logo
Review – Absolute Green Lantern #3: Hunger in the Dark

Review – Absolute Green Lantern #3: Hunger in the Dark

Geek Dad04-06-2025

Absolute Green Lantern #3 cover, via DC Comics.
Ray: Al Ewing has turned Green Lantern into a full-fledged horror story, and like every horror story, it has some classic inspirations. Fans of Stephen King will obviously see the influence from Under the Dome here, as the mysterious alien judge Alan Scott has created a green energy field over part of the city – trapping Jo Mullein, Hal Jordan, John Stewart – and John's friend Todd Rice, who enters the story this issue. While the story jumps back and forth in time, we see more this issue of the earlier segment, as the crew tries to figure out the strange new world they find themselves trapped in. It's John who takes the lead here, with his strategic mind discovering that the field reacts a certain way to metal – or anything it perceives as metal – and starts trying to break it down. But this attracts Abin Sur's attention, and the inscrutable alien proceeds to cast his judgement over John. Lockdown. Via DC Comics.
We know from the earlier issues that the power will wind up vested with two of these characters – Jo with the Green Lantern ring, and Hal with the Black Hand. What we didn't know until now is that those powers are diametrically opposed, with the Black Hand trying to consume the green automatically – and anyone it's attached to. This is the first take on Green Lantern that portrays these powers not as superpowers, but as something terrifying and bizarre, that would be beyond the average person's ability to comprehend. Al Ewing has worked a lot with cosmic powers before, and his books are often deeply haunting, but part of the credit here goes to the great Jahnoy Lindsay. Their art is deeply unsettling in places, creating a sense of just how powerful these elements are. This is the most mysterious of the Absolute line so far, and it has me incredibly intrigued by what comes next.
To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week.
GeekDad received this comic for review purposes. Liked it? Take a second to support GeekDad and GeekMom on Patreon!

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Bell: Smith government set to punt sexually explicit books out of school libraries
Bell: Smith government set to punt sexually explicit books out of school libraries

Edmonton Journal

time19 hours ago

  • Edmonton Journal

Bell: Smith government set to punt sexually explicit books out of school libraries

'Parents believe this kind of material is not appropriate for kids,' says Demetrios Nicolaides, the Alberta education minister who wants sexually graphic books out of school libraries Demetrios Nicolaides, Alberta's minister of education and childcare, speaks at a media conference in Calgary on Monday, May 26, 2025. Dean Pilling/Postmedia You remember the story. Sexually explicit books found in Calgary and Edmonton public school libraries, including in schools teaching the youngest kids. Graphic books with graphic depictions of sexual acts, where a drawing can indeed be worth a thousand words. Masturbation. A masturbation game. Sexual accessories. Oral sex. Child molestation. We have come a very long way from Dr. Seuss. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Exclusive articles by David Staples, Keith Gerein and others, Oilers news from Cult of Hockey, Ask EJ Anything features, the Noon News Roundup and Under the Dome newsletters. Unlimited online access to Edmonton Journal and 15 news sites with one account. Edmonton Journal ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Exclusive articles by David Staples, Keith Gerein and others, Oilers news from Cult of Hockey, Ask EJ Anything features, the Noon News Roundup and Under the Dome newsletters. Unlimited online access to Edmonton Journal and 15 news sites with one account. Edmonton Journal ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Parents complained. Demetrios Nicolaides, the Danielle Smith government's point man for schools, was shocked. 'I know some media outlets shared the images but they needed to blur them all out,' he says. 'If the media has to blur out these images because of the graphic nature of the content why would we think it's appropriate in our schools?' The Smith government put out a survey Albertans could answer. They now have the results. When asked when children should be able to access sexually explicit materials in school libraries, these are the numbers. Never. 34 percent. Elementary school. 4 per cent. Middle school. 22 per cent. High school. 23 per cent. At all ages. 17 per cent. A little more than six out of 10 surveyed believe parents should have a role in reporting or challenging sexually explicit content in school libraries. Read More Parents of school age children were the most supportive of children not having any access to the sexual materials in schools. Get the latest headlines, breaking news and columns. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again After duplicates and blank entries were removed, 77,910 surveys were counted. 'Parents don't believe this kind of material is appropriate for kids,' says Nicolaides, the minister of education. He also talked to school boards and librarians. He has heard the voices on this issue. Now it is time to write up what is called a ministerial order, a policy to make sure children are not exposed to graphic sexual material in school libraries. There is still some discussion if the rules around this explicit material should be any different for high schools but a betting man would say probably not, as Nicolaides points to the survey. 'There is a very strong position from parents that it should never be in school and I'm inclined to take significant direction from parents.' The province will set the standard and the school boards will decide how they follow it. The order should be ready in two to three weeks. School will be out for summer so it may be not fully in force at the schools until closer to the end of this calendar year. Of course, the thought of the government weighing into the issue led to hysteria among some sorts. The government was accused of banning books, the jackboots of the Smith government trampling people's rights. The Alberta NDP joined in the hand-wringing, once again a sentiment not in line with most Albertans. 'Some of it may be an emotional reaction to something they perceive the government is doing,' says Nicolaides. But the Smith government is not banning books. 'We're simply saying something that in my mind is already generally understood by society,' says Nicolaides. 'Don't show children graphic sexual material. I think we already have that understanding in society. You don't see certain types of magazines on the shelves in schools.' Books in a school library are seen in this file photo. How did the sexually graphic books end up on the shelves? Nicolaides has sent a letter to the Calgary and Edmonton public school boards to get an answer. The education minister does mention he met with librarians and was told the government shouldn't be involved and the government was limiting the freedom to explore different topics. After the meeting Nicolaides says he discovered the president of the library association had advocated to get some books removed from libraries 'because she felt they were really offensive to a particular demographic.' I'll let you put two and two together on that one. By the way, did anyone ever tell Nicolaides tell there was no problem with a Grade 3 student looking over this sexual material? 'No,' says Smith's main man for schools. But he was told librarians and teachers should be making the rules according to the latest research. 'I asked them to show me the research that demonstrates providing children with graphic sexual images is beneficial in some way and I'd be happy to be proven wrong. 'Naturally, they weren't able to direct me to any kind of research.' And before people once again let their hair on fire, Nicolaides was not looking to get involved in school libraries. The concerns arrived at his desk. 'Of course, it was not on my radar. I didn't wake up one day and say: I'm going to start meddling into the affairs of school libraries.' 'Unfortunately, it seemed like something was going a little haywire and so we were compelled to step in.' rbell@ Cult of Hockey Cult of Hockey Politics Sports Cult of Hockey

Review – Batman: Detective Comics #1098
Review – Batman: Detective Comics #1098

Geek Dad

time3 days ago

  • Geek Dad

Review – Batman: Detective Comics #1098

Batman: Detective Comics #1098 cover, via DC Comics. Ray: The secret society of Elixir has been running amok in Gotham – and they don't like their power challenged. Last issue saw Harvey Bullock investigating a series of murders by the immortality cult – but as soon as he got too close, he was hooded, thrown in a van, and is currently on his way to Polkolistan. Batman wastes no time chasing after his PI frenemy, but when he crashes the convoy, he doesn't find Bullock at all – he finds the Penguin, also kidnapped from Gotham by the same villains for not liking them horning in on his territory. This leads to a forced team-up between the two sworn enemies – not far off from Penguin regaining his power in Tom King's solo comic. It's very clear they don't like each other, but Batman isn't willing to leave someone behind and Penguin is willing to take any help he can get to escape a foreign torture den. Frenemies. Via DC Comics. As for Harvey Bullock, he's not in the initial convoy – he's already been taken to Elixir's inner sanctum, where a sadistic doctor is convinced he can make him talk. Bullock is always a fun character to follow – he's so stubborn he doesn't know what's good for him, but his blue-collar aesthetic means he can take self-confident villains by surprise at times. Eventually, the odd trio reunites and Batman has to figure out how he can get these two bickering idiots out of Pokolistan alive. The issue is overall a lot of fun, although it's 90% action and moves very fast. What makes it work is the trio of oil-and-water personalities who dominate it – and the story isn't done yet, with a tense cliffhanger. I'm wondering if the themes of immortality that have dominated this run so far are leading to pulling in the DCU's most famous immortal supervillain – who has obviously tangled with Batman many times before. To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week. GeekDad received this comic for review purposes. Liked it? Take a second to support GeekDad and GeekMom on Patreon!

Review – Wonder Woman #22: Of Men and Mice
Review – Wonder Woman #22: Of Men and Mice

Geek Dad

time3 days ago

  • Geek Dad

Review – Wonder Woman #22: Of Men and Mice

Wonder Woman #22 cover, via DC Comics. Ray: After the battle with the Sovereign, we haven't gotten to the next big WW arc yet – but Tom King is making the most of this break from bigger storylines. First we got a two-part murder mystery with Batman joining Wonder Woman on Olympus – and now we have a breather issue set right at the beginning of Diana and Steve's courtship. Steve wakes up after an amazing night with Diana to find her missing and a note left for him. While it's awkward, she's able to get across that she didn't run out, she just had a mission. There's a mouse problem at the Capitol. Which shouldn't seem like a Wonder Woman problem – except that these mice are giant dinosaur-shaped beasts, running out of control but still adorable. As Steve arrives to find the creatures running rampant, he tries to aid in the battle – but quickly finds out that Diana is just as concerned with saving the mice as the people. Rude awakening. Via DC Comics. This is a great little detail about Diana's character as the friend to all life – and it also makes sense, because those mice are just fuzzy little guys turned big. The actual villain is Mouse Man, a new villain for Diana, who is a lot less funny than he sounds. He's a guy in a mouse suit riding a giant mouse, sure, but he's also a vicious misogynist who is storming the Capitol and taking over the rotunda to protest a law that will allow Amazons to immigrate to the US. While he's defeated, his sabotage causes serious damage to the cause and serves the interest of a larger threat – the Sovereign, making his first big strike against Diana in the past. This is a great done-in-one issue, but the ending makes it seem like it's going to play into something much bigger. It's also funny that King has done such a great job with making us root for Diana and Steve after killing him – but that may not be as closed a door as we thought. To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week. GeekDad received this comic for review purposes. Liked it? Take a second to support GeekDad and GeekMom on Patreon!

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store