Green Lantern: The Animated Series (2011-2013) is an American superhero series that never gets old. It’s based on the DC Comics superhero Green Lantern, a human called Hal Jordan who is chosen to wear the green ring. The green ring gives him energy to defeat villains who want to eliminate emotion or rule the universe for their selfish gain. Hal and his team, who also wear the green ring except one, work together to save lives while not leaving their team behind regardless of the obstacles they face.
A good example that shows how Hal has a positive influence on others is Razor (Jason Spisak). In the beginning, he’s considered a bad person. He is a Red Lantern and uses the Red Lantern energy to harm others under the influence of Atrocitus, a leader of the Red Lantern Corps. He attacks the Green Lantern and destroys planets until Atrocitus rules the universe.
Then what? Razor doesn’t seem to care. Part of him died when his wife died until something grasped his attention. In Season 1, episode 6, the Red Lantern implanted the Planet Killer on the planet Colony 12, and Atrocitus gives the citizens two choices: surrender the Green Lanterns or destroy the planet.
Razor makes a plea to Atrocitus about destroying the planet. He doesn’t want to kill innocent people, which is a hint that he still knows what’s right and wrong. It has subsided since the day he put the Red Ring on his finger that led him to the dark side.
Kilowog and Shyir travel inside the Planet Killer and meet Razor.Kilowog and Razor fight while Shyir tries diffusing the bomb. Unable to do so, he tells Razor and Kilowog to get out. He’ll hold off the bomb as long as he can. Razor asks him why. Shyir replies that he’ll do everything he can to save his planet. Touched by his words, Razor feels responsible for what he did and wants to end his life when the planet explodes.
Hal stops Razor from killing himself and rescues him whenever he’s in trouble. He and his team refuse to leave him behind regardless. They see the good side of him and know he can take responsibility to make things right again.
Hal gives him a chance to redeem himself by fighting against moral badness—Atrocitus twists the truth about the Forgotten Zone for personal gain. Razor agrees and begins to choose moral goodness in life.
Despite the dynamic pattern of features in Razor’s role that add interest to the series, it takes away the focus of the main character, Hal Jordan. His character is static even though he gets promoted. His values and relationship with his girlfriend and Green Lanterns are well-developed, predictable, and boring.
The Red Lantern energy that Razor channels to do good regardless of the Red Lantern Oath he has to recite to charge the ring is confusing. He believes what he says whenever he recites the oath to give him power. Yet, the oath phrases don’t have control of his willpower. It’s his willpower that has its own mind to control the dark power of the ring, which is similar to the action of Dark Vader at the end of Return of the Jedi.
Season 1 is good. The beginning story is slow. It doesn’t have much action as it does in the later episodes. It focuses on recruiting more people to join the Green Lantern Corps to fight against Atrocitus and the Red Lantern. In the later series, it focuses more on how to defeat Atrocitus and the Manhunters, a group of robots detect to eliminate emotions.The close-up shots for the fighting scenes look great. They convey the characters’ emotional levels and changes. Other cuts and shots direct the audience when the next move ends and begins.
Rating: 9.5/10
