Green Lantern #0

Man, I love origins that are such a clear snapshot of a specific period of time. Geoff Johns is not subtle here, with the opening page showing our new GL as a child on 9/11. Baz has had a fairly rough life, and it doesn’t get much worse than when he steals a car that came pre-loaded with a terrorist bomb.

I think it’s a bit ridiculous; that Baz would happen to choose to steal a van with a bomb. And he sure doesn’t seem very good, since he’s immediately captured by the cops. But it certainly makes for an intense, high-stakes origin. Most of the issue has no relation to the cosmic adventures of a Green Lantern. Instead, the focus is on Baz’s interrogation so that we can get some quick, solid background on the guy.

Only in the closing moments do we see the ring (possibly with an error) choose Baz to be the new 2814 GL. I sure hope that this title doesn’t start crossing over into the JLA title and with this new Amanda Waller. I’ve been carefully avoiding the rest of the DCU, so I don’t want to have it intrude on my one island of pre-reboot reading.

Doug Mahnke is great, as always. Mahnke makes an interesting choice in Baz’s opening action sequence. If the guy isn’t going to wear a ski-mask when he’s stealing a car, why would he wear one when he’s a GL? Baz doesn’t seem like a gun-nut either, but then we’ve got that hilarious cover telling us otherwise.

Fair