REVIEW: ‘Absolute Green Lantern’ Issue 3

Absolute Green Lantern Issue 3 is published by DC Comics. Written by Al Ewing, art and colors by Jahnoy Lindsay, and letters by Lucas Gattoni.

The fate of John Stewart is revealed as he tests the limits of the lantern’s power whilst Jo tries to stop Hal Jordan.

Absolute Green Lantern Issue 3 features a split structure, and both stories are equally fascinating. In the flashback, John starts to find a weakness in the green energy that has appeared and is isolating the town. The experiments get gradually larger. The pace in this period is slow and calm, with little tension, making it feel like the first success in this series is just around the corner for the heroes. However, there is a pang of dread when we recall that something happened to John, as revealed in the previous chapter.

Fear and morbid curiosity surround what happened, and the issue becomes a matter of waiting for the answer. As it happens, thoughts began swirling around the characters that disappeared. Perhaps there is more at play. In the present day, the standoff between Jo and Hal reaches its peak with an explosion of energy. It’s a battle of control. Hal can’t help what’s happening with the Black Hand, whilst Jo has already started to use the Green Lantern ring. There’s an insidious cosmic mystery that has consumed this town, and the suspense is incredible.

There isn’t a main character in Absolute Green Lantern Issue 3, or at least one the story is following. Jo is the Green Lantern, but the story is not yet accompanying her. Instead, she’s entering it. We followed Hal to the diner, but we had since spent three issues there, and the movement had become stagnant. And it was John who was trying to make a change in the first town, but he’s missing in the main story.

Instead of focusing on one protagonist, the comic is about all three. It means that there isn’t necessarily a single viewpoint. There are alien voices that simply raise more questions, and the humans scramble to make sense of what’s happening. In the flashback, you can see the relationships that were created between the trio, especially John and Jo. But that had shattered in the present story, creating friction and fire.

The art is gorgeous. There is both a grounded approach to the humans and Earth, but also an emergence of aliens that can appear at any second. There is a phenomenal intricacy in the facial expressions, which effectively capture the characters’ feelings. This is prevalent in the negotiations between Hal and Jo before a spectacular battle takes place. The energy creates constructs like they should, but they’re also just tidal waves of power fighting for dominance. As that happens, Lindsay shows the humans in the middle who are taken aback and reacting to the weapons they now have in their hands.

The colors are as important in the Absolute Green Lantern series as it is in the central universe. The green clashes with the solid, opaque black that Hal exudes. And another color starts to manifest. This shade starts small and progressively grows larger, allowing it to cut through the green. The lettering is very clear and easy to read.

Absolute Green Lantern Issue 3 is still learning and enquiring as the characters continue discovering the rules of this universe, its power, the limits of the weapons they possess, and what Abin Sur wants with them. There are still so many pieces of the puzzle, and many are being taken off the board entirely – violently. It’s exciting to see a comic take its time because, by now, the reader’s mind is wondering and coming up with answers themselves. The script and the art are sensational, unleashing an unsettling sci-fi story.

Absolute Green Lantern Issue 3 is available where comics are sold.