4th read & I still can't believe it
Seriously, I love twist endings in movies, TV shows and...well you get it, EVERYTHING! Twist endings like this turn a 3.5-4 rating to a full 5 for 5 and cliffhangers (like the one in this issue) make me wish there were more stars to fill in. Cliffhangers keep us readers/fans wanting, they cause us to speculate and use our imaginations which brings us back for the next issue (DC thanks you Geoff Johns) but being good helps too (I thank you Geoff Johns). But I really love seeing Sinestro in his new role and learning more about him and what makes him tick, you never get to see bad guys in this "situation."
TO THE REVIEW
I never thought I would find myself thinking Sinestro is Felix and Hal is Oscar (I'm 23 I watched Nick at Nite when I was a kid...Wikipedia "The Odd Couple" if you need help). Hal and Sinestro hate each other, and seeing Sinestro put his ginormous ego aside is and seeing them "get along" is comical. Seeing each other poke at their faults, Hal's relationship trouble, Sinestro allowing his people to be enslaved, Hal having nothing going for him except the ring, Sinestro allowing his people to be enslaved, Hal not being as good as Sinestro...that page(s) is hilarious.OK Sinestro may be able to do more tricks with his ring but that doesn't make him the greatest Lantern, but I'm not saying Hal is either. And besides Hal and Sinestro's assault on Korugar we see this crap with the Guardian's, including a "lobotomized" Ganthet, and talks of a 3rd Army (spoiler but get over it, if you haven't read it yet you suck) which has me very exited/curious to where that will take us. Sinestro exudes confidence/arrogance, rationality of sorts and self-control/will power and this is what makes Sinestro Hal's foil and it's rare to see the side of Sinestro we see here. Sinestro warns Hal to do nothing until it's time but of course Hal wants to save a young person but Sinestro, using his rationale and self control reminds Hal to wait think of the planets safety. We are used to seeing Hal rush in and save the damsel or who ever first then pick up the pieces but not Sinestro, he'd rather fix the whole thing at once (SIDE NOTE: Issue #2 has this discussion it's pretty good...I highly recommend it). It's odd thinking Sinestro was a good guy but throughout Johns's run we've seen more of who Sinestro is and what drives him, his relationship with Abin and his sister, things like that you never see or learn about villains. But when we see Sinestro react to a what...a damsel in distress we are reminded (or just me) of recent revelations and we see the real Sinestro and not the arch enemy he has been. He isn't seeking redemption or atone for his past actions he just wants to free his people (though it kind of is his fault). Even though seeing Sinestro cut down members of the Sinestro Corps is shocking it is far from the moat shocking image of this issue. Seeing what happens to Hal is something I thought would never happen...again but was he right about being set up? Or was Sinestro truly surprised and to me he seemed concerned for his arch enemy.
IN CONCLUSION
Big surprise in this issue.....seriously huge, I love twists like this. This latest chapter of Green Lantern is great because we get to learn more about Sinestro, it's rare we actually get to see this side of him. The "Odd Couple" that is Hal Jordan and Sinestro is great to read I love their dynamic. I really don't turning the green to black is that amazing but I can't deny he has major skills with his ring and I like how he calls Hal out on not being up to par (more of this in issue #2...still highly recommended). Sinestro's lantern fail-safe makes no sense, he would have to be one, steal an actual lantern somehow or convince a ring bearer to go inside the big yellow battery. Honestly, if I was Hal I would have thrown it in and not actually enter but hey that makes more sense. I really like this issue for Sinestro and my deep love for twist endings and Geoff Johns is still making this a great ride each issue. I love how he adds more layers to the story and slowly adds more seeds that flourish into great stories.Sorry for rambling.