FEATURED REVIEW: GREEN LANTERN CORPS ANNUAL #1

(w) Peter J. Tomasi
(a) ChrisCross

"Rise of the Third Army" concludes this week with Green Lantern Corps Annual #1, a rather fantastic finish to a somewhat lackluster 'crossover' event that spanned all four Green Lantern Family titles from the 'New 52'. Things started out well enough last August with Green Lantern Annual #1, but the actual "Rise" of the Guardians' new army has been slow-burning, to put it lightly. In fact, the Third Army was rarely more than background noise that happened to pop into the main story every so often. Fortunately, Green Lantern Corps Annual #1 offers a bit of redemption for "Rise of the Third Army" with a satisfying conclusion that smoothly leads into the upcoming follow-up crossover, "Wrath of the First Lantern".

The Guardians of the Universe have been losing their marbles for quite a while. Geoff Johns provided the catalyst with the reveal that the Blue Ones had been hiding the fear entity Parallax within the Green Lantern central battery for eons. Besides giving explanation to the ineffectiveness of the Green Lantern rings against the color yellow, Johns' revelations in Green Lantern: Rebirth were the first of many that showed how billions of years of immortality have made the Guardians lose sight of their ethics.

In Green Lantern Corps Annual #1, Peter J. Tomasi picks up all the plot pieces -- from Green Lantern, Green Lantern Corps, Green Lantern: New Guardians, and Red Lanterns -- that have been piling up over the past four months. The Guardians' endgame is near, and part of that includes deceiving all Green Lanterns ignorant to the threat of the Third Army into returning to Oa for a mass genocide. Guy Gardner, new Lantern Simon Baz, and the squirrel-like B'dg concoct a plan to exploit the Guardians and inform the rest of the Corps as to what's happening by manipulating the Guardians' massive egos. John Stewart and Star Sapphire Fatality finally manage to see Mogo's reconstitution through. Kyle Rayner and his Rainbow Brigade show up near the end to add some seriously needed firepower. Finally, Atrocitus' reprogrammed Manhunters join the fray against the most powerful, most insane beings in the known universe.

This is Green Lantern storytelling at it's best: crackling interconnectedness that conveys the larger-than-life essence of science fiction storytelling. And unlike Geoff Johns' previous epic Green Lantern story arcs, the Guardians sit firmly at the center of this conflict, not through past mistakes or misinterpreted intentions, but by the will of their own machinations. Parallax, the Sinestro Corps, the Black Lanterns; all of them pale in comparison to the Guardians of the Universe in terms of raw power. Ganthet and his sorely misled brethren want peace in throughout the universe, no matter what the cost. In one sense, their endeavor is no different than in the past. Just like any other technology, advancements are made as time moves forward. For the Guardians, upgrading their technology means having a singular goal, a shared focus that allows for the best possible results. Under these guidelines, the Green Lantern Corps is like an old PC from the mid-90s: slow, outdated, and not worth the effort it would take to make it better.

Just like any nefarious villain bent on total control, the Guardians bite off more than they can chew, leading to the explosive -- if not foreseeable -- escape of the mysterious First Lantern, now named Volthoom. Without spoiling the circumstances of his escape or his intentions, the First Lantern's plans are a natural step forward from "Rise of the Third Army" that will give all the different Lanterns a lot to deal with in the coming months. Geoff Johns' Green Lantern plans have been coming to fruition for the past eight years, and it will be exciting to see how the Guardians' fall from grace will end. I word it like this because I can't see an outcome to "Wrath of the First Lantern" where the Guardians are still in power. Already in the 'New 52', the rules have changed for the Green Lantern franchise in significant ways, and introducing a First Lantern into the mix makes logical, if not yet evident, sense.

Green Lantern Corps Annual #1 does a great job finishing up one story arc and starting another. While the entire "Rise of the Third Army" event was less fast-paced as I had originally expected it to be, the conclusion makes it worth the build-up because we've been able to slowly integrate the idea of a hive-minded army of locust soldiers assimilating sentience into the basic setting of Green Lantern series. Instead of "Rise" being a one-month blitzkrieg (like, say, "Night of the Owls"), Johns and Company opted for pacing that made the threat of the Third Army all the more real and disturbing.

GRADE

9/10

JUSTICE LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL ANNUAL #1

STORY: Geoff Johns and Dan Didio
ART: Jason Fabok

It really is the end for the Justice League International. After a year of amazing stories, a slowly-expanding roster, and a death in the family, the JLI all but disintegrates before our eyes as Geoff Johns and Dan Didio bid farewell to one of DC's quirkiest titles. It came as a bit of a surprise when DC announced it would cancel Justice League International after it's Annual issue, especially since it wasn't a low performer like other cancelled series such as Mister Fantastic, Men of War, or Resurrection Man. For months, fans and critics have been speculating as to reasons why; was it to set-up a bigger event? Was JLI going to be relaunched under a different name? Was DC planning on revising it's number of monthly titles? We didn't have a lot to go on, and the editorial executives were staying tight-lipped. And this week, DC announced that Geoff Johns and David Finch would be starting a new series, Justice League of America. After I read the initial press release concerning JLA, I immediately knew why JLI was cancelled. It makes sense, on a certain level, to want to expand the 'Justice League' franchise without diluting the name itself. Justice League and Justice League Dark both have clear-cut plot-centric premises, while JLI told more character-driven stories. It really is a shame to see the series go, but Justice League International Annual #1 goes the book justice and sends the team off in an appropriately dour - yet potentially promising - way.

Annual #1 picks up a few weeks after the events of JLI #12, wherein Batwing resigned, the team fought the late Lightweaver's delusional brother, and the future of these characters rested in Batman's capable hands. Bringing the series full-circle, Booster's primary concern is now increasing the team's visibility and public image by way of impressing the United Nations by taking on dangerous missions around the globe. We drop in with our lovable band of misfits in Central Africa, where Guy Gardner is leading a squad against a vicious warlord named Aki Mukassa. As Batwing flies the violent revolutionary away from the riot below, the warlord activates a bomb and kills himself mid-air. The entire situation is symbolic of the JLI's status quo as the team that gets it done, but not very well. While the rest of the team is satisfied with saving numerous innocent lives, Booster is upset that the JLI couldn't hand Mukassa over to the UN.

The breaking point comes later, when Booster informs the team that he's expanded the roster by recruiting Olympian and Blue Beetle. "Where are Superman and Wonder Woman?" asks Beetle, which sends Guy Gardner into a rage that results in his resignation from the JLI. With Rocket Red already dead, as well as Vixen, Fire, and Ice in the hospital, it's as though Booster takes one step forward for every two steps back. He sees that their numbers are dwindling, and he does whatever it takes (a la lying to Beetle about the JLI's roster) to make his team better.

And while the first half of the book is really all about Booster and his insecurities, the latter half focuses on O.M.A.C., who becomes possessed by Brother Eye, the sentient satellite and computer program designed and built by Batman to observe and analyze every metahuman on Earth in order to develop defenses against them if necessary. Since the 'New 52' relaunch, it's been interesting to see what has survived the editorial culling and now exists in the ner universe - the events of Infinite Crisis aren't mentioned anywhere else in the 'New 52' (that I know of), so it could stand to reason the whole thing never happened, but that Brother Eye was still created. And just like in Infinite Crisis, Brother Eye's been hijacked! With a new 'programmer' calling the shots, Brother Eye takes complete control of Kevin Kho's body and mind as it attempts to destroy the JLI and re-upload himself to the satellite orbiting Earth. During the confrontation, O.M.A.C. (apparently) kills Olympian, then uses his overwhelming technology to send Blue Beetle back to the Reach, the alien society where Jaime's scarab originated.

There's a lot of action going on during the finale, but in the end, Booster Gold is the only one who's able to stand up to the brutish, unstoppable O.M.A.C. Using 25th century anti-virus protection, (easter-eggedly called the 'Skeets Protocols') Booster is able to stop Brother Eye's uplink to the satellite and separate Kevin from the O.M.A.C. programming that was making his life a living hell. Of course, this victory is short-lived as Booster Gold from the future-future comes back to warn our Booster of horrible things to come before he simply disappears, as if he never existed. Then suddenly, the same thing happens to our Booster Gold!

By the time we reach the final pages, the team is technically down to just Godiva and a heavily-injured August General in Iron. Rocket Red and Olympian are dead, Batwing and Guy Gardner have resigned Blue Beetle is on the other side of the galaxy, and Booster is deleted from time and space. Justice League International Annual #1 is not only the JLI's most exciting issue, but it sets up the next chapter of the collective 'Justice League' story very well. At the very end, Batman has a chilling conversation with his creation, Brother Eye: "Eye am home and eye will be waiting for my new programmer's signal. He is coming, Batman. And you will join him or die." recites Brother Eye as if from a script. The emotionless, yet highly sophisticated, Brother Eye looks to be the focal point of things to come. Perhaps in the same vein as Infinite Crisis, Batman's presumptuousness concerning other heroes became paranoia, resulting in some of the darkest days in DCU history.

GRADE

A+