DCU Comic Book Reviews

GREEN LANTERN CORPS #16

The Battle Of Ranx

November 2007

Written by Dave Gibbons

Pencils by Patrick Gleason and Angel Unzueta

Inks by Prentis Rollins, Drew Geraci, and Vincente Cifuentes

Cover by Patrick Gleason and Tom Nguyen

Synopsis

In Sector 2261, the sentient city of Ranx and the sentient planet Mogo are locked in a deadly duel even as members of the Sinestro Corps and Green Lantern Corps continue their epic battle.  On Ranx, Sodam Yat leads other lanterns to find a way to defeat the city.  On Mogo, Ranx and the Children of White Lobe continue to drill to Mogo’s center.  The Green Man suggests that Mogo pull back his energies to the core, in a sense feigning death until the lanterns can remove the Sinestro Corps.  Mogo agrees.  On Oa, the Guardians decide to rewrite the Book of Oa in order to protect Mogo.  On Ranx, Yat leads his team to the central command area.  Just then the rings announce the changes to the book of Oa:  Lethal force has been enabled.  The battle shifts in favor of the lanterns.  Yat and his team are able to kill Ranx.  The Sinestro Corps flee.  Salaak then tells the lanterns they need to regroup at Oa until Hal Jordan tells them all that the Sinestro Crops target isn’t Oa, but rather Earth.  

Review by Binkley (e-mail)

For this book, I always seem to bitch and moan about the numerous plot lines and characters that Gibbons uses in this book.  This time, there is only one story, only plot:  the battle.  Granted there are individual stories told within the battle, especially Sodam Yat, but at no time does the focus to shift away from the battle to say Korugar (except for a brief trip to Oa, which was necessary to the plot).  This issue is wall-to-wall action and Gleason and Unzueta do a great job of evoking the kinetic frenzy of the battle, but also the violence and the effect it has on the characters.  This singular focus on the battle makes it that much more of an emotional, visceral sensation and gives a sense of the intensity of the battle and what the combatants are feeling.  Excellent stuff. 

Having read Green Lantern, issue #23, I knew not only that the Book of Oa had been rewritten, but exactly what the first law the Guardians rewrote would be.  Yet, when it happens in this story, I still felt the impact that law had on the characters.  At the beginning of the issue, Gibbons does an excellent of setting the stage, throwing bits of dialogue here and there about the lanterns lack of killing as well as showing the lanterns getting their assess beaten and killed as the ineffectively fight a war that could not win.  There was a sense of hopelessness, a feeling that the lanterns were fighting an uphill battle.  Then, the rules are rewritten and suddenly the lanterns turn the tide.  As I said, I knew it was coming, but it still had an impact on me; there is a palpable sense of freedom and relief when the lanterns realize the playing field has become level.  This moment is encapsulated perfectly in Yat’s expression when he tells Ranx his next move isn’t humiliation, but death.  For some, when the rule was lifted, it actually took away some of the burden they felt being a lantern.  It will be interesting to see if this is followed through after the war.  Some interesting stories could be told about lanterns who delight in the ability to kill and those they stick to their beliefs or their training and refuse to kill.

 

ïPREVIOUS	Main		Page	NEXTð

Home ●  Blog ● Who Are We? ● Site News
Alive and Well since April 16, 2006

 DC Universe Reviews.  All Rights Reserved
  Characters, trademarks, brands are property of DC Comics

For problems or questions regarding this website, please contact our kindly webmaster.
Last updated: 08/06/11.