Customer Reviews

Green Lantern: Legacy - The Last Will & Testament of Hal Jordan

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

In Legacy: The Last Will and Testament of Hal Jordan, writer Joe Kelly and Artists Brent Anderson and Bill Sienkiewicz try to add a fitting coda to the career of Hal Jordan, the disgraced (and deceased) former Green Lantern. Prior to his death, Jordan went berserk with grief (The City he called home was destroyed by an insane alien baddie), slaughtered the entire Green Lantern Corps., and usurped their power in an attempt to undo the destruction of Coast City. He was eventually given a chance to redeem himself; He died saving the Earth, and has since been reborn as the newest incarnation of the wrath of God known as The Spectre. Whew!

The book centers around former Jordan sidekick/Green Lantern wannabe/offensive racial stereotype Tom "Pieface" Kalmaku. (Can you believe there was actually a time when it was OK to call an Eskimo "Pieface"? Jeez!) He is wallowing in self-pity over the loss of his friend Hal; He's a destitute alcoholic, he's just lost his job, his Wife, his Kids......and now, out of nowhere, he's handed a child that is allegedly Jordan's, and a note from Hal reading "Tom- Fix it. Hal" Who is this kid? What does the note mean? What can one man do in a world of super-powered God-like beings? Tom is about to find out....

The art is nice, the book is attractively designed, and the reappearance of my favorite ever Green Lantern (I won't spoil the surprise, poozer!) is much appreciated and very unexpected. Writer Joe Kelly even manages to end the book on a note of triumph, with a hint of a bright future for The Corps. My only problem is that if I weren't aware of the twisty Green Lantern continuity, I'd have been lost. The book just doesn't seem new-reader friendly. Who is The Spectre, and what does he have to do with Hal Jordan? Who is the big yellow guy that blew up Coast City? What did Hal hope to accomplish by killing off The Corps. and The Guardians? I knew the answers to these quetions, but a new reader wouldn't.

Longtime fans should be satisfied, though.

The point of writing a review for a book is helping out other folks who might be potential readers of a particular book. The reviews help them decide if the book is worth their time or money. That said, an imperative criteria for writing a book is FULLY READING THE BOOK. It's astounding the number of reviewers of this book who didn't even take the time to finish reading the story, instead they went on to invest their time in writing a disparaging review.

The story picks up some time after Hal Jordan's death and is told from the POV of his ill-named sidekick "Pieface" aka Tom Kalmaku. Tom had been one of Hal's biggest supporters as well as one of his closest friends but the legacy that Hal left under his wake has destroyed Tom's faith and respect in Hal and has brought about self-loathing for even trusting Hal in the first place. He spends most of his days drunk and getting into fights at bars over insulting Green Lantern.

One day, a stranger shows up with a child (who bears a striking resemblance to hal Jordan) who had been entrusted to Tom. There are no explanations as to who the mother might be. There is only a note from Hal saying, "fix it". From then on Tom embarks on a journey with the young boy, from Carol's home all the way to the JLA Watchtower and to OA. On the way, we get brief glimpses into the past and an intimate look at the relationship between Hal and Tom. But following the child, is also a creature who was created from the spirits of the green lanterns that Hal had killed during his rampant as Parallax.

It's should be pretty obvious from the reviews that the boy is not Hal's son. I'll leave it at that and not spoil the story any further. The story, in my opinion is very well written and captures the dismal feeling that Hal's death has imparted on those who knew him best, some feel sorrow while others feel betrayed and fear. We see the JLA trying to forcefully remove the ring from the boy (even going head to head with him) and we also see the the other disenchanted surviving members of the Green Lantern Corps and the hate they bear for all things Hal Jordan. Contrary to some of the reviews, the writer, Joe Kelly does not pick apart the tradition and the legacy of the character. He obviously respects the character and respects the continuity enough to keep it intact. While doing that, he manages to add a whole new event to the green lantern mythos.

The art is provided by Brent Anderson and Bill Sienkiewicz, both very well known and respected for their work. The art here is simple and the linework is sometimes messy but it suits the story. It sort of resembles the work of Neal Adams. Some of the splas pages are very well done...check out the page where Hal goes on the rampage as Parallax and you'll see what I am saying. All in all, this is a very good read and is highly recommended.

Okay, first of all, disregard that review below about Hal's illegitimate child. Clearly the writer didn't get past the first couple pages. Why write a review for something you didn't bother to read?

I enjoyed reading this as it answers the question about what is Hal Jordan's legacy, as viewed through the eyes of his old sidekick Tom "Pieface" Kalmaku. It skirts the issue of whether one's actions can be judged by mistakes or heroics. Tom is guided along a journey in which he visits many of the people and groups that Hal wronged. While on this journey, Tom and his companion are hounded by a mysterious entity that seeks to destroy them. So overall, I enjoyed reading this but it certainly wasn't what I was expecting. Brent Anderson's pencils deserve special mention, for at times they look like Neal Adams, and that's always a good thing.

Legacy is a very touching and well written book, but there are some continuity errors. this is supposed to happen after Final Night. but if i remember correctly, Hal healed John Stewart's paralysis, but in the book, it still has him in a wheelchair

Basic Storyline: After going insane and killing other green Lanterns, Hal Jordans good Friend "Pieface" goes into a deep depression and angery state of mind. Outraged at what Hal had done and "betrayed" him after years of friendship, he recieves a letter from a lawyer written by Hal telling him to "Fix It". Along with Hals "son" Marty and a Power Ring Pieface goes accross the galaxy toi planets efected by Hals Betrayal to try to help out but is not greeted with open arms. Being followed by the hate-filled ghost of Kilowog, Pieface learns that Marty is just a characteristic of the power ring, imbedded by Hal, trying to right what it did wrong before. Pieface and the ring use all the will power possible to create a new Oa to replace the one destroyed. In the center of the main City is a statue comemorating Hal (in opposition to those disgracing him as a murderer) the ring is given to the ghost of Kilowog to end his hatred and pieface is sent back to Earth to fix is broken family life.
I thought this was touching most of all. It not only shows the mental workings of a hero but also a sidekick who was greatly involved in Hals life. And how even after his "death" A part of Hal want to fix what was done in a blind rage. Action could have been better, but still a good read.

What about Tom? That's a question many people were asking after Hal Jordan went insane due to Parallax. Here we find out what former sidekick/best friend Tom Kalmaku has been up to and his feelings for Hal. Needless to say Tom's life has gone downhill and he blames Hal. Then wackiness ensues. It was weird, confusing, and often unremarkable. I like the idea here but it was a little too metaphysical. The art by Brent Anderson was decent but there was no change in style or art for the flashbacks it was hard to tell they were taking place at times. This basically is a solid idea without a payoff. Skip it.

Perhaps one of the most splendidly written graphic novels of a few years ago, this book tells the story of the rise and fall of a person and how one person and their will can make a difference. It is about innocence and honor staring down into the shadows of one's past and reconciling that which is true by that which is ideal. This story gets more and more emotionally driven until its end.

This is one of those stories that really shines a light on people and hope. 5 stars.

I didn't particualrly care for this book. I read it once when it came out, and didn't like it. But to be fair, i read it again recently, just to be sure, and i still didn't like it.

More or less, this story is a one-off "alternate timeline" story. Don't get me wrong. I enjoy reading the "what if" stories. It's fun to read a story when the author presents it as "forget everything you know..wouldn't it be cool if THIS happened instead?" However, this is not one of those stories. This takes the post-Hal Jordan world, and makes up a convoluted story that doesn't follow continuity. It changes the way some things occured (such as John Stewart's healing, and the return of the Corps to Oa.) Unfortunately, since it is not presented as an "elseworlds" story, one can get a little lost in what follows GL continuity, and what does not.

In addition, i found the story kind of boring. I've been a GL fan for many years. Nevertheless, i found this story to be a bit confusing at times. When it was finally wrapped up and explained, i sort of of felt like saying, "Yeah, so what?" I do love character studies in comics, but i thought this one was a little too esoteric for me. Maybe it's also because i enjoy more of the science fiction aspect of GL, and this one seemed to be much more steeped in magic, mysticism, and spirituality.

Heck, GL wasn't even really IN the story. It was more Tom's memories, and manifestations of the ring, and so forth. It felt more like walking through a dream world, than reading an adventure of GL.

The art was great. I do give the artist props.

But the story?.....ehhhh. Maybe i'm not explaining myself well enough, but i basically didn't feel like i was reading a Green Lantern story.

Not a bad read, and the artwork of Brent Anderson is great. The story to me just seemed to far off of the Green Lantern that I knew. Yet some of it is still very real! The action and creative script from writer Joe Kelly is fairly enjoyable. I suppose at this point I have to accept the fact that these graphic novels are sort of side stories that help give the character new ground to cover. I enjoyed the family insight with this particular story. The artwork again is great; Brent is able to capture so many things here, whether it is human facial features or the gritty nighttime street scenes. The whole idea of Hal having a son was a nice touch. This is the first graphic novel I have read of the Green Lantern, and the product was delivered on time by Amazon and in mint condition.

If you are expecting a rundown on Hal Jordan. This is not that story.
It is well written and I was not disapointed in buying this story.