A lot of substance but not much progression.
As far as progression goes this issue doesn't really take the story anywhere.
For a mega event that spans 8 issues I would expect a certain stride with each new chapter...
But Geoff Johns does give the reader a lot to absorb and think about.
The developments with The Specter and Deadman were interesting and it alludes to how the black rings work with the corpses they take control of.
What I interpreted was that the corpses work independently of the "soul" or essence or whatever you want to call it. A black ring will take over, it will utilize the thoughts and memories that were specific to the corpse, and then uses them to get an emotional response from whoever they encounter. Then when they get an emotional response they can feed... That's whats happened with every time a Black Lantern has murdered someone. They feed off of emotion. You'll see what I mean when Arthur Curry encounters his family, Mera and Temprest... It's pretty insane.
So what happens to the soul if the corpse is taken over? That question is being answered with what's happening with The Specter and Deadman. Should be interesting...
Also, what occurs at the grave site of Hawk and Dove was really cool as well. Babs and G-Man touched on what my initial impression was when they did their review. Is there a criteria that needs to be filled for a corpse to be re-animated by a black ring? Do violent deaths lead to violent afterlives?
So far every black lantern that has been resurrected had met a violent end. Did Jonathan Kent die a violent death?
Overall this issue was intriguing. Like I mentioned the story doesn't really go anywhere but it does explain a lot in regards to the Black Lanterns. I enjoyed the hell out of it.
