Since Green Lantern Rebirth (see Level 1), Sinestro had been laying in wait. In Green Lantern #10, it was revealed that he had begun to amass an army of Fear-wielding soldiers to counter the Green Lantern Corps. Dubbed the "Sinestro Corps", these soldiers prepared to wage war against the universe. This knowledge only came to the Green Lanterns of Earth when a Yellow Ring attempted to take over Batman.
The opening act of this conflict involves a Yellow Ring being captured by Kyle Rayner (who had become Ion once again after the events of Infinite Crisis). This ring is brought to the Guardians, but before they see it, it escapes and precipitates an attack on Oa by the Sinestro Corps. During this attack, the Sciencells are attacked and several convicts escape (including one REALLY cool panel, where we see the remains of a Sciencell and the corona of a star shaped in the symbol of the Sinestro Corps).
Next, Sinestro reveals that Kyle is not Ion, merely its host (similar to the Parallax reveal from Green Lantern Rebirth), and rips Ion out of KYle. He then reveals that Kyle's mother did not die a natural death, and instead was murdered by a sentient viurs, who just happens to be a member of the Sinestro Corps. Sinestro then has a fantasic piece of dialogue when Kyle threatens to kill him in revenge:
"The Power Rings won't allow you to kill. A Green Lantern is an empty threat. Are you frightened yet? Are you frightened of which of your loved ones will perish next? Perish because of your dedication to a group of Guardians who don't even know what LOVE means? Are You Afraid?"
Sinestro then possesses Kyle with the Parallax entity, and declares "My Corps is ready". This leads to the single most effective two-page spread up to this point in Geoff John's run on Green Lantern
Why is this effective some of you might ask? Well think about this: We have the Anti-Monitor (who successfully destroyed the Multiverse in Crisis on Infinite Earths), Cyborg-Superman (who destroyed Coast City during the Death of Superman, preciptating the fall of Hal Jordan), Parallax (who destroyed the Universe during Zero Hour), and Superman-Prime. That is EVERY SINGLE MAJOR DC VILLAIN in the last 20 years! And they are all working with Sinestro!
The next bit of the story alternates with Hal Jordan and the Lost Lanterns heading to Qward to try and save Kyle (and Ion), while the characters of the Green Lantern Corps series are dealing with the assault on Korugar and other places around the Universe. At this point in time, Hal's Green Ring is drained of all its power, and he puts on some Yellow Rings to fight the Sinestro Corps.
Concurrently, Ranx The Sentient City and the Children of the White Lobe mount an attack on Mogo. Sodam Yat is finally able to damage Ranx and turn the tide of the battle in favour of the Green Lantern Corps. Meanwhile, on Qward, Ke'Haan of the Lost Lanterns is killed by the Anti-Monitor, but Ion is freed and Hal and the others escape. The Lost Lanterns move to return to Oa, while the three Earth-based Green Lanterns vote to contact the Justice League as they have experience dealing with the Anti-Monitor. As they approach the Earth, we see a Sinestro Corps Invasion force attacking the planet.
At this point, The Guardians of the Universe make a decision after coming out of hiding. They have re-written the Book of Oa, and introduced Ten New Law. The first law: Lethal Force is now authorized against the Sinestro Corps. This law helps the Green Lantern Corps finally turn the tide against the Sinestro Corps on Mogo, and they win the day there. Unfortunately, at the same time, the people of Earth aren't faring too well.
Hal manages to free Kyle from Parallax and Ganthet and Sayd split Parallax between the Power Batteries of the Four Earth-Based Green Lanterns. The stage is set for the final battle.
But before we get there, we have someone to deal with: Superman-Prime. How do you fight a Sinestro Corps Soldier with the power of Superman? You unleash a Sodam Yat, who also has the powers of Superman. The Guardians then give him the Ion Power to level the playing field. This fight is amazing, and I refuse to spoil how it ends here.
Ganthet and Sayd reveal that this entire war was written down in the Book of Oa as the second verse of Cosmic Revelations. They fear that if the war continues, the universe would plunge into the Third and Final Verse: THE BLACKEST NIGHT. They reveal that the prophecy foretells the rise of all seven Corps (Red - Rage, Orange - Avarice, Yellow - Fear, Green - Will, Blue - Hope, Indigo - Compassion, and Violet - Love), and that a War of Light will erupt between them. They tell the four Lanterns this in the hopes that they can avert it.
Ladies and Gentlemen, this is normally where I'd discuss the ending of the book. But I won't do that. The ending of the Sinestro Corps War is probably the most satisfying literary work that I've ever experienced. I refuse to spoil the experience for other readers by spoiling the last chapter of the book. The ending, and all the mechanisms employed to bring the story to that point, are exquisitely crafted, and done with style.
Verdict: I want everyone who is reading this blog to get themselves a copy of the Sinestro Corps War. I would love to hear the thoughts of everyone, particularly if you disagree with me, as I enjoy debating these issues. If you enjoyed this book (which I'm sure most of you did), I'd read the books I placed in Level 7, with the addition of Green Lantern Corps - Ring Quest. If you have any comments about the spotlight, please send an email to nextlevelstaff@gmail.com . Your comment may be addressed on next week’s post.
Stay tuned next week for our weekly reviews, and our Spotlight! Thoughts? Questions? Feedback is always welcome. Leave a comment or email nextlevelstaff@gmail.com
AHH, I finished reading this!! I think, right? I love this. Do the prelude to Blackest Night soon! I loved that one.
ReplyDeleteI'm completely obsessed with anything Green Lantern, thanks to you! Great review!