Green Lantern: The Animated Series Pilot review

*Originally published on 11/14/11



I had heard murmurs about a new animated series that focused on the DC Comics Green Lantern franchise. I'm a fan of the comics, but I didn't really follow the development of this new show. The fact that it was going to be done in CGI turned me off, so I pretty much forgot about it.

When Cartoon Network announced that it as going to be airing a 1 hour "pilot", I decided to check it out anyway. Oddly enough, I had become rather curious and I figured there was no harm in checking it out.

I was rather impressed, and surprised by how impressed I was. The writing here is quite solid. The episode avoids the trap of opening with a rehash of the origin and we just dive right into an adventure. While Hal Jordan's origin isn't shown, we still get a feel for his character and get a strong read as far as his personality is concerned.

The same can be said for all of the characters. Kilowog, Atrocitus, and the guardians all get a chance to show us who they are and how they relate to each other. The dialogue felt natural and never really got too stilted and everyone felt real. There were no cardboard cut outs. Even the villains had complex motivations that you were interested in and wanted to learn more about.

With the recent surge in popularity caused by Geoff Johns' interpretation on the mythos, it is no surprise that the writers used that as a template. A part of me would've liked to have seen them try their own thing, but it worked quite well here. The whole idea of the "rainbow corps" and the emotional spectrum is never brought up, but the Red Lanterns do act as the main antagonists here. It works quite well as even the main characters are perplexed as to this new threat, allowing us to learn, along with them, just what their deal is.

It makes for a compelling story, while also allowing the show to set the stage for the story arc, I assume it wants to set in motion.

The action scenes were gripping and it was used enough to keep you interested, but the episode didn't depend on said action scenes. Instead, they were used to augment the drama as the characters clash.

So with all of the good, is there any downside to this new series? Well, the aforementioned animation. Yeah, I'm probably just an old fogey, but I really think that this would've looked much better had it been done in a traditional animation style. I know, it's cheaper to make it this way, but you get what you pay for. I think a little "down payment" would've reaped bigger rewards in the long term.

The animation isn't horrid, but it took me out of the story. Hal looks fine, for the most part, but Atrocitus and Kilowog look downright weird, even putting aside the fact that they are extra-terrestrials.

So, for those wondering how this fared? I say it fared rather well. Animation notwithstanding, this was quite good. I hope it picks up a viewership because I would like to see the series grow. Focusing on Hal for now makes sense, but I hope that Guy, John, and Kyle are slowly introduced as the show progresses. With so many members in the Corps, it would be very difficult to showcase everyone's favorite, but at the same time, the longer the show goes, the better the odds become. I recommend checking out this pilot. I was skeptical about it myself, but it won me over. The quality of the writing made up for the lackluster animation style and then some. I don't know if this will ever surpass the DCAU, but it's good, and I think good things are worth supporting.