Comic Corner: Fear and loathing in space

‘Green Lantern: The Sinestro Corps War’ review

By Brittney MacDonald, Senior Columnist

5/5

Traditional meets contemporary in Green Lantern: The Sinestro Corps War, written by Geoff Johns and Dave Gibbons. The tried and true villain-fights-hero plot is peppered with more modern notions of character development and emotional conflict as former allies become foes and the fate of the galaxy is at stake.

Sinestro, the once exemplary member of the Green Lantern Corps, was banished for harnessing the power of fear and now seeks to destroy his former brethren and take over the galaxy. And he’s amassed an army of familiar villains to do it. With nightmare-worthy characters like Parallax, Karu-Sil, and Cyborg Superman, the Sinestro Corps (otherwise known as the Yellow Lanterns) certainly seem up to the challenge of defeating the apparently endless supply of Green Lantern Corps members, including Guy Gardner, Kyle Rayner, and of course Hal Jordan.

My favourite part of this graphic novel is the art, which is detailed and dark without being overly traditional and stiff. Big names such as Ivan Reis, Patrick Gleason, and Ethan Van Sciver blend their new school and old school styles to create a unique aesthetic that is both recognizably “comic book,” but also dynamic in its use of colour and colour transition.

Good for both hardcore comic fans and newcomers alike, Green Lantern: The Sinestro Corps War is certainly a book I’d recommend to anyone interested in taking up a quick two-volume series. Though the expansive Green Lantern universe can seem daunting, this graphic novel provides enough backstory to make sense, and compartmentalizes enough to not be overwhelming.