John Stewart is a Green Lantern almost as old as Hal Jordan. Yet, he hasn’t really gotten his due diligence how other Lanterns do, despite him being arguably one of the most popular because of the Justice League cartoon. As a kid, when I thought of ANY Green Lantern, he was the first one that came to mind. He was THE Green Lantern to me. However, I haven’t felt that in the comics outside his classic stories. His recent appearances always felt more surface-level. They always left me wanting more. And not in a good way.
In comes Green Lantern: War Journal by Phillip Kennedy Johnson, Montos, and Adriano Lucas. It’s no hyperbole that this was a much-needed comic for John Stewart, but I’ll go even further and say this is the best showcase of the character in decades. It’s a lesson on how simple it can be to show a character’s unique qualities while challenging him effectively in multiple ways. By allowing your titular character to do amazing things against amazing threats that properly match them. A story showcasing a battle on two fronts: a multiversal invasion and a superhero, who can build anything, feeling powerless with his mother battling dementia.
This follows on the heels of The Green Lantern Corps having some serious political issues. With the Corps now taken over by the United Planets, the Guardians no longer in charge, and Sector 2418 being quarantined off…a lot has happened. This has made every Green Lantern stationed out of Earth scatter, as not only are they not allowed to be operating out of Earth, they’re not even allowed to have a power ring. Thankfully, John doesn’t have one so he thinks he can take it slow, and take care of his mom. That’s how this comic starts, with John grounded, wanting to slow down, but deep down he knows he wants to soar the skies as a Green Lantern again.
As any superhero comic goes though, of course, it doesn’t stay as simple as that as John is flung into a battle that spans realities. Between the United Planets on his case about “having” a power ring, even though he doesn’t, and the infection of the Radiant Dead spreading and invading our own Earth Prime, John must stop the bleeding as he’s accompanied by a new, alternate Earth Green Lantern named Shepherd, who was enlisted by his Earth’s John Stewart to help. Dubbed the Green Knight, he’s a wildly skilled Green Lantern with a knight motif. Great new addition, by the way.
I think the most impressive thing this comic does is carefully and explicitly show the difference between the surface-level understanding of John Stewart versus who he actually is. Often, John is shown to be a typical military man, even down to the constructs he uses primarily being guns. That can be cool in some aspects, but John is a momma’s boy first and foremost, an architect second and then he’s a vet. He goes to great lengths to ensure his mom’s safety and to protect her. Going so far as to even create a living, breathing construct of his sister powered by his own willpower to help with his mom’s dementia.
The reason his constructs stand as being the most durable of the Lanterns is because he builds them with structure in mind. He is an incredibly smart architect, an underrated builder in comics. He’s capable of understanding how things work just by taking a peek at the inside. At its core, this comic is a deep love letter to John Stewart. It understands him so well. As a superhero, as a son, as a brother, and as a man. Constantly this comic pushes the boundaries of what a Green Lantern can do, in turn, pushing the boundaries of what John Stewart can do.
One of the most powerful lines I’ve personally read in a comic in the last year was that John can do anything. Every single time it pops up in the series I got goosebumps, and every time the comic has a time where it culminates into making that line mean something narratively, it hits so damn hard and makes me emotional every time. This series reminds me of Grant Morrison’s Action Comics where Superman is constantly defying the odds. Every single time Morrison’s Superman is faced with something that seems impossible, he denies the very existence of the impossible.
Green Lantern: War Journal does a very similar thing, taking the concept of Green Lanterns building constructs and taking it far. Pushing the idea of what the Green Lanterns can do. Truly, this series reminds me of some of my favorite character-focused series, especially those from the likes of Ed Brubaker, Grant Morrison, Dwayne McDuffie, and others. It’s motivational, it’s inspiring, it’s everything a superhero comic SHOULD be. The story is tight and well executed, the characters used are written extremely well, and it fits into the DC Universe by respecting what came before while building on it exceptionally. It does all of that while still feeling like an evergreen DC comic. It’s a book I feel like I can give to just about anyone and they’d be fine.
Now, the art. The. Art. God, it is so beautiful. Montos is an incredible penciller and with Adriano Lucas on colors, the art comes together perfectly. I’m so elated this team was able to stay on this book together and see it through to the end, it’s admirable, especially in a day where so many series see backup artists appear within as little as 4 issues. To be clear, no shade on those backup artists, they’re great, but often series are always envisioned with the original creative team in mind, so when a new artist joins, it can seem jarring, even if the art is great. Seeing a series go a full year with monthly releases having the same artist in every issue…it’s so rare in this day and age, it brings tears to my eyes. In a perfect world, this is what we’d get from every comic, at least those that are mini-series and maxi-series. I know it’s hard to reach those deadlines so I’m not too disappointed by it if it does happen, but I’d much prefer if the schedules were made to ensure the creative team that starts a series can see it through, and that’s what happened here it seems. It helps the book feel prestigious and special, more than it originally may have felt. It makes this series only being 12 issues instead of an ongoing hurt a little less.
At the end of the day, I don’t really have too much to say about this comic’s story, I’d rather not say too much actually. I want you to go out and read it. Experience this story now that it’s completed. It’s a 12-issue science-fiction saga that dips its toes slightly into fantasy, all while being a proper love letter to one of DC’s best superheroes. Every issue astonished me and continued to reinvent and reinforce why I love John Stewart as a character. I mean this from the bottom of my heart: THIS is how you treat a character with love. A staple Justice League member, and a core of “the Four Corpsmen.” A character who deserved this and so much more. This is everything I wanted from a John Stewart comic, and it safely cements itself as one of the best Green Lantern comics, up there with Grant Morrison and Liam Sharp’s The Green Lantern Saga and N.K. Jemisin and Jamal Campbell’s Far Sector. These are the benchmarks.
Green Lantern: War Journal #12 was released the week of me writing this review, and truthfully I had no idea how I would tackle this review. I didn’t want to say too much about the story because while what happens is incredibly enjoyable, I think what this comic does for John is so much more important to talk about. It’s an excellent series and I can say that a million times if I have to. The trade paperback for Volume 1 released on August 6th, 2024, and Volume 2 releases on January 21st…which is quite a bit away so I’d honestly suggest buying all the issues, or Vol 1 and the second half in issues, whatever, just get it however you can. Buy it. Read it. And enjoy this absolute masterpiece of a Green Lantern comic.
“Your sense of duty is bigger than me John. It always was. It HAS to be” – Shirley Stewart.