Star Trek/Green Lantern: Stranger Worlds #2 Review

Within the past week we’ve covered a Green Lantern comic and a crossover comic, so today, it’s time for both. Welcome back everyone to the sequel to Green Lantern/Star Trek. Last time, we saw that most of the GL characters have adjusted to life in the Star Trek Universe. Hal and Carol are now part of the enterprise crew, Guy, John and Kilowog are teachers at Starfeelt academy as power rings are now standard issue for Starfleet security officers and Sinestro has apparently conquered the Klingon Empire. However, since there’s no power batteries in this universe, their rings are slowly losing power with no means of recharge. During a mission, the Enterprise found the remains of a Manhunter Robot. Carbon dating indicates that this Manhunter is too old have been brought over from the DCU with Ganthet, meaning that it is native to this reality, and if Manhunters exist in this universe, then so too must the Guardians and by extension, the means to recharge their rings.

We open with Hal and Sinestro are fighting in the skies while Kirk and his security team are going at it with Sinestro’s Klingons. Kirk orders a strategic retreat, but Hal and Sinestro’s fight takes them to space and is only stopped by Hal’s ring losing power allowing Sinestro to escape with the Manhunter.

Meanwhile, at Starfleet HQ, John, Guy and Kilowog are being told that Atrocitus, the leader of the Red Lanterns, has been located and it’s probably something they should sort out. While Guy and Kilowog think they should just let his ring run out of power, John doesn’t believes that even with limited power, he can still do a lot of damage and shouldn’t be left unchecked so they set off after him.

Back on the Enterprise, Hal fills in the crew about the significance of the Manhunter. Kirk suggests heading to Oa, but since Oa, or at least the Oa of Hal’s Universe, is located in the center of the universe, and getting there is more than the Enterprise engines can handle. It’s here that Hal learns that Scotty and Carol are now an item, and his reaction is priceless. Also of note, Carol is now wearing a red Starfleet uniform. Carol, sweetie, I respect the fact that you want to dress appropriately for your engineering position, but trust me, wearing red in this universe can be hazardous to your health if you don’t have any Scottish ancestry. Anywho, the Enterprise gets a call from John and the others and they fill one another in on their situations. They deduce that Sinestro likely wants to analyze the Manhunter to see if it contains some kind clue as to how to get to Oa, as he knows just as well as anyone that the rings don’t have enough charge to get him there. In all likelihood, he’s taken it back to Qo’Nos and flying alone into Klingon Space isn’t exactly an attractive option. So, the team agrees to go after Attrocitus. Or at least they would if the Enterprise hadn’t just received a distress call from the USS Bryant. So it’s agreed, John and company will go after Attrocitus, The Enterprise will respond to the distress call and after that, they’ll work together to find a way to draw out Sinestro.

Speaking of Sinestro, he is indeed back on the Klingon homeworld studying the Manhunter. For some reason, he’s enlisted the aid of Larfleeze, the sole member of the Orange Lantern corps. They clearly don’t like one another, but both realize that they need to pool their recourses if they’re going to get their powers back.

Elsewhere, the Enterprise has located the USS Bryant, only to find it has come under attack by more Manhunters.

Also elsewhere, John and the others have tracked Attrocitus to what appears to be a Starfleet storage facility. However, when they go inside they find that Attrocitus has been defeated (see, what I tell you, red is not a lucky color in this universe) and his ring is now in the hands of Khan Noonien Singh.

What Works: Again, I like seeing how the various characters have adjusted to life in the Star Trek Universe. We get less of it this time around, but what we get is still appreciated. I may crack jokes, but I really like Carol in the red shirt. She recognizes that she’s a part of this world now and has decided to make the most of it hence becoming a Starfleet Engineer (at least in an unofficial capacity) and forming a relationship with Scotty. Speaking of, I love Hal’s reaction to Carol and Scotty being an item, but then, I enjoy the idea of Hal getting dumped way more than I probably should.

The cliffhanger ending was very effective. Khan, despite being the less popular Benedict Cumberbatch incarnation, is a great villain and adding him to the mix can only lead to good things in this kind of story.

What Doesn’t: I don’t like how Larfleeze, who is a cosmic level threat in his own right, being treated like Sinestro’s lackey in this story. I would much rather have seen what he’s been up to his being trapped in this Universe. Hell, we don’t even know how Sinestro got ahold of him. He’s just there for some reason.

Overall: 5/5 So far, I’m actually a lot more invested in this story than the last Green Lantern/Star Trek crossover and I’m excited to see where it goes next.