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Emerald Twilight
by Stephen Kok
“Some time ago, a man dropped from the stars. He was dying. His last act
was to bequeath Hal Jordan a wondrous ring. The power of the ring knew few strictures.
Truly, it is bounded only by the will of the bearer. With such a ring you could
do anything...if you wanted to badly enough.”
Every Green Lantern fan will have an opinion on Emerald Twilight, probably
the most significant part of the Green Lantern mythos.
Why?
Point 1 :
Hal Jordan was never going to be Green Lantern again.
Point 2 :
A character who has been around for decades will never be Green Lantern again.
Point 3 :
Hal has quit before (actually several times) but in the end has always returned.
This time he wasn't.
While those not familiar to Green Lantern might not recognise it, this was
one of the biggest shake ups ever done to Hal Jordan. It had many ramifications
through out DC Universe as well.
[Please note although there will be certain plot references, this review will
contain no spoiler information.]
The review has been split into :
• Issue
• Title
• Credits
• Plot Synopsis
• Review
Green Lantern #48
Emerald Twilight Part 1
Key Events :
1st Appearance : Kyle Rayner
1st Appearance : Alexandra DeWitt
Story by Ron Marz
Pencils by Bill Willingham
Wallowing in terrible grief after the destruction of Coast City, Hal Jordan
uses his power ring to recreate the city.
Ron Marz uses this issue to create a sense of loss. When Hal recreates Coast
City with his power ring, you get a run through of everything that important
to him. All the people and characters that was part of his life, now gone. The
scene is set for one of the greatest Green Lantern stories.
Green Lantern #49
Emerald Twilight Part 2
Story by Ron Marz
Pencils by Fred Haynes
In a fit of rage, Hal decides to make it to Oa to get enough power to reverse
the tragedy of Coast City. Hal shows why he's the most powerful of all Green
Lanterns, defending all who stand in his way. Collecting power rings along the
way only adds to his power.
Getting closer to Oa (Guardian's home world) Hal is pitted against those
he has known as friends. His methods gets more erratic as he pursues his quest
to take all the power from the Guardians.
Marz continually stresses the arrogance of the Guardians. They didn't not show
any compassion to Hal in his moment of grief and were more interested in reprimand
than anything else. Each Green Lantern thrown in Hal's way is not only defeated
by their power ring added to Hal's arsenal.
Each victory makes Hal more violent as he fights his way to Oa. The reader
is treated to Hal changing, grief, sorrow, anger and you are left wondering
to feel disgust or sympathy. Emotion is the core of any good story telling and
this issue does not disappoint.
Green Lantern #50
Emerald Twilight Conclusion
Key Events
1st appearance : Kyle Rayner as new Green Lantern
Death of Guardians, OA
Story by Ron Marz
Pencils by Darryl Banks
The Guardians bring Hal's greatest nemesis Sinestro in a effect to stop
him for destroying their world.
Ron Marz does a master stroke bringing back Sinestro for the final showdown.
There's still the valiance of Hal dropping all but one power ring to ensure
a fair fight. The juxtaposition of these two is very clear, Sinestro was also
one of the greatest Green Lantern before he violated the most important rule,
not to use the ring for personal gain.
It stresses the point the Hal was not evil like Sinestro but more like a broken
man who’s reached the beyond the point of caring.
Analysis :
There's always something very tragic when a hero falls from grace. More so why
police corruption is worse than normal corruption because we expect them to
know better. This is no different, as we view people in the superhero genre
with an almost god like status. At the time this comic was printed, DC was doing
a major revamp of all its major characters. It started with the death of Superman
followed quickly by the breaking of Batman.
Green Lantern has always been one of the iconic characters in the DC Universe.
Reading through the story, you keep wishing there was some way back, something
that can be redeem Hal Jordan in the end but there isn't. Although you can understand
his grief there is an sense of enormity that things will never quite be the
same.
Hal's action get more and more violent. The art is incredible, the panels capture
both Hal's sorrow and also enjoyment of the challenge of defeating all who stand
before him. This contrast gives the sense of losing control and Hal's fall.
The turning point of the story is in the last issue and it will shock. [Hint
: It does not have anything to do with Sinestro] Kilowog's words say it all.
[I'll leave it to the reader to find exactly what happens]
The art overall is surprisingly good for DC Comics. DC Comics aren't renowned
for having the best art. Even more surprising is the fact that three separate
artists take the pencils through the story arc, all commendable. The art however
is secondary to the story in this case.
This story arc is a fantastic read and definitely a story arc you will remember.
Collectible Notes :
Original issues of these are still around and are worth picking up if you can
find them. Two issues of notes are the prequel to this story arc, #46 which
shows the destruction of Coast City and #47 the final Green Lantern and Green
Arrow team up before Emerald Twilight begins in issue #48.
The trade paper back (TPB) collects issues #48 - #55, which includes Emerald
Twilight and Kyle Rayner’s first forage as the last Green Lantern. The
TPB should be relatively easy to source.
Recommendations :
If you enjoyed this story, others that may be of interest to you :
• Batman : Knightfall
• Death of Superman
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