TALES OF THE GREEN LANTERN CORPS: GUY GARDNER #1 (DC COMICS)
Guy Gardner. The walking definition of polarizing.
His reputation proceeds him. Arrogant. Brash. Heroic. He may not be the stereotypical hero but he is one that will always show up and fight.
TALES OF THE GREEN LANTERN CORPS : GUY GARDNER #1 by Gerry Duggan, Matteo Lolli, Laura Braga, Vasco Georgiev, John Kalisz & Dave Sharpe (DC COMICS) spotlights the one and only Lantern doing what he does best.
Let’s take a deeper dive into the story.
TALES OF THE GREEN LANTERN CORPS : GUY GARDNER #1 by Gerry Duggan, Matteo Lolli, Laura Braga, Vasco Georgiev, John Kalisz & Dave Sharpe (DC COMICS)
*** POSSIBLE SPOILER WARNING ***
Before he became the “Allsight of OA”, Gardner kept things stat quo for this fun chapter. Duggan puts Guy into a comfortable setting to start events. The writing shows his unique style of interrogation as he shakes down a criminal for information. The dialogue is pure Guy. There’s no wiggle room for anything less. With his intel, Guy frees a captured alien race being trafficked. Readers quickly find out his noble deeds don’t come without another side motive. If you owe money to Guy, he will find you. This sets forth a new adventure with more of a serious tone with it.
Zardum of the GLC Internal affairs tries probing into Guy’s paranoia of the Manhunters resurfacing. Their chat leads to another lantern intervening. John Stewart’s recent history is complicated to put it mildly. Putting him on Guy’s trail is a fun dynamic that leads into new avenues. Once the inevitable meet-up occurs, there’s more to Guy’s case than meets the eye. The banter starts unloading buried feelings. Readers don’t have to wait long before the fists start flying. This results into a personal look at Guy’s true feelings. Underneath his tough guy persona is a broken soul. Stewart’s return helps to provide reinforcement. Their interactions hit high marks before wrapping up the story on a comedic level. The aftermath is a pure Guy scenario which is all anyone can ask for.
With three artists on the book, each give a fun perspective to Guy’s saga. His opening near full page debut kickstarts his latest shakedown. The full page image of the Source Wall is imposing and assists his means. It helps to push the first case forward enough, There are plenty of Guy reactions that cover his jerk persona. It carries into a full page transporting the rescues aliens to Oa. Readers can’t help by smile at Guy playing guitar on top of a literal emerald train.
Once Zardum becomes involved, the story gets a touch more grounded. Guy’s brush-off leads to a stern glance from the Internal Affairs guru. This welcomes John Stewart into the story in dramatic fashion. A routine rescue mission feels like a return to normal for the charismatic hero. Once he starts investigating Guy’s apartment, the panels show off a very different side of Guy. This escalates matters into the paranoia case in question. A fun full shot of Guy wrestling a Gorilla spacemen sets the bar high for what’s coming.
Readers watch as Guy’s rage takes over seeing a possible clone of Stewart (note: read GLC for clarification). The full shot of the astronauts at the International Space Station is a hilarious compliment piece. It breaks up the intense fight between Lanterns. There’s plenty of great action that carries this fight back to Earth. Only when Guy finally comes to senses do the emotions start unveiling. Readers watch as the old wounds start healing. As events shift back to Oa, there are more fun panels brought in to wrap the case up with. The epilogue provides a heart-warming image of the pair before setting Guy back into his usual chaotic world. The final full page is a perfect finish to just another day in the life of the polarizing figure.
FINAL POINT: 8.4
Guy Gardner has a mission and no one is gonna stand in his way of finishing it! Duggan captures the signature reactions of the angry Lantern with an enjoyable script. The art team covers all the ranges of emotions Guy goes through while dealing with his own issues. A hilarious and heartwarming look at one of DC’s most polarizing characters. Read and see for yourself!
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