It's the prelude to Blackest Night as the "War of Light" continues to intensify! Mongul attempts to establish his hold on the Sinestro Corps by enslaving the planet Daxam and making it the home world of his Corps. What does Sinestro's right hand man, Arkillo, think of all this? And will Sodam Yat, the Green Lantern known as Ion, fight to save his homeworld, which he's vowed to never return to?
Peter J. Tomasi is an American comic book writer, best known for his work for DC Comics, such as Batman And Robin; Superman; Super Sons; Batman: Detective Comics; Green Lantern Corps; and Superman/Wonder Woman; as well as Batman: Arkham Knight; Brightest Day; Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors; Nightwing; Black Adam, and many more.
In the course of his staff career at DC Comics, Tomasi served as a group editor and ushered in new eras for Batman, Green Lantern, and the JSA, along with a host of special projects like Kingdom Come.
He is also the author of the creator-owned titles House Of Penance with artist Ian Bertram; Light Brigade with artist Peter Snejbjerg; The Mighty with Keith Champagne and Chris Samnee; and the critically acclaimed epic graphic novel The Bridge: How The Roeblings Connected Brooklyn To New York, illustrated by Sara DuVall and published by Abrams ComicArts.
In 2018 New York Times best-selling author Tomasi received the Inkpot Award for achievement in comics.
It's a toss up whether I like the stories with the Corps better than the one with just Hal. I don't really care for the Raynor and Gardner banter, but the story arcs are pretty okay. The big action is definitely A-Okay. :)
And everything goes to hell at the end of this volume. I thought it was rather special. :)
This is the last volume right for Blackest Night. Things are about to go down!
This is a big volume. Starting from just a regular hang out with a bunch of lanterns helping each other build and paint things to finding out Natu's true past, to learning the Guardians new ways of dealing with their foes, to the build up of the blackest night, and even some goodbyes to characters that we got to know and love in this series.
Good: It's fast paced and a lot of twist and turns to our favorite heroes. The return of some villains, even though some are dealing with even worse villains. The Glooming Blackest Night moments are creeping up. The fights are big and epic and the deaths actually feel like they matter. Kyle and Guy's growth is great.
Bad: The exposition dumps here and there can be annoying. Especially since they cover stuff I read in the regular green lantern side of things. I also think, while finding out who Natu was, the background was kind of shoved in.
Overall, pretty great. Sure, some issues here and there, but the fun is to be had. Obviously Tomasi loves these characters, and for that, he's writing them really good. Helps the art is kickass too. A 3.5 out of 5, pushing it to a 4.
This is the last volume right for Blackest Night. Things are about to go down!
This is a big volume. Starting from just a regular hang out with a bunch of lanterns helping each other build and paint things to finding out Natu's true past, to learning the Guardians new ways of dealing with their foes, to the build up of the blackest night, and even some goodbyes to characters that we got to know and love in this series.
Good: It's fast paced and a lot of twist and turns to our favorite heroes. The return of some villains, even though some are dealing with even worse villains. The Glooming Blackest Night moments are creeping up. The fights are big and epic and the deaths actually feel like they matter. Kyle and Guy's growth is great.
Bad: The exposition dumps here and there can be annoying. Especially since they cover stuff I read in the regular green lantern side of things. I also think, while finding out who Natu was, the background was kind of shoved in.
Overall, pretty great. Sure, some issues here and there, but the fun is to be had. Obviously Tomasi loves these characters, and for that, he's writing them really good. Helps the art is kickass too. A 3.5 out of 5, pushing it to a 4.
Emerald Eclipse is the last stop on the road to Blackest Night and it uses this to catapult the story forward, sometimes at the expense of explanation. Emerald Night has two main stories going on concurrently. Sodam Yat returns to his home planet to try and rescue it from Mongul, who is inexplicably back, and the rest of the lanterns deal with a prison break after a Red Lantern destroys the sciencells. There is little side story with Natu learning about her true past, but while it's a big revelation, it is largely ignored. Towards the end of the book, we see the weird, disfigured Guardian again and he puts his plan into motion. He kind of comes out of nowhere, as if the writers forgot that they needed to the Blackest Night story rolling until it was too late, and threw him in there just to get things started. It's a solid book with a lot of interesting developments and two stories that are actually interesting. I would have liked more build up and explanation leading into Blackest Night, but at this point it is what it is.
Wow, a lot happened this volume, huh? Soranik and Kyle's start their relationship, Sodam finally gets a moment to shine by confronting his racist and xenophobic parents, and the danger on Oa escalates with a prison break from the sciencells.
Soranik and Kyle's relationship develops entirely off panel and makes their romance feel hollow, but I did enjoy the pair working through Kyle's trauma off seeing so many of his co-workers die. Soranik's job as a medical officer means she's experienced just as much, if not more, death than Kyle has, so her empathy feels entirely genuine and her recommendation to use his art to celebrate their lives instead of focusing on their deaths feels like a defining moment in their relationship, especially since their romance began after encountering a Star Sapphire who recently lost her partner.
Soranik also gets a pretty major reveal in her father being Sinestro and I'm...not a fan. It feels like someone saw they were the same species and decided they should be related to each other. It doesn't feel natural at all, and I especially don't like the retcon that Sinestro has been spying on her life all along.
I've wanted Sodam to confront his parents and homeworld since his backstory was first revealed, and the moment when they come begging him for help was absolutely riveting. We get to see Sodam express in real time how he felt growing up and it finally made me click with the character. Sodam has mainly been used as a pawn for the Guardians since being given the power of Ion, but his emotional explosion this volume makes feel like a living breathing character instead of the cold weapon the Guardians and his parents want him to be. Daxam's liberation also sets up powder keg now that all the Daxamite's have superpowers. Will these Kryptonian relatives stay put or use their new ability to carve out an empire for themselves?
The prison break on Oa and the ensuing chaos it brings is also outstanding. Theirs great action between the GLs and Sinestro Corp, and Vice's breakout did a great job showcasing the powers of a Red Lantern and how dangerous they are to everyone's constructs. The prison break also leads to Kyle and Guy having to stand up for the prisoners rights as the Guardians try to use the chaos to execute everyone immediately. You can feel the tension as the two parties clash and really shows just how far the Guardians have fallen since the Sinestro Corp War.
GLC is juggling a lot of plot threads this volume, but the book handles them surprisingly well. Pacing issues aside, every character gets a moment to shine, whether its lovers confiding in each other or veterans standing up to corruption. Some of my favorite moments in the series are in this volume and I think this book has finally proven that the Green Lantern franchise doesn't necessarily need the human characters to have riveting, emotional stories. Highly recommended!
4.5/5 Wow, this was fantastic. The best Tomasi GL Corps volume so far, and incredibly rewarding. There was even one moment that gave me chills, lol.
A prison break on one front and a planet-wide revolution on another, the GL Corps is at its breaking point, while Soranik learns about her history and the Blackest Night draws closer. The way Peter J. Tomasi's work compliments Geoff Johns' is so exciting to me, and something I've never seen done so well before.
The Green Lantern Corps are headed for a showdown in this graphic collection from Peter J. Tomasi. Following Sinestro's defeat, Mongul has decided to rule over the Yellow Lanterns in his stead. While Sodom Yat and Arisia head to Daxam to free the xenophobic planet from Mongul's rule, corrupted Guardian Scar has seen fit to free the Sciencell prisoners on Oa. A new battle breaks out among the Sinestro Corps, the GLC, and Red Lantern Vice amid the prison walls. While this chaos erupts, Soranik Natu comes face to face with her true father - Sinestro. Tomasi does a great job a flipping back and forth between the Green Lantern protagonists, which can be hard to do with over 3600 characters available. Kyle Rayner, Guy Gardner, Soranik Natu, Kilowog, Saarek and more are all given appropriate screen time to further along the eventual Blackest Night war. Art chores from Patrick Gleason are astonishing, especially considering the diverse cast; lines are clean and crisp, and every character feels unique and visceral. Though the green light may be fading in this Emerald Eclipse story, the Green Lantern Corps books shine brighter than ever.
The lead in to Blackest night follows the rise of Mongul's Sinestro Corps and an attempted prison break. This actually acts as more of a sequel to Rage of the Red Lanterns, but does follow up on the Soranik & Kyle romance and Mongul's escape from the previous volume. It is nice to see that there are some major events reserved for the rest of the Corps still. I think their lead in to Blackest Night was better than the main Green Lantern one.
Finally worked my way through everything until Blackest Night and it was extremely fun. Reading Green Lantern and Green Lantern Corps back and forth up until Blackest Night has been one of the most consistently fun things I've ever done. I can't believe how well written it has been.
Onwards to Blackest Night!
Also, Guy Gardner is definitely my favorite Lantern now.
With full knowledge that Blackest Night was Geoff Johns baby (probably from the moment he made Hal Jordan Green Lantern again in the pages of Rebirth) I wonder if Peter Tomasi didn't feel a little handcuffed by Johns' ideas while writing Green Lantern Corps in the lead up to Blackest Night. Most of the revelations leading into Blackest Night (the Red and Blue Lanterns and Agent Orange among them) are all revealed in the pages of Green Lantern and not Green Lantern Corps which up to this reading has become the landing spot for any Green Lantern of note that isn't Jordan, if those Corps members aren't essential to Jordan's own narrative at the time.
Since this seems to be the lay of the land when reading these Green Lantern based trades, it feels like Tomasi is stuck having to keep his own story arcs in neutral in deference to whatever Johns had planned for Blackest Night. Even the scrap that Johns threw Tomasi at the end of Rage of the Red Lanterns--that Sinestro has a child and that he is also aware of Mongul II's attempts to take over the Sinestro Corps is only partially resolved here--we learn who Sinestro's child is (obvious for anyone who has read all of these trades in the leadup to Blackest Night) but the showdown between Mongul and Sinestro never materializes--I don't know if this is takes place in the pages of Blackest Night or the next Green Lantern Corps collection--but it's something I have been waiting for since I finished Rage.
The Tomasi penned stories aren't necessarily bad, but they feel superfluous compared to everything happening in the pages of Green Lantern at the time. Again, Blackest Night is Johns' baby and not Tomasi's so this makes some sense, but I always have high hopes that creative teams can pull off something great when these publisher events happen, but since this isn't the book that features Hal Jordan, it just isn't happening.
Emerald Eclipse really functions more as a prelude to Blackest Night than a standalone volume in the Green Lantern Corps’ story, but it isn’t exactly uneventful.
Some long-running enemies further their plans, some new complications and revelations occur. All of this anchored around a core cast of Lanterns that have really grown on me, even Guy Gardner, as well as an entertaining slew of supporting characters.
The art felt a little inconsistent at times, and I’m not necessarily a fan of how Patrick Gleason’s pencils fit the tone of the GLC book, but I can’t deny there are some really beautiful panels and splash pages here. It’s a fast-paced and action-packed book, covering lots of conflicts from different perspectives. The writing displays a good mix of smaller character moments and bombastic drama, as the cold, black fist of death closes in around our heroes.
This was a fun lead-in to Blackest Night, mostly due to the focus on Sodam Yat/Ion. His origin seems vastly different from those of Hal Jordan, John Stewart, Guy Gardener, and Kyle Rainer, which is refreshing. He's from a race of absolute bigots who deny other species exist. When he, as a child, discovers a hurt alien, and hides and protects the alien, his parents find out, psychologically torture their son into thinking the alien attacked him, then defile the alien's corpse to make him look threatening in a musem devoted to how dangerous aliens are.
So when the Sinestro Corps show up and decide to make the plane their base of fear, Yat's mom steals the long dead alien's spaceship and flies to her son begging for help. He's not thrilled to see her.
I recommend this mostly as just a solid part of the buildup to Blackest Night, but it's also a great intro to Sodam Yat, who will be a major Green Lantern character during the New 52 era of the title.
This had the potential to be nothing more than eye candy, with all the huge action set pieces with the Sinestro Corps, Mongul, powered up Daxamites and the legion of Green Lanterns. Make no mistake, there are huge action set pieces, and the great art by Patrick Gleason makes you feel you are watching a widescreen sci-if movie at times.
But where this collection excels is with the writing of Peter Tomasi. Equally adept at writing those intimate moments, those moments of important characterisation that invest these characters with real emotion, as with writing huge battle scenes he turns a prelude to Blackest Night into a several issue arc that can stand nicely on it's own.
The collection itself is nicely done, no extras as such but all the covers to Green Lantern Corps 33-38 plus the variants are a nice touch. This collection proves, that with strong writing and art, a GL book without Hal Jordan or John Stewart can, and does, work.
Not as interesting as the previous ‘prelude’ instalments.
The Sinestro corps break out of the Sciencells and Daxam is a racist world under the tyranny of the remnants of the yellow lanterns.
The most interesting element in this story is that of the Guardians of Oa using their power to try and determine the fate of the universe and the quashing of the emotional spectrum. Something Guy and Kyle are rightfully against and ostracised for.
The black lantern stirs and finally breaks free right at the very end.
A direct prelude to the Blackest Night storyline, this volume throws a lot at you: Mongul getting more ambitious with his yellow power rings, a mass villain breakout, and a big reveal with Soranik Natu's past. Plus some nice moments with Kyle and other supporting cast members (my favorite was a meeting between a new Star Sapphire and a lesser-known Green Lantern). A pretty solid volume, better than the last. (B+)
I enjoyed the writing. As a build-up (the trade paperback is marketed as a "prelude"), it does its job, setting the stage for "Blackest Night," but I can't shake the feeling that the basics of these issues can be summed up best: there's a jailbreak, it gets stopped, and a planet gets super-powered. It's not a bad set of issues, but it doesn't do so well as a stand-alone.
I personally loved this one. It ties up many of the threads before the big dance occurs. The Sodam Yat storyline is my personal favorite as it carries a lot of raw emotion in it. I only wish it were a little longer to tie up all the last little bits they missed.
The series hits its peak in this trade. Characters make really tough but memorable decisions here, as the GLC begins to crumble with the introduction of the other colored corps, particularly the Red Lanterns. Really epic, emotional, and character-defining moments.
A fun romp with some serious repercussions. I enjoyed the art and Mongul as a major threat. However, he just runs. This is the third trade in the Mongul story. This felt like the big conclusion to the earlier stories but it was a deflating ending. The other stories worked better.
Sodam Yat is now my favorite Green Lantern, he doesn’t stand for racism, he doesn’t tolerate any bullshit even if it’s from his parents, pour one out for Sodam Yat
Once again, another writer switch in the middle of the Green Lantern Corps run, and once again a home run with no momentum lost. GLC continues to deliver five volumes in with no signs of stopping. From the brutal feud between Arkillo of the Sinestro Corps and Mongul, Kyle's developing relationship with Soranik, and a huge twist reveal too juicy to spoil, Emerald Eclipse will keep you locked in from start to finish. It's unclear whether Tomasi merely picked up a story already half-written out and only filled in the blanks or if he moved the story in his own direction, but whatever the case he did it with tact and talent. There should be no doubt about his ability to write a fantastic Green Lantern story. Of course, shining high above all of the concurrent story arcs is Sodam Yat's story, which proves by a mile Tomasi's worth. Tackling topics of xenophobia and rising above where you come from, Yat's story has merit, integrity, and a point. He shows readers exactly why he was chosen to be the next bearer of Ion, and why the faith the Guardians had in him was always placed well. There will be no disappointment to be found in this volume of GLC, and by the end some might even take away an important lesson.
Wow, this is the last arc before Blackest Night and it is amazing!
World: Gleason gets to get all gruesome once again especially with Mongol, it's good but I'm getting a bit queasy. I will say that the battle scenes, especially the splash pages, are amazing! The world building here is coming to a head with the Blackest Night event. Pieces have been getting in place and so is the world building, no spoilers, just read.
Story: This is a roller coaster, it's non-stop and unrelenting. Multiple storylines that span the galaxy, both intimate and grand this arc is just amazing. From Daxam to Korugar to Oa all of the stories matter and all of them are told at a breakneck speed. It does move by very very fast and but it's a super fun read.
Characters: Sodam and Natu get a huge chunk of story and I can't ruin it, but that's not all. There is huge development in terms of the Guardians in preparations for Blackest Night and the tension has finally come to a head. What Johns has done with the Guardians is great as I've always found them to be creepy and misguided in the past and now we get to see the frightening side of conviction and stupidity come into play.
A great read and perfect to jump into Blackest Night this story is going to only get better!
An outbreak in the sciencells; Soranik Natu meets her father; Sodam Yat makes a sacrifice for Daxam; Oa breaks free from its shell. Of all the Preludes to Blackest Night, this volume forwards the plot the least. More of a stewing pot for building characters and waxing philosophical, "Emerald Eclipse" focuses on the fall-out and consequences of the Guardians' new laws. My favourite event in this book is the battle between Mongul and Arkillo for control of the Yellow Lantern Corps. The artwork is very average, sometimes a little confusing as it moves from panel to panel; but, I admittedly love when Tomasi takes the time tow write a few expository pages of dialogue. He creates some really good tension within his characters as they struggle between the call of duty and the call of desire. More than ever, we see the green light as a corrupt and tainted hue in the emotional spectrum. "Emerald Eclipse" highlights the flaws of The Green Lantern Corps' members, creating an antithesis to the mythos that Geoff Johns has been expanding on. 3.5/5