Green Lantern: Revenge of The Green Lanterns Review

Green Lantern: Revenge of The Green Lanterns (GL Vol.04 #7-13)

This book begins with a Mongul II, son of the mad alien that helped destroy Coast City, comes to conquer Earth with a multiplying crop of Black Mercy plants, that when attached to someone makes a person live out their vision of a perfect life in their heads. While visiting Hal in Coast City Green Arrow joins him to take down Mongul, and in the course of the battle both each get trapped in a Black Mercy. Hal lives a life where he's father never died, and as a Green Lantern never became Parallax, and was still friends with Sinestro, while Ollie get the stable family life he's always wanted married to Sandra Hawke and living and working with their son Conner Hawke, having a second son Robert, and expecting he's next child.

Hal, and Ollie realize their perfect lives can't be real, and escape the grasp of the Black Mercies, but not soon enough to stop Mongul from teleporting he's sister Mongal to Earth to settle who best follows their father's legacy. A quick fight end with the heroes teleporting the villains back to their homeworld of Debstam IV. Just in time for Hal to join he's brother and he's family for he's nephew's birthday.

The next story is the real highlight of the book for me with Hal teaming up with Batman to bring in The Tattooed Man, their first team-up since Hal has return from the dead and back as a hero. Batman testing Hal and gauging him to see if they can be friends and partners again is just an awesome dynamic, like Batman hitting Hal to get even for the hit Hal landed on him in Rebirth. After defeating the bad guy, Hal let's Batman put on he's Green Lantern ring to help him get over he's great fear of he's parent's death and put it behind him, as a Green Lantern he creates a image of he's parent smiling in front of him. Batman takes off the ring, and say he can't put that night behind him, not yet, then genuinely say he's glad that Hal is back.

AWESOME!

Then were off to the main story that jumps ahead one year to Hal and two of he's fellow pilots Rocket Man and Cowgirl receiving medals after escaping and surviving months in a P.O.W. camp, when suddenly a alien ship crashes right into to the ceremony. When Hal investigates he finds Tomar-Tu, a Green Lantern he thought he killed as Parallax years ago, he's ring's tracking log states he came from outside the patrolled sectors of the Green Lanterns, a place The Guardians call Sector 3601, last known retreat of the Manhunter androids. The Guardians deny Hal's request to go investigate the planet to see if there are more Lost Lanterns there that need to be rescued, so Hal disobeys them and brings Guy along, when they arrived they find Biot, the Manhunter homworld and planet sized factory mass producing more Manhunters.

Not only do they find seven thought long dead Green Lanterns in stasis, but also the Manhunter's new Grandmaster, Cyborg Superman, who has been using the Green Lanterns as slaves and subjects for experiments to make the Manhunters more powerful. While fighting Cyborg Superman, and uncountable amount of Manhunters, Hal must also prove to the recently awakened Lanterns that he is no longer their enemy, all while Guy is captured, and then discovers nineteen more unconscious Lanterns including he's one time love Arisia, who was buried on Earth years ago. Hal and Arisia, team up to tear apart Cyborg Superman, and they all team up to pull Guy out of a new bigger Highmaster Manhunter that uses a Green Lantern as a power source, which they then use themselves to blow up a Central Battery to escape with all but one Lantern that was killed by Cyborg Superman. The Lost Lanterns thank Hal for coming to their rescue, but the will never forget or forgive what he did as Parallax, while Guy takes the blame for Hal disobeying orders, and get assigned Prime Duty, which along with 49 other Lanterns keep on eye on Superboy-Prime's Science-Cell which orbit a miniature red sun.

Woo, so much for short reviews, there was a lot of stories in that one, but totally awesome stuff, like the return of Cyborg Superman, which is just phenomenal dialog and fighting between him and Hal. To me though the hands down must read of the book is Hal and Batman, Geoff Johns just knows how to perfectly write this guys.

Did I mention I freaking love cyborgs

 Cyborg Superman: "Life is an endless cycle of betrayal and murder and pain. I ended that hideous thing called life for so many when I destroyed Coast City. You tried to kill me for it, but I forgive you Hal Jordan."