What you need to know about the Green Lantern.
During my hiatus I became friendly with a local radio DJ who is quite the nerd as is her husband who, like me, is a huge Batman nut. But with the upcoming Green Lantern movie arriving next year I was asked to create a must read list of Green Lantern and boy it has been an epic two years of Geoff Johns just writing the hell out of the series. But let us begin waaaaay back in the early 90s.
Secret Origins: Green Lantern
A great retelling of the Hal Jordan origins, also it lays the ground work for the Blackest Night mega event.
Emerald Twilight:
After the "death" of Superman two of his greatest foes, Cyborg Superman and Mongul, destroy all of Coast City with a giant spaceship. Coast City being Hal Jordan's home town this of course makes him upset. And after dealing with the baddies Jordan loses control and tries to raise the dead using his power ring. The Guardians of the Universe, who are in charge of all the thousands of Green Lanterns, say this is a big no no. So Jordan destroys the Green Lantern Corp collecting their significant power and destroys the planet Oa home of the Guardians. He reinvents himself as Parallax and tried several times to change time and space so that Coast City's destruction could be prevented. But one lone ring was left and found it's way to Kyle Rayner.
Green Lantern A New Dawn:
One lone Guardian and one lone ring. The GL Corps is destroyed and the ring chooses Kyle Rayner to wield it. Gone is the yellow weakness that all GL rings had up to this point. Kyle is an artist and a thinker where Jordan was a warrior. Kyle also knew one thing that Jordan or any other Green Lanterns knew and that was fear. For over a decade Kyle Rayner would be the Green Lantern and the only one in the galaxy. He'd join the Justice League, the Titans and would witness Hal Jordan sacrifice himself to save the world in one last moment of clarity. But that is far from the end of his story. Jordan's soul would go on to be the human tether to The Specter, God's wrath on this Earth and Jordan looked forward to redemption for his past deeds. But the Specter was too powerful a force and soon his soul was ripped from the Specter.
Green Lantern Rebirth:
The return of Hal Jordan, resurrected from the dead and the return of the Green Lantern Corps. It is discovered that the Guardians had been keeping a deadly secret. That at the heart of the power source on Oa, they had kept being millions of years old prisoner, a being of great fear that brought about the destruction of worlds. The being was known as Parallax and had corrupted Jordan and had possessed Jordan when he had witnessed the destruction of Coast City and had known fear. John Stewart, Guy Gardner return with Kyle Rayner to save Jordan and defeat Parallax once and for all. Or so they thought.
Sinestro Corps War:
Agent Orange:
Rage of the Red Lantenrs:
These three chapters in the Green Lantern Saga are as pivotal as they are bad ass. New colored lanterns have been discovered. Corps based on Fear, Rage, Greed and Hope appear. There are many great battles but it all leads up to the greatest "event" comic since the original Crisis of Infinite Earths.
Blackest Night:
The dead are rising throughout the DC Universe and they are pissed. The Black Lantern Corps looks to destroy all life in the universe and it will take all of the other Lantern Corps to try and stop them. Huge violence, huge drama with many surprise twists. Though Blackest Night is it's own comic parallel stories occur in Green Lantern: Blackest Night, Green Lantern Corps: Blackest Night and to a lesser extent Tales of the Black Lantern Corps.
Do yourself a favor. Check these out.
Secret Origins: Green Lantern
A great retelling of the Hal Jordan origins, also it lays the ground work for the Blackest Night mega event.
Emerald Twilight:
After the "death" of Superman two of his greatest foes, Cyborg Superman and Mongul, destroy all of Coast City with a giant spaceship. Coast City being Hal Jordan's home town this of course makes him upset. And after dealing with the baddies Jordan loses control and tries to raise the dead using his power ring. The Guardians of the Universe, who are in charge of all the thousands of Green Lanterns, say this is a big no no. So Jordan destroys the Green Lantern Corp collecting their significant power and destroys the planet Oa home of the Guardians. He reinvents himself as Parallax and tried several times to change time and space so that Coast City's destruction could be prevented. But one lone ring was left and found it's way to Kyle Rayner.
Green Lantern A New Dawn:
One lone Guardian and one lone ring. The GL Corps is destroyed and the ring chooses Kyle Rayner to wield it. Gone is the yellow weakness that all GL rings had up to this point. Kyle is an artist and a thinker where Jordan was a warrior. Kyle also knew one thing that Jordan or any other Green Lanterns knew and that was fear. For over a decade Kyle Rayner would be the Green Lantern and the only one in the galaxy. He'd join the Justice League, the Titans and would witness Hal Jordan sacrifice himself to save the world in one last moment of clarity. But that is far from the end of his story. Jordan's soul would go on to be the human tether to The Specter, God's wrath on this Earth and Jordan looked forward to redemption for his past deeds. But the Specter was too powerful a force and soon his soul was ripped from the Specter.
Green Lantern Rebirth:
The return of Hal Jordan, resurrected from the dead and the return of the Green Lantern Corps. It is discovered that the Guardians had been keeping a deadly secret. That at the heart of the power source on Oa, they had kept being millions of years old prisoner, a being of great fear that brought about the destruction of worlds. The being was known as Parallax and had corrupted Jordan and had possessed Jordan when he had witnessed the destruction of Coast City and had known fear. John Stewart, Guy Gardner return with Kyle Rayner to save Jordan and defeat Parallax once and for all. Or so they thought.
Sinestro Corps War:
Agent Orange:
Rage of the Red Lantenrs:
These three chapters in the Green Lantern Saga are as pivotal as they are bad ass. New colored lanterns have been discovered. Corps based on Fear, Rage, Greed and Hope appear. There are many great battles but it all leads up to the greatest "event" comic since the original Crisis of Infinite Earths.
Blackest Night:
The dead are rising throughout the DC Universe and they are pissed. The Black Lantern Corps looks to destroy all life in the universe and it will take all of the other Lantern Corps to try and stop them. Huge violence, huge drama with many surprise twists. Though Blackest Night is it's own comic parallel stories occur in Green Lantern: Blackest Night, Green Lantern Corps: Blackest Night and to a lesser extent Tales of the Black Lantern Corps.
Do yourself a favor. Check these out.