Distinguished Critique: Green Lantern: Emerald Dawn II Review
This sequel to Emerald Dawn falls short of its predecessor, the series' villain and his downfall eclipsing Hal Jordan's personal narrative
—by Nathan on March 23, 2025—
In my examination of post-Crisis on Infinite Earths narratives, I have endeavored to shine the spotlight on DC's diverse array of characters, not remaining too long in any one corner of the universe. I've moved from post-Crisis Superman, to post-Crisis Batman, to post-Crisis Flash, to post-Crisis Wonder Woman, analyzing their redesigns and the ways in which writers modernized their origins and personalities. Yes, I've lingered a little longer in the Batman mythos, discussing post-"Year One" narratives such as "Year Two," "A Lonely Place of Dying," and "Second Chances," thanks to the Dark Knight's prevalence in my collection, like a shadow sweeping over other stories. For every Green Arrow or Superman story I own, I've got about a dozen volumes of Batman. It's a lot. He's kinda like the connective tissue holding the universe together.
But, for the first time, I'll be discussing a sequel to a post-Crisis narrative that doesn't involve the Dark Knight Detective. I hope to do the same for a few other characters, maybe explore more deeply John Byrne's Superman adventures, George Perez's run on Wonder Woman, or Mike Grell's take on Green Arrow. For now, we'll begin with the next set of adventures surrounding the Green Lantern of Sector 2814, Hal Jordan, and his continual ascent into the DC spotlight.
Green Lantern: Emerald Dawn II
Writers: Keith Giffen, Gerard Jones
Pencilers: Mark Bright, Keith Giffen
Inker: Romeo Tanghal
Colorist: Anthony Tollin
Letterer: Albert DeGuzman
Issues: Green Lantern: Emerald Dawn II #1-6
Publication Dates: April 1991-September 1991
Writer Gerard Jones spent six years in prison, and I wish I could tell you it was for researching this story. It wasn't. He was released in 2022, and I say this because I feel (as I've seen in other reviews of this series and other stories Jones has written) I should distance this narrative from the individual he is. I think bad people can write good stories. I know Joss Whedon has come under fire the last few years, but even so, I absolutely adore The Avengers, and I really enjoy his Astonishing X-Men run. Frank Miller, especially in the last several years, has become quite a bit of a jerk, even though his takes on Batman and Daredevil are lauded. Even Stan Lee, by no means a man deserving to be demonized (if not more critically analyzed), often placed his best interests over those of other folks, to the frustrations of his peers; though we've come to recognize that aspect about him more clearly, we still can't deny the credit (or co-credit) he deserves for his contributions (or co-contributions) to the genre. People are complex, and we don't often easily fit into a box or definition other people would like to put us in. I can still enjoy Miller's "Born Again" or Man Without Fear without thinking he's a paragon or saint. And I can, I feel, enjoy this narrative, even if the dude who co-wrote it went to prison.
Thanks for letting me acknowledge that.
Hal Jordan knows about being put in a box. Yeah, he's lived in one a good chunk of his life, under the shadow of his father, a great test pilot who died in a crash. Hal made that box smaller by drinking, even smaller when he chose to drive one night with some friends. He found himself in a square hospital room, questioning his choices. Eventually, he found himself in another room, with a dying alien, who gifted him a glowing green ring. Hal, hesitantly, took that ring…and found a freedom he had otherwise denied himself for years. The hollow, uncertain young man discovered the courage and freedom he needed to break from his boxes and become himself…and to face up for the consequences of his actions.
Hal enters another box in this narrative, one of his own making, as he turns himself in for the drunk driving incident for a ninety-day stint in prison. He’s here voluntarily, choosing to face punishment for the crimes he committed. No more running for Hal Jordan. Yessir, he's gonna sit in his cell like a model prisoner. No messes, no mistakes, no acting outside the confines.
But then we wouldn't have much of a story, would we?
When I first read this series, about two years ago, I became quickly frustrated with Hal, and those old feelings initially resurfaced as I headed into this re-read. When Hal leaves a shimmering doppelganger of himself in the back of a paddy wagon to go stop a couple of bank robbers, I scratched my head. When Hal is constantly whisked away from prison by his new mentor, Sinestro, I reacted in a somewhat miffed fashion. Shouldn't Hal be learning his lesson? I wondered. What good is the whole "voluntarily turning himself into prison" deal if he skips out every chance he gets and returns with nobody the wiser? It felt like the creators wanted to have their green-colored cake and eat it too: place Hal in a situation where he has to face up to his previous failures while allowing him the freedom to become Green Lantern so we can fill that "superhero action" quota.
The balancing act, even on this second readthrough, isn't all that even. There are some subplots involving a couple colorful characters in the prison and the introduction of Hal's caseworker, a mop-headed man by the name of Guy Gardner, who begins a far cry different than he is in that other series Giffen drew him in. Hal forms some friendships, make some enemies, is nearly framed for murder…y'know, typical prison drama stuff. We are supposed to cheer on his desire to stay put and finish his sentence, but again, those rascally cosmic capers come between him and some potential character growth. Part of me is curious if, had the creators kept him on Earth in jail, they could have developed a narrative centered around prison hijinks and how Hal would need to navigate his sentence. He's insistent on serving his time, but this is contrasted by how often he disappears from jail. His protests would be taken a little more seriously if we could believe the writers wanted him to remain in prison or if they developed a good enough reason for him to actually leave. But Hal's actions and reasoning feel arbitrary, and since he never faces any consequences, the stakes feel arbitrary as well.
The whole prison bit, while beginning as a unique situation for a superhero to find himself in, quickly becomes set dressing for the larger story at play, principally the relationship between Hal and Sinestro. Giffen and Jones toy with thematic contrasts between the two men, particularly as we discern that the seemingly noble Sinestro isn't as a heroic as he hopes to be seen, oftentimes confusing "protection" and "love" with "control" and "tyranny." Dude's obsessed with keeping his own little section of the galaxy gifted him by the Guardians as neat and tidy as he possibly can, and when some folks begin peering through his guise and see he's more tyrannical than warranted, things begin heating up (though the fact anyone is flummoxed when a guy named "Sinistro" begins acting selfishly puts me at a loss). Giffen, Jones, and Bright play with some remarkably fun sequences involving the character, whose descent from famed Green Lantern to lunatic is far more engaging than Hal's own path. He serves as Hal's opposite, an example of what could happen if Hal doesn't get those frustrating flaws of his under control. Hal's struggle with Sinestro is intended to frame the character growth our green Green Lantern experiences, further cementing him in our minds as the best possible person to fulfill his role, despite his outward errors.
"Power" remains a theme sewn into the series, and though the word is used in each of the issue titles, it never becomes thunderously blunt (unlike, I don't know, a certain 80s crossover called "Legends"). Sinestro's use of power to control is contrasted with Hal's use of power to actually serve and protect folks. Both men possess it, but only one utilizes the abilities given him by the ring for the betterment of people other than himself, which does justify the growth Hal experienced in the first series. You never feel as if the writers are repeating the story beats and themes from the first Emerald Dawn; there's no sense that Hal is learning his lesson all over again, even if there's a sense all his "breakouts" hurt some of the notion. Again, I found myself wondering what could have happened if the plot went in a different direction–what if Hal remained in prison? What if he didn't have the ring? What if Sinestro was separated from his ring and had to serve time in a human prison? Maybe that last idea is far too wacky for a series about Hal Jordan, but I kept considering alternate ways where the story could have been just a tad stronger or at least better incorporated the prison elements.
Don't worry, fellow DC superheroes: no one's going to become "green" with envy over this series. I'm not left with as strong an impression with Emerald Dawn II as I was with Mike Grell's The Longbow Hunters or Tim Truman’s take on Hawkman (seriously, Hawkworld is an underrated gem). I know Hal, a little later in the 90s, played a massive role, and I plan on discussing that role in a future post. This is an okay re-introduction (or, I guess, post-introduction re-introduction?) to the character. If you want to read this, come for Sinestro and stay for Sinestro. He chews enough scenery to make for an interesting villain, and his downfall ultimately becomes more engaging than Hal's climb.