Green Lantern #76-80

Green Lantern #76-80

Originally released in 1970

Written by Dennis O'Neil

Art by Neal Adams

There was a point in DC's history where Green Lantern (Hal Jordan) and Green Arrow (Oliver Queen) traveled the country, handling various social issues.  I haven't read that, so I thought I'd give it a shot. Even from the start, this definitely feels angrier than a lot of DC's comics of the era, and it wears its heart on its sleeve when it comes to a hatred of bigotry and the wealthy.

When Hal saves someone who was attacked, he's met with people jeering him and throwing things at him, and Green Arrow is sorely tempted to join in. The man who was attacked is Jubal Slade, a corrupt landlord who leaves people living in a run-down apartment building and has decided that it's more profitable to tear the building down and turn it into a parking lot.  It feels like something out of the first few Superman comics, where you can tell the people behind the series had an axe to grind.

Oliver can get a little preachy, something that Hal calls him out on at one point, but Hal is going through an extended period of self-doubt.  The Green Lantern oath contains the phrase "no evil shall escape my sight", but it's clear to him that a lot of evil has escaped his sight as of late, though it's of the more ordinary variety rather than would-be world conquerors.

As a result of this, and after getting Jubal to confess to hiring someone to kill Green Arrow so he can be arrested even though his actions as a landlord aren't illegal, Hal agrees to go on a road trip across America.  The Guardians of the Universe object to this, though Oliver convinces them that by living their immortal lives sheltered from the rest of the universe, they aren't living.

In a plot twist that I didn't expect, one of the Guardians of the Universe takes on a human form and agrees to come with them on their road trip.  By seeing the universe from a different perspective, maybe they can do better at actually guarding it.

The series focuses on more mundane threats, which would make the Green Lantern Ring (the most powerful weapon in the universe) seem like overkill.  Since Hal isn't on active duty, the Guardians deactivated his ring's automatic defenses, presumably to add tension to the story.

Throughout these issues, Oliver seems quick to compare everyone who he doesn't like to Nazis.  It seems a bit much, but even in the second issue or so, the head of a mining company literally hired ex-Nazis as his bodyguards. (I guess in 1970, it was only 25 years after the end of World War 2, so it was still plausible for that to be the case)

The messages of the series aren't subtle, though considering that many of these problems still exist today, a lack of subtlety is likely required. The treatment of Native Americans can be a little awkward at times, but they're treated with respect and it's clear that Hal feels a sense of shame for the actions of his ancestors towards their people.

Black Canary briefly appears, though her pre-Crisis history is considerably more convoluted than it is nowadays. (The series briefly goes over it)

She's hypnotized by a bigot in her first issue and largely sits out her second, while the third has her on a different planet compared to Hal and Oliver.  I'm hoping she plays a bigger role going forward, as she doesn't get much to do in her first few appearances here.

Hal and Oliver butt heads on a regular basis.  Oliver is pretty outspoken about his political views, and while Hal does see his perspective (and comes to view the world as morally grayer than he realized), they differ heavily on methods; Hal's more focused on following the law, while Ollie is focused on doing what's morally right regardless of the law.

The series takes place in real-time, with a month passing between each issue - by the time of issue 80, Hal and Ollie comment that they've been on the road for five months.  It's here that their Guardian ally departs; when Hal's injured in an explosion and fire breaks out on a boat carrying chemicals, the Guardian is forced to choose whether to deal with the chemicals but leave Hal to die or help Hal but leave the chemicals to be hastily disposed of in a way that damages the environment.

By choosing to help Hal, the other Guardians believe that their earthbound counterpart has failed in his duty and he is placed on trial.  The series goes into a more science fiction route here, as the trio is taken to another world where the judges have been replaced by a man who designed their robots and went insane.

There is still some commentary here, as Hal realizes that following the law doesn't necessarily mean listening to someone just because of their title, though it doesn't work as well here because the supposed judge in question is a madman who imprisoned the real judges and is claiming to be the sole judge.

Their Guardian ally stays behind to face the judgement of his own people as Hal and Ollie return to Earth.  This definitely has a different tone compared to Green Lantern stories from a few years prior - rather than being unable to defeat an opponent because they're inexplicably shielded in yellow, Hal finds that he can't use his Green Lantern Ring to defeat someone because they're shielded by the law. (Though the weakness to yellow does come up once) As for Ollie, I'm not sure if his far left crusader personality originated here or if it was part of the character beforehand, but it does help to set him apart from other DC heroes of the era.