The Green Lantern: Season Two #9 – Grant Morrison, Writer; Liam Sharp, Artist; Steve Oliff, Colorist
Ray – 9/10
Ray: This is one of the most significant issues of Grant Morrison’s soon-to-conclude Green Lantern run, because it introduces a group of characters who are soon to be major—the Justice League of Earth 11. First gaining recent popularity as fanart by artist Otto Schmidt, they’re going to be making their announced debut in an upcoming anthology before playing a major role in Future State. But they get a preview here, as the gender-swapped heroes enter the fray for a mind-bending adventure for Hal Jordan. When the issue starts, he’s presiding over the trial of Hyperman, the sadistic fallen superhero who nearly killed him issues back. Hyperman’s celebrity status is making the trial tricky and threatening to let him get off, and Hal is struggling with the lack of justice in this system. The presiding authorities seem more interested in ensuring an arranged marriage goes off smoothly than anything else.
Needing a break from the fraud, Hal decides to head back to Earth to catch up with some of the women he was rudely reminded of a few issues back. He starts with Carol Ferris—and walks in on Hal Jordan proposing to her. Clearly something isn’t right here, although this weird image was spoiled on the cover. It turns out to be an alternate Hal Jordan, one from a world where the Green Lanterns are based around sexism and have gone rogue. Teaming up with an alternate Star Sapphire and other heroes from Earth 11, it’s exactly as weird as it sounds and is one of the most Morrison-y issues of the run. As they get deeper into this run, Morrison is indulging many of the most bizarre quirks that made them such a distinct writer for decades. But Green Lantern lends itself to bizarre, and so far this continues to be one of the most ambitious and complex series DC is putting out in these last months of the current status quo.
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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
