And Then I Read: BRIGHTEST DAY 23

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It's taken 23 issues, but I think I just realized what's been bothering me about the storyline in this series. I've been saying it's plot driven, meaning that the story does not flow naturally from the characters and their personal motivations, but is directed by the writers to meet certain goals they have planned. But, in this series, the driver is even more obvious and blatant than usual: it's that damned white lantern. The voice of the white lantern keeps telling characters what to do, and it's almost always things they don't WANT to do, and when they resist, it makes them to those things anyway! Talk about "deus ex machina," this book has it front and center throughout. Now, I can understand that this sort of event needs to be somewhat plot driven, that's the point: to create at least the appearance of major changes in the lives of the characters, who will generally not be happy about those changes. After all, it's our nature to resist change. But this level of plot control makes the characters seem mere puppets.

Here's that white lantern jerking everyone around, as it does on nearly every page of this issue. Forcing four of the characters to take on the aspects of the four classical elements, for example, to combat the black lantern version of Swamp Thing. It all seems very mechanical and contrived. Sure, cool fights, if that's what you're after, and the art looks fine, but characters you can identify with and care about? Characters that act like real people and make decisions based on their personal beliefs and moral compass? Thin on the ground.

Can't recommend this issue.