Hero Realm!

Geoff Johns has been planning this story since he began writing Green Lantern, and it definitely shows. Geoff has a very fine hold the characters, being so familiar with them after so long, but he also deftly handles other characters in the DCU who are no doubt going to be deeply affected by the battle looming. Geoff is particularly good with Barry Allen, the newly resurrected Flash, who, after being dead since 1985, is used as a proxy for the reader to learn about the recent upheavals in the DCU.

Handling art is Ivan Reis, who is just unabashedly talented beyond in compare. In just one two-page spread, he skillfully draws around 50 dead super-heroes and in another, a score of undead lanterns, and he does them both with trademark panache and style. His figures are very dynamic and smooth, making them look real and flexible, not just ink on paper.

Marvel & DC Comic Previews	BLACKEST NIGHT #1	Marvel & DC Comic Previews
	Blackest Night #1 Written by Geoff Johns Penciled by Ivan Reis Review by Ryan Stevens Courtesy of HeroRealm.com Ever since the conclusion of the Sinestro Corps War in 2007, comic fans have been eagerly anticipating the Blackest Night, which has been built up by Green Lantern writer Geoff Johns since the Green Lantern: Rebirth miniseries several years ago, and promises to thrill and dazzle the reader the way only a good summer crossover can. And as the starting gun goes off, things are looking pretty good for Blackest Night.
	The basic thrust of this series is that some malevolent force is possessing the bodies of DC’s most notable deceased heroes and villains with the power of a “Black Lantern ring”, which has as-yet undetermined abilities, besides the, you know, resurrection. The main protagonists of this series are the Green Lanterns of Earth, and if you’re unfamiliar with them, don’t worry, this issue sets them up extremely well.. In fact, this first issue is almost entirely set-up, but that’s quite okay. When you see just who is rising from the dead, the set-up is fairly essential. And while the first half is indeed mostly set-up, the second half is where things get cooking. Graves are raided, aliens eat each other, heroes die, and it hits the fan really, really, badly.
	Geoff Johns has been planning this story since he began writing Green Lantern, and it definitely shows. Geoff has a very fine hold the characters, being so familiar with them after so long, but he also deftly handles other characters in the DCU who are no doubt going to be deeply affected by the battle looming. Geoff is particularly good with Barry Allen, the newly resurrected Flash, who, after being dead since 1985, is used as a proxy for the reader to learn about the recent upheavals in the DCU. Handling art is Ivan Reis, who is just unabashedly talented beyond in compare. In just one two-page spread, he skillfully draws around 50 dead super-heroes and in another, a score of undead lanterns, and he does them both with trademark panache and style. His figures are very dynamic and smooth, making them look real and flexible, not just ink on paper.
	The only real flaws with this issue is the focus on only Green and Black Lanterns, as regular GL readers know, there are 6 other color corps running around the universe, each driven by their own respective emotion (where Green uses willpower and Black uses, um, death), There is one page where the other corps are briefly glimpsed, and being as there are 7 more issues, it’s likely they will appear soon, but this was just something I had hoped to see more of. Despite this, and being mostly set up, Blackest Night is one of the best starting issues for a mini-series, let alone a crossover, that I’ve read in along time. 9 black rings out of 10. Comment on this review HERE!