Written by: Tim Sheridan
Art by: Cian Tormey, Jordi Tarragona
Colors by: Matt Herms
Letters by: Lucas Gattoni
Cover art by: David Talaski (cover A)
Cover price: $3.99
Release date: May 21, 2024
Alan Scott: The Green Lantern #6 brings the miniseries to an end when Alan Scott temporarily teams up with Red Lantern to stop the Crimson Host and provide many words of encouragement.
Is Alan Scott: The Green Lantern #6 Good?
Well, it's over. The Golden Age imprint at DC has reached the last issue in the last series, so it's time to review the end and reflect on what worked and what didn't.
When last we left Alan Scott in his younger years, he overcame a tsunami of emotions over the revelation that the Red Lantern, Vladimir Sokov, was a sleeper agent for the Soviet Union and Scott's former lover Johnny Ladd. After a contentious argument, Sokov learned his government used him to extract Crimson Flame power and create a super team called the Crimson Host to dominate the world, forcing Scott and Sokov to fight against their new attackers. When the fight goes poorly, the JSA arrives to even the odds.
In Alan Scott: The Green Lantern #6, Sokov, accepting his government betrayed him, teams up with Scott to fight the Crimson Host in the city streets alongside the JSA. Overwhelmed by the Crimson Host's array of powers, Sokov is beaten down in the course of battle while the JSA hold their own.
Enraged by his former lover's downfall, Scott creates his first construct with Sovkov's prompting, trapping the Crimson Host in a forcefield. Scott intends to take the Host in alive to face justice, but Sokov is invigorated by the Crimson Flame and kills the Crimson Host with a mega-shot of power.
Sokov surrenders himself. Later, Scott visits Sokov in jail to let him know that he's loved, that he matters, and that there's always a light in the darkness.
What follows is a 6-page, saccharin-sweet manifesto on acceptance, the fluid nature of love, and a have-your-cake-and-eat-it-too moment that backhandedly confirms Alan Scott still married Thorn and had two children - Jade and Obsidian. In effect, Sheridan may or may not have confirmed Alan Scott is bi-sexual instead of gay, confusing the matter even further.
What's great about Alan Scott: The Green Lantern #6? All things considered, Tim Sheridan ends the miniseries in a way that neatly dovetails Alan Scott's history with the Red Lantern into the current JSA run by Geoff Johns. Regardless of your personal opinion on the retcons, the subject matter, or Tim Sheridan's ill-fated attempts at marketing this series, this story gives Alan Scott's interaction with the new Red Lantern in the present a deeper, richer context.
What's not so great about Alan Scott: The Green Lantern #6? There's an old axiom in storytelling - show, don't tell. Sheridan rushes through what should have been the climactic battle to wrap things up in haste and spends a too-large chunk of the issue telling everyone why Alan Scott being gay is a good thing. In the final analysis, Scott's deeds should have hit that message home loud and clear, but this issue, much like the miniseries as a whole, wastes time on retcons that don't make sense or improve the character's history and narration speeches that read like a Stuart Smalley PowerPoint presentation on loving yourself.
There are myriad ways Tim Sheridan could have changed Alan Scott to suit a particular message AND elevate the character, but that opportunity is gone. I fear the damage done by this ill-conceived miniseries will force Alan Scott back onto the "Do Not Use" shelf for a very long time.
How's the Art? Writing aside, Tormey and Tarragona's art is amazing. I'm most familiar with Tarragona's artwork at Zenescope, and DC was lucky to pull him in to finish off the miniseries. The action, what little there is, looks great. The layouts and compositions are impactful, and Matt Herms's colors are excellent.
About The Reviewer: Gabriel Hernandez is the Publisher & EIC of ComicalOpinions.com, a comics review site dedicated to indie, small, and mid-sized publishers.
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"The fluid nature of love" sounds like some ped0 apologist tripe.
ReplyDeleteYears from now this comic will be used to line the bottom of birdcages.