Review by Ian Keogh

After years of neglect and misuse Geoff Johns and Ethan Van Sciver delivered a stunning restoration within the pages of Rebirth. It not only re-primed Hal Jordan as a Green Lantern, but addressed several other matters that hampered the feature, not least the never credible idea that power rings were powerless when faced with objects coloured yellow.

We open here with ‘Flight’, beautifully illustrated by Darwyn Cooke, who’d strongly featured Hal Jordan in his own well-received New Frontier, and which returns to Jordan’s youth. The title refers to three exhilarating flights with Jordan and is an evocative and superbly balanced introduction. Surely Johns patted himself on the back with a sense of satisfaction after completing the script for this.

Unfortunately the remainder doesn’t live up to it, although it’s certainly decent Green Lantern material, and way better than most of what was produced under that title over the previous decade.

Johns establishes early that Jordan will be the focus of the title by noting those who’d shared Rebirth are largely out of the picture. What’s done well is concealing the identity of a threat associated with Green Lantern, and the use of several foes from the past. Hector Hammond was foreshadowed in Rebirth, but there are others. This isn’t just an exercise in reconfiguring the past, though, as Johns supplies an interesting new character in loyal Air Force officer General Stone, with whom Jordan has had previous disagreement. Despite his status, he combines service with practicality, and doesn’t take long to learn a secret.

Ethan Van Sciver, so impressive on Rebirth, only illustrates the penultimate chapter here, but the combination of Carlos Pacheco and Jesus Merino is a proven superhero A-team who certainly don’t disappoint for the majority of the book, and they’re back for Revenge of the Green Lanterns. The final chapter is illustrated by Simone Bianchi in variable style. At times in the opening section he’s attempting Rockwellesque photo-realism, and by the end he’s got a great scratchy horror mood going.

It’s worked in subtlely, but the Green Lantern Corps series runs parallel to events here, and there’s the occasional reference. For the full story see Recharge. Both are included in the opening volume of Green Lantern by Geoff Johns Omnibus, while No Fear‘s content is split over Book One and Book Two of the paperbacks Green Lantern by Geoff Johns.