From CBR.com
Friday, May 31, 2013
Geoff Johns Talks About Ending Green Lantern
From IGN
And reveals what he thinks made it a hit with the fans.
IGN Comics: Let’s jump right into it. Where was Hal Jordan when you started your run on Green Lantern and how do you see him now that you’re done?
Geoff Johns: Wow, when we started he was so far away from who he was and who he used to be, wasn’t he? Looking back to the mindset of where he was, he had essentially been a supervillain. He had been corrupted, he had been acting very irrational, very insane, but in the context of the story, he was somebody who was still struggling with fear about both the people he cares about and himself and everything.
For me in Green Lantern #20, it was the scene where it’s him and himself that kinda closed that door for me and he seems to move on completely. It gives him what he needed in that moment and vice versa. Seeing himself gave him the strength and the will and the courage to move forward, so it was very full circle for me from Rebirth #1 to Green Lantern #20. I think Hal Jordan is somebody who has gone through so many different trials and recognizes who he is and why he does what he does. I use the term “self awareness” a lot and I think that’s something a lot of people struggle with to have, and I think Hal Jordan has definitely come full circle and has that.
IGN: In the same vein, Sinestro started in a very different place than where he ended. Could you speak to Sinestro’s arc, as well?
Johns: In Rebirth he had been thought dead, and he was a villain Hal fought a lot and obviously as a Green Lantern helped train him, but I think Sinestro ironically learned a new kind of heroism through his journey and ultimately took a role I think he had to, maybe reluctantly, or I think he lies to himself a little bit, saying this is an okay path for him, but I think he knows he’s gone way off the path.
His relationship with Hal Jordan is a personification of his relationship with heroism and the Green Lantern Corps. When he says at the end, “That’s the tragedy of all this, we’ll always be friends,” that’s him showing he has an emotional connection to Hal and the Corps. Whatever his original intention was, he’ll never be able to go back to it, it’ll never be what it was, he’ll never be able to heal the rift, he’ll never be able to be the hero he truly envisioned himself being. But that makes him so much more compelling to me. I think the character is just ultimately an incredibly complex, interesting character.
IGN: By the end of the series, can you really still call him a villain?
Johns: It’s hard. He killed the Guardians in cold blood.
IGN: Hal Jordan killed the Guardians and he made it back around to being a hero.
Johns: Absolutely, yeah, but he was also a supervillain.
IGN: [laughs] That’s true.
Johns: I think it’s tricky. I think you can argue about it, and that’s what makes him such a juicy character and interesting villain to me. You can argue that he’s still a hero in some way, and I think that’s correct.
IGN: By the end, the Guardians had become the antagonists of the series. Does that give him a break that he killed characters that were bad guys?
Johns: You understand why he does what he does. This is the single greatest threat the universe has ever faced and potentially could face again, and he wanted to prevent that. So he had to make the hard choice that no one else would make. There’s some heroism in the act, but it’s also murder and it’s a blurry, blurry line that Sinestro walks. Sometimes you root for him and sometimes he’s doing really awful things, but that’s who he is. He’s not afraid to cross the line because he defines the line for himself, and this was just, in his mind, justice.
You also have to understand that in his mind he’s emotionally blinded by grief. The destruction of Korugar is his ultimate failure. The one thing he set out to do is protect his planet and he failed at it. At the end of his journey, he actually failed at that. I think that’s why he opened up to Hal at the end. I think that’s why he’s so brutal with the Guardians. I think that’s why he decides to leave, to remove himself from the equation.
But he also shows some mercy on Ganthet and Sayd. I think one of the most surprising things for me when I was breaking out the story was -- when I got to the Ganthet and Sayd scene with Sinestro and Larfleeze -- Sinestro really giving Ganthet and Sayd a second chance, a chance I think he wished he had because, like he said, he knows what it’s like to lose it all and there’s a heartbeat in there somewhere. Obviously, Sinestro is an emotional guy and if he shows mercy with Ganthet and Sayd then there’s still hope that one day there’s a way to redeem himself. I don’t know if you read too close, but there’s a lot of hints about who that Bookkeeper is [in Green Lantern #20].
IGN: Isn’t it Sinestro?
Johns: Yeah, it is.
IGN: [laughs] Okay, just making sure. And going on with Sinestro, he created the Sinestro Corps with yellow fear energy, which allowed all of the other colored Corps to come spinning out of Sinestro Corps War. That’s when the Green Lantern mythology really got cracked open. What was your original vision for the different colored Corps? And how did you approach making the “Rainbow Brigade” something that readers would get invested in and not think is cheesy?
Johns: On the surface the idea could be very silly, but what makes it work is that it’s based in something believable. It’s the concept that Green Lantern is a part of life and this light is representative of life and all the different emotions are represented. It’s not just about the different colors, it’s about emotion.
For me, the mythology really started when Parallax became the living yellow impurity that was trapped in the lantern and it was all about fear. Sinestro’s ring tied into that, and we mention the emotional spectrum in Rebirth #1 and Black Hand is there as a setup for the black, the antithesis of life. It all started right there. The seeds were right there and they grew with the Star Sapphire fitting in organically. It made sense for them to be pulled in and use their violet energy, so I targeted Carol, who is undeniably Hal Jordan’s true love. It grew out of there, and the key, I think, was doing it slowly. And letting Sinestro Corps be it’s own thing, and making the Indigo Tribe mysterious, giving them layers.
There’s a reason there’s so much history to [the Indigo Tribe] because I find compassion to be very complex and it can make people very cynical to try and embrace, but the Corps are all represented by how I view each emotion. The Green Lanterns are very forward and very courageous, very forceful. The Red Lanterns are out of control and they’re not in their right mind because when we’re angry or in rage, we say things and we do things we wouldn’t normally do. For me, compassion is elusive and it takes a lot of heart to feel compassion, and so I wanted that Corps to be representative of that and have layers of mystery and ask “What is compassion? What is it really? Is it a learned emotion? Or a born emotion?”
They all just kind of became their own personification of, again, my own viewpoint of the emotions. The characters are the ones I think that sold it, Larfleeze and Saint Walker and Indigo and Carol and Sinestro and Atrocitus -- those are the characters that really made it work. It’s not just the power but the character and the core of that character.
IGN: Did you ever imagine when you were creating these characters that they would take off like this? Red Lanterns has its own series. Larfleeze became so popular he’s getting his own series.
Johns: I never in my wildest imagination would have thought that it would spin-off this big. I think it’s five books now [Green Lantern, Green Lantern: New Guardians, Green Lantern Corps, Red Lanterns, and Larfleeze].
IGN: This is a nine year run, which is very epic for comic book readers. Since your run began, Green Lantern has had blockbuster sales success in comics, it’s had a movie, an animated series, and video games -- which is definitely not nothing. I know you’re known for being modest, but can you speak to what you brought to Green Lantern that allowed for all of this success?
Johns: I have to throw that back to all the people I’ve worked with and everyone that read the book because it takes so many people to make a comic book, especially if it grows into this universe. It’s people who talk about it and share it. For me, when I hear people at conventions tell their friends what their Blue Lantern shirt means and how they should check this book out, that’s where it came from. It came from discussion and being embraced by the readers.
I’m very happy, very proud of the run. I’m very, very fortunate to have something like that on my bookshelf that I worked on. The credit goes to [Patrick] Gleason and Doug [Mahnke] and Ivan [Reis] and Peter Tomasi and Dave Gibbons and everyone who worked on the book while I was on the book. And it’s thanks to all the readers who shared their experience with their friends and fellow comic readers that it took hold. It took a whole Corps to put this book out. I always talk about the camaraderie of the Corps and it takes it’s representation from the comic community itself, so it’s a pretty cool thing.
IGN: Excellent, great, that was the last question. Thank you so much, Geoff. And congratulations on behalf of me personally and IGN and all of our readers who love your book.
Johns: Thanks man, and thanks for all the kind words.
And reveals what he thinks made it a hit with the fans.
IGN Comics: Let’s jump right into it. Where was Hal Jordan when you started your run on Green Lantern and how do you see him now that you’re done?
Geoff Johns: Wow, when we started he was so far away from who he was and who he used to be, wasn’t he? Looking back to the mindset of where he was, he had essentially been a supervillain. He had been corrupted, he had been acting very irrational, very insane, but in the context of the story, he was somebody who was still struggling with fear about both the people he cares about and himself and everything.
For me in Green Lantern #20, it was the scene where it’s him and himself that kinda closed that door for me and he seems to move on completely. It gives him what he needed in that moment and vice versa. Seeing himself gave him the strength and the will and the courage to move forward, so it was very full circle for me from Rebirth #1 to Green Lantern #20. I think Hal Jordan is somebody who has gone through so many different trials and recognizes who he is and why he does what he does. I use the term “self awareness” a lot and I think that’s something a lot of people struggle with to have, and I think Hal Jordan has definitely come full circle and has that.
IGN: In the same vein, Sinestro started in a very different place than where he ended. Could you speak to Sinestro’s arc, as well?
Johns: In Rebirth he had been thought dead, and he was a villain Hal fought a lot and obviously as a Green Lantern helped train him, but I think Sinestro ironically learned a new kind of heroism through his journey and ultimately took a role I think he had to, maybe reluctantly, or I think he lies to himself a little bit, saying this is an okay path for him, but I think he knows he’s gone way off the path.
His relationship with Hal Jordan is a personification of his relationship with heroism and the Green Lantern Corps. When he says at the end, “That’s the tragedy of all this, we’ll always be friends,” that’s him showing he has an emotional connection to Hal and the Corps. Whatever his original intention was, he’ll never be able to go back to it, it’ll never be what it was, he’ll never be able to heal the rift, he’ll never be able to be the hero he truly envisioned himself being. But that makes him so much more compelling to me. I think the character is just ultimately an incredibly complex, interesting character.
IGN: By the end of the series, can you really still call him a villain?
Johns: It’s hard. He killed the Guardians in cold blood.
IGN: Hal Jordan killed the Guardians and he made it back around to being a hero.
Johns: Absolutely, yeah, but he was also a supervillain.
IGN: [laughs] That’s true.
Johns: I think it’s tricky. I think you can argue about it, and that’s what makes him such a juicy character and interesting villain to me. You can argue that he’s still a hero in some way, and I think that’s correct.
IGN: By the end, the Guardians had become the antagonists of the series. Does that give him a break that he killed characters that were bad guys?
Johns: You understand why he does what he does. This is the single greatest threat the universe has ever faced and potentially could face again, and he wanted to prevent that. So he had to make the hard choice that no one else would make. There’s some heroism in the act, but it’s also murder and it’s a blurry, blurry line that Sinestro walks. Sometimes you root for him and sometimes he’s doing really awful things, but that’s who he is. He’s not afraid to cross the line because he defines the line for himself, and this was just, in his mind, justice.
You also have to understand that in his mind he’s emotionally blinded by grief. The destruction of Korugar is his ultimate failure. The one thing he set out to do is protect his planet and he failed at it. At the end of his journey, he actually failed at that. I think that’s why he opened up to Hal at the end. I think that’s why he’s so brutal with the Guardians. I think that’s why he decides to leave, to remove himself from the equation.
But he also shows some mercy on Ganthet and Sayd. I think one of the most surprising things for me when I was breaking out the story was -- when I got to the Ganthet and Sayd scene with Sinestro and Larfleeze -- Sinestro really giving Ganthet and Sayd a second chance, a chance I think he wished he had because, like he said, he knows what it’s like to lose it all and there’s a heartbeat in there somewhere. Obviously, Sinestro is an emotional guy and if he shows mercy with Ganthet and Sayd then there’s still hope that one day there’s a way to redeem himself. I don’t know if you read too close, but there’s a lot of hints about who that Bookkeeper is [in Green Lantern #20].
IGN: Isn’t it Sinestro?
Johns: Yeah, it is.
IGN: [laughs] Okay, just making sure. And going on with Sinestro, he created the Sinestro Corps with yellow fear energy, which allowed all of the other colored Corps to come spinning out of Sinestro Corps War. That’s when the Green Lantern mythology really got cracked open. What was your original vision for the different colored Corps? And how did you approach making the “Rainbow Brigade” something that readers would get invested in and not think is cheesy?
Johns: On the surface the idea could be very silly, but what makes it work is that it’s based in something believable. It’s the concept that Green Lantern is a part of life and this light is representative of life and all the different emotions are represented. It’s not just about the different colors, it’s about emotion.
For me, the mythology really started when Parallax became the living yellow impurity that was trapped in the lantern and it was all about fear. Sinestro’s ring tied into that, and we mention the emotional spectrum in Rebirth #1 and Black Hand is there as a setup for the black, the antithesis of life. It all started right there. The seeds were right there and they grew with the Star Sapphire fitting in organically. It made sense for them to be pulled in and use their violet energy, so I targeted Carol, who is undeniably Hal Jordan’s true love. It grew out of there, and the key, I think, was doing it slowly. And letting Sinestro Corps be it’s own thing, and making the Indigo Tribe mysterious, giving them layers.
There’s a reason there’s so much history to [the Indigo Tribe] because I find compassion to be very complex and it can make people very cynical to try and embrace, but the Corps are all represented by how I view each emotion. The Green Lanterns are very forward and very courageous, very forceful. The Red Lanterns are out of control and they’re not in their right mind because when we’re angry or in rage, we say things and we do things we wouldn’t normally do. For me, compassion is elusive and it takes a lot of heart to feel compassion, and so I wanted that Corps to be representative of that and have layers of mystery and ask “What is compassion? What is it really? Is it a learned emotion? Or a born emotion?”
They all just kind of became their own personification of, again, my own viewpoint of the emotions. The characters are the ones I think that sold it, Larfleeze and Saint Walker and Indigo and Carol and Sinestro and Atrocitus -- those are the characters that really made it work. It’s not just the power but the character and the core of that character.
IGN: Did you ever imagine when you were creating these characters that they would take off like this? Red Lanterns has its own series. Larfleeze became so popular he’s getting his own series.
Johns: I never in my wildest imagination would have thought that it would spin-off this big. I think it’s five books now [Green Lantern, Green Lantern: New Guardians, Green Lantern Corps, Red Lanterns, and Larfleeze].
IGN: This is a nine year run, which is very epic for comic book readers. Since your run began, Green Lantern has had blockbuster sales success in comics, it’s had a movie, an animated series, and video games -- which is definitely not nothing. I know you’re known for being modest, but can you speak to what you brought to Green Lantern that allowed for all of this success?
Johns: I have to throw that back to all the people I’ve worked with and everyone that read the book because it takes so many people to make a comic book, especially if it grows into this universe. It’s people who talk about it and share it. For me, when I hear people at conventions tell their friends what their Blue Lantern shirt means and how they should check this book out, that’s where it came from. It came from discussion and being embraced by the readers.
I’m very happy, very proud of the run. I’m very, very fortunate to have something like that on my bookshelf that I worked on. The credit goes to [Patrick] Gleason and Doug [Mahnke] and Ivan [Reis] and Peter Tomasi and Dave Gibbons and everyone who worked on the book while I was on the book. And it’s thanks to all the readers who shared their experience with their friends and fellow comic readers that it took hold. It took a whole Corps to put this book out. I always talk about the camaraderie of the Corps and it takes it’s representation from the comic community itself, so it’s a pretty cool thing.
IGN: Excellent, great, that was the last question. Thank you so much, Geoff. And congratulations on behalf of me personally and IGN and all of our readers who love your book.
Johns: Thanks man, and thanks for all the kind words.
Labels:
DC Comics,
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Interviews
Thursday, May 30, 2013
GREENEST NIGHT - AN EVENING WITH GEOFF JOHNS, PART 1
From CBR.com
Wednesday, May 29, 2013
Keith Giffen Talks Larfleeze And Mystery Project
From TheComicBook.com
Keith Giffen, one of the most beloved writer/artists of the last thirty years in comics, will reteam with his most recognizable collaborator–writer J.M. DeMatteis–and former Flash artist Scott Kolins to bring fans Larfleeze, an ongoing, monthly series that readers will presumably snatch greedily from newsstands while shouting “Mine!”
Part of an ambitious rebranding of the Green Lantern line following the departure not only of best-selling writer Geoff Johns but also of every writer who’s been working with him since the launch of the New 52, Larfleeze is the first new #1 of the post-Johns era, and the first attempt at an ongoing series headlined by the Orange Lantern (although he has been starring in backup features in the Giffen-written Threshold for the last few months).
Giffen joined ComicBook.com to discuss the series, as well as another, as-yet-unannounced project that he confirms he’s working on with DeMatteis and their longtime artistic collaborator, Kevin Maguire (with whom the pair have collaborated on, among other things, a handful of variations on the Justice League International they founded in 1988).
ComicBook.com: With Threshold wrapping up but you and DeMatteis joining forces on Larfleeze, will we see some of the characters and concepts from the one bleeding over into the other a bit? They’re pretty compatible.
Keith Giffen: Yeah… They are, aren’t they. How’d that happen? Actually…no. Not for the foreseeable future. I’m trying to make Larfleeze the book you come to for new stuff; characters, worlds and the like.
ComicBook.com: Do you worry about that kind of thing, ever? Bringing in “baggage” from a cancelled book versus resolving plot threads for the fans who loved it?
Giffen: I worry about it constantly (and you can take the brackets off of the word baggage because baggage is what it is). Unresolved plotlines drive me crazy. That said, why would I want to taint a new book by dragging in things that have already proven not to sell well? Don’t get me wrong, I’m grateful for ANY support, but when that support’s not strong enough it’s “adios muchachos, what’s next?”
ComicBook.com: Since you’re working with Marc [DeMatteis] again, how long until we get a guest issue from Kevin Maguire?
Giffen: Probably never since he’s working on another book with me and Marc. I know that should be “Marc and me” but the thought of putting his name first… cue frisson.
ComicBook.com: You’ve been described as an idea factory. Why is it that someone so prolific seems to prefer working with a writing partner? Even just since 52, you’ve done a lot of work with Marc and a fair amount with Jurgens off the top of my head.
Giffen: I’ve always preferred doing plot/breakdowns. Guess it’s just the way I’m wired. Now, once I do the plot and breakdowns, doing the dialog is like writing the story twice and I’m just not interested in doing that. Hence the dialog partner. Plus, it enables me to collaborate with some of the best wordsmiths in the business.
ComicBook.com: Obviously you’re coming on board and launching a new Green Lantern family series just as Geoff Johns is leaving and a lot of fans are wondering whether the new teams can live up to his legacy. A lot of people expected the line to contract rather than expand. Do you think that timing is a bit of a “purpose pitch” by DC, telling the fans they believe in these properties?
Giffen: That’s…Purpose pitch? Never heard that one before but I like it. That said, I don’t think that has anything to do with the continuation of the Green Lantern books. They sell well, ergo they continue.
Look, I’m as big a Geoff Johns fan as the next guy. Maybe bigger because I remember Green Lantern and the JSA and The Flash being moribund books before he took them over. Hell, he even made Hawkman work! It’s hard to state how much I respect that level of raw creativity, BUT… Just because he’s leaving the GL franchise doesn’t mean the GL franchise is dead. Time will tell.
As for Larfleeze… Why wouldn’t DC launch one a book featuring one of the most popular Lanterns?
ComicBook.com: What can fans expect from a Giffen/DeMatteis Larfleeze series?
Giffen: New, new, new, new, new.
ComicBook.com: How interconnected will Larfleeze be with the other Green Lantern family books? It seems like the temptation would be to give everyone some breathing room for a while to develop their new status quo.
Giffen: Yes! Absolutely! Lots and lots of breathing room!
ComicBook.com: You’ve worked on Legion of Super-Heroes, Superman, Justice League and on a number of big “event” stories over the years. It’s got to be interesting looking for that next challenge. What would you say is the book that’s a “perfect fit” for you, if you had to pick one in the DC Universe?
Giffen: A new one. Now, if we’re talking already established books… The Inferior Five (in name only) or Earth 2 because I just love world building. When I’m left alone (within reason) to build the world, that is.
Keith Giffen, one of the most beloved writer/artists of the last thirty years in comics, will reteam with his most recognizable collaborator–writer J.M. DeMatteis–and former Flash artist Scott Kolins to bring fans Larfleeze, an ongoing, monthly series that readers will presumably snatch greedily from newsstands while shouting “Mine!”
Part of an ambitious rebranding of the Green Lantern line following the departure not only of best-selling writer Geoff Johns but also of every writer who’s been working with him since the launch of the New 52, Larfleeze is the first new #1 of the post-Johns era, and the first attempt at an ongoing series headlined by the Orange Lantern (although he has been starring in backup features in the Giffen-written Threshold for the last few months).
Giffen joined ComicBook.com to discuss the series, as well as another, as-yet-unannounced project that he confirms he’s working on with DeMatteis and their longtime artistic collaborator, Kevin Maguire (with whom the pair have collaborated on, among other things, a handful of variations on the Justice League International they founded in 1988).
ComicBook.com: With Threshold wrapping up but you and DeMatteis joining forces on Larfleeze, will we see some of the characters and concepts from the one bleeding over into the other a bit? They’re pretty compatible.
Keith Giffen: Yeah… They are, aren’t they. How’d that happen? Actually…no. Not for the foreseeable future. I’m trying to make Larfleeze the book you come to for new stuff; characters, worlds and the like.
ComicBook.com: Do you worry about that kind of thing, ever? Bringing in “baggage” from a cancelled book versus resolving plot threads for the fans who loved it?
Giffen: I worry about it constantly (and you can take the brackets off of the word baggage because baggage is what it is). Unresolved plotlines drive me crazy. That said, why would I want to taint a new book by dragging in things that have already proven not to sell well? Don’t get me wrong, I’m grateful for ANY support, but when that support’s not strong enough it’s “adios muchachos, what’s next?”
ComicBook.com: Since you’re working with Marc [DeMatteis] again, how long until we get a guest issue from Kevin Maguire?
Giffen: Probably never since he’s working on another book with me and Marc. I know that should be “Marc and me” but the thought of putting his name first… cue frisson.
ComicBook.com: You’ve been described as an idea factory. Why is it that someone so prolific seems to prefer working with a writing partner? Even just since 52, you’ve done a lot of work with Marc and a fair amount with Jurgens off the top of my head.
Giffen: I’ve always preferred doing plot/breakdowns. Guess it’s just the way I’m wired. Now, once I do the plot and breakdowns, doing the dialog is like writing the story twice and I’m just not interested in doing that. Hence the dialog partner. Plus, it enables me to collaborate with some of the best wordsmiths in the business.
ComicBook.com: Obviously you’re coming on board and launching a new Green Lantern family series just as Geoff Johns is leaving and a lot of fans are wondering whether the new teams can live up to his legacy. A lot of people expected the line to contract rather than expand. Do you think that timing is a bit of a “purpose pitch” by DC, telling the fans they believe in these properties?
Giffen: That’s…Purpose pitch? Never heard that one before but I like it. That said, I don’t think that has anything to do with the continuation of the Green Lantern books. They sell well, ergo they continue.
Look, I’m as big a Geoff Johns fan as the next guy. Maybe bigger because I remember Green Lantern and the JSA and The Flash being moribund books before he took them over. Hell, he even made Hawkman work! It’s hard to state how much I respect that level of raw creativity, BUT… Just because he’s leaving the GL franchise doesn’t mean the GL franchise is dead. Time will tell.
As for Larfleeze… Why wouldn’t DC launch one a book featuring one of the most popular Lanterns?
ComicBook.com: What can fans expect from a Giffen/DeMatteis Larfleeze series?
Giffen: New, new, new, new, new.
ComicBook.com: How interconnected will Larfleeze be with the other Green Lantern family books? It seems like the temptation would be to give everyone some breathing room for a while to develop their new status quo.
Giffen: Yes! Absolutely! Lots and lots of breathing room!
ComicBook.com: You’ve worked on Legion of Super-Heroes, Superman, Justice League and on a number of big “event” stories over the years. It’s got to be interesting looking for that next challenge. What would you say is the book that’s a “perfect fit” for you, if you had to pick one in the DC Universe?
Giffen: A new one. Now, if we’re talking already established books… The Inferior Five (in name only) or Earth 2 because I just love world building. When I’m left alone (within reason) to build the world, that is.
Labels:
DC Comics,
Green Lantern Comics,
Interviews,
Larfleeze
How RED LANTERNS Will Become DC's 'Sons of Anarchy'
From Newsarama.com
The Red Lanterns may seem like bad guys. But according to new series writer Charles Soule, they're just "bad people trying to do good things by doing bad things."
Among their ranks will be one of the more popular Green Lantern characters, Guy Gardner, who joins the team just as Soule and artist Alessandro Vitti take over with June's issue #21.
Then in a few months, Red Lanterns will be part of a Green Lantern crossover featuring the much-hyped new villain Relic — most likely in September, when DC turns over all its comics to villains.
Vitti and Soule take over Red Lanterns as the entire Green Lantern line-up from DC gets a batch of new creative teams. The shake-up comes at the end of the recent event, "Wrath of the First Lantern," which sees the departure of current Red Lanterns creators Peter Milligan and Miguel A. Sepulveda.
Soule, who also writes DC's Swamp Thing title, said he's trying to make Red Lanterns a team of antiheroes, similar to TV shows like Sons of Anarchy and The Shield, where characters are "still trying to stick to some kind of moral compass."
Newsarama talked to the writer about what's coming for Red Lanterns as DC provided a preview of Vitti's art for the creative team's first issue in June.
Newsarama: Charles, let's start out with just a quick, brief description of your take on the Red Lanterns, for anyone who just wants to know what this book is going to be about?
Charles Soule: the tagline I like to use is, "Bad people trying to do good things by doing bad things."
I want to write a book that feels like a comics version of a TV show like Sons of Anarchy or The Shield, where you have the antiheroes who are still trying to stick to some kind of moral compass. But it's not all grim. There are a lot of moments of humor. You bring Guy Gardner onto the team and you've got to have some humor.
Nrama: Yeah, you revealed to Newsarama the last time we talked that Red Lanterns would star Guy Gardner. How's it been writing him?
Soule: He's an absolute joy to write. He's curmudgeonly and angry and has red hair. All kinds of good stuff.
Nrama: We've seen what Guy went through during "Wrath of the First Lantern." How does that lead into your first issue of Red Lanterns?
Soule: Well, I think one of the things that I'm trying to do, just to start with, is to say that not only Guy Gardner, but all the members of all the Corps have been put through the ringer, which is thanks to the great work by Geoff Johns and the rest of his team.
So where we start, everyone is suffering from almost, like, PTSD after that huge event.
The way that it's going to work is that Hal Jordan, who has now become the leader of the Greens, doesn't want to be blindsided again. He doesn't want to have anything sneaking up on him that he's not ready for.
He realizes that the Red Lanterns, even though they've helped the Greens out in the past, are kind of this wild card. You never know what they're going to do next. They're pretty scary. They're very powerful.
So what Hal decides to do is essentially send Guy out almost as an undercover agent to them.
Nrama: What's Guy's mission, in Hal's eyes?
Soule: To keep an eye on them, and to let [the Green Lanterns] know of any threats before they happen.
That's the initial set-up for my run. And it's cool because it lets you do a lot of things with Guy Gardner.
Nrama: What's his mindset at he gets this mission? And what's the status of the Red Lanterns?
Soule: Guy doesn't particularly want to go over to the Red Lanterns. He's doing it because Hal asked him to. And he's like, why am I so.. you know, do I have so little value that I can just be sent away? And they're supposed to be rebuilding.
So Guy's a little bitter about it. No one really wants to get sent to Ysmault if they can help it.
And at the same time, over on Ysmault, with Atrocitus and his Red Lanterns are reeling a little bit too, because they lost some folks in the First Lantern event.
They feel like they need to figure things out for themselves, because their role should not always be the Corps that comes to the rescue when the Green Lanterns get in some mess and need some heavy hitters to pull it out. And so they're like, "We need to get our act a little bit too and define our role a little bit."
So you have those two elements that are slammed together in my first issue, Red Lanterns #21.
Nrama: Let's go back to what you said about Guy being bitter. Does that, along with his feelings after the "First Lantern" event, play into the way that he's able to fit in with the Red Lanterns?
Soule: Yes! That is a very perceptive comment. You know, the Red Lanterns are powered by rage and wrath, and feeling bad about themselves and other people.
So you have a character like Guy Gardner, who is feeling that way a little bit, because he's always been an also-ran among the human Green Lanterns. He's never really thought of as the No. 1 best Green Lantern, even though he thinks he is and thinks he should be thought of that way.
He's a little bitter about it. And that certainly is going to fuel his Red Lantern ring, for sure.
Nrama: In the last issue, we saw Rankorr, the human Red Lantern, searching for a positive way to use his powers. How are you exploring his journey in the book as you take over?
Soule: I like him a lot, actually. I'm fond of him in part because he's British, which I think is just a neat angle. He's like a space John Constantine, in a way. And he has unique capabilities that the other Reds don't have, and that's always useful when you have an ensemble team that essentially have the same power set. Trying to figure out how to define them individually, it's always good when you can find things they can do that the other ones don't do.
So I like Rankorr a lot. He's got some cool things to do. I'm not going to leave him by the wayside.
One of the things I really want to do with the entire group of Reds is develop them individually. There's always room for character development with these guys. So I don't just want to focus on Atrocitus and Guy. I mean, I want to make sure Zilius Zox gets his moments too, and Bleez and Ratchet and Skallox and all of them.
Nrama: Bleez is the lead female Lantern on your team. What's her journey going forward?
Soule: Bleez is a character I like a lot. She's the only woman on the team with a bunch of not only guys, but, like, really aggressive, angry guys. And so she needs to stand out in a way that is going to have to be really, really specific and really interesting. I don't want to spoil too much of what I'm planning to do with her. But I want to give her — like, I don't think she particularly likes being pigeonholed or anything like that. And I do not want her to be, like, just the "sexy" Red Lantern. And I think that's something that would be a mistake and I'm going to avoid at all costs.
So where I'm going to go with her — she basically could be somebody who is a real person, so to speak. Or at least a real blue person with bone wings, who has things to do and things she cares about, has goals she wants to achieve. Just like all of them. I mean, I don't want to single her out over any of the other ones. I think she's just as valuable as any other members of the team. I look forward to giving her lots of cool stuff to do.
Nrama: Will there be any new Red Lanterns, or is the idea now to just explore more deeply the ones that are already on the team?
Soule: Guy is a new Red Lantern, but I know that's not what you meant. There will be some new ones, but they don't show up immediately. I'm planning on having some new ones come in a few issues down the read.
I really want to establish the new status quo and get the groundwork laid for how the Red Lanterns are going to work going forward, and then we can start seeing some new ones.
It's certainly part of my plan. I just turned in a script for a few issues down the road, which has one of the first big elements for new Red Lanterns, which I think is fun.
But yes, new Red Lanterns eventually, for sure.
Nrama: I know Relic is a big villain for the Green Lantern universe this summer. But what is the biggest challenge, or main villain, for the Red Lanterns in your first arc this summer before they get to the big crossover featuring Relic?
Soule: The Red Lanterns' main villain is really themselves, at least for the first arc. There are some smaller people that they fight. There's one in particular that I just put together for the first couple issues after that crossover.
But there's so much that goes on just bringing Guy into the team. I mean, that's a huge conflict and a huge thing that the Reds have to deal with, getting him integrated.
And then the crossover hits, which is going to be really cool. I've had the privilege of seeing the materials for that ahead of time. And it's really, really good. So I'm excited about that.
But then once the crossover is done, then we'll see a villain that's pretty cool. And it will go from there.
Nrama: And that crossover is focused on Relic, correct?
Soule: Yes.
Nrama: How's it been working with Alessandro?
Soule: Alessandro Vitti is really, really good. He's an Italian artist who... I gave him some crazy stuff to draw in this first issue, and he's just knocking everything out of the park. I had not worked with him before. I was familiar with his work from seeing samples. But you never really know how it's going to be until your script pages start coming back turned into images. And man, it's been phenomenal.
Now I'm upping the game on things that I'm writing for subsequent issues because I know that he can handle it.
You can see for yourself in the preview pages. It's just really great art.
Nrama: Yeah, it looks like, in these preview pages, that Atrocitus is being a little violent to one of his underlings.
Soule: Yes, that is true. That is poor Thist. He's had some bad things happen to him, and Atrocitus is kind of taking some corrective action there. For the good of the Corps. For the good of the Corps.
The Red Lanterns may seem like bad guys. But according to new series writer Charles Soule, they're just "bad people trying to do good things by doing bad things."
Among their ranks will be one of the more popular Green Lantern characters, Guy Gardner, who joins the team just as Soule and artist Alessandro Vitti take over with June's issue #21.
Then in a few months, Red Lanterns will be part of a Green Lantern crossover featuring the much-hyped new villain Relic — most likely in September, when DC turns over all its comics to villains.
Vitti and Soule take over Red Lanterns as the entire Green Lantern line-up from DC gets a batch of new creative teams. The shake-up comes at the end of the recent event, "Wrath of the First Lantern," which sees the departure of current Red Lanterns creators Peter Milligan and Miguel A. Sepulveda.
Soule, who also writes DC's Swamp Thing title, said he's trying to make Red Lanterns a team of antiheroes, similar to TV shows like Sons of Anarchy and The Shield, where characters are "still trying to stick to some kind of moral compass."
Newsarama talked to the writer about what's coming for Red Lanterns as DC provided a preview of Vitti's art for the creative team's first issue in June.
Newsarama: Charles, let's start out with just a quick, brief description of your take on the Red Lanterns, for anyone who just wants to know what this book is going to be about?
Charles Soule: the tagline I like to use is, "Bad people trying to do good things by doing bad things."
I want to write a book that feels like a comics version of a TV show like Sons of Anarchy or The Shield, where you have the antiheroes who are still trying to stick to some kind of moral compass. But it's not all grim. There are a lot of moments of humor. You bring Guy Gardner onto the team and you've got to have some humor.
Nrama: Yeah, you revealed to Newsarama the last time we talked that Red Lanterns would star Guy Gardner. How's it been writing him?
Soule: He's an absolute joy to write. He's curmudgeonly and angry and has red hair. All kinds of good stuff.
Nrama: We've seen what Guy went through during "Wrath of the First Lantern." How does that lead into your first issue of Red Lanterns?
Soule: Well, I think one of the things that I'm trying to do, just to start with, is to say that not only Guy Gardner, but all the members of all the Corps have been put through the ringer, which is thanks to the great work by Geoff Johns and the rest of his team.
So where we start, everyone is suffering from almost, like, PTSD after that huge event.
The way that it's going to work is that Hal Jordan, who has now become the leader of the Greens, doesn't want to be blindsided again. He doesn't want to have anything sneaking up on him that he's not ready for.
He realizes that the Red Lanterns, even though they've helped the Greens out in the past, are kind of this wild card. You never know what they're going to do next. They're pretty scary. They're very powerful.
So what Hal decides to do is essentially send Guy out almost as an undercover agent to them.
Nrama: What's Guy's mission, in Hal's eyes?
Soule: To keep an eye on them, and to let [the Green Lanterns] know of any threats before they happen.
That's the initial set-up for my run. And it's cool because it lets you do a lot of things with Guy Gardner.
Nrama: What's his mindset at he gets this mission? And what's the status of the Red Lanterns?
Soule: Guy doesn't particularly want to go over to the Red Lanterns. He's doing it because Hal asked him to. And he's like, why am I so.. you know, do I have so little value that I can just be sent away? And they're supposed to be rebuilding.
So Guy's a little bitter about it. No one really wants to get sent to Ysmault if they can help it.
And at the same time, over on Ysmault, with Atrocitus and his Red Lanterns are reeling a little bit too, because they lost some folks in the First Lantern event.
They feel like they need to figure things out for themselves, because their role should not always be the Corps that comes to the rescue when the Green Lanterns get in some mess and need some heavy hitters to pull it out. And so they're like, "We need to get our act a little bit too and define our role a little bit."
So you have those two elements that are slammed together in my first issue, Red Lanterns #21.
Nrama: Let's go back to what you said about Guy being bitter. Does that, along with his feelings after the "First Lantern" event, play into the way that he's able to fit in with the Red Lanterns?
Soule: Yes! That is a very perceptive comment. You know, the Red Lanterns are powered by rage and wrath, and feeling bad about themselves and other people.
So you have a character like Guy Gardner, who is feeling that way a little bit, because he's always been an also-ran among the human Green Lanterns. He's never really thought of as the No. 1 best Green Lantern, even though he thinks he is and thinks he should be thought of that way.
He's a little bitter about it. And that certainly is going to fuel his Red Lantern ring, for sure.
Nrama: In the last issue, we saw Rankorr, the human Red Lantern, searching for a positive way to use his powers. How are you exploring his journey in the book as you take over?
Soule: I like him a lot, actually. I'm fond of him in part because he's British, which I think is just a neat angle. He's like a space John Constantine, in a way. And he has unique capabilities that the other Reds don't have, and that's always useful when you have an ensemble team that essentially have the same power set. Trying to figure out how to define them individually, it's always good when you can find things they can do that the other ones don't do.
So I like Rankorr a lot. He's got some cool things to do. I'm not going to leave him by the wayside.
One of the things I really want to do with the entire group of Reds is develop them individually. There's always room for character development with these guys. So I don't just want to focus on Atrocitus and Guy. I mean, I want to make sure Zilius Zox gets his moments too, and Bleez and Ratchet and Skallox and all of them.
Nrama: Bleez is the lead female Lantern on your team. What's her journey going forward?
Soule: Bleez is a character I like a lot. She's the only woman on the team with a bunch of not only guys, but, like, really aggressive, angry guys. And so she needs to stand out in a way that is going to have to be really, really specific and really interesting. I don't want to spoil too much of what I'm planning to do with her. But I want to give her — like, I don't think she particularly likes being pigeonholed or anything like that. And I do not want her to be, like, just the "sexy" Red Lantern. And I think that's something that would be a mistake and I'm going to avoid at all costs.
So where I'm going to go with her — she basically could be somebody who is a real person, so to speak. Or at least a real blue person with bone wings, who has things to do and things she cares about, has goals she wants to achieve. Just like all of them. I mean, I don't want to single her out over any of the other ones. I think she's just as valuable as any other members of the team. I look forward to giving her lots of cool stuff to do.
Nrama: Will there be any new Red Lanterns, or is the idea now to just explore more deeply the ones that are already on the team?
Soule: Guy is a new Red Lantern, but I know that's not what you meant. There will be some new ones, but they don't show up immediately. I'm planning on having some new ones come in a few issues down the read.
I really want to establish the new status quo and get the groundwork laid for how the Red Lanterns are going to work going forward, and then we can start seeing some new ones.
It's certainly part of my plan. I just turned in a script for a few issues down the road, which has one of the first big elements for new Red Lanterns, which I think is fun.
But yes, new Red Lanterns eventually, for sure.
Nrama: I know Relic is a big villain for the Green Lantern universe this summer. But what is the biggest challenge, or main villain, for the Red Lanterns in your first arc this summer before they get to the big crossover featuring Relic?
Soule: The Red Lanterns' main villain is really themselves, at least for the first arc. There are some smaller people that they fight. There's one in particular that I just put together for the first couple issues after that crossover.
But there's so much that goes on just bringing Guy into the team. I mean, that's a huge conflict and a huge thing that the Reds have to deal with, getting him integrated.
And then the crossover hits, which is going to be really cool. I've had the privilege of seeing the materials for that ahead of time. And it's really, really good. So I'm excited about that.
But then once the crossover is done, then we'll see a villain that's pretty cool. And it will go from there.
Nrama: And that crossover is focused on Relic, correct?
Soule: Yes.
Nrama: How's it been working with Alessandro?
Soule: Alessandro Vitti is really, really good. He's an Italian artist who... I gave him some crazy stuff to draw in this first issue, and he's just knocking everything out of the park. I had not worked with him before. I was familiar with his work from seeing samples. But you never really know how it's going to be until your script pages start coming back turned into images. And man, it's been phenomenal.
Now I'm upping the game on things that I'm writing for subsequent issues because I know that he can handle it.
You can see for yourself in the preview pages. It's just really great art.
Nrama: Yeah, it looks like, in these preview pages, that Atrocitus is being a little violent to one of his underlings.
Soule: Yes, that is true. That is poor Thist. He's had some bad things happen to him, and Atrocitus is kind of taking some corrective action there. For the good of the Corps. For the good of the Corps.
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Charles Soule Talks RED LANTERNS, Guy Gardner And (Of Course) Dex-Starr
From Comicvine.com
Find out what we can expect in the new direction of the series full of rage.
RED LANTERNS has sometimes been a bit of an enigma. We have a team full of rage-filled beings, willing to do whatever it takes to fulfill whatever their current goal might be. In Peter Milligan's final issue, we even saw some members questioning what their purpose is supposed to be. Now with a new creative shift in all the LANTERN titles and Charles Soule taking over RED LANTERNS, we're due for some changes and some answers.
We had the chance to ask Charles some questions to find out what the heck Guy Gardner is doing on the team and how much more of Dex-Starr can we expect?
Comic Vine: Where do see the Red Lanterns headed? What will be their mission in the universe?
Charles Soule: The way I want to write the series is to give it a tone sort of like a TV show like Sons of Anarchy or The Shield. Where you have essentially this team of kind of anti-heroes, where you have people that do crazy things that you can't believe, but it's all hopefully in the service of a greater good. The tagline I've sort of been using for this is "Bad people doing good things by doing bad things."
The main kind of new addition to the team that will hopefully help make that tone work is Guy Gardner. He's coming over to be a full-fledged embedded member of the Red Lantern Corps. He brings all of his backstory and all of his personality, humor and craziness. It's all going to be part of the Red now. It think that will help to offset the teeth-grinding aggressiveness of Atrocitus in a way I think will create a really great dynamic.
The tone will change a little bit but in a way that I think is going to be really entertaining and fun and people will enjoy reading it.
CV: Will you be focusing on Atrocitus and what's next for him after achieving his revenge against the Guardians?
CS: Yeah. Atrocitus is a gigantic part of the Red Lanterns story. You can't tell a story that doesn't include Atrocitus. When we start, he is basically in a position where he's thinking, "We've spent most of our existence relating to issues that the Greens have had. We get called in as heavy hitters at the last minute to sort of save the day as a big nuclear assault. But where does that get us? What are we supposed to be for?" Some of his Reds are asking him those same questions as the leader so he's trying to figure some of that stuff out.
When the first issue begins, he has a plan that he's going to put into effect. You'll get a sense of what he wants to do and where he's going to take them. When Guy Gardner shows up, sent in as almost a…I think 'spy' is maybe a little strong but certainly, Hal sends him to the Reds on purpose, on a mission to keep tabs on them. He doesn't want to be blindsided by anything that the Reds might do. Integrating those two viewpoints is going to make some sparks.
CV: Is Guy's reasoning going to be clear right away, why he's there?
CS: You're going to see it, I think, a page after the pages shown in the preview. You'll see very quickly why he's there and what he's doing there. It's going to be cool, I guarantee it. The last few pages of my first issue will sort of change things in a way that I think people are really going to respond to or I'll get an earful on the Internet. One way or the other, it's going to be something.
CV: In RED LANTERNS #20, Atrocitus seemed willing to let others challenge him for leadership, how will that work out with Guy now on the team? What's their dynamic going to be?
CS: Because they're both very much Type A personalities, not used to letting other people be in control? Is that what you're getting at?
CV: Yeah.
CS: That's going to come into play immediately. Guy isn't really looking to run the Red Lanterns. Who wants that job? Certainly not Guy Gardner. But at the same time, if you're doing something Guy Gardner thinks is idiotic, he's going to let you know about it. There will be significant conflict between Guy Gardner and Atrocitus. No doubt about it.
CV: Besides Hal, will John and the rest of the Green Lantern Corps immediately be aware of what Guy's up to?
CS: Well, that, I think I'm going to leave for the issue to lay out, when it comes out. It's certainly something that the dynamic of who knows, how they know, why they know and when they know - all of that is going to be an important part of the Red Lanterns storyline. You can see how that could be a little tricky since Guy is essentially undercover and not everybody knows he's undercover.
CV: On the cover to issue 22, you can see Guy still has his Green Power Ring. Will he try to wield both rings?
CS: I'm going to leave that for the book too. Sorry I can't give you more answers. It all gets explained in the issues in a way I think is pretty cool. I don't want to spoil too much now.
CV: How much of a role will Guy have in this book? Will other Red Lanterns also play big roles?
CS: You'll still see all of the other Red Lanterns. I should say I'm focusing on the ones that are sort of sentient, the ones that can think. I think it's tough to write a book that's all about just screaming rage monsters. The ones that are the core cast are Ratchet, Rankorr, Skallox, Bleez, Zilius Zox, Atrocitus and Guy Gardner. The ones we've seen, up to this point, as the thinking talking ones that have personalities and different power sets.
As far as whether or not we see them, yeah, we see a lot of them. Guy Gardner is a big part of the book. I would say he's certainly one of the leads. When you take on a team book, it's a 'team book.' I think it's doing a disservice to the work that other people have done in creating those characters and obviously the readers to not treat them that way. Everyone gets their moments. Certainly with that big a cast, not everyone's at the full front of each issue at every moment but you can bring them out and pull them back. Hopefully it'll all work out nicely.
CV: Rankorr believed the power of Rage can be used for good. Will he still pursue that idea after the events of issue #20?
CS: He's definitely going to be an interesting part of the book because he has powers that none of the others have. How those work and how their used is going to be a big big part of the book going forward. Plus I like him because he's British, from his origin. I'm thinking of him as almost a space John Constantine. Which is kind of a funny character to write.
CV: Are we going to see more of Dex-Starr?
CS: Dex-Starr…I was wondering when Dex-Starr was going to come up.
CV: He's gotta come up.
CS: Yeah, I think Dex-Starr is one of the coolest things about the Red Lanterns and it would be idiotic of me not to use him. He does something pretty cool in the first issue. Then he continues to have a pretty sweet role going forward. I like Dex-Starr quite a bit, just like everybody else does. He's a cool, weird space cat.
CV: That's good to hear. Thanks a lot. We're looking forward to seeing what you're going to do with this book.
CS: Alright. Thanks so much.
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Tuesday, May 28, 2013
LARFLEEZE #1 Variant Cover Reveal
Sneak Peek at GREEN LANTERN #21
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Infinite Crisis Green Lanterns
Green Lantern takes center stage, and he's joined by his Multiverse counterparts -- Arcane Green Lantern and Atomic Green Lantern!
Monday, May 27, 2013
Sunday, May 26, 2013
CHARACTER CLOSE-UP : Book of Oa
History
The Book of Oa is a massive book held in the Citadel of Oa. Created long ago, the Book contains the history of the Guardians of the Universe and the Green Lantern Corps. One member of the Green Lantern Corps is selected by the Guardians as Keeper of the Book of Oa, a highly honored position.
After Thomas Kalmaku used Hal Jordan's ring to rebuild Oa, Kyle Rayner used his power as Ion to ressurect the Guardian. The book of Oa is now restored.
The Forbidden Chapter of the Book tells the prophecy of the Blackest Night, the final destruction of the Green Lantern Corps at the hands of their greatest enemies as it was told to Abin Sur by the demons of Ysmault.
Upon recruitment, a Green Lantern is expected to uphold certain principles of his/her/its duty. These principles include:
1. The protection of life and liberty within the assigned sector.(Revision allows lethal force to be used against the Sinestro Corps)
2. Following the orders of the Guardians without question.
3. Noninterference with a planet's culture, political structure, or its population's collective will.
4. Acting within local laws and obeying the local authority within reason. (Presumably, The Guardians' orders can overrule this when necessary).
5. Taking no action against anyone or anything until they are proven to be a threat against life and liberty.
6. Refusing to use the equipment, resources or authority of The Corps for personal gain.
7. Showing respect for and cooperating with other members of the Corps and the Guardians.
8. Showing respect for life which includes restraint of force unless there is no reasonable alternative.
9. Giving top priority to the greatest danger in the assigned sector.
10. Upholding the honor of the Corps.
Following the escalation of the war between the Green Lantern Corps and the Sinestro Corps, the Guardians have rewritten the Book of Oa changing the ten previous laws into new laws.
1. Lethal Force is authorized to be used against the Sinestro Corps.
2. Lethal Force is authorized against all enemies of the Green Lantern Corps.
3. Love and physical relationships between members of the Green Lantern Corps is forbidden. (Repealed)
4. The Vega System is no longer Outside the Green Lantern Corps' jurisdiction.
5. The Green Lantern Corps no longer takes prisoners.
6. If the Guardians are unable to discharge their sacred duties, command of the Green Lantern Corps falls to Clarrisi, followed by the Illustres.
The remaining four laws have yet to be revealed.
To enforce these principles, the Guardians closely monitor the activities of the Lanterns. If they feel a violation of Corps regulations occurred, they will summon the offender to Oa and hold a trial in which the charges are read and the Lantern is allowed to explain his/her/its actions. If the Guardians are not satisfied by the explanation, they have a number of disciplinary options which include:
Probation
Personal supervision by the Guardians on Oa
Temporary exile from the Lantern's homeworld
Ritual Trial of Endurance - a Lantern must attempt a dangerous passage through the Anti-Matter Universe.
Expulsion from the Corps.
Saturday, May 25, 2013
Geoff Johns Reflects On 9 Years of Green Lantern : Greenest Night
From IGN.com
The event at Los Angeles’ Avalon Bardot Theater dubbed Greenest Night, a celebration of Geoff Johns’ recently concluded 9-year run on Green Lantern with proceeds benefiting the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund (CBLDF). If you’re not familiar with the CBLDF and what they do, I highly recommend perusing their website; essentially, they help protect the first amendment rights of creators, retailers, librarians, and the comic book community at large.
CBLDF Executive Director Charles Brownstein kicked things off, talking a little bit about what the organization does and offered an anecdote about their most recent battle. “Most recently our work has taken us into Chicago where we’re speaking up for the students and teachers who were deprived of using the work Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi. This book was removed in a way that defied due process. It was removed from classrooms where it was being used as a teaching tool to show American middle school kids what it was like for an Iranian middle school girl when she was growing up in an oppressive regime. And it was taken away without proper process. These things happen all the time, where people decide that their individual viewpoint can get in the way of everybody else’s freedom to read.” He went on to explain the CBLDF’s view that such a decision should be left up to the individual or families, not the school systems, and is a pretty good summation of what it is the CBLDF does.
Brownstein introduced Jeph Loeb, longtime friend and colleague to Johns, who offered a heartfelt introduction, reflecting on their time working for mutual mentor Richard Donner and writing comics together at DC. Loeb offered fun quips and anecdotes about that period of time, saying, “Geoff’s real gift is discipline. Something no writer has.” He told a tale about Johns’ commitment to his work, saying how he’d always try to coax Johns to breakfast, lunch, dinner, and coffee in an effort to put off writing, but that Johns would never accept unless he was on track with his goals for the day.
Loeb reflected lovingly on their early days together as they bantered about whether the Hulk or Superman was stronger and how eventually their careers came into full swing and ultimately went different paths. Loeb joked, “While I was writing about Green Hulk and Red Hulk and Blue Hulk, Geoff had the most ORIGINAL CREATIVE SPARK! Finally, there was going to be a Green Lantern and a Red Lantern and a Blue Lantern!”
But Loeb wrapped his introduction a more serious note, describing how much their careers had changed but how they’ve remained the best of friends through it all. Finally, Loeb introduced the man of the hour, saying, “Ladies and gentlemen, the only person I’ve ever met that can turn the blackest night into the brightest day: Geoff Johns.”
Johns was met with applause from the crowd as he approached the stage, quipping, “Just for the record: the Red Lanterns appeared a year before the Red Hulk!” The conversation began with CBR’s Jonah Weiland reminding Johns how the announcement of Green Lantern: Rebirth way back at Wizard World Chicago in 2004 was met with very little fanfare, and was in fact cut short because Christopher Nolan wanted to show the first footage from Batman Begins and cutting that panel short was the only timing that would work. Nine years later, Green Lantern stands tall with fans and retailers after the conclusion of Johns’ epic run.
“Back then, bringing back Hal Jordan was sort of a risky move. People were like, ‘Why are you gonna do that?’” said Johns. He added that for his entire career he’s been met with confusion as to the characters he chose to invest in. From Teen Titans to the JSA to Booster Gold to Hawkman and of course Green Lantern, he said he enjoys taking characters that people tend to underestimate and expand the world they operate in. Fittingly, Green Lantern was always at the top of the list. “I like skepticism. I thrive off of challenges like that.”
Asked what was going through his mind writing the final issue of his run – the excellent Green Lantern #20 – Johns replied, “This better be good!”
He elaborated: “A lot of mixed emotions. I was really emotional writing the last 10 or 12 pages. I actually wrote those first and they were the hardest to write. All the stuff with Sinestro and Hal; it was sad. It was sad, but that’s why it was so happy in the end. I wanted to send these characters off in a positive way, and ‘all will be well’ is something I live by now. All will be well at the end of the day, and I really wanted people to read that issue and walk away from it fulfilled and excited.”
Johns talked about artist Doug Mahnke for a bit, saying that Mahnke tends to send his pages in bulk. For Green Lantern #20, Johns didn’t see any pages for months and then got 45 pages all at once. He also said that he knew around Green Lantern #3 or #4 (of the New 52 volume) that his story was coming to its end. “This whole run had been about Hal and Sinestro and that bizarre friendship. Once I knew it was going to get to a point where it broke again, there was an acknowledgement of it… my favorite line is when Sinestro calls Jordan “Hal.” It’s the first time Sinestro ever calls him by his first name. And it was that moment I knew it was over.”
The conversation moved to what Johns learned about himself through working on this character for the last decade. “It might sound goofy but I do prescribe to the notion that emotions have power,” said Johns. “We’re all driven by something, and most of that is emotional reaction. For me it was about recognizing my self-awareness a little bit more. The more we analyze ourselves, the nicer we are to [other] people and to ourselves.” Johns added that Hal’s journey of learning to look before he leaps and experiencing the entire emotional spectrum was a journey for himself as well.
He said that Green Lantern is perpetually relevant because exploring the idea of fear is something that can never go out of date, particularly after 9/11, which wasn’t so far removed from the start of Johns’ Green Lantern. Johns also added that introducing Simon Baz was an attempt to explore cultural fear.
As for his own personal fears, Johns said, “Every writer doubts himself every day. You procrastinate because you’re afraid to do it. But you overcome fear every day when you get out of bed. Overcoming fear isn’t going skydiving because you’re afraid of heights. Overcoming fear is every day, all day long.”
Things lightened up a little bit when Johns talked about his enormous love of cereal. He likened his tweets about the kind of cereal he likes to the feeling you get when you see a fellow comic book fan reading a comic “in the wild.” Johns said, “I feel like I can connect with people more if I share the mundane. For me Twitter was all about, ‘Do you guys like cereal? I do too!’ Anyone that I would talk to through Twitter about that was just me longing to connect with people over the mundane. If you like cereal, I like cereal, we’re cool.”
The evening wrapped as Johns recited the Green Lantern oath for the final time and the attendees erupted with appreciation, admiration, and adoration.
All will be well indeed.
The event at Los Angeles’ Avalon Bardot Theater dubbed Greenest Night, a celebration of Geoff Johns’ recently concluded 9-year run on Green Lantern with proceeds benefiting the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund (CBLDF). If you’re not familiar with the CBLDF and what they do, I highly recommend perusing their website; essentially, they help protect the first amendment rights of creators, retailers, librarians, and the comic book community at large.
CBLDF Executive Director Charles Brownstein kicked things off, talking a little bit about what the organization does and offered an anecdote about their most recent battle. “Most recently our work has taken us into Chicago where we’re speaking up for the students and teachers who were deprived of using the work Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi. This book was removed in a way that defied due process. It was removed from classrooms where it was being used as a teaching tool to show American middle school kids what it was like for an Iranian middle school girl when she was growing up in an oppressive regime. And it was taken away without proper process. These things happen all the time, where people decide that their individual viewpoint can get in the way of everybody else’s freedom to read.” He went on to explain the CBLDF’s view that such a decision should be left up to the individual or families, not the school systems, and is a pretty good summation of what it is the CBLDF does.
Brownstein introduced Jeph Loeb, longtime friend and colleague to Johns, who offered a heartfelt introduction, reflecting on their time working for mutual mentor Richard Donner and writing comics together at DC. Loeb offered fun quips and anecdotes about that period of time, saying, “Geoff’s real gift is discipline. Something no writer has.” He told a tale about Johns’ commitment to his work, saying how he’d always try to coax Johns to breakfast, lunch, dinner, and coffee in an effort to put off writing, but that Johns would never accept unless he was on track with his goals for the day.
Loeb reflected lovingly on their early days together as they bantered about whether the Hulk or Superman was stronger and how eventually their careers came into full swing and ultimately went different paths. Loeb joked, “While I was writing about Green Hulk and Red Hulk and Blue Hulk, Geoff had the most ORIGINAL CREATIVE SPARK! Finally, there was going to be a Green Lantern and a Red Lantern and a Blue Lantern!”
But Loeb wrapped his introduction a more serious note, describing how much their careers had changed but how they’ve remained the best of friends through it all. Finally, Loeb introduced the man of the hour, saying, “Ladies and gentlemen, the only person I’ve ever met that can turn the blackest night into the brightest day: Geoff Johns.”
Johns was met with applause from the crowd as he approached the stage, quipping, “Just for the record: the Red Lanterns appeared a year before the Red Hulk!” The conversation began with CBR’s Jonah Weiland reminding Johns how the announcement of Green Lantern: Rebirth way back at Wizard World Chicago in 2004 was met with very little fanfare, and was in fact cut short because Christopher Nolan wanted to show the first footage from Batman Begins and cutting that panel short was the only timing that would work. Nine years later, Green Lantern stands tall with fans and retailers after the conclusion of Johns’ epic run.
“Back then, bringing back Hal Jordan was sort of a risky move. People were like, ‘Why are you gonna do that?’” said Johns. He added that for his entire career he’s been met with confusion as to the characters he chose to invest in. From Teen Titans to the JSA to Booster Gold to Hawkman and of course Green Lantern, he said he enjoys taking characters that people tend to underestimate and expand the world they operate in. Fittingly, Green Lantern was always at the top of the list. “I like skepticism. I thrive off of challenges like that.”
Asked what was going through his mind writing the final issue of his run – the excellent Green Lantern #20 – Johns replied, “This better be good!”
He elaborated: “A lot of mixed emotions. I was really emotional writing the last 10 or 12 pages. I actually wrote those first and they were the hardest to write. All the stuff with Sinestro and Hal; it was sad. It was sad, but that’s why it was so happy in the end. I wanted to send these characters off in a positive way, and ‘all will be well’ is something I live by now. All will be well at the end of the day, and I really wanted people to read that issue and walk away from it fulfilled and excited.”
Johns talked about artist Doug Mahnke for a bit, saying that Mahnke tends to send his pages in bulk. For Green Lantern #20, Johns didn’t see any pages for months and then got 45 pages all at once. He also said that he knew around Green Lantern #3 or #4 (of the New 52 volume) that his story was coming to its end. “This whole run had been about Hal and Sinestro and that bizarre friendship. Once I knew it was going to get to a point where it broke again, there was an acknowledgement of it… my favorite line is when Sinestro calls Jordan “Hal.” It’s the first time Sinestro ever calls him by his first name. And it was that moment I knew it was over.”
The conversation moved to what Johns learned about himself through working on this character for the last decade. “It might sound goofy but I do prescribe to the notion that emotions have power,” said Johns. “We’re all driven by something, and most of that is emotional reaction. For me it was about recognizing my self-awareness a little bit more. The more we analyze ourselves, the nicer we are to [other] people and to ourselves.” Johns added that Hal’s journey of learning to look before he leaps and experiencing the entire emotional spectrum was a journey for himself as well.
He said that Green Lantern is perpetually relevant because exploring the idea of fear is something that can never go out of date, particularly after 9/11, which wasn’t so far removed from the start of Johns’ Green Lantern. Johns also added that introducing Simon Baz was an attempt to explore cultural fear.
As for his own personal fears, Johns said, “Every writer doubts himself every day. You procrastinate because you’re afraid to do it. But you overcome fear every day when you get out of bed. Overcoming fear isn’t going skydiving because you’re afraid of heights. Overcoming fear is every day, all day long.”
Things lightened up a little bit when Johns talked about his enormous love of cereal. He likened his tweets about the kind of cereal he likes to the feeling you get when you see a fellow comic book fan reading a comic “in the wild.” Johns said, “I feel like I can connect with people more if I share the mundane. For me Twitter was all about, ‘Do you guys like cereal? I do too!’ Anyone that I would talk to through Twitter about that was just me longing to connect with people over the mundane. If you like cereal, I like cereal, we’re cool.”
The evening wrapped as Johns recited the Green Lantern oath for the final time and the attendees erupted with appreciation, admiration, and adoration.
All will be well indeed.
Friday, May 24, 2013
CLASSIC COMIC : Green Lantern Vol 2 #19 "The Defeat of Green Lantern!"
Green Lantern Vol 2 #19
March, 1963
Executive Editor: Julius Schwartz
Cover Artists: Gil Kane, Murphy Anderson
"The Defeat of Green Lantern!"
Writers: John Broome
Pencilers: Gil Kane
Inkers: Joe Giella
Letterers: Gaspar Saladino
Editors: Julius Schwartz
"The Trial of the Horse-And-Buggy Bandits!"
Writers: John Broome
Pencilers: Gil Kane
Inkers: Joe Giella
Letterers: Gaspar Saladino
Editors: Julius Schwartz
Appearing in "The Defeat of Green Lantern!"
Featured Characters: Green Lantern (Hal Jordan)
Supporting Characters: Tom Kalmaku
Tomar-Re
Villains: Sonar
Other Characters: Casino De Granaco
Locations: Xudar
Earth
California
Coast City
Ferris Aircraft
Europe
Modora
Granaco
Items: Green Lantern Ring
Green Lantern Power Battery
Sonigun
Synopsis for "The Defeat of Green Lantern!"
With a cosmic storm approaching Earth, Tomar-Re attempts to contact the Green Lantern of Earth to warn him of the danger. On Earth, a letter is sent to Green Lantern care of Thomas Kalmaku to the Ferris Aircraft Company. Written by the ruler of Granaco, a kingdom neighboring Modora that Sonar is being released from prison in Modora. He came to Granaco to offer his services as a supreme adviser to the country and was kicked out for even suggesting the idea. In hindsight, the leader of Granaco realized that he has made a powerful enemy in mocking Sonar and is asking for Green Lantern's help.
Traveling to Granaco, Green Lantern tries to stop an attacking the town, fending off all the sound constructs Sonar creates with his weapon. When Sonar attempts to shatter Green Lantern with his sonar gun, however Green Lantern saves himself from death than with a protective sphere. Restored, Green Lantern knocks out Sonar and turns him over to the police.
After Sonar's defeat, Green Lantern is finally reached by Tomar-Re who finally tells him that he was able to put the idea in Green Lantern's head on how to save himself from Sonar's attack.
Appearing in "The Trial of the Horse-And-Buggy Bandits!"
Featured Characters: Green Lantern (Hal Jordan)
Supporting Characters: Mrs. Wilford Bigelow (Single appearance)
Villains: Horse and Wagon thieves (Single appearance)
Curtis (Single appearance)
Locations: California
Coast City
Ferris Aircraft
Items: Green Lantern Ring
Green Lantern Power Battery
Synopsis for "The Trial of the Horse-And-Buggy Bandits!"
When an old woman's phone call to Association for the Prevention of Animal Cruelty somehow gets connected to the Green Lantern's power ring, the call for help leads Green Lantern into a bizarre series of thefts that are done on a horsedrawn buggy. Green Lantern quickly ends the operation, turning the crooks over to the police.
Thursday, May 23, 2013
White Lantern Kyle And Literal NEW GUARDIANS Star as New Team Joins, Issue #21 Preview
From Newsarama.com
In June, all the Green Lantern titles get a new direction, and now, thanks to the revelation in Green Lantern #20 that Kyle Rayner is remaining the White Lantern, readers know just where Green Lantern: New Guardians is going.
Well, not exactly where it's going. As new series writer Justin Jordan told Newsarama, the title will be quickly spinning out into space somewhere. Kyle remains in the starring role, but the Templar Guardians play an important part as well (thus the title "New Guardians"); the comic will be exploring areas of the DC Universe "that readers don't normally see," Jordan said.
And the writer pointed out that Kyle's powers as a White Lantern are also unknown. What are their limits? How can Kyle control them? And perhaps most importantly (for Kyle, anyway), how should he use them to help the universe?
As Jordan's first storyline begins in June's Green Lantern: New Guardians #21, Kyle begins a mission for the Green Lantern Corps, but he's also on a quest to figure out what being a White Lantern really means.
The new creative team comes on board at a time of transition for the Green Lantern comics. The former creative teams on all the Lantern-associated books finished up their run this month with each title's issue #20, ending a series of events that culminated in the recent "Wrath of the First Lantern" storyline.
That means a whole new batch of creative teams in June, and a new status quo for the Green Lantern universe. As Jordan and artist Brad Walker take over New Guardians, there have been some major upheavals, including the destruction of the Guardians, a change in leadership for the Corps (with Hal in charge now), and a new batch of "Templar Guardians" being introduced.
Newsarama talked to Jordan to find out more about what Kyle will be facing in the coming months of Green Lantern: New Guardians and why his emotional baggage from recent events will affect how he uses his power as the new White Lantern.
GLNG #21 Art |
Justin Jordan: It's one of the things that I was interested in exploring when they first asked me about the book. And so we're working out what the White Lantern can do.
It's interesting to me to look at how you're going to use the various ring powers, because they an do more things than just create constructs. And it kind of doesn't matter whether a construct is green or red, necessarily, in terms of the construct itself. But you know, what it says about the person's emotional state is interesting to me.
And the other powers that the rings have, exploring what you can do with those and how you can combine those things, is actually one of the more nerdy, interesting things to me, about the book. So I was glad they left us in that place.
Nrama: I'm curious, though, because it was kind of confusing in these last few issues. Can White Lanterns raise the dead? Can you address that?
Jordan: I cannot. I have an opinion on it, but it's one you're going to have to wait to read in the book.
Nrama: Fair enough. But can you talk a little more about what you said earlier, regarding "what it says about the person's emotional state." In issue #20, Kyle implied he was kind of using "love" as a reliable default emotional power. But there's obviously a purpose to these other emotions. Is it wrong to assume it's always going to be on the blue/indigo/violet side of the spectrum?
Jordan: Yeah. I mean, that's not unreasonable, and I think Kyle believes that. I also think that we'll find that things like — well, for instance, Kyle started as a Green Lantern, and that's where he was trained to use a ring. So when it comes down to crunch time, he's going to find himself defaulting to green quite a lot.
But if he gets sufficiently angry about something, it's going to be pretty difficult not to use red when he has access to that.
So there's going to be a mix of colors. The fact that these things kind of reflect his emotional state is something I want to play with. And honestly, it's not always going to be ways that Kyle consciously would have expected of himself, which is kind of how it goes. You know? You can sort of predict how you will react emotionally to something, but we don't always know ourselves as well as we'd like to.
GLNG #21 Art |
Jordan: That all factors in pretty intensely. Kyle is asked to do something in New Guardians which will form what New Guardians, under my run, is about. Something that he is really, really ambivalent about. And ambivalent might be putting it mildly.
He's asked to do something that hurts him a lot because of the stuff that happened to him during "First Lantern," because of the betrayals that he feels that he suffered.
And since his powers are related to his emotions, mastering that is one of the things he has to do. And it's an ongoing problem, doing what he's been asked to do while trying to keep his emotions and feelings about that in check.
Nrama: Can you say who asks him to do something?
Jordan: You actually see who it is in the preview. It's the Templar Guardians and Hal. They ask Kyle to undertake a mission for them.
Nrama: Does he have to do it?
Jordan: He doesn't have to. He is given a very convincing reason why he should.
Nrama: Yeah, because I wouldn't think the structure in the Green Lantern Corps isn't such that Kyle would have to do something he doesn't want to do.
Jordan: No. He doesn't. They have absolutely no ability to make Kyle do that.
So they have to come up with a pretty convincing argument why he should do it. And they do. But it's not one that he is particularly happy about. He just sees the necessity of what he's got to do.
GLNG #21 Art |
Jordan: Kyle is outside the Green Lantern Corps. He is a separate entity.
So as you were talking about earlier, Hal has absolutely no authority over Kyle. So if he wants Kyle to help him do something, he's got to appeal to Kyle in a reasonable way, not in a command hierarchy kind of way.
And that's actually going to relate to the book as we go on. One of the things Kyle is going to be figuring out within the book is, what is his role relative to the Green Lantern Corps? What should he be doing? What can he do? What is the best use of the abilities that he has?
And it won't necessarily always be working with the Corps. That might not be how things shake out for Kyle.
Nrama: Solicitations indicate you're dealing with a "major Green Lantern villain." Is that Relic? Which is what most people are assuming. Or do you have another threat in this comic?
Jordan: There are a couple of new villains who won't be necessarily what you expect them to be, I think, in the first few issues. That's my non-spoilery way of addressing that.
Nrama: While Green Lantern: New Guardians has starred Kyle since it launched back in 2011, it had almost an ensemble cast for awhile. Who's the cast going to be going forward?
Jordan: Kyle is still the main character. We'll see Carol Ferris from time to time, and possibly more than that from time to time. And we will get to learn a lot more about the Templar Guardians than we've probably learned about most of the Guardians thus far.
GLNG #21 Art |
Jordan: I will tell you that there is a very good reason it is called "New Guardians."
Nrama: Ah, so that's why you've given teases in the past that "New Guardians" would be "more literal" when you took over the book. So these Templar Guardians play a big role in your book?
Jordan: Yes.
Nrama: Are all the Green Lantern books going to be working in conjunction with each other as you kick off these new directions with new creative teams? Or are you trying to say, "OK, Kyle has this mission, so we're going off on our own for a little bit?"
Jordan: Initially, there's going to be some overlap. After we get through the first few issues, we're going to be a lot more separate, just because of the nature of what Kyle's trying to do won't overlap with what the other Corps do as often.
So both.
Nrama: We also saw that Sayd and Ganthet still exist in some way. Is that going to play a role at all in your book?
Jordan: Not in the near future.
Nrama: Then let's talk about Brad Walker, because we're looking at some of his interior pages for the first time. What's he bringing to the book?
Jordan: A high level of awesome! I have to say, I've been looking at the pages as they come in and Brad's just really kicking ass. And it's one of those things you don't necessarily get with all artists. When you're going into it, you don't know how well your scripts are going to click with their styles.
But thus far, Brad and I seem to be working together really well. He's really getting what I was going for, and in many cases even doing something that was even cooler than what I had in my head, which is generally what I'm looking for in an artist, you know? Someone who can actually make me look, you know, competent.
Nrama: Then as a final question, if someone was thinking about checking out Green Lantern: New Guardians for the first time, how would you describe the comic? How would you tell them about what they'll see over the first six months or so?
Jordan: What they're going to see during the first six months is a cancer on the face of space-time, which I realize sounds really cryptic, but you'll understand when you read the first issue.
One of the things we want to do with New Guardians is explore the DC Universe away from earth. And so we will look at some of the pre-existing races, and we'll be looking at new new alien races. So we'll see some really new and old faces appearing as we look at what the DC Universe is like, outside of what we generally see.
For Kyle in particular, he's going to be trying to solve the question of, "I've got all this power. I've got these abilities. What is the best way for me to use them? What does it mean for me to be the White Lantern? Where can I do the greatest good?" And that answer's not always going to be obvious.
Labels:
DC Comics,
Green Lantern Comics,
Interviews,
New Guardians
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