The Darkness Consumes All — Reviewing ‘Absolute Green Lantern’ #2

Living without fear is a dangerous concept. While generally a negative emotion, it can often be a protector and educator.

From beyond the stars, the being known as Abin Sur has come, spreading the word to be without fear. What that means for the small town of Evergreen isn’t totally clear. Absolute Green Lantern #2 peels the curtain back a bit more in Al Ewing, Jahnoy Lindsay, and Lucas Gattoni’s new series.

I’m not sure how to fully feel about this series quite yet.

There is a ton to like here. The concept is very intriguing with the incorporation of a variety of Green Lantern figures and ideas in one space. From the various Earth Lanterns to the more out-there visual of Abin Sur and what he represents. Using the Black Hand as the antithesis of the light spectrum and it coming for Hal Jordan throws much on its head.

Even centering Jo Mullein as the Green Lantern to be is cool.

The slow drip decompression? That I’m less than sure about.

We’re two issues into the series and more questions have been placed on the table than answered — other than seeing the next moments of Abin Sur’s bloody arrival. Why the alien is here, what it means, where John is, how Hal and Jo got their new changes, and so many other questions are still hanging. Added to them are what “The Green Lantern” is and whether Guy Gardner is really gone amongst other queries.

I trust Ewing greatly, but so far this gimmick isn’t clicking. Overall, this is one of the “weaker” Absolute DC books they’ve delivered. In spite of it being pretty awesome visually and conceptually.

All that roughness just really can be felt in the pages thanks to Lindsay’s style. Figures are carrying around that rougher texture at all times as they slide between realistic and exaggerated. Scenes shifting from fully detailed to things out-of-focus or sketched for specific effect. The darker-in-tone story lends itself to the particular artistic style.

The colors are washed out in some respects. It allows the bigger fantastic elements more room to really pop with vibrant beats. All the green takes command of any given page it appears on, reminding us that it’s abnormal and beyond our scope. Much as the pure darkness of the Black Hand from Jordan keeping the harder edge at the focal forefront.

This heaviness befits the emotionally tense story being told. Our characters are on edge at all times and there isn’t anything lighter to dispel this. Hopefully there are some brighter things ahead, should this decompression wear off a bit.

Voices are very unique here, especially with Sur and the Black Hand in play. Gattoni really taps into the otherworldliness of it all with the lettering choices. Shifting fonts, growing and shrinking things, and bringing various quantities of colors into play. Allow the words to just flow across the page and strike as needed. Just a few modifications here or there lets the pain felt by our protagonists really echo through our minds.

Absolute Green Lantern #2 is now available from DC Comics.