COMIC REVIEW: FTN reviews Green Lantern Corp Annual #1

Written by Peter Tomasi

Pencils by ChrisCross

This was easily the best thing that I read all week. Green Lantern Corp Annual sees the end of the Rise of the Third Army come to lose and moves us into he next big event to rock the GL Corps, Wrath of the First Lantern. Most of the Third Army arc was pretty slow going, but the GLC Annual takes us out with a bang! This issue finally delivers that epic space battle that I’ve come to love from other arcs such as Sinestro Corp War and War of the Green Lanterns. I never realized till I read the Annual just how much I’ve missed them and how the lack of them is mainly what has caused the drag in the GL titles as of late. Everyone shows up here for the big finale, The GL Corp, Atrocitus leading a group of Manhunters, and best of all, Kyle Rayner and his New Guardians.

The Guardians are making a play towards their endgame as they summon all Green Lanterns back to Oa for “inoculations”, in reality a trap. They plan to put the final nail into the GL Corp coffin and a powerless Guy Gardner and crew aren’t trying to have that. This issue really showed off Guy’s passion and heart for the Corp, as he’s willing to take on the Guardians even without a power ring. Only Guy has the balls to pull off something like that. Showing up with Guy are Kilowog, B’dg and Baz, as well as a few Lanterns. During the showdown it’s become obvious that they just don’t have the firepower to overcome the Guardians. John Stewart finally makes his way back from his mission to bring back Mogo and Atrocitus shows up with an army of Manhunters in tow. This isn’t enough however, and that’s when Kyle Rayner makes his return decked out in a sweet new White Lantern outfit. Kyle turns the tide of the battle wielding the powers of the entire emotional spectrum.

Realizing that Rayner is about destroy everything they have worked for, the Guardians unleash the full power of the First Lantern, and in their hubris, think they can control him. This turns out to not be the case, and instead, the First Lantern turns against everybody and seemingly destroys the whole universe.

This was quite the story and I loved every single panel. The battle had that epic feel to it that great GL stories in the past have always had. Best of all, it sets up the next great threat to the universe, which seems like a tall order for any Lantern to take on. I loved seeing all the characters from the other books converge in the heat of battle. Though this arc trudged along at a slow pace, this finale punched me in the face, in a good way. The art is sharp, crisp and beautiful, though some of the panel layouts from the battle threw me off a bit, but when something this good is delivered I can overlook the little things. My biggest question mark is where this will leave the Guardians. Will this wake them up out of their bad guy haze? Will they still be in charge of the Corp? Will the Corp even exist anymore? My guess is that Hal and Sinestro will have to work their ways back home to take on the First Lantern. If you are a GL fan, even if you don’t read the GL Corp, this issue is a must have.

4.5 out of 5 nerds

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