The Peter Milligan/Ed Benes series first announced for earlier this year finally makes its debut. This spins out of recent Green Lantern stories establishing a whole spectrum of emotions. This corps is driven by the red power of rage, which often blinds them to reason.
General Information
Title: Red Lanterns #1
Author: Peter Milligan
Illustrator(s): Ed Benes (pencils), Rob Hunter (inks) and Nathan Eyring (colours)
Cover Date: November 2011
Cover Price: $2.99
Buy the digital edition.
Premise
Atrocitus became the first Red Lantern when the Guardian Krona reprogrammed the Manhunter robots (which preceded the Green Lantern Corps) to destroy all of sector 666, including Atrocitus’ homeworld. With Krona’s death at another’s hand during the War of the Green Lanterns, the rage fueled by vengeance was lost for a time. However, Atrocitus has found himself a new mission to channel his rage throughout the universe.
High Point
I have often maintained that cats are an evil species. Check out the double page spread here to see what I mean.
Low Point
The colour pallete, though appropriate, is hard on the eyes. This comic is very, very red.
The Scores
This is a new and original direction for the Red Lantern Corps. Still, it is a spinoff of an established franchise. I give it 4 out of 6.
The artwork shows some great detail in the pencils and inks, though there is one panel that really bothers me. (A man is punched and his head recoils the wrong way.) The colours get hard to look at, but only because Eyring applied the colours previously established for these characters and locations. That was inevitable given what was scripted. I give it 5 out of 6.
The story seems to be an effective first issue. As someone who has read every appearance of Atrocitus to date, the back story wasn’t new, but it did reveal his new frame of mind, and did not drag or bore. New readers can find everything they need to know to pick up right here. I give it 5 out of 6.
The characterization of Atrocitus is very well done, adding dimensions to a character who rarely shows any. The rest of his Corps isn’t as well defined, but that has a lot to do with thier rage-fueled minds. I give it 5 out of 6.
The emotional response is well done. There’s a bit of a lag in the flashback, but I’m definitely looking forward to where this title is going. The red lanterns may outgrow their outright villainy and become heroes akin to a cosmicly powered Punisher, or another influence may send them down a very different path. At this stage, the title could go either way. I give it 5 out of 6.
The flow is smooth. A lot of these first issues have the “action/flashback/new mission” structure to them, and it works well. I give it 6 out of 6.
Overall, we’ve got a solid new entry in the Lantern franchise. I give it 5 out of 6.
In total, Red Lanterns #1 receives 35 out of 42.
The New 52
Here are handy links for the reviews of all 52 new #1 issues:
- Action Comics
- All-Star Western
- Animal Man
- Aquaman
- Batgirl
- Batman
- Batman and Robin
- Batman: The Dark Knight
- Batwing
- Batwoman
- Birds of Prey
- Blackhawks
- Blue Beetle
- Captain Atom
- Catwoman
- DC Universe Presents
- Deathstroke
- Demon Knights
- Detective Comics
- The Flash
- Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E.
- The Fury of Firestorm
- Green Arrow
- Green Lantern
- Green Lantern Corps
- Green Lantern: New Guardians
- Grifter
- Hawk and Dove
- I, Vampire
- Justice League
- Justice League Dark
- Justice League International
- Legion Lost
- Legion of Super-Heroes
- Men of War
- Mister Terrific
- Nightwing
- O.M.A.C.
- Red Hood and the Outlaws
- Red Lanterns
- Resurrection Man
- The Savage Hawkman
- Static Shock
- Stormwatch
- Suicide Squad
- Superboy
- Supergirl
- Superman
- Swamp Thing
- Teen Titans
- Voodoo
- Wonder Woman