Green Lantern/Green Arrow: Space Traveling Heroes by Dennis O'NeilMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
Green Lantern/Green Arrow: Space Traveling Heroes contains issues #90-106 of Green Lantern.
Green Lantern has never been my favorite character but his was the first Super Powers action figure I owned and I have a bunch of Bronze Age Green Lantern issues down in the archives.
Denny O'Neil and Mike Grell are the marquee players on this omnibus with Vince Colletta doing the lions share of the inking and probably erasing characters to make his inking job easier. However, Alex Saviuk pencils a few issues and there are a whole slew of inkers, from Terry Austin to Dick Giordano. E. Nelson Bridwell and Frank McGinty fill in for Denny on a few issues.
First off, these are not my favorite Bronze Age Green Lantern tales but they're still pretty good. They're from when Green Lantern and Green Arrow were still teaming up but weren't tackling social issues anymore. Black Canary, Itty the weird starfish alien, and Air Wave round out the cast. The Emerald Gladiators and friends take on menaces like Sonar, Hector Hammond, and assorted aliens.
Denny O'Neil is known for street level action so its no surprise that he and Mike Grell did a great Green Arrow, years before Grell helmed the mature readers Green Arrow title. Their Green Lantern is a little uninspired at times, though. It's really odd reading about Hal Jordan as a trucker. I know this came during the trucker craze of the 1970s but it's still odd. Itty the alien was a weird addition to the cast.
Anyway, Mike Grell's art is pretty great. You can tell he draws from some of the same influences as Neal Adams but his art is sleeker to me. Alex Saviuk is no slouch either, though. Whatever happened to that guy?
The stories are self contained but still linked. It's clear they're from an era where "writing for the trade" didn't exist. I could have done without Hal charging his ring in every issue but that was the style at the time.
If you're looking to read stories from when Green Lantern was a trucker and Green Arrow was running for mayor of Star City, look no further! Three out of five power rings.
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The Colletta inked stories were the best.
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