Revenge of the Green Lanterns is a collection of various stories that all expertly reveal how Hal Jordan interacts with the people around him. Split into three very different story arcs, Johns tells three stories involving Hal Jordan’s relationship with Green Arrow, Batman, and his fellow Green Lanterns. Johns uses brilliant characterization to create dialogue and scenes that have the characters interacting in ways realistic to their personalities. Such insight into the personas of these superheroes makes Johns’ stories even more interesting to read.

The first story is penciled beautifully by Carlos Pacheco, who is able to skillfully draw a variety of scenarios, from a two page spread of Green Lanterns in battle to Hal and his brother playing football. The second story is drawn well by Ethan Van Sciver, but is colored too darkly to truly portray the clean lines and detailing of Sciver’s work. Ivan Reis penciled the last story arc, and is my favorite. His clean work is striking and perfectly detailed, and he is one of the few artists who I believe consistently draws attractive people. The four comics that make up “The Revenge of the Green Lanterns,” are the best of the group. With great writing and beautiful art, Johns tells the story of Hal Jordan’s newly problematic life; Jordan is penalized for simply doing his job, and the return of a Green Lantern Hal himself had killed prompts a journey into space where Hal discovers a secret plan being carried out by the notorious Manhunters. With clues into DC’s secret “52” event, the story fits beautifully into DC’s year later idea, with tantalizing tidbits into their upcoming huge event. Again, with the famous Green Lantern, Johns’ characterization and mysterious surprise make a story worth reading again and again.

Hannah Katz