Alan Scott: The Green Lantern #5 – Tim Sheridan, Writer; Cian Tormey, Artist; Matt Herms/Hi-Fi, Colorists
Ray – 9.5/10
Ray: It’s been a while since the last issue of this excellent series, and we were left in the middle of a particularly agonizing cliffhanger—as Alan Scott confronted the Red Lantern, who also happened to be his presumed-dead boyfriend Johnny. But Johnny was all a lie—a deep-cover Russian spy who infiltrated the US military and took advantage of Alan’s desire for companionship. Or was it? The pained dialogue between the two of them made clear it wasn’t as clear as all that, and Vladimir might have been just as trapped by the laws of the Soviet Union as Alan was by the culture of the United States. As the two battle and try to hash out the complex history between them, the Crimson Flame power seems to be killing them both—as it wounds Alan more and more, and Vladimir seems to be dependent on it in a way that threatens his life—if he’s even fully alive at all.
But hiding in the background is another, much bigger story. Where did the Crimson Flame come from, and what is its connection to the Starheart? For that matter, what connects Alan to the larger Green Lantern Corps? Much like Jeremy Adams on Jay Garrick’s book, Sheridan is digging into the mythology of these characters and answering some questions we’ve had for more than a century. As the issue proceeds, the Red Lantern becomes much more of a complex figure and likely a tragic one, as it’s revealed that he was just as much of a pawn of his government as he was a manipulator—and that the Soviets are just about ready to replace him. Given this context and the segment we see at the start of the issue, I’m guessing we’re headed for a tragic final issue—but first we’ve got one epic Cold War battle brewing, complete with some long-awaited guest stars in the cliffhanger.
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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
