and puts them together for a reunion that brings in some unexpected alien invaders.
The story begins when Hal finds all the other adults mysteriously unconscious, and discovers that only the family kids – including obscure superhero Hal Jordan Jr., aka Airwave, and former Spectre companion Helen Jordan – are aware of what’s going on. A baby alien made out of radio waves has apparently fled from a ruthless kingdom of radio monsters and is seeking refuge, and the feedback has knocked the adults unconscious. But after the kids work to free the critter, it turns out the truth is a lot more menacing than that.
Guest artist Giuseppe Camuncoli does a good job with the energy-based critters, which shift impressively from cuddly crackly friends to hulking energy monsters. The real fun of The Green Lantern Annual #7 though, is in Hal’s interaction with his large extended family. Watching him wrangle a bunch of kids solving a mystery reminded me of classic 80s adventure stories (and their modern tributes), but my favorite scene was when he foiled the villains’ possession of his adult relatives by triggering their tendency to fight over everything. Can’t build an effective radio-zombie army when no one is on the same page.
The dialogue is hilarious, and I wouldn’t mind seeing Harold Jr. and Helen play a larger role in this run down the line. The ending brings in another obscure Jordan family member and a fun last-page twist. I knew Morrison was great at space stuff, but this issue proves that when he’s on, he’s great at any genre and I hope he’s planning a long stay in the Green Lantern corner of the universe.
To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week.
Disclaimer: GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
