Green Lantern: The Animated Series – “In Love and War”
“I’d enjoy aligning myself with you, Hal Jordan.”
I was not exactly thrilled when I read the description for “In Love and War,” and the episode lived up to the concerns. Which, I suppose, is better than being worse than I expected. If anything, the fact that I had a pretty good gut feeling about how the episode would play out is perhaps an indication of not only the show’s consistency but also that the show may not have many surprises in it (and say that, and I am still interested to see what happens in the next episode).
The fact is that I didn’t think that “In Love and War” had earned Carol becoming a Star Sapphire before I saw the episode, and I was pretty much correct. They did add insult to injury in how the episode concluded that particular non-story. You could argue that this was a self-fulfilling prophecy, but I like being wrong about shows. I like when they do something bold, even if I do think it’s a horrible idea.
The biggest problem with the episode isn’t so much the introduction of the Star Sapphires (“How many lantern colors are there?!”, Kilowog asks, giving voice to folks who don’t know that there’s like eight), which I’m actually perfectly fine with, but it’s that the episode draws Carol into it when Carol hasn’t been a presence on the show since the first episode. Her search for Hal is only introduced here and now, when it’s most convenient for the show, and doesn’t really carry any weight to it.
So while I dig the idea that the power ring pulls Carol’s love and twists it into jealousy when she sees Hal with Ghia’ta, it doesn’t feel earned in the slightest. It’s just a plot complication for the sake of a plot complication, for the sake of having Carol be a Star Sapphire. Had the show actually cut away to Carol every once in a while, or had Hal show some concern about having been out of contact with Carol for so long (and not nearly macking on alien princesses), then it would’ve felt more justified.
But then the resolution just doesn’t sit right with me. I know the show has given me hardly any characterization for Carol, so this criticism is, I admit, a little baseless without it. I just found Carol’s casual and understanding acceptance of not only Hal as Green Lantern, but that he was going to continue to not be around way too easy. She’s launched a massive search for him, is told she should accept him for dead, and now that he’s a superhero, she’s cool with it? I suppose it’s reasonable if she’s that laid back, and some of her frustrations do come out due to the Sapphires’ power ring, but it’s just too tidy and too easy a resolution. It passes off the romance angle of the show, essentially concluding it, so they don’t have to deal with it again.
And with the same thing happening with Kilowog and Galia (who is now a Star Sapphire herself), the show makes a pretty clear swerve away from romantic entanglements being a part of the show. There is still the potential for these elements to be in the show, but they’re bounded up in the awkward relationship between Razer and Aya, the latter of whom assumed the visage of Alana when constructing her physical self. The revelation is perhaps the show’s most earned emotional moment to date since they’ve actually taken the time to build it through the story. The fallout from this can, and should be fascinating.
FINAL THOUGHTS
- In case you’re curious, yes, the episode continues to follow in the show’s tradition of using tired-but-true sci-fi plots. This time it’s “planet ruled by women”!
- The animation continues to be fine, but man, did Aga’po’s breasts just looked like Dalek bumps. They weren’t so much a part of her character design as crafted on in a hurry.
- Speaking of character designs, Carol’s Star Sapphire outfit was a nice compromise between the current (?) outfit for her while mixing in elements from the original, Code-era version to create a Saturday-morning friendly version.
- Kind of dug the acknowledgment of the Sapphires’ connection to the Guardians, however briefly mentioned it was.
- No, kids, this isn’t alcohol! It’s just sensory enhancement liquids!
- “Letting go of you the first time was the hardest thing…” Really, Hal? Was it?
- May 2, 2012
- Noel
- Episode Review
- Green Lantern: The Animated Series
