The Fangirl Life: Comic Feature Four

By Michal Basford

In this issue of Green Lantern, something unique happens. There’s no true villain. Sure, Hal isn’t acting like the Green Lantern he should be. But his motives are to make things right. He’s not a villain. He’s an antihero.

Hal has to face off against a new Green Lantern. He owns up to the mistakes he’s made and all the chaos he’s caused before losing his power ring. The new Green Lantern tries to reason with him, trying to get him to see that what he did was wrong. The guy eventually pities Hal, seeing that Hal’s regrets what he did, and gives his power ring to Hal (who had no power ring of his own for one reason or another).  This decision was not a smart one in the slightest. Hal goes maniacal, telling the guy that he made the decision to give up the ring and now needs to get out of the way.

The guy struggles to fight Hal, an impressive foe without the ring and even more difficult to fight with it. They’re on Oa (the planet that the Green Lanterns all gather on), and Hal is unimpressed, mocking even, with his opponent’s inability to effectively hide on the planet. The guy is able to knock Hal over with one of what can be assumed is a tomb or casket. He takes his power ring back from Hal and tells him he never deserved a second chance.

What I liked most was the willingness the new Green Lantern had to sacrifice himself and his desires for the greater good of those around him. Hal seems baffled by it, saying he’s bluffing. But the new Green Lantern is certainly not bluffing. He ends up destroying Oa to defeat Hal, leaving himself to be the only Green Lantern left. I feel like his motives were selfless, and perhaps, he was thinking of his girlfriend (Alex) while he made this decision.