Review of Green Lantern Corps No. 3 (Hawkwoman!)

    

   Green Lantern Corps No. 3 came out on April 9 and Holy Horus. I wasn't expecting something like this to happen out of nowhere in a non-Hawkman book, but seeing how things how gone in DC Comics lately, I wasn't all that surprised. Short-term gain, long term chaos seems to be the road map for DC now. This review of GLC No. 3 will be full of spoilers, so go read the first three issues of the series before you scroll down. By the seven hells, you've been warned. 

   The issue starts off with Hawkman (Shayera Hol) and GL John Stewart battling Atrocitus and his crew when the remains of Thanagar fall part, revealing a giant Nth metal sphere. Atrocitus is blaming the Green Lanterns for what happened to the Red Lanterns, Hawkwoman is blaming the Red Lanterns for the destruction of Thanagar and poor John Stewart is trying to calm everyone down and failing badly. 

   Suddenly, the Nth sphere starts to move and a giant Hawk creature made entirely of Nth metal emerges. According to Hawkwoman, it is Horus, the Hawk god of the Thanagarians. Atrocitus orders his ship to kill the Hawk creature, but it only catches its attention. With just a glance, Horus rips the Red Lanterns' ship apart and destroys it. The Green Lanterns save a few from the destruction but many are killed. 

   Horus is preparing to kill the rest when Shayera is able to strike a blow and knock Horus back. She convinces him that they are not responsible for the destruction of Thangar or awakening it from its slumber. Horus promises that he will find a new place for the Thanagarians to start anew. He flies off into space and tells Hawkwoman that he will summon her in a dream when he finds them a home. 

   The issue ends with Shayera and John sharing a meal, talking as friends, not lovers. Shayera says she must go and tell her fellow Thanagarians about Horus and the promise of a new home. So it appears that Hawkwoman's run in this series is finished. 

   With all that has happened to Thanagar over the last decade, it is difficult to make sense of what this all brought or will bring but there three main issues I want to focus on. Hawkwoman's relationship with John Stewart, her powers, and the status of Thanagar. 

   Hawkwoman was freaking awesome in this story. She is extremely powerful, showcased by how she knocked the crap out of Atrocitus. The Hawks have definitely been powered up in the last couple of decades. Their strength level seems to be almost at the level of Aquaman. While Hawkman appears to be more reserved lately, Hawkwoman has no such reservations. She is going to knock her enemies' heads off first chance she gets. 

   I enjoyed seeing how Hawkwoman used her wings. In Robert Venditti's Hawkman, Hawkman's wings retracted in and out of his harness (not his back). When he dove into a tunnel, the wings got smaller, and then expanded immediately when he needed them. The same thing happened with Hawkwoman's wings. They were completely retracted when she didn't need them, like when she was snuggled up in a closet with John while the enemy walked by, but then they were immediately spread out when a fight started. 

   There has been a debate among Hawkfans over the years. Some like the harness wings, and some like the organic wings that grow out of the back. I think DC writers have finally come to the realization that the wings growing out of the harness is the best way to go. I agree. I hope they keep it. 

   There were also two scenes that proved just how powerful and useful the Nth metal mace is. In one scene, Atrocitus attacks both John and Shayera at the same time. John's construct is completely shattered, while Shayera's mace stays intact. We need more scenes to show just how strong the Nth metal is. 

   Every since they announced a few months ago that Shayera and John would be reuniting in this series, there has been a lot of discussions about whether DC should bring back this relationship. While it was one of the central storylines of the Justice League animation series, it has never really been considered as cannon. The future of the their relationship and their son called Warhawk was covered in a few issues in Batman Beyond Unlimited (No. 4-5, 2012) but that was the last we heard of it to my knowledge. Why bring it back? Venditti just established Carter Hall and Shayera's reunion in Hawkman Vol. V (2018-2021), so why tear that apart? 

   It all appears to have just been a nostalgic tease. There were hints, a familiarity between the two, and an expressionless close gaze into each other's eyes, but that was it. Carter was never mentioned once during the story, but we never really found out just what went on with these two, either. All for the better, in my opinion. Get Carter and Shayera back together ASAP. 

From Green Lantern Corps No. 2

   DC....DC.....DC, DC, DC. What the heck are you doing to Thanagar? In the last ten years alone, we've had:
*The total destruction of Thanagar (Death of Hawkman, 2017-2018)
*Thanagar Prime was the planet the Thanagarians fled to after the destruction in Death of Hawkman (Justice League No. 14-16, 2019) 
*Brian Bendis' Thanagar and the United Planets thing (2018-2022). Completely ignored Shayera Hol and Venditti's run. 
*Hawkgirl's Hawkworld (2023-2024). I still don't know what that was. Will probably never be brought up again. 
*The destruction of Thanagar in Green Lantern Civil Corps Special (December 2024). 

   I'm sure I'm forgetting something but you get the idea. It is all over the place. 

   Let's imagine for a moment that you are the chief editor of DC Comics. Everything goes through you. You're wanting to be an amazing and griping DC Universe that fans will be familiar with. A universe that covers most of your mainstream stories and when Thanagar appears in a story, you immediately know which version, because there is only one. Why would you allow some many different versions of Thanagar and Nth metal to be flying around in the universe your are trying to build? Maybe you are not trying to build anything? Maybe you are just trying to jangle shiny keys at us comic-buying monkeys, just long enough for us to buy the comic and then start shaking a completely different set of keys. 

   There needs to be a central editing desk at DC. If there is, then my apologies, but you ain't doing your job. Batman is from Gotham. Superman is from Krypton, destroyed long ago. Wonder Woman is from Themyscira. Hawkman and Hawkwoman are from Thanagar; destroyed one day, appears suddenly, destroyed again. It reminds me of the Game of Thrones. All those kings and houses, no one really in charge, mass confusion, constant upheaval, and on and on. Can we just decide on one Thanagar and run with that for the next ten years. Build your universe. Establish the history of the characters and their homes. 

   What did they say in that movie? "If you build it, they will come." Will we see that Horus creature again? If things keep going the way they are, probably not. 

   The two-issues was fun to read and I enjoyed the scenes with Hawkwoman. She is definitely an underused character in the DCU so I hope they bring her back to a more prominent role soon. Writers Jeremy Adams and Morgan Hampton seem to know what makes her work so kudos to them. Fernando Pasarin has become one of my favorite artists since the Hawkman series. I hope he gets to draw the Hawks more. He does an awesome job with them. The colors were awesome for the most part. Not sure why Shayera picked up the wrong hair dye at the store. Maybe it was changed because of all the Red Lanterns running around. I hope she gets her red hair back next time. 

   It was nice to see Hawkwoman in all her badass glory for a couple of issues. I breathe a sigh of relief that they didn't shove her back with John. But as far as Hawkwoman, Hawkman, and Hawkgirl are concerned, we're still waiting for a editor with a long-term plan, not a set of flashy keys. Here's hoping for the best! 

Rating: 3/5 
Green Lantern Corps No. 3 ( 
Script: Morgan Hampton, Jeremy Adams 
Pencils: Fernando Pasarin 
Inks: Oclair Albert, Jason Paz 
Colors: Arif Prianto, Rain Beredo 
Letters: Dave Sharpe 
Cover: Fernando Pasarin, Oclair Albert, Arif Prianto
Editing: Jillian Grant, Kathleen Wisenski, Paul Kaminski