Back To the Well...Green Lantern Corps #207

I just can't stop reading these old GL's. It...it's just so satisfying in a weird sort of way. And for some reason, Green Lantern Corps #207 is one of my very favorite books. We have Steve Englehart as the writer, and Joe Staton as the artist, and a cover with Guy Gardner beating the crap out of the ENTIRE Corps...or what's left of it. It warms the evil cockles of my cold black heart.

Heh.

This of course, is back in the day, when Hal and a small remnant of the Corps is exiled on Earth, after the supposed execution of Sinestro on Oa. We have Hal of course, and Arisia, who is no longer jailbait, John Stewart and Katma Tui, who are busy making goo goo eyes at each other, Kilowog, Salaak and Ch'p. A motley crew indeed. They are all hanging out at what appears to be a rather swanky ski lodge in the mountains, and the press keeps showing up and interviewing them, including that reporter chick who had the hots for John...and who can blame her?

There is all KINDS of drama going on. Ch'p is still getting over the death of his wife, which is actually a serious matter, but since he's just so darned cartoony and cute, not to mention the fact that he wears a bow-tie, nobody really takes the poor little fellow seriously. Salaak is brooding over the fact that he actually...LIKES Ch'p...and he's not used to that sort of thing. Hal and Arisia are busy checking out each others tonsils at every opportunity, since Arisia artificially aged herself so that she could jump Hal. Hal had a few reservations at first (VERY few) but has managed to get over it. Meanwhile, Katma and John are both a little bit squicked out by the spectacle that Hal and Arisia are making of themselves.

And Kilowog? Well, he's just lonely.

And then...Guy Gardner shows up. He is NOT made particularly welcome. They all thought that he was off on Malta, learning Green Lanterny stuff from Appa Ali Apsa. Turns out that he gave the old fellow the slip, not to mention the Honor Guard consisting of Apros and K'ryssma, and hightailed it back to Earth...so that he can take over, naturally. Oh Guy. You really are nuttier than a fruitcake at this stage in your life, but God help me, I find that endearing, because he's just so...over the top with it all the time.

Naturally, they all tell him to...in Arisia's words, "...get stuffed!". So he entraps them all in a giant glowing construction consisting of bars and ladders and more bars. Being a trained gymnast, it's all easy as pie for Guy to maneuver in, but the rest of them are having a bit more difficulty. There really is no reason for him to be doing this of course...I think he's just enjoying bedeviling the rest of them. Even as he's making fools out of them, Hal can't help but remark that he does have some remarkable will power. Eventually they all combine their powers and get out, but Guy has decided to skedaddle in the meantime. Hal has the best knowledge of Guy's hangouts, since he's really the only one who really knows him at this point, and they all take off looking for him.

In the meantime, a msyterious cloaked figure makes her way towards the groovy GL ski lodge. Who can this myterious figure BE? Well, blow me down, but it is none other than Kari Limbo! Guy's former fiancee who was all set to marry Hal! She and Hal were jumping each other's bones while Guy was presumed dead and blown up in the Phantom Zone, not to mention being tortured by Sinestro, just for the hell of it. Hal actually remembers her name! Arisia is all jealous. Kari has come looking for Guy because she's had one of her hokey visions. There is a lot of nice exposition, and Arisia is still jealous. Then Kari has yet another of her spells and starts moaning about bald men.

Bald men? Well, it turns out that Appa Ali Apsa has figured out where Guy ran off to, and has shown up along with Apros and K'ryssma...and he's not very happy that Guy has gone AWOL. Naturally, Guy fights back, but Apros has this mind-whammy thing going on, and K'ryssma is pretty tough too, and it's not looking too good for my favorite redhead, when lo and behold, the cavalry arrives, in the form of Hal and Arisia and everyone else.

Appa is happy to see Hal of course, but rather stunned when it turns out that Hal has come to...plead Guy's case! Kilowog is just as stunned by this shocking turn of events as Appa, but Arisia keeps telling him to hush. It turns out that Kari Limbo has convinced them all that Guy NEEDS his freedom, and that he'll do better on Earth, than moping around on Maltus. Appa isn't really all that convinced, but he agrees to let Hal and his buddies be responsible for Guy, so essentially is he jsut passing the buck, and who can blame him? Kilowog is fit to be tied, and stomps off in a huff. Guy is completely ungrateful for his reprieve, and tells Hal to suck on it.

Oh, and a Russian in a Hawaiin shirt shows up and offers to take Kilowog for a ride.

Exactly WHY do I like this book so much? Possibly because it is just fun seeing all of the great character development going on. There really isn't that much in the way of fighting going on, you have Guy fooling around with the Corps, but that is more his weird way of saying hello than anything, and you have Apros and K'ryssma capturing Guy...the rest of it, is all of the various Lanterns relating to one another...and I enjoy the heck out of that. Balls-to-the-Wall action can be fun for a while, but I really do enjoy the quieter moments as much if not more so.

Plus it has Guy behaving like...well, like a bratty little kid. Hal is pretending to be all outraged and mature, but I can't help but see him actually enjoying himself as well. HE gets to be the hero, and be all magnanimous towards Guy, not to mention strutting a little bit in front of Arisia and Kari Limbo.

Good good storytelling.