Green Lantern New Guardians #30 Review

Fear what you may become…….

The 'Godkillers' arc ends as Kyle and X’Hal go against the powerful Godkillers and not without costs….

Brad Walker has his hands full as one action set-piece after another takes place in this climatic showdown. And while he does his best, he can’t save this issue from overloading problems.

Justin tries to elicit emotions even among the battle throes but it feels like a whisper lost amid the screams of both sides.

SPOILERS FOLLOW………….

X’Hal apparently falls to the Free and the Guardians, with help from Kyle and Carol, take on the attackers.

But X’Hal isn’t finished and rises up, taking in most of her pursuers in a blinding inferno after they threaten to kill everyone on the planet unless she kills herself. 

While the Guardians are busy trying to control the rage of the Goddess, Kala tries to kill the First of the Free, instead getting impaled by his strange staff.

Kyle fails to heal her and she dies. This breaks something in Kyle and he goes full-on Rage Lantern mode (mecha constructs are back!). Carol arrives to stop Kyle from doing something he may regret.

In an audacious move, Carol connects herself to the First and using his love for his people, creates a chain that links all of them across the planet. Kyle uses this to teleport all of the Free off-world to an unknown place.

We then get a brief in-your-face high stakes of Kyle dying before the Guardians dissipate the tension almost the same page. Not much of a stake, was it?

One of the Guardians confronts an enraged X’Hal, who is mourning her fallen follower. She leaves with the body. A while later, the Guardians tell Kyle that what he did should not have been possible, and it is certain he’s becoming something else.

Elsewhere, we find the Free have been stranded on the dead world of Elpis (where the Blue Lanterns had resided before being erased by Relic during Lights Out). The First is informed that while there are plentiful resources, there is no way to leave. In reply, he states they will rebuild.

SPOILERS END………………

The artwork is excellent given the chaotic nature, but Justin’s emotional moments come across as forceful and awkward. Too much feels like it’s going on and everything doesn’t come together.

So, I give it 6.5 out of 10.

+Kyle gets some good character moments
+Artwork is excellent

-Most emotional beats fall flat
-The events feel over-stuffed