[Editor’s note: This review may contain spoilers.]
Writer: Sam Humphries
Artists: Robson Rocha and Eduardo Pansica
Inkers: Jay Leisten and Julio Ferreira
Synopsis
Jessica Cruz and Simon Baz are still locking horns with the Red Lanterns. The Hell Tower is almost complete. There are six Red Lanterns. There are two Green Lanterns. People are full of rage. The situation is dire. Hang on tight.
The Positives
The plot of this story arc continues to deepen. Humphries is doing an excellent job world building. Here we have two relatively unknown people acting as Green Lanterns of Earth. The readers do not really know what is going on with them. The characters do not really know what is going on with themselves. Humphries, however, seems to know exactly what he is doing as he is letting us behind the curtain little by little.
Green Lanterns of the past were all warriors. They were smart. They were sleek as they glided through space. They were fearless. Simon and Jessica are not sure of themselves. They stumble. They do not fly with ease. They are smart, but they are unsure. They are full of fear. What?! A fear-laden Green Lantern? How is that in the positive? Well, think about this, why do you like Batman? He is just a guy, right? Well, these Green Lanterns are just people. Kids really. Yes, they are adults, but they lack the grit and toughness that the Lanterns of years past had. They must fight their first mission against Red Lanterns who are older, more experienced and much more vicious.
The artistic team really has a lot to do. I get why there are two artists and two inkers. There are so many characters and there are various shades of green and red that this is a multi-person job. This team pulls it off. I had to go through it a second time just to see it all. There are several splash pages that are graphic and frenetic and simply wonderful.
The Negatives
The Red Lanterns have an evil cat. I get it. In the old days, the Green Lanterns had a Squirrel. However, the evil blue cat is a bit much. Considering the effort that was put in to create such depth with Jessica and Simon, these Red Lanterns are two dimensional. Â They are strong and evil. There is no doubt about that. They are the only characters who could really make this story work, but there is just something missing.
The Verdict
The cliffhangers of each issue of this series are excellent. This issue is no different. The dysfunctional nature of the titular character’s relationship is a strong foundation upon which to build a comic. There is clearly more to come with this and that is intriguing.  While this issue is a bit too fast, almost breathtaking, it is a lot of fun.
