Green Lantern #18 – Jeremy Adams, Writer; Xermanico, Artist; Romulo Fajardo Jr, Colorist
Ray – 9.5/10
Ray: The most action-packed arc since the Johns days, this story has united just about every Earth Lantern in one epic battle against the biggest threat the Corps have faced in years. Now both Thaaros and his deranged nephew have tapped into cosmic powers, and while they’ve become enemies with differing goals, they may have just enough left in common to unite against their enemies. Hal Jordan is leading the charge, but he’s not the focus of this issue. Several other Lanterns get very unique storyarcs that stand out from the pack here – starting with Kyle Rayner, who has been marginalized for a few years now but has regained his old status as a White Lantern – which might just make him the only one who can fight back against these cosmic-level threats. And Jessica Cruz finds herself with a difficult task – breaking through against high-level mind-control to free Kilowog from what he’s been turned into.
The best subplot here, though, has to go to Carol Ferris – who in many ways, has been the co-lead of this title under Adams. This issue, she comes face to face with The Predator, the living being at the core of the Violet Lanterns. But while it’s supposedly driven by love, it’s a deeply possessive and terrifying kind of love that leaves no room for questions. Carol’s rise to being a full hero has been a big part of this issue – but it also couldn’t be completed without this issue. The ending brings us a new status quo and a new villain that I’m very excited about, and while Adams’s plotting has been fantastic, I need to give a huge shout-out here to Xermanico, who delivers one of the most packed issues in a long time, largely in double-page spreads, and delivers some of the best action scenes I’ve seen in a DC comic in a while. So much has been set up here for the next arc and beyond.
To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week.
GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
