Origin to a Prologue
Green Lantern #23.1 serves a dual purpose. Give the reader the origin of the new Green Lantern Villain, Relic and serve as a prologue to the upcoming "Lights Out" event. It does a pretty good job at both.
Relic has been causing trouble in the expanded Green Lantern Universe for a couple of months. His hatred for Lanterns (or "Lightsmiths" as he calls them) has been hinted at. In Green Lantern #23.1 we find out why.
Robert Venditti tells the tragic tale with only narration. It comes across as a parable not unlike Noah's Ark or even Chicken Little for those not religiously inclined. Relic tells the Lightsmiths of the danger of depleating the Universal Light Source and is mocked and ridiculed. Of course, he is proven right when all is lost. He escapes his dying Universe and finds himself in a new one, transformed and powerful. That's when he encounters Kyle Raynor and the Templar Guardians. He will not make the same mistakes again and decides not to reason, but to destroy these Lightsmiths in order to save this Universe. Done and done. Origin story and prologue all rolled up into one.
Rags Morales takes over the art for this issue. I thought he did a really good job and loved seeing the Lightsmiths of Relic's Universe. It isn't the expansive look that the regular Green Lantern book has shown since Billy Tan has taken over, but I think it fit this story fine.
Green Lantern 23.1 reads like a fable. The tale of Relic, a scientist who predicted the end of the Universe but was ignored only to be proven right in the end. The issue served as both a Origin story and a prologue to the upcoming "Light Out" cross over event. Relic is no longer a faceless villain, but one who thinks he is doing the right thing. As of this issue, I may agree with him. Highly recommended.
8.5/10
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