Green Lantern: Emerald Dawn

Rating:
Summary: From Zero to Hero
Review: I just read Emerald Dawn several days back. Never got to read the original story when it was published in 1989-90. Over the years I have heard many people saying that this was a lousy series and that Hal Jordan (Green Lantern) is grossly out-of-character and a destructive alcoholic. Untrue. I think most people who dislike this series are people who love the original Broome and Kane GL stories from the late 1950s and 1960s. In other words, these other reviewers are too bound by their loyalty to their nostalgia - although those early GL tales are a gem! "Emerald Dawn", however, is a Green Lantern origin story more fitting for a more sophisticated time. Hal Jordan, far from being out-of-character, is finally a "character". We identify with his foibles, his failures and finally his metamorphoses into a true hero - and the greatest GL ever. We also get to see his first meeting with the GL Corps and the Guardians. Finally, the alcoholic thing? He got drunk ONCE during a particular bad time and caused an accident! That doesn't make Hal an alcoholic - he's no Tony Stark!

Rating:
Summary: What do you do with Hal Jordan?
Review: In an effort to try to figure out what to do with a character so willful, strong and noble, DC decided to retell his origin. Concentrating mostly on family and the inner demons Hal carries, they manage to take a "hero" and make him a human with a ring. No wonder some people didn't like it. Heroes should be simple and straightforward, right? Maybe. But humans are much more interesting. I'm a big Hal fan, even when he was silly in the old days, and I really liked this retelling.

Rating:
Summary: The coming of Hal
Review: This book is This book is the origin of the second Earth Green Lantern named Hal Jordon. I never really payed attention to his character, Kyle Raynor has always been my favorite GL and I always though that Jordon lacked character. He's always been the perfect, fearless, leader with a few exceptions. But this book tries to change all of that. We learn what drives Hal, we see his dad die before his very eyes, we see him roll a jeep with his friends in it while driving a little less than sober, and we see how a person like this must manage a ring of power.

Hal finds the ring while he's testing a flight simulator. Strangely, the simulator goes flying off the base and flies through the air. Hal lands near a beat and broken version of a Green Lantern. The GL is dying, and he chose Hal to be the successor to his power ring. It seems, that Hal is not up to the task. The first thing he does with the ring is goof off and have fun flying. But when an evil being known as the Legion appears, it's time to get serious. Legion appears to be both pissed off and unstoppable and it seems that Hal doesn't know the ring's one and only weakness: yellow, and unfortunately Legion is completely yellow.

Things get hairy when the Legion attacks the Guardians on the Green Lantern base planet. Hal meanwhile, has been being trained by a Green Lantern trainer. There are many cool battles between all of the GL's and Legion, but the GLs are on the losing side. Of course, we see a glimmer of the Hal that we all know when he comes up with a ingenious plan to stop Legion.

not half bad. The problem is, there was nothing really amazing about it. There's no amazing story like Long Halloween, it's just a simple origin tale. It's also a little short, at 6 average length comic books long. I can't say that the attempt at giving Hal more character failed, it just wasn't that great. I've never seen a Hal Jordon with *gasp* flaws, but that's not my problem, my problem is that the flaws aren't that great. It's OK as a TPB, there's a little paragraph introduction but that's about it. I would recommend a buy if you desperately need a Green Lantern origin story or if your a big Hal fan. It's good, but not an essential read. Also, am I the only one that spotted Sinestro as a Green Lantern?


Rating:
Summary: The Origin of Hal Jordan rewritten
Review: This book retells the origin of Hal Jordan, the GL of sector 2814. It focuses on Hal's personal life, and about how he grapples with becoming a GL with the "most powerful weapon" in the Universe. The book revolves around the interaction between Hal, his family and friends, and the Guardians. There is also a small hint on a plot device that was later used in Emerald Twilight. Overall, I would not recommend it unless you enjoy thinking about serious issues in life.

Rating:
Summary: Not what I remembered
Review: This is the book that got me hooked on the Green Lantern as a kid. A friend of mine recently let me read their copy of it and to be honest I was let down. To be honest the book just isn't that well written. The story is just a bit too clunky and contrived. It really does not do anything new with the medium If you have read one comic then you have read this one too.

Rating:
Summary: A great introduction to Hal Jordan
Review: This was a mini-series that was released before the first issue of the current Green Lantern series was released in 1990. It is a retelling and a slight reworking of Hal Jordan's (the Silver Age Green Lantern) origin. The art and colors are excellent. The Hal in this book is slightly different from the Hal in the 1970s and 1980s. Readers had grown accustomed to him as a leader, one of the Guardians' finest; but, here he is shown as a fallible human (he hurts a few of his friends while driving drunk) and he is a little impulsive with his actions when he first gets his ring. But, by the end of the story, he has saved Oa from the threat of Legion; he proves that he is super-hero and Green Lantern material.
This book is great for new Green Lantern readers who like Kyle Rayner but do not know much about Hal, Kyle's predecessor. Although, if you want to see Hal at his best, read the "Tales of the Green Lantern Corps" mini-series, which unfortunately is not available in trade paperback. The greatest Green Lantern story, imo, yet written is "Ganthet's Tale," a graphic novel which should be available on Amazon. However, this trade will serve as a decent introduction to Hal, the Corps, Carol Ferris and the Guardians of the Universe.