Review: Green Lanterns Vol. 6- A World of Our Own

Quick Summary

Pros: The main narrative delivers on action and excitement but does so in a way that is meaningful. This narrative is structured in a way that makes the finale more significant. The characters are all well-written and enjoyable to see. The artwork looks good in most places.

Cons: The volume does not address lingering plotlines from the last volume.

Overall: This volume gets plenty right and very little wrong. It tells a captivating story, structures the story well, and delivers it in a way that creates emotion and meaning. The entire adventure is also backed up by a terrific cast of characters and by some pleasant artwork. This volume is perfect for anyone looking for a jumping-on-point for the series and is great for anyone looking to continue reading about Simon and Jessica.

Story

I will admit that I was pretty apprehensive going into Green Lanterns Vol. 6: A World of Our Own. I had thoroughly enjoyed the series thus far but knew that this volume signaled a change in creative teams and a change in the comic’s overall narrative. I was worried that these changes would have immediate, negative impacts on a comic that was easily becoming one of my favorite Rebirth era offerings. I am now happy to report that I was completely wrong in my assumptions.

Green Lanterns Vol. 6: A World of Our Own, by Tim Seeley, is an excellent volume that takes the Green Lanterns on an adventure packed with everything that makes an adventure good. The narrative here deals with an intense situation that manages to be both exciting and meaningful. This narrative is structured in a satisfying way, allowing it to build in the background to deliver an amazing finale. It also continues the high-quality writing that has surrounded Simon and Jessica’s characters since this comic began. My only complaint is that the volume fails to address lingering plotlines from the previous volume, however, this won’t even be an issue for newer readers. In the end, this book is another win for this series.

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The main narrative in A World of Our Own has Jessica and Simon dealing with a variety of different threats. They have to prevent a planet from collapsing on its subterranean populace, attempt to stop an alien murderer on Earth, and resolve a tense political situation out in space. Each of these stories is exciting in its own way. The first has the Green Lanterns succeed in a situation where it feels like they are destined to fail, the second has the tone and intensity of a horror thriller, and the last contains several unexpected twists that ensure the reader is never confident about what will happen next. Each encounter is different and is also dealt with in a different way, which keeps the narrative from going stale.

Despite the fact that all of these story arcs are different, they all help contribute to the success of the book’s finale. The opening arc sets the stage for the conflict on Ungara, the second arc lets the political situation build on Ungara and gives readers peeks into this situation, and the final arc has the conflict unfold and then resolve. This structure adds significance to the endeavor and makes it feel like a victory that has been truly earned, rather than a small problem that was quickly overcome.

In addition, this narrative hits on some great moral messages. The main storyline centers around a condemnation of xenophobia and shows how it can destroy a society. This is addressed in a satisfying way and works well with problems facing the comic’s main characters.

Speaking of Jessica and Simon, they continue to steal the show in this volume. Watching them struggle with jobs, relationships, and their own sense of morality makes them appear deeper and more realistic than other comic book characters. However, they still manage to have fun and show why they are such a joy to witness.

My only complaint is that the entire First Lantern storyline, which was a big deal in the previous volumes, is not addressed at all here. It would have been nice to see a simple reference indicating that Volthoom had gone into hiding or something, but no reference like this exists. This is not a big problem, especially considering it will only impact some readers and the rest of the read is fantastic, but is something that gave me some disappointment.

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Art

The artwork in A World of Our Own is positive in most places throughout the volume. Eduardo Pansica starts things off with visuals that match the intensity of the volume’s first chapter. Then, Ronan Cliquet and Carlo Barberi begin alternating work on the rest of the collection. Both artists produce well-laid out pages with uniquely stylized visuals. Their art styles do a particularly good job in depicting Green Lantern constructs in a satisfying and creative way, which is obviously important in a book about Green Lanterns. In addition, these two artists provide work that is visually similar and, thus, helps eliminate the dramatic shifts in art style that made previous volumes a little harder to read. Overall, the artwork in this book looks nice and improves the quality of the read.

Continuity

Green Lanterns Vol. 6: A World of Our Own continues the story from Green Lanterns Vol. 5: Out of Time (Review).

The story here continues in Green Lanterns Vol. 7: Superhuman Trafficking (Review).

This volume also references other comic books, detailed below:

• Simon mentions dealing with “Elder Gods” and a Justice League meeting which may be a reference to the events of the Justice League: Legacy (Review) story arc.
• Simon brought someone back from the brink of death back in Green Lantern Vol. 5 #16, collected in Green Lantern Vol. 3: The End (Review).