seriously, what about some fucking artistic integrity? Green Lantern used to be a simple, enjoyable concept, although one that never seemed to fully reach it's potential. guy gets a ring that can make whatever he imagines happen. he becomes basically a cop for the universe. loads of potential, simple setup, easy to get in and out of. tons of places you can go with the concept.
I was even willing to deal with Hal turning into Parallax and wiping out the Corps as a "spring cleaning" type situation, clearing away a lot of ideas that just weren't working out at the time. (which is the same way I see the New Gods characters at this point in time.)
but then came Afterbirth. and Parallax was just a space bug up Hal's arse.
horrible idea, but given the catch-22 of attempting to restore Hal to prominence, but not completely wiping out his actions, sort of understandable. it's a rock and a hard place, with no real "right" choice. (with the possible exception of "leave him dead")
Sinestro Corps. actually a good idea. great designs. some interesting new characters. but throwing the whiny bitch Superboy Prime (we all knew he'd be back) and the freaking Anti-Monitor???!! WHAT THE FUCK???!!! Wank, pure and simple. no bloody integrity. leave the Anti-Monitor dead and buried and stop raping the corpse of Crisis. Infinite Crisis was bad enough. you don't have to compound it with this tripe.
Superboy Prime is a lame villain. I'm sure DC thinks he's a great villain because everyone hates him. wrong. we don't hate him because of his villainous actions, we hate him because he's an awful character who should've been left in the limbo he went to twenty years ago. he's got the comicbook equivalent of "X-Pac heat".
not to mention that Ion now is also a space bug who's been in and out of Kyle's arse the last few years.
But Sinestro pulled Ion out of Kyle's arse and shoved Parallax in there and that Johns has implied more space buggery is on the way. really. just quit while you're ahead. too late.
however, I can't help but think that blaming Geoff Johns is really the easy way out, imo. he's not the full problem, he's just a symptom. he's just a hired gun. if he wasn't doing this, somebody else would be. the problem is that DC (and Marvel) are losing sight of the simple art of telling stories. with all the "event" hoopla and the rush of sales, they've lost sight of what really matters. let's face it, "big events" are this decade's gimmick covers. lots of hoopla, lots of people running around excited, not a lot of good storytelling. no real, long term interest.
