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Green Lantern Corps

Ray: This current arc, pitting the Lanterns against General Zod and his family for the fate of “New Krypton,” may be Venditti’s best of the series, and would have easily been tops if it wasn’t for some odd backsliding when it came to some of the supporting characters. However, a surprisingly complex antagonist and some of the funniest moments of the series make Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps #39 excellent. When we last left off, Hal had been captured by Zod, having sacrificed his ring to get a seriously injured Kyle to safety. This leads to the hilarious scene of Kyle, essentially jacked up on Lantern power and being kept alive by the ring, acting like Hal and wanting to get back into the field while shouting catchphrases. Because Hal’s style is so powerful that it even transfers through his ring, apparently. While the Lanterns are trying to figure out their next move, Hal isn’t having a great time as Zod’s captive, although the Kryptonian general is playing a complex chess game here.

The interesting thing is, Zod isn’t 100% wrong – he didn’t make any move against the Lanterns and seems far more interested in establishing his new society with the “help” of the natives. However, his long-standing grudge against the Green Lantern Corps for allowing the destruction of Krypton indicates he probably has more sinister plans. That’s the case John Stewart makes to the Guardians, who are…cautious. They don’t even seem to know what century they’re in at times, referring to “General Dru-Zod”, who I believe is Zod’s ancestor. They order John to hold off while they deliberate, but John essentially gives the wink to Guy to go rogue and take a team – including an increasingly Hal-like Kyle – and take the battle to Zod. Rafa Sandoval continues to be one of the secret weapons of the DCU, and with great characterization and some spectacular action, this is a book that’s rising fast. Hopefully, Sandoval will remain the artist on this book for the long haul.

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Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps #39 page 5 Hmmm…is channeling Hal a bad thing? Image via DC Comics Corrina: It’s weird because while Zod was busy almost killing Kyle and basically torturing Hal the last two issues, I also feel like he has a point. What’s wrong with establishing a new society with his new family? Well, the gullible aliens need to be saved from themselves, I suppose, and Zod will eventually do Zod-like things, like conquer or kill other people in his way. But it’s hard not to sympathize with his need for a new home and a fresh start.

But the highlight of this issue is Kyle channeling Hal. Kyle is hilarious as a semi-parody of Hal, sort of Hal’s personality cranked up to 11. It makes sense, since Hal made his ring, and it basically contains his essence. It’s also a ball to read.

The artwork looks great, not only in the spectacular moments but look at the expression on Guy’s face in the panel above. Perfect.

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The Flash: Marathon - Review

It's funny to think how little we knew about the future direction of The Flash coming into the second half of Season 6. Crisis on Infinite Earths had been casting a huge shadow over the series, to the point where we didn't even know if Barry Allen would still be alive come January. And even once it became clear Grant Gustin's Barry wasn't the one sacrificing his life to save the multiverse, there was still the question of what conflicts and villains would drive the series post-Crisis. Thanks to "Marathon," we now have a much clearer sense of how the series will move forward from the crossover. This episode deftly balances the need to reflect the events of Crisis while also building a clear path forward.

Surprisingly, the tone of "Marathon" isn't as lighthearted as you might expect now that Barry has just been given a second lease on life. Apart from that early CC Jitters scene, this episode is a fairly glum exploration of how the various members of Team Flash are moving forward from Crisis. This does feel like an appropriate choice, however. With multiple heroes having sacrificed everything to save the multiverse, a lighthearted, feel-good midseason premiere would probably ring hollow. This goes back to one of the main strengths of Season 6 - it's better at tone management and knowing when to be funny and when to let the drama carry the day.

The Flash

"Marathon" is also notable for featuring Arrow's David Ramsey in his first guest role since that show wrapped. I'm sure we were all hoping this episode would follow up on Arrow's big cliffhanger, but the script is very careful to place this episode's events before the Diggle family's departure from Star City. Instead, Dig plays a more understated but still important role, helping Barry come to terms with Ollie's death. I appreciate how this storyline subverts expectations by revealing there's no actual mystery at all and Ollie's final gift is truly just that - a gift to commemorate a friendship that helped establish the Arrowverse as we know it today. Plus, it never gets old watching Dig deal with Speed Force-induced motion sickness.

In another surprise, welcome twist, Iris is turning out to be the driving force of the show's post-Crisis status quo. Her ongoing investigation and partnership with Esperanza has never really been one of the more compelling pieces of the Season 6 equation, but this episode goes a long way toward changing that. While a bit plodding at first, there's a growing sense of danger and unease as Iris digs deeper into the mystery of McCulloch Technologies and invites both physical and legal disaster. That culminates in a very satisfying stinger scene that makes the identity of the series' latest big villain abundantly clear.

Along the way, we also get a surprisingly different take on Doctor Light, one that doesn't seem particularly beholden to any prior comic book incarnation. While it's a little strange seeing Kimiyo Hoshi depicted as a ruthless assassin when she's always been the heroic counterpoint to the fiendish Arthur Light, she does make for a fun secondary antagonist in this episode. And with the Arthur Light version having recently appeared in Titans, it stands to reason The Flash may have been limited to using Kimiyo.

The promise of an ongoing Team Flash vs. Mirror Master storyline is extremely appealing. For all that this series has done to refine the Arrowverse formula and showcase speedster villains like Reverse-Flash and Zoom, it's never really taken advantage of the full scope of Flash's rogues gallery. Specifically, the Flash Rogues have always felt like an afterthought. Captain Cold and Heat Wave barely spent any time as villains at all before reforming and shifting over to DC's Legends of Tomorrow. The rest have been used as minor, forgettable footnotes.

Even Mirror Master suffered that fate back in Season 3, with the Sam Scudder version of the character being used as a one-and-done threat to Central City. Mirror Master deserves better, and it seems that he's finally getting better. The twist being that the classic Evan McCulloch version is being transformed into Eva McCulloch, a billionaire inventor who now exists as some sort of warped, journalist-snatching mirror demon. And as with the previous Bloodwork arc, the hope is that the the condensed nature of this storyline will prevent too much fluff and filler from gumming up the works.

Barry and Dig's quest aside, the lingering effects of Crisis are most clearly felt in Cisco's emotional journey. "Marathon" is great about exploring both the humor and the tension that arise in trying to come to terms with a new world built on the ashes of multiple worlds. Having Supergirl and Black Lightning as permanent neighbors is great, but what about all the new and resurrected villains that have appeared alongside them? That's to say nothing over Cisco's guilt and regret over taking the metahuman cure. That's the tricky thing about the old great power and great responsibility mantra. Do superheroes get the luxury of a happy, peaceful retirement? Can they even appreciate that retirement when it comes? These are interesting questions to explore, particularly in light of how Smallville's Clark Kent was portrayed in Crisis.

Carlos Valdes delivers what is easily the episode's strongest performance, especially late in the game where his guilt begins to overwhelm him. It's a welcome reminder that Cisco is far more than just the obligatory snarky tech whiz, but a character who's grown and evolved and suffered every bit as much as Barry himself over the course of six years.

I do wish "Marathon" gave us a better sense of what Cisco's Arrowverse future entails. There were rumors last year that Valdes was leaving the series after Season 5's finale. Clearly that rumor didn't pan out, but maybe there was a kernel of truth to it? It's hard to tell if Cisco's absence is temporary as the series builds toward a new status quo for the character, or if Cisco is being phased out so Valdes can pursue other projects. It would be a shame if Cisco exits the picture just as the series is finally finding its footing again.

One thing is clear - Nash Wells is now being positioned as Cisco's temporary replacement on Team Flash. Having a Wells as a more permanent presence on the series is always a nice thing, particularly one who isn't as aggressively annoying as Season 5's Sherloque. While this episode highlights the fact that his adventurous swagger is a mask for his loneliness and guilt over his role in Crisis, there are some concerns regarding Nash's current characterization.

For one thing, it's a little bizarre seeing him revert to his old Nash persona so soon after his turn as Pariah. I'm not clear on how much time was supposed to have passed between Nash's disappearance and his return as Pariah, but he definitely had the air of a man haunted by countless years of watching his failure play out in front of him. Neither the writing nor Tom Cavanagh's performance reflect the full weight of that experience. If anything, Nash seems more bothered by his daughter's estrangement than his role in the death of the old multiverse.

On that note, do we really need another running subplot about Harrison Wells trying to reconnect with his daughter? It's a redundant plot twist, and seemingly unnecessary given how much drama this character already has to process. The hope is that Nash can better find his place in the team Flash dynamic in this second half of Season 6, but there are reasons for concern right now.