Customer Reviews

Green Lantern: Emerald Knights

5 star:		(35)
4 star:		(28)
3 star:		(13)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

I saw an advance screening of this movie at Wondercon this weekend and there is legitimate reason to be excited about this. I have to admit that I was not impressed by Green Lantern: First Flight, the last DC Animated movie featuring Green Lantern, but they have really redeemed themselves in this one. This is 5 different stories (based off of classic Green Lantern comic issues) told as war stories by Hal Jordan (voiced by Nathan Fillion of Firefly fame) before they face a huge threat. Each of the stories focus on different members of the Green Lantern Corps and really show off the diversity that is so great about Green Lantern stories. The stories of the first Green Lantern and of Kiliwog both excelled in dramatizing how, despite the awesome power of the ring, courage really is a Green Lantern's greatest asset. The story about Mogo was based on a comic by Alan Moore and really drove the point home about how different Green Lanterns can be. I really hope DC continues to make similar animated movies, where they take advantage of the wealth of good stories from their huge catalogue of comics to create engaging movies.

One of the big problems I had with Green Lantern: First Flight was that the ring was usually used as some kind of green laser blaster, but in Emerald Knights there are some truly creative uses of the ring in the action scenes. Green Lanterns use the ring to cover themselves in a bombshell shape as they ram through starships, another Lantern uses the ring to form several different Chinese martial art weapons, etc. The action is fast, well animated, and with a variety of styles for the different stories. The drama and character building are also very effective. All in all, this is great animation worthy of not just renting but also owning.

Green Lantern: Emerald Knights

I got to see the entire animated film before its release date and listen to Bruce Timm discuss this great film, the best I've seen in the DC Animated universe.

And that's really saying something. I loved the latest Wonder Woman film with its emphasis on battle and the honor of the Amazons. I thrilled to the Red Hood and Batman's quest. But this film takes the best qualities of these and transforms them into a "GL Corps" that is really great.

Not to give too much away, but the film is broken down into an anthology format. Hal Jordan is explaining to his new recruit while they're hanging out on the Planet Oa, recharging their rings for a battle against Krona (which happens near the end of the film).

Some of the stories include when Kilowog (a tough drill sergeant who puts new GLs through the paces and anyone who doesn't measure up is a "Poozer") was himself a recruit and has to put up with a drill instructor who is tougher than he is! Self-sacrifice and working as a team are themes here.

Another tale that impressed me was Laira, a woman Lantern that has what Timm referred to as a mix of Star Wars' Jedi Master and Indiana Jones and martial arts. When she has to return to her home planet and face her own father in a battle that is heartbreaking to say the least.

As the two battle, these little hologram eggs accidentally open and show scenes where she would play with her father or they're having picnics together, etc. These homey scenes clash with the battle scenes and the irony and pathos of the scene just rips your eyes out. It's that amazing.

Bottom Line:

This film is much better than the earlier GL film "First Flight" and is a must-see to any Green Lantern or DC Animated film fan. Have you ever wondered about the first Green Lantern? How the constructs first appeared? The first mission of the first Green Lantern Corps? And how a Green Lantern can be an entire Planet??

Then pick this up! Its release date is June 7, 2011. It's direct to DVD!

Voice Cast & Crew:

Writers:
Alan Burnett, Geoff Johns
Stars:
Nathan Fillion, Jason Isaacs and Elisabeth Moss

You'd figure that a collection of various Green Lantern stories written by guys like Geoff Johns, Dave Gibbons, and Peter J. Tomasi would result in a great animated feature. With Green Lantern: Emerald Knights, you'd be sadly wrong. While this latest DC Universe animated feature isn't bad one bit, it still feels kind of lacking. Green Lantern Hal Jordan (voiced by Nathan Fillion) narrates a collection of tales to young recruit Arisa (Elisabeth Moss) involving various Lanterns past and present such as Sinestro(Jason Isaacs), Kilowog(Henry Rollins), Laira (Kelly Hu), and even Abin-Sur (Arnold Vosloo). The Abin-Sur tale is by far the best of the bunch, and the Mogo-starring tale (featuring the voice of the great Rowdy Roddy Piper as a nefarious villain) is pretty fun too, but the interlocking tale featuring Hal and the Lanterns in an apocalyptic showdown is quite an anti-climactic letdown. While I'm all for seeing a multi-faceted collection featuring various Lanterns, I would have loved to have seen some others like Kyle Rayner, Guy Gardner, John Stewart, or even the little squirrel guy whose name I can't remember for the life of me. Despite its flaws though, the animation is wonderful, and the voice acting isn't too bad either. All in all, if you weren't impressed by Green Lantern: First Flight; Emerald Knights won't win you over either. Still, it's worth a look at least for Green Lantern fans regardless.

I had high hopes for this one. I really enjoyed First Flight despite the differences between it and the comic. I'm a huge GL/GLC fan so this movie had me excited. The plot itself was engaging even though I had to ignore a lot of the differences between the comics and the movie. However, it just seemed to drag on and not really entice me. Laira's story was pretty cool and interesting and Abin Sur's started off cool but in the end it just seemed to pull itself in too many directions at once. The ending was very abrupt as well especially considering how much of a hype they gave the villian. The visuals were amazing however and the character designs of some of the villians were pretty awesome. Also, Batman Year One Preview was a HUGE letdown; a few voice overs of some frames from the comic with a release date at the end is not a preview lol.

First of all, I think the animation was first class. There were no shortcuts taken and the artwork was extremely well done. This movie is a series of short stories that are put together in a larger setting. Although, the stories are very diverse, the authors manage to tie them together quite well. The stories are fairly well-executed and fairly well developed. (I won't give you story by story detail since others have done that very well.) There is an occasional miss: Mogo and Abin Sur have very thin plots. But the main problem I have with this movie is that all of the good stories are quite banal. You can even predict whats going to happen beforehand. There is really no originality to them. Also, the main story is not very well developed. The background of the antagonist is only spoken and never shown. His motivation is also spoken and not visualized. It's like they really didn't care about the main story at all and its only there as a vehicle to unite the other stories. And as others have noted, the ending is rushed and predictable. I will give three stars for the excellent artwork and the presence of Nathan Fillion, one of my favorite actors.

That bump of cynicism suggests that GREEN LANTERN: EMERALD KNIGHTS, DC's latest animated original movie, was released predominantly to prep movie goers for the upcoming live action film. And yet it also services those like me who used to read the TALES OF THE GREEN LANTERN CORPS comic book and also those who long for a peek at the larger canvas promised by the Green Lantern mythos.

Our main man, Hal Jordan, is featured here but he's not the big draw or even the central character. Instead, our point-of-view character is the teenager Arisia, the Green Lantern Corps' newest recruit. EMERALD KNIGHTS is an anthology film, the backdrop of which is that the Lanterns have gathered en masse to await the impending arrival of Krona, one of the Guardians of the Universe's most ancient and deadliest foes. As they cool their heels, the Lanterns (but mostly Hal Jordan) regale an overwhelmed Arisia with stories plucked from the Green Lantern Corps' rich history.

We eavesdrop as Hal reveals to Arisia that, interestingly, the first being ever to receive the ring was not the first Green Lantern. The first Lantern, in fact, was Avra, a lowly scribe present on that day, standing apart from the legion of candidates. Avra was there only to record the momentous ceremony in which the four inaugural rings will choose their bearers, except that the fourth ring chose him. We learn that it was Avra who, in a time of peril, discovered that the bearer's iron will, given substance, could overcome frightening odds.

If you thought Kilowog was the meanest boot camp drill sergeant in the Corps, think again, you poozer. Next up is the tale of Sgt. Deegan, indeed the meanest, most ornery sumbitch whom the fresh-faced recruits, Kilowog and Tomar Re, ever had the misfortune to meet.

I'm familiar with most of these stories, so coming across Laira Omoto's chapter was gratifyingly like wading into uncharted waters. It's always neat learning about Lanterns I didn't know existed. This segment is also easily the most emotional of the lot. I didn't know who Laira was, but was willing to be impressed when Jordan remarked that, other than Sinestro, there was no other Lantern with whom he would rather go into battle. We speedily learn of Laira's back story. For her first solo mission, Laira is deployed to her home world of Jade, which had just been declared a hostile planet. And to demonstrate that family dysfunction isn't only relegated to earthlings, Laira finds herself facing off against the evil Golden Dragon... her father. Despite conflicted allegiances, Laira proceeds to drop all manner of asskickery.

And then comes my favorite chapter, which I know better than to spoil for those not already clued in. There's a reason why "Mogo doesn't... socialize." Bolphunga the Unrelenting considers himself the universe's mightiest warrior and, sho' nuff, he's bested hundreds of combatants. But the last chump he felled contends that there is someone mightier than Bolphunga: the Green Lantern and cosmic legend known as Mogo. Off goes Bolphunga, eager to challenge Mogo, not knowing he doesn't stand one tiny bit of a chance. One of the Corps' greatest strengths lies in its diversity, and nothing and no one exemplifies this as wonderfully as Mogo. Not even that GL squirrel, and not even G'nort the GL mutt.

The next segment features Abin Sur, the magenta-skinned Lantern who would eventually pass his ring on to Hal Jordan. He meets a foe who can glimpse into the future and who informs Abin Sur of several worrying events in the future. Except that Abin Sur refuses to have truck with these bits of prophecy. Because there's just no way that a fellow ring bearer who calls himself "Sinestro" could possibly go bad. Anyway, we get a peek at the yellow-uniformed Sinestro Corps. Blackest Night set-up, anyone?

And, finally, the movie delivers the payoff to the framing narrative. With storytelling done, with nerves settled some, it's time for the hoedown. Krona has finally wormed his way out of his anti-matter universe of a prison, and with more of his shadow demons in tow, and so cue the big epic space battle. And Krona looks like an utter badasss, a moon-sized titan and formidable enough that it absolutely requires all the Green Lanterns - including Mogo - to put him down. Note that this film isn't for the kids. There is some wicked violence here, starting early on when a Green Lantern gets torn limb from limb. The animation is decent. The voice casting features Nathan Fillion knocking it out the park as Hal Jordan, Arnold Vosloo as Abin Sur, Kelly Hu as Laira, Elisabeth Moss as Arisia, and Jason Isaacs ("Lucius Malfoy" to you) as Sinestro. I'm not too sure about Henry Rollins' take as Kilowog. He doesn't sound nearly growly enough. But Rowdy Roddy Piper as Bolphunga is pretty sweet. GREEN LANTERN: EMERALD KNIGHTS may not be for everyone, especially if you're not a fan of anthologies, and because a lot of these characters are pretty obscure. But it'll juice you up for the Ryan Reynolds film, and there's plenty of action and respectful nods to the GLC mythos. It's certainly got a consistent thru line, something you can't say about BATMAN: GOTHAM KNIGHT. I'd venture to say that EMERALD KNIGHTS is worth a peek just for the "Mogo Doesn't Socialize" story alone.

This DVD's bonus features: an inriguing sneak peek at BATMAN: YEAR ONE (00:10:44 minutes long); a look at the most recently released animated film ALL-STAR SUPERMAN (00:10:45 minutes); the trailer for the video game GREEN LANTERN: RISE OF THE MANHUNTERS; and a promo trailer for the DCU App (from which you can access DC's digital comics).

I really enjoyed this, but Im a hardcore, long time GL fan. I'm sure most comic fans will enjoy.

Lets talk about the movie:

PROS:
Loved the animation. Somewhere between anime and the DC animated universe

Great stories. All of the Tales from the Corps were entertaining and complete unto itself. Fun, engaging, and had some great lanterns in it.

Sinestro. Man, I love him as a GL. From First Flight and here, hes a great character. Geoff Johns has done a remarkable job in changing his character from a one-note villain to a truly complex character. Well done.

Extras. I enjoyed the Batman: Year One extended preview (although Ben Mackenzie seems like a bad choice for BATMAN, imo.)

CONS:
The framing story with Krona. Very weak. Theres no story there. No explanation of Krona, really other than a few throwaway lines. He's not really much more than a cosmic Godzilla in the film. Disappointing.

If you're a GL fan, you've read most of the stories as GLC stories. Its great to see them animated, but there's no fresh stories really here, I dont think. Lots of recycling from old GLC annuals and such. (Something extremely disappointing is the continued smacking in the face of Alan Moore. I get it. DC owns the stories, But man, do they rely on his genius in their projects. 2 of the stories here come directly from past Tales of the Corps that he created. They are great stories, but I feel bad for the guy....)

Ring constructs. This is animation- no excuse for the laziness of this. While there were some good ones, there just a lots of ring blasting more than anything else. A few swords and weapons here and there, but nothing creative- no egg beaters, or baseball gloves, you know? Something thats used as a weapon, without actually being one. The previews I've seen of the upcoming movie look like they do a lot more with that than you'll see here.

The packaging. This is some of the weakest, lamest packaging ever. No insert, terrible DVD illustration. Just awful and cheap. But you're here for the movie, not the packaging, Im guessing...

OVERALL:
As I said, if you're a GL fan, or like comics/sci fi, its a totally entertaining 80+ minutes at a good price....

I agree with other reviews that this is one of my fav DC releases. It was well voiced, well animated and each episode/chapter was entertaining and educational for those fans that don't know the back stories of some of the popular Lanterns.
Learning of the first Lantern was cool and how the rule that the rings will choose their own bearers was excellent.
Learning of Killowog's "Bootcamp" experiences was a great chapter too.
Come on...This is the GL Corps. Not a league of heroes.
My only gripe is that the BR/DVD/Digital copy had tech issues. I inserted the DVD/Digital copy combo into my 360 and DVD player and they played it fine but every time I tried to access to digital copy through the PC, it refused to install or even initiate the instalation. I followed all the instructions and explored the DVD for the additional content and every time I tried to run the exe file it just froze. No error messages/nothing. So..I have no digital copy.
I still give it 4 stars and it is a great addition to any animation fan's collection.

Other detailed reviews have been written already - I had this pre-ordered and got it today, watched it with my wife and really enjoyed it. We've both been huge fans of Geoff Johns work starting with GL Rebirth and this movie didn't disappoint. We had a couple of concerns though, first being a complete lack of continuity with First Flight (I'd rather a good movie with a mediocre predecessor at least have continuity). Also, while not required for new fans sake, we were sad to see a lack of even a mention of the Manhunters with the First Lantern story. Related to this is the continuous use of lethal force which wasn't enabled for green lanterns until post-Paralax and post-Sinestro Corp Wars (without the Manhunters backstory disabling lethal force doesnt seem required). Also, given the Guardians response to the Sinestro Corp War, I don't understand why the Guardians flee Oa here. Atrocious not being crucified in Ysmault when he proclaims Abin-Sur's destiny is odd. Lots of little details don't match up with Geoff John's writing despite certain retcons of his persisting and his being named as a writer.

Of minor complaint are the voice actors for Kilowog and Sinestro (didn't seem to fit as well as in First Flight). Also, only Abin-Sur ever recites the oath like it's important to him, the rest deadpan it like how most Americans say the Pledge of Allegiance.

Don't get me wrong - the animation is fantastic. The stories are entertaining, it's worth watching, I'm glad I own it. Now, the summer blockbuster just needs to live up to this!

Yeah, I was completely surprised at how awesome this movie was, I rented it and after watchin it, Im wishing I should have just bought it. Ive been a comic book superhero fan since I can remember, so I know a thing or two about superhero comic books. So far theres only been a handful of comic book superhero movies that have truly satisfied me, but emerald knights more than satisfied me, it overloaded my satisfaction. I dont want to reveal to much about the plot, but the movie tells different storys of various green lanterns, some familiar, and some Ive never even heard of, but there all very interesting. The movie has alot of action, so much so that I was actually hoping for some of the action scenes to stop, but hey, should that really be a negative.And I just have to add lastly that of all the storys told
**[THIS MAY BE A SPOILER FOR YOU BUT I RECOMMEND READING THE NEXT SENTENCE, BUT IF YOU REALLY HATE SPOILERS THEN DONT]**
the movie actually tells the origin of the green lantern core and the very first group of green lantern members witch is just one of my favorites storys from the movie.
**[END OF SPOILER]**
(I should also add that this movie is not really for kids, so just to be safe I recommend it to ages 13 and up but the actual rating is PG)
So if youre into green lantern or wanna get into green lantern or if youre just into comic books in general then you should really consider checking out this flick, I leave it up to you. LET THOSE WHO WORSHIP EVILS MIGHT BEWARE THE POWER OF THE GREEN LANTERNS LIGHT.