For the Love of Lanterns:

As I said in my previous post. I love the Lanterns. I love all the Lanterns. Sure, I love some more than others. But I love them all.

Which apparently is rare in certain parts. But you know, you can't like every character.

But Green Lantern fans occasionally seem to get, well, insane about it. And it gets annoying to be figuratively stuck in the middle.

There're the rabid Hal fans who hate Kyle just because he had the *audacity* to replace their favorite. They call him "slacker" and "irresponsible" and find many reasons to hate him. (The second is true, but he grows throughout the series. The first has always been false, as he was the character most seen actually doing work during his GL and JLA runs. And you can't be a slacker and actually live off being a freelance artist. Won't happen.)

I find it funny, because honestly, as character personalities go, Kyle's is about as inoffensive as you can get. He's silly, flighty and immature, but he shows very clear character growth from issue to issue. He's replacing a great character and he knows it, and usually understands when people resent him for this. (Unless you're Ollie, because Ollie's a jackass at the best of times.) He's nice, sweet and determined to live up to the legacy he's had thrust on him. I can see why not every reader *likes* the character, but outright hatred perplexes me. I really can't see anything really "hateable" about him.

Except, you know, for the replacing Hal thing. Which I sympathize with. I'm a Ted Kord fan. I understand. But the character didn't choose to replace Hal, has always respected and admired his predecessor, even when batshit crazy.

Besides, that's over with now anyway. Hal's back! He's Green Lantern again, under a writer that clearly loves him AND Kyle. So let it go! Stop maligning Kyle...unless you've got funny scans of him being stupid like Devon does. Then post, because those are hilarious. Damn it guys, you got your guy back, as awesome as ever! He's reinstated, he's got the main series...you *won*. So *enjoy* it and stop resenting Kyle for existing. (Besides, Hal likes him and nothing you say can change that...:-P Unless you're writing a crappy novel. But otherwise, nope).

And rabid Kyle fans are just as annoying! God. I love Kyle too, but holy hell you people can be insane. Yes, Hal's back. Yes, Kyle's not the frontrunner in the main Green Lantern series...you're gonna have to deal. Besides, he's *got* a series coming up. Written by his own creator! A maxiseries yes, but if it does well, maybe it'll become an ongoing. Kyle was enough to frontrun Green Lantern for a long time after all. (And as much as some of that was name recognition, I don't think that's all that it was, as you have many old GL fans who resented the hell out of him and didn't buy it.) The real draw of Kyle Rayner's character isn't the title "Green Lantern", it's "Kyle Rayner." And honestly, I'd buy his book even if it were called "That lazy, good-for-nothing metrosexual artist guy." He'll do fine!

He's not forgotten, guys. In fact, Rebirth, while bringing back Hal, quite firmly established Kyle as the "better" of the two in terms of incorruptability and will. They didn't kill him, they didn't weaken him to make Hal seem better. And he's Getting His Own Series. Hell, if that doesn't work, he'll just get folded into the Corps. DC knows that the character is popular. The writers themselves very much like the character, so why is there a problem here?

And stop complaining every time Hal shows up. Of *course* he's gonna be in Recharge 5. OA's being ATTACKED! That's his home base, the center of the Corps, and he's a GREEN LANTERN. He's not going to stay behind just because some of his brethren have a legitimate grudge against the whole Parallax thing. This is the guy who's flown headfirst into a sign because he didn't like it. Self-preservation is NOT his strong suit.

And if he shows up in Ion? So? Marz likes Hal, Emerald Twilight aside. Emerald Knights was really good and made both Ragnell and me take notice of Hal in the first place. He's guested in Kyle's run many many times, as Parallax, he's beat him to a pulp and stole the ring, as the Spectre, he's been a welcome mentor/advisor and listening ear...He's never upstaged Kyle (if there was any upstaging, it was *by* Kyle in Rebirth), and I doubt he's in any danger of upstaging him in Ion. Kyle's a character that benefits a lot from crossovers anyway and always shines when he's interacting with others.

And Hal's pretty awesome. Seriously. As human as Kyle in his own way. Just a guy who's never quite learned to deal with the bad stuff as it happens. He's dumb and an utter klutz, and he's got almost no real interpersonal skills that don't involve getting laid. He's also brave, determined, charismatic. He's a guy constantly trying to deal with larger-than-life reputations, whether as the "Greatest Green Lantern Ever!" or "Parallax-who-tried-to-rewrite-the-Universe" and it's interesting to see, because he really is a relatively normal guy. And he hits his head on stuff and gets mind controlled, and that's just funny.

Anyway, I understand the frustration of having your favorite booted off of his title. But honestly, this might be the best thing to happen to Kyle. He can be something beyond just one of a string of Green Lanterns. And if it doesn't work, well, both John and Guy tried other identities before coming back to the fold, so he can too. You've NOTHING to be worried or defensive about! Relax!

This is the BEST time to be a Lantern fan. Hal's back and going strong, Kyle's got a maxiseries coming, Guy's fronting GLC with old favorites like Kilowog and Salakk...We all should be happy!* Celebrate! :-)

*unless John's your favorite...then you're SOL. :-P Sorry.