Green Lantern: Difference between revisions

{{work}}

{{quote|''In [[Brightest Day]], in [[Blackest Night]]

''No evil shall escape my sight

''Let those who worship evil's might

 

[[Trope Codifier|The]] [[Space Police|Space Cops]].

* In the mid-2000s, DC Comics would return Hal Jordan to his former glory, by [[Retcon|explaining]] that "Parallax" was actually the name of an imprisoned [[Eldritch Abomination|cosmic parasite]] that [[Emotion Eater|fed on fear]] and [[Driven to Madness|corrupted]] Jordan through his Power Ring. Furthermore, Parallax was blamed as the source of Green Lantern's infamous weakness towards yellow, by revealing that emotions of fear are attuned to the color yellow, as per a pseudo-mystical "emotional color spectrum" shared by all living creatures, with "green" attuned to the neutral emotion of "willpower". Later developments would [[Adaptation Distillation|merge the Jordan and Rayner eras]], have the Guardians descend further into [[Knight Templar]]-hood, and introduce the rest of the spectrum and their corresponding Lantern Corps, such as Agent Orange or the Sinestro Corps.

 

* ''Green Lantern'' (written by Johns), starring Hal Jordan {{spoiler|and Sinestro, who was re-inducted into the Green Lanterns against everyone's wishes. Although Hal had been expelled from the Corps, Sinestro has recruited him as a sidekick for non-Guardian-sponsored missions - including going against the Guardians themselves}}.

* ''Green Lantern Corps'' (by Peter Tomasi), starring John Stewart and Guy Gardner and focusing on traditional space adventures.

The Green Lanterns are also frequent members of versions of the [[Justice League of America]], with Hal, John, and Kyle part of different incarnations of the main team and Guy Gardner in [[Justice League International]]. Alan Scott is also a founding member of the [[Justice Society of America]], which is either the League's predecessor or its Earth-2 counterpart depending on the era.

 

 

With a Corps of [[Loads and Loads of Characters|over 7,000 alien enforcers]], you better believe there's a [[Green Lantern/Characters|Character Sheet]]. And if you're still confused about why there's so many Lanterns or how willpower tastes like green, feel free to read the [[Green Lantern/Recap|Synopsis]].

 

----

** {{spoiler|In a recent issue, it is revealed that the Manhunters didn't go bad at all, but were reprogrammed by Krona to commit the massacre}}.

** {{spoiler|The Alpha Lanterns are a bit of a subversion. They never turn evil of their own volition, so far it's only been when under the control of an outside force (such as Cyborg Superman or Krona)}}.

* [[Ancient Astronauts]]: Earth's ''very first'' Green Lantern, a Chinese man named Jong Li, received his Power Ring during the Qin Dynasty (between 221 and 206 BC). Being a Chinese peasant living before the birth of Christ, Jong Li naturally thought the ring was a gift from the gods and his mission as a divine command.

* [[Angry Black Man]]: [[The Bronze Age of Comic Books|Bronze Age]] John Stewart. He cooled off thanks to later writers, becoming more contemplative, but he still has his moments.

* [[Art Attacker]]: The Tattooed Man has the power to bring his tattoos to life.

* [[Asshole Victim]]: Sure, the Sinestro Corps' invasion of Daxam in order to enslave the inhabitants is beyond reprehensible... then again, the Daxamites are violently xenophobic assholes with an intense hatred for pretty much anything not them, which makes feeling any sympathy for them quite a difficult task.

* [[Badass Creed]]: All the Green Lanterns, as well as the various other corps that have spun off from them.

** Alan Scott has his own, albeit less memorable:

* [[Cats Are Mean]]: Red Lantern Dex-Starr, who's a blue house-cat, and like all of his Red Lantern fellas is full to the brim of murderous rage and red-hot plasma that annihilates everything it touches.

* [[The Cavalry]]: Sometimes things get too bad for one Lantern to handle. When they do, a call for help is made, and just in the nick of time any number of bright green dots will appear in the sky. It makes sense; they're effectively cops, so they would call for backup from time to time.

* [[Character Shilling]]: Widespread shilling for Kyle Rayner appeared when he replaced Hal Jordan.

* [[Chekhov's Boomerang]]: Sodam Yat was officially created by [[Alan Moore]] as part of a prophecy detailing the end of the Corps. It took around twenty-five years for him to make his official comic book debut. Mogo got a similar deal.

** John Stewart is NOT dating Fatality, despite her borderline obsession with all things John Stewart; even BEFORE she was in the Star Sapphire Corps and still out to kill him she had no problem with stripping near nude/completely nude and grinding against his lap... while he HAD a girlfriend!

* [[Death by Origin Story]]: Abin Sur, the alien Lantern who gifted Hal with the ring.

** {{spoiler|But Hal one-ups his claim by affirming that, while Nekron ''did'' allow them another shot at living, it was him and his resurrected friends - like Superman and Green Arrow - who decided to accept a second chance, meaning they could as well refuse to come back and stay dead}}.

* [[Death Seeker]]: The Cyborg Superman was an astronaut named Hank Henshaw, whose consciousness was bonded with technology after a deep space catastrophe. Now, all he wants from life is for it to put him out of his misery.

* [[Evil Cripple]]: Hector Hammond; Baron Tyrano.

* [[Evolutionary Levels]]: The origin of Hector Hammond and the Shark.

* [[Eye Scream]]: Kyle Rayner freaking LOVES this trope. During his first fight with Major Force he had no problem gouging out his eye with a thumb. When depowered and fighting a Cthulhuian horror, he slammed a sharpened bone into its eye. When he fought Major Force again he picked up a shard of glass and gouged his eye out AGAIN! When Parallax taunted him inside his own mind, he picked up a pencil and gouged out its eye. In a fight with Kyle Rayner he ''will'' go for the eyes.

** Ironically, Batman's plan against him should Kyle go rogue is to blind him. If Kyle can't see, he can't properly "draw" constructs.

* [[Human Alien]]: Green Lanterns Sodom Yat (from Daxam) and Zale (from Bellatrix) look exactly like a Caucasian and African human respectively.

** In fairness this trope is [[Older Than Television]]. The Daxamites are actually the descendants of [[Superman|Kryptonians]], who have been human aliens since [[The Golden Age of Comic Books]].

{{quote|...and four cycles later, in the recreation complex, Katma Tui realized that for the first time in many years' service, she had heard a Guardian make a joke. She felt vaguely uneasy for the rest of that day.}}

* [[Iconic Logo]]: It's varied from person to person over the years, but the one used by the Corps itself is the best known.

** Almost ''none'' of the Corps are straight-up good guys. The Green Light is held by the Guardians, who have a reputation of causing as many problems as they solve. The Star Sapphires are getting better, but have a history of [[Love Makes You Crazy]]. The Indigo Tribe is believed to be largely made up of sociopaths who have to have emotions ''forced'' on them by the Indigo Light (and even if they're not they're creepily detached anyway). Only the Blue Lanterns haven't made any dick moves so far, but they're also shown to be utterly ineffectual without piggybacking on another light.

** [[Good Is Not Nice]]: Even the Entity, the embodiment of life itself, isn't morally conventional, given the fact that part of its plans to preserve life, it revived powerful villains and tasked one of them with a murder and another with an assault. It's also become clear that for some of the revived heroes, the second chance given to them is by necessity not a gift but a ''loan''.

* [[Love Cannot Overcome]]: Hal Jordan and Carol Ferris have done this to each other repeatedly over the years, since his identity as Green Lantern and hers as the domineering, villainous Star Sapphire frequently complicate their underlying mutual love.

* [[Love Makes You Crazy]]: The de facto trouble with the Star Sapphire and its Corps. The Star Sapphire itself is a symbiotic crystal that bonds with women in desire, at the cost of making them psychotic. Things got a bit better when the Zamarons started filtering the violet light of love through Power Rings, except now there's {{spoiler|the Predator, the emotional entity of love, whose nature, despite the name, is actually somewhat benevolent. According to Carol it's the host that makes the Predator's love evil not the other way around}}.

* [[Meaningful Name]]: [[Bilingual Bonus|Sinestro]]. [[Names to Run Away From Really Fast|Atrocitus, Nekron]].

* [[Metaphysical Fuel]]: Lantern rings draw their power from the emotions of all life in the universe.

* [[Military Superhero]]: Both Hal Jordan and John Stewart are former military, but except for his ''[[Justice League: The New Frontier]]'' incarnation, it's not a big aspect of Hal's background. John, however, is VERY much this trope. He's a [[Semper Fi|retired Marine]], and you better not forget it.

* [[Misplaced Retribution]]: One story's antagonist is the Aerialist, who's under the delusion that someone at Ferris Aircraft murdered his beloved (the death was in fact a freak accident) and therefore seeks revenge against the company. It's notable for being one of the few times Hal Jordan thought the [[Insanity Defense]] would actually work, even citing the M'Naughten guideline.

** Also, Jack T. Chance, whom Hal describes as "being reprimanded more than Guy Gardner."

* [[Non-Mammal Mammaries]]: Occurs with a considerable frequency and in many alien races. Particularly notable in the case of the Guardians and the Zamarons. Both are descended from the Maltusian race, which may have been the first sentient organic race in the universe. The Guardians were originally the males of the race, and the Zamarons the females (although this has since been retconned somewhat). The [[One-Gender Race|two split up billions of years ago]]. In that time, both have individually diverged physically. The Guardians, who pretty much fly at all times, have become small and possess very short legs, much as one would expect. But the Zamarons, who have not borne any children in aeons, still have fairly impressive cleavage. This is all the more striking when one considers that the new female Guardians are barely distinguishable from the males.

* [[Not So Harmless]]: Black Hand, who was just a creepy necrophile before ''[[Blackest Night]]''.

* [[The Obi-Wan]]: Ganthet to Kyle in the '90s; today, him and Sayd for the Blue Lantern Corps.

** The names of two GL Corps members, Arisia and Eddore, are also [[Lensman]] shout-outs -- specifically, to the home worlds of that series' two [[Precursor]] races.

** In one [[JLA]] story, Kyle's mind wound up in the body of the [[Martian Manhunter]]. Upon mastering the Manhunter's shape-changing powers, Kyle transformed himself into various other fictional Martians, such as [[Looney Tunes|Marvin The Martian]] and [[John Carter of Mars|Tars Tarkas]].

** Isamot's name is a [[Sdrawkcab Name]] of one of the writers of the series (Peter J. ''Tomasi'').

* [[Sigil Spam]]: The members of the various Lantern Corps usually have their Corps sigil across their chest.

* [[Solar CPR]]: Blue Lanterns can rejuvenate dying stars.

* [[Space Police]]: The Corps are a classic example, as were the Manhunters before their [[Face Heel Turn]].

** There is also the Book of Oa which predated both of the above appearance-wise which tells the story of every Corps member, prophecies concerning the Corps, and the new Ten Laws. Of course, it's more of a [[Great Big Book of Everything]] as it isn't ominous... usually.

* [[Too Dumb to Live]]: Sinestro has '''very sympathetic reasons''' for questioning the Guardians' authority.

** Prior to this, Sinestro rarely had speaking roles in comics, and was often depicted as a [[Palette Swap]] variant of the Joker. Now, he's straddling the line between [[Anti-Villain]] and [[Anti-Hero]], despite [[Word of God]] saying much of his characterization is based on [[Adolf Hitler]].

* [[Translator Microbes]]: One of the powers that the rings grant users is the ability to translate between any sentient being and the wielder of the ring.

** In the 1981 miniseries ''Tales of the Green Lantern Corps'', the GLCs only had 24 hours to stop Krona and Nekron, after the Central Power Battery was destroyed.

** In ''[[Blackest Night]]'', Ganthet reveals that any Lantern's Power Ring can deputize someone for 24 hours.

 

{{reflist}}