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by Dave Scrimgeour and Kevin McCluskey   Writer- Denny O'Neil. Penciller- Neal Adams. Inker- Frank Giacoia. Editor- Julie Schwartz. Published by DC Comics synopsisHal, Ollie and The Guardian drive straight into the line of fire of the mountain folk of Desolation. Once again, however, things are not what the initially seem, and the trio find themselves caught in the midst of a western folk tale, and aiding the townsfolk as they attempt to overthrow a ruthless industrialist named Slapper Soames. Dave So, Green Lantern issue 77, which was published in June, but issue 76 was published in April. I wonder why there was no May publication. Kev I hadn't even noticed that. Ah, turns-out it was produced every two months. Dave Ah, right. But anyway, what do you think of the cover? I like the narrative above the title, 'Stop this is the new Green Lantern co-starring Green Arrow.' It's very timely. Like a trailer for a movie of that period, where the narrator talks most of the way through it. Kev Yeh. I like the cover too. Its enticing. It really piques your interest and makes you invested in how our heroes got themselves into this predicament. Again, there's no sugar-coating the issues facing America at the time. "In the heart of America- A war zone." Dave Yep, plus it has those kind of rural, corrupt, power hungry people running the land around them. It does have a real cinematic feel to it again. I'm glad they are keeping the stories grounded, but with little inter-galactic scenarios running in the background. Kev Me too. If this series basically becomes a monthly, or bi-monthly, episodic TV show, with the Greens helping people in need, like 'The A-Team,' I'll be a happy camper. Dave Yeah it does feel like an episode from 'The A-Team' a bit. And then of course the main villain of the piece, Slapper Soames.  How much do you have to hate your son to name him Slapper? Kev Ha, ha! Yeh, O'Neill is certainly having fun with the names of the antagonists in this series. They're hilarious. The Green Team. Now the purpose of their travelling companion, the Guardian, becomes clear, to give the reader the third, unbiased, perspective which will, no doubt, fall somewhere in the middle, between Ollie and Hal's. Dave Yeah. I like how Green Lantern refers to his attackers a "mountain folk." Kev Yep. There's definitely a bluegrass vibe to this particular tale. Dave It doesn't take them long to subdue their attackers, which cleverly allows the story to really begin from there. Kev Definitely, we're right into the conflict, the drama and the action here. There was no messing about in those days. You had to grab your readers quickly. Dave It's a classic story of the small town being over run, and the rebellion against the boss who runs it. I always like it how they "own the law" in these stories. Kev Ha, ha! Yeh. The crooks always own the law in these small towns in America, don't they? This is also a bit like 'Malone,' starring Burt Reynolds. It's essentially that kind of neo-western, isn't it? Dave Pretty much. I like the half page panel of Johnny Walden when he is first introduced. He's kind-of a Johnny Cash type really.  Available to stream on Spotify and Apple Music. Kev Yep. I'm liking the idea of a bluegrass musician and his songs being the catalyst for the miner's uprising. He's definitely in the protest singer songwriter tradition of Woody Guthrie, Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash etc. Adam's and Giacoia's artwork is superb. The action is so fluid. The colours are great too. Even on this dodgy, modern, digital reprint. Dave It's interesting to see how versatile the scenarios for Green Lantern and Green Arrow can be, and so far we are only on the second issue. I'm glad my preconceptions of an intergalactic story were clearly wrong, and how well these characters fit in the more grounded scenarios. It's a wordy issue though, with plenty of narrative to get the reader up to speed, as essentially we are joining this story a fair bit into events that have previously unfolded. Kev Yeh, it's superb. Within a couple of pages we have our protagonists acting as the buddies in our road trip tale already. It's excellent stuff, and the economy of storytelling by O'Neil is fantastic, who is clearly enjoying circumventing our expectations with these stories. The story never turns-out quite to be what the set-up would initially have you believe it is going to be. There's always more to it. Dave There's also the continuing tension between Lantern and Arrow, as they exchange views on outlooks to these situations they are in. Green Arrow doesn't waste anytime with the Hitler references. Kev Ha, ha! No. He certainly doesn't. Ollie's politics aren't exactly subtle, are they? He's not wrong, in my opinion, but it's like being hit around the head with a brick. Dave "Cheap punks!" That's great what a way to belittle Hitler and Genghis Khan. Kev Yeh. I'm liking the idea of land and it's bounty being taken away from its people by corporate interests. That aspect of the story could have been written today. Dave Definitely, and "Desolation" is a distinctive name for a small town, and its a great establishing panel, with the narrative also describing the place in gruelling detail. It's a fantastic aerial view of the place. Proper old west looking.  Sing 'Journey To Desolation' to the tune of 'Wave Of Mutilation' by the Pixies. Go on! Kev Yeh, a town called Desolation. Sounds lovely. It's a cracking establishing panel, right enough. Superb stuff by Neal Adams, once again. Denny O'Neil is really playing up the big city versus rural America thing here, and he's really leaning into the stereotypical "hick" lingo as well. “An’ we don’t want outsiders in these here parts.” The fact that the henchmen calls Soames “Leader,” then Soames calls him out for it, saying, “You ain’t still working for Adolf” is nuts. But then again, this was written closer to World War II, than it is to our present day. Dave Haha, yeah. Slapper Soames looks like a proper stereotypical "hick" of this time. It's a good panel of him sitting there, with his feet in a bucket of hot water and the fan blowing on him, all whilst he smokes his cigar. Kev That is another amusing panel, yeh. O'Neil and Adams are clearly having fun here, but they're also dealing with some pressing issues, and as such, Hal is beginning the question his relationship with authority. He's showing some internal conflict between what is right and what is just, which is a nice piece of early character development. Dave The writing in his thought bubble, talking about how he no longer has this black and white view of the world and that this is a rite of passage for him also, is great. Kev Definitely. He's beginning to break free of the control of the OA, the Guardians and his reliance on the ring, as well as rediscovering himself as a man and a human being. Dave It's a trigger point for Green Lantern, as his sense of justice kicks in, and Green Arrow is by his side on this. Also, when they reveal that his powers in this scenario are limited, and that he has to face his own mortality, it's his big step into him becoming his own person. It's a story of personal development for him. Green Arrow is more sure of himself, so his character development is not changed as much by this story. Kev Yeh. This is our buddy cop relationship growing and deepening here. Like '48 Hours.' Ha, ha! Jeez though, O’Neil wipes out a lot of the townsfolk by having them blown up by landmines. He’s not holding back here, is he? Dave No, not at all. Lantern having to face his mortality could also be a test set to him by the Guardians, to see how he copes. Kev Ah! That's a good point, man. That hadn't occurred to me. Dave That's a cracking near full-page panel, when he is told of this and the guns are pointed on him. It's got a nice blend of colours throughout it, with a dramatic pose in place also. More wallpaper art.  "Does my bum look big in this?" Kev For sure. The greens and the yellows contrast and work so well with the purples and pinks. Speaking of The Guardian, he shows some humanity here, by helping the little girl to safety. And of course, when she hugs him out of gratitude, he is actually moved. Dave Yeah the scene between The Guardian and the little girl is a very human moment. He is genuinely intrigued by human interaction at this point. This is where Green Lantern finally learns about self-reliance as well, and what's with Slapper Sloames's henchman speaking in German? Is this the old dig about hillbilly Neo Nazis? Kev I think it might be, yeh. But these guys are full-blown, bona fide Nazis. Soames actually says he broke them out of a prison where they were serving sentences for war crimes. The stuff with Soames and his henchman is just pure comedy at this point. “Mine Fu hrer!?!?” I mean, come on. Ha, ha! Even the German accent of the henchman is also very amusing. It’s like a Carry On film, or Mel Brooks’s ‘The Producers.’ “Zose grenades...Shoot zem!” Dave Green Arrow is loving his self-comparison to Robin Hood, as he lunges into action. Kev Ha, ha! He sure is. To the point where he explicitly referencing Robin Hood and the similarities between the two. “He didn’t dig tyrants either.” He really is, isn't he? Is this entire run ultimately going to be an exploration of humanity, and what it means to be human to each other? Dave The, "I've got to make this count" panel is great, I really like the tones of the colours. Plus, it's an excellent drawing of him crouched ready for the strike. And yet, after all that, he's taken out by the old gun to the head strike.  It's a long shot, alright. Kev Ha, ha, yeh! Crept up on and pistol whipped. Not a great look for a superhero. Dave Still, it's a mark that he ain't invincible either. Kev True. And I suppose he's not super powered like Hal. Although the OA depowered Hal earlier on as well. Dave “I have bring zis man as a trophy!” Kev “Ain’t them duds somethin’ else?!” Ha, ha! There's some really amusing dialogue at play here. And a nice chair-shot by Ollie too. Dave He's quite good at misdirection is old Green Arrow, when he says he's "played possum for long enough," then makes a quick, surprise attack, only to be caught off guard by Jacob. Kev Yeh, man. That’s a decent wee twist with Jacob revealed to be in cahoots with Soames. I like that. I didn’t see it coming at all. Dave And then another plot twist is revealed. Slapper Soames's line, "by stompin' em we cleaned out their spunk" clearly had a different context then from what it would now. Kev Ha, ha! Yep. That and “I happened to stumble into Jacob’s secret passage!” Oooh, Matron. It's all getting a bit 'Carry On Hillbilly' now. Dave I know, "the ring and the secret passage." Jesus! It's all innocently written I'm sure. I think the last two panels in this issue are nothing short of excellent. There's such a rich palette of colours utilised in each of them. Kev Agreed. The use of light and colour in all three of those panels on that last page is fantastic. “.....seems I’m pretty confused these days...about what I should do.” Was that not a question that America, as a nation, was asking itself in the late ‘60s early 70s? Post-Vietnam War? Post Watergate?  Make America Pretty Again. Dave And Green Arrow certainly doesn't mince his words when it comes to the reality of freeing the people of Desolation, by stating what will happen to them next, "Nothing to look forward to except more poverty and ignorance...you call that winning?" Again, he is taking another swipe at the naivety of Green Lantern, who is still revelling in the glory of imminent victory. Kev Yep. Ollie is really cynical. That must be why I like him and relate to him. Dave Yeah, I like Arrow too, he is not only cynical but doesn't struggle with the internal issues like Lantern does, but Lantern is the young, fresh faced, overly keen guy, so the combo between the two makes for a good dynamic. It is really a formation of the classic buddy-buddy story between Arrow and Lantern. It gives Denny O'Neil plenty of scope to work with as well. Kev Totally. I'm really looking forward to seeing how they evolve, both as individuals and in their relationship with one another as this series goes on. Dave Yep, it's forming into a good series so far. Do you have any other points to make on this issue? Kev Just that, that little bit of exposition required to wrap things up at the end of page 22, do you think it's just modern comics that have gotten me so used to decompressed narrative, or would this story actually have worked better split over two issues? Dave I think it works well in one, but there was a lot going on in this issue, so it could have easily been split into a two part story. Kev I think it might just be me liking a bit of a slower pace with things and maybe when stories have a bit more breathing space, but other than that, both these issues so far have been great. And this one had a good story, it was well written and the art is excellent. It's just good, episodic comics. What's not to love? It's the sort of stuff you don't get quite so much these days, unfortunately. In modern superhero comics, everything is either written for the trade paperback, or is part of some company wide, multiple titles spanning, "event" series. No, I'm really enjoying this. It's a bit of a breath of fresh air, actually. Dave Agreed. (D) & (K) Next: 'A Kind Of Loving, A Way Of Death!' 
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