February 2012 ~ The Blog of OA

2/28/12

Nathan Fillion Talks About Playing Hal Jordan

2/28/2012

Warner Brothers Home Video has provided some clips of an interview with Nathan Fillion where he discusses the joy of doing voice over work and being able to play superhero for a while as a promotion for the Justice League: Doom animated film which released today on home video. Here's hoping we get to see Nathan play Hal again in an animated version of the Sinestro Corps War!

2/28/2012

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In what is no doubt the funniest bit connected with today's release of Justice League: Doom, Nathan Fillion appeared in a short film skit for the Daly Show wherein he tries to help a delusional Tim Daly for whom years of voicing Superman have finally taken their toll. Fillion's own history comes into play and hilarity ensues with a special appearance by Michael Rosenbaum as icing on the cake!

New Green Lantern Items Seen at Toy Fair

2/24/2012

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The annual New York Toy Fair was recently held and while there weren't nearly as many Green Lantern items on display as last year there was still a smattering of items to be seen. Surprisingly the only merchandise on display in support of the Green Lantern animated series was found in a set of maquettes that had already been shown before. Here are the highlights found around the net from those who were able to attend.

Hal vs. Parallax statue which can be pre-ordered here

A different angle of the statue

Ame-Comi Arisia Figure

A Star Sapphire Tonner Doll, pre-order available

New Action League Heroes!

New DCU Hal Jordan Figure

Green Lantern Animated Series Hal Maquette

All three of the Animated Series Maquettes

2/24/2012

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Last month's issue of Green Lantern: New Guardians ended on a great note with the visage of Invictus rising from the center of the Orrery vessel to confront Kyle Rayner and his fellow New Guardians. Kyle's barely held together band had made their way to the surfaces of several worlds making up the solar system sized ship and the inhabitants called forth their protector, a being the likes of which we haven't seen before. This issue the unlikely allies come face to face with Invictus, a being of mysterious origin that has a unique history with Larfleeze.

The Story -

On Tamaran, or a reasonable facsimile of the planet, Kyle and Glomulus attempt to warn the rest of the New Guardians about the coming of Invictus, however his Green Lantern ring is giving him problems in trying to use it to contact other agents of the emotional spectrum. Kyle manages to get off a message to them all and urges them to regroup before Invictus can defeat them in smaller numbers.

2/24/2012

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The Cartoon Network has begun airing a new thirty second promotional ad for Green Lantern: The Animated Series which begins airing on March 3rd. Among the clips in the ad is one that shows a new Green Lantern at the five second mark.

The Bruce Timm produced series will serve as one part of a DC Nation block of programming which includes episode of Young Justice as well as original shorts and live action videos showcasing various DC Comics characters and fans.

Green Lantern Corps #6 Review

2/20/2012

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The War between the Green Lantern Corps and the Keepers reaches the final chapter but the events that unfold in Green Lantern Corps #6 create ripples that will be felt in this title for months to come with John Stewart once again making the tough choices needed to assure peace. Guy Gardner and his band of action heroes make their assault on the Keeper home-world of Urak with their living fear bomb ready for their final assault in hopes of saving John Stewart and their fellow lanterns and preventing the Keepers from taking the central power battery.

The Story -

On board the Interceptor Guy Gardner and his team are enroute to Urak with their fear bomb, the Sinestro Corps members known as Fat Man and Littleboy. Meanwhile the leader of the Keepers continues to torture John Stewart and his fellow Green Lantern prisoners of war. As their plan unfurls we learn that the portal being used by the Keepers are powered by members of their culture who keep the stargate powered by the energy of will absorbed by them during their time living in close proximity to all of the power batteries that were once stored on Urak.

Green Lantern #6 Review

2/17/2012

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The Sinestro Corps has been defeated and Hal Jordan is holding hands with Carol Ferris again, so all's quiet in the Green Lantern universe, right? Yeah we know that's not true with the Guardians scheming to replace the Green Lantern Corps with the Third Army to be led by the mysterious First Lantern, plus there's the matter of the Keepers and Invictus in other corners of the galaxy as threats looming on the horizon. But Geoff Johns takes the sixth issue as a break from all the cosmic hubbub to let us catch our breath, stopping to smell the roses for a moment before plunging Hal Jordan and readers back into the fight.

The Story -

Hal's drug of choice

Hal and Carol are deep in love again with Hal able to finally put her before the ring, but it's not all as wonderful as it seems when Hal uses Carol's bathroom break as a chance to get his adrenaline fix by getting in a fight that lasts just long enough for him to get back in time before Carol can get suspicious.

2/17/2012

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Having never read the popular "Tower of Babel" story written by Mark Waid I was really interested in seeing how the late Dwayne McDuffie would adapt the story of how Batman's contingency plans to take out his fellow Justice Leaguers. The new animated DC Universe direct to video feature, Justice League: Doom, represents the last script McDuffie completed before his untimely death in 2011 as a result of complications from heart surgery. The film is suitably dedicated to him and is in fact being released as digital download on February 21st, exactly one year after his death.

Doom showcases how well McDuffie understood the need for powerful drama with these larger than life characters as well as how much he understood the characters wearing the masks. While there is humor in places where needed, Justice League: Doom is first and foremost an action filled drama where the secrecy and insecurities lying beneath Batman's well protected exterior lead to events that not only drives a wedge between the Dark Knight and his fellow heroes, but could very well lead to a global cataclysm.

The script does assume that the audience has some familiarity with the DC universe with there being no time spent on establishing background information so the uninitiated viewer understands things such as Hal and Carol's history or why there are two Martians, but that certainly should pose no problem for the film's target audience. I will say too that like some of the other DC animated films the short running time that the production team is forced deal with creates a problem for a story of this magnitude. Not enough time is spent driving home how deeply the existence of Batman's plans drives a wedge in the League and the final sequence lacks the punch that the Justice League: Starcrossed movie had.

Podcast of Oa Episode 16

2/16/2012

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The sixth issues of Red Lanterns and Green Lantern are the subject of the sixteenth episode of the Podcast of Oa. Hosts Bill Giancoli and Myron Rumsey talk about the latest member of the Red Lantern Corps, Rankorr, and what lies ahead for Atrocitus and company. Meanwhile there's plenty to talk about with the events of Green Lantern #6 and the vision that Sinestro has of the future and the upcoming arc "The Secret of the Indigo Tribe".

Are YOU ready to take the new Kilowog Challenge!? Plus we talk about the behind the scenes effort that brought last episode's Salaak interview to life and whether or not the podcast will include discussion about the Green Lantern animated series.

The Podcast of Oa is the official podcast of the Blog of Oa and a proud member of the Comics Podcast Network. Share your comments and questions by calling the show’s voicemail line at 406-PODOFOA (406-763-6362) and Skype users can leave a voicemail on the show's account, blogofoa. Send your emails to greenlantern@stny.rr.com. You can also find the Blog and Podcast of Oa on Facebook and Google+.

Green Lantern and other related characters are the copyrighted property of DC Comics Inc. and are used without permission. The Blog of Oa and the Podcast of Oa are fan productions and do not claim any ownership over the Green Lantern or any other copyrighted properties.

Show Links
Stitcher
Eric Giancoli

Show Notes
00:00:00 Intro
00:02:14 Red Lanterns #6
00:23:01 Green Lantern #6
00:49:25 Listener feedback
01:12:21 Kilowog Challenge
01:16:26 Outro

Green Lantern Clip from Justice League: Doom

2/14/2012

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Warner Brothers Home Video has released a clip from the forthcoming direct to video feature Justice League: Doom featuring Green Lantern taking on a member of the Royal Flush Gang. Justice League: Doom releases on home video on February 28th, 2012. See our review here.

The film features the voices of Nathan Fillion (Castle) as Green Lantern, Tim Daly (Private Practice) as Superman, and a reunion of actors who provided the voices of the Justice League and Justice League Unlimited animated series, including Kevin Conroy (Batman: The Animated Series) as Batman, Michael Rosenbaum (Smallville, Breaking In) as Flash, Susan Eisenberg (Superman/Batman: Apocalypse) as Wonder Woman, Carl Lumbly (Alias) as J’onn J’onzz/Martian Manhunter, Phil Morris (Smallville, Seinfeld) as Vandal Savage, Olivia d’Abo (The Wonder Years) as Star Sapphire, and Alexis Denisof (Angel) as Mirror Master. Bumper Robinson (A Different World, Transformers: Animated) joins the cast as Cyborg. Also appearing as villians are Carlos Alazraqui (Reno 911) as Bane, Paul Blackthorne (The Dresden Files) as Metallo, and Claudia Black (Farscape, Stargate SG-1) as Cheetah. David Kaufman (Danny Phantom) also reprises his Justice League role of Jimmy Olsen.

May 2012 Green Lantern Solicitations - Updated

2/13/2012

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The May 2012 solictations from DC Comics for the Green Lantern family of books has been released, revealing that the answers to some of the mysteries of the Indigo Tribe are going to be revealed, John Stewart gets himself into some hot water, and more.

This has been updated to include Blue Beetle #9 featuring a crossover with Green Lantern: New Guardians.

RED LANTERNS #9

Written by PETER MILLIGAN

Art by ED BENES and ROB HUNTER

Cover by MIGUEL SEPULVEDA

On sale MAY 2 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US RATED T+

No RED LANTERN is safe! ATROCITUS discovers a conspiracy behind the awakening of the terror that is ABYSMUS, which threatens to kill every member of his corps!

JUSTICE LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL #9

Written by DAN JURGENS

Art by AARON LOPRESTI and MATT RYAN

Cover by DAVID FINCH and RICHARD FRIEND

On sale MAY 2 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US RATED T

It’s the JUSTICE LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL against O.M.A.C in a fight to the finish! Special crossover with this month’s FIRESTORM #9!

GREEN LANTERN #9

Written by GEOFF JOHNS

Art by DOUG MAHNKE and CHRISTIAN ALAMY

Cover by DOUG MAHNKE

Variant cover by GARY FRANK

1:200 B&W Variant cover by DOUG MAHNKE

On sale MAY 9 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US RATED T

Combo pack edition: $3.99 US

This issue will ship with three covers.

“THE SECRET OF THE INDIGO TRIBE” part three! HAL JORDAN and SINESTRO learn the horrific truth behind the members of the Indigo Tribe and their connection to ABIN SUR Also, the GUARDIANS begin their plan to replace the Green Lantern Corps – at any cost!

This issue is also offered as a special combo pack edition with a redemption code for a digital download of this issue.

JUSTICE LEAGUE #9

Written by GEOFF JOHNS

Art and cover by JIM LEE and SCOTT WILLIAMS

Backup story art by GARY FRANK

1:25 Variant cover by CARLOS D’ANDA

1:200 B&W Variant cover by JIM LEE

On sale MAY 16 40 pg, FC, $3.99 US RATED T

Combo pack edition: $4.99 US

“THE VILLAIN’S JOURNEY” begins here! Part one of a story introducing an all-new major nemesis for the Justice League by GEOFF JOHNS and JIM LEE!

In part three of the SHAZAM! backup story, Billy Batson attempts to get used to his new life, new school and new family as Sivana unleashes an ancient evil imprisoned long ago.

This issue is also offered as a special combo pack edition with a redemption code for a digital download of this issue.

GREEN LANTERN CORPS #9

Written by PETER J. TOMASI

Art and cover by FERNANDO PASARIN and SCOTT HANNA

On sale MAY 16 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US RATED T

“ALPHA WAR” part one! JOHN STEWART is put on trial for the murder of a fellow GREEN LANTERN by the ALPHA LANTERNS!

BLUE BEETLE #9
Written by TONY BEDARD
Art by MARCIO TAKARA
Cover by PAUL RENAUD
On sale MAY 16 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US • RATED T

BLUE BEETLE squares off against GREEN LANTERN KYLE RAYNER and THE NEW GUARDIANS! If Beetle and the Lanterns don’t kill each other, the bounty hunter packing Oan technology will be happy to do it for them. Wait…OAN technology?! Continued this month in GREEN LANTERN: NEW GUARDIANS #9!

GREEN LANTERN ANIMATED #2
Written by ART BALTAZAR and FRANCO
Art and cover by DARIO BRIZUELA
On sale MAY 16 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US • RATED E

Hal Jordan and Kilowog patrol the limits of the galaxy in their “borrowed” Green Lantern ship! Has Hal learned the lessons Kilowog’s been teaching him? We’ll find out as they run into an old foe: the Invisible Destroyer!

THE FURY OF FIRESTORM: THE NUCLEAR MEN #9

Written by JOE HARRIS and ETHAN VAN SCIVER

Art by YILDIRAY CINAR and NORM RAPMUND

Cover by ETHAN VAN SCIVER

On sale MAY 23 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US RATED T

Don’t miss this crossover with JUSTICE LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL #9! RONNIE seeks information – but is the price he must pay too high?

GREEN LANTERN: NEW GUARDIANS #9

Written by TONY BEDARD

Art and cover by TYLER KIRKHAM and BATT

1:25 B&W Variant cover by TYLER KIRKHAM and BATT

On sale MAY 23 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US RATED T

This issue will ship with two covers. The variant cover will feature the standard edition cover in a wraparound format.

ODYM, homeworld of the BLUE LANTERNS, is under attack by the alien conquerors known as THE REACH! The combined power of the different Lantern Corps might not be enough to defeat The Reach! To make matters worse, they may have been betrayed by one of their own! Continued from BLUE BEETLE #9.

The Podcast of Oa Joins Stitcher

2/07/2012

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In looking for ways to open as many avenues as possible for Green Lantern fans to access the content we offer, the Podcast of Oa has recently joined the Stitcher network of audio content.

Stitcher is the leader in Internet Radio for the world beyond music, delivering the latest news, politics, sports, business and entertainment on-demand to listeners on their mobile phones. The Stitcher app has been downloaded over 5 million times and offers the best programming from thousands of content providers including NPR, Fox and CNN. Stitcher is available for iPhone, Android and iPad and is being integrated directly into new Ford and GM vehicles.

The latest episode is always available for you - no syncing needed… and no memory or storage wasted, either! Downloading is easy, go to Stitcher.com or check out your app store for your mobile device.

Red Lanterns #6 Review

2/05/2012

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It's no secret that I haven't had the same enthusiasm for Red Lanterns as I'd like to have, but the book is still the first one I read for the week it comes out. Part of that certainly from my bias as a Green Lantern fan, but the main reason is that I look forward to seeing if the latest issue makes the connection with me that I want it to. The sixth issue promises to bring some of the plot threads together and it's my hope that that we'll finally be getting some cohesion and a solid direction for the series.

The Story -

Issue five ended with John Moore's recruitment as the new member of the Red Lantern Corps and this issue opens with an inner monologue as we live through the transformation from his perspective. John, or Jack as he prefers to be called, is unaware of what's happening to him, but the words and actions of the police how beat his brother to death echo in his mind and trigger flashbacks to points in his life where Jack was bullied by others. His attempts to warn the police to get away result in the horrifying death of one them as Jack struggles to communicate through his new rage-filled persona. Taking to the sky John Moore begins to question what he has become as a result the changes he's going through.

John Moore's life is one that is one we can relate to, but is it powerful enough to warrant a red ring?

On Ysmault the confrontation between Atrocitus and Bleez rages on and the moment that their tension has built to materializes when Bleez calls for new leadership. Surrounded by his Corps Atrocitus is called out by Skallox, providing a moment of relief for Bleez who was about to be killed by her superior. As the Red Lantern begins to explain himself to his followers he suddenly realizes that he and they have somehow all been changed, hinting that Bleez may be infected them in some manner.

Atrocitus realizes something has changed, and not for the better

Back on Earth John Moore reaches out for a connection that might help calm the fierce emotions boiling inside him, flying to the cemetery where his grandfather is buried. Rather than the peaceful solace he hoped to find the sight of the tombstone sends Moore even further over the edge until he finds a target to focus his now uncontrollable rage on, the man how killed his grandfather and indirectly brought about the death of his brother Ray.

Find the police cruiser transporting Baxter, John Moore attacks the vehicle and knocks it off the road. Confronting the frightened Baxter John Moore uses his grandfather's headstone to begin bashing the man's head in when a familiar green light gets in the way. The issue closes with Guy Gardner standing before Moore, telling the Red Lantern they need to have a talk - and that means fight in Gardner-ese.

John's transformation and inner dialogue are the high point of this issue.

The Writing -

I enjoyed getting into Moore's head this issue and seeing how his humanity is struggling to stay alive on the slippery slope towards the inevitable consumption by his rage. My assumption is that the fact that he's human is making his indoctrination a bit different, and while that might sound like an easy way out I think it allows us to learn more about the Red Lanterns and how their transformation changes them. I'm not sure why he needs to be called Rankorr other than the play on the word rancor - or perhaps an ode to the Star Wars beast.

The scenes on Ysmault remain a muddled mess to me. We now have this battle for supremacy in front of the Red Lanterns as their main plot and the missing body of Krona, the stealing of the Red Lantern ring that led to Bleez's appearance in New Guardians, and the other little subplots are still dangling threads that seem to be going nowhere.

Apparently the Krona subplot will see an answer soon, but from my perspective the title just lacks focus, but I've been thinking about this a bit since reading the most recent issue and I'm wondering if this might just be intentional. The thing about rage and anger is that it makes it very difficult to remained focused on any one thing for too long. Is Peter Milligan intentionally trying to show us that the Red Lanterns lack the ability to control themselves effectively by moving between these threads without resolution as a way to illustrate how the rage controls the Red Lanterns more than they do the emotion? Maybe it's wishful thinking on my part, but the Blue Lantern in me in hoping so.

The one thing I have to say about the choice of John Moore as a Red Lantern is that his rage isn't very strong. Sure a life of being bullied leads to a lot of pent up anger, I can relate to that, but I can't help but think of a number of other situations that are very present in our world with much more power behind them and would have had more impact than what we've seen here.

The Art -

I love Ed Benes for the most part, but I do think he continues to go out of his way for some gratuitous T and A that makes for more distraction than anything else. As I read this issue one thing in particular also stood out to me and that was the lack of detail in so many panels. So of that may be in the inking and coloring, but a lot of it is just backgrounds that have nothing in them. I also think that after seeing Atrocitus show up in the pages of Green Lantern: New Guardians #5 I really miss how ferocious and terrifying he used to look before we got this kinder, simpler Atrocitus.

What Do I Think?

This issue is better than most of the others in that I feel like we're finally starting to see some direction for this title, but I remain concerned that this is all happening too late for the title. Red Lanterns #1 sold well at nearly 74,000 copies and by the fourth issue that number dropped down to just over 50,000 and dropping, a signal that the book hasn't found a stable audience yet. The fifth issue was the number forty book for January so it doesn't seem like it's in trouble yet, but if the sales continue to fall something is going to happen to this book in the form of a creative shift or cancellation.

Issue six makes a step in the right direction in some ways, but fumbles over itself in others. Three out of five lanterns.

Podcast of Oa Episode 15

2/02/2012

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Hosts Bill Giancoli and Myron Rumsey have a special interview with Green Lantern Salaak in their latest Green Lantern Spotlight segment and there’s more discussion about the First Lantern and seeds planted about the character in past issues of Green Lantern and Emerald Warriors.

The fifth issues of Green Lantern Corps and New Guardians are discussed and listeners respond to the call for comments about the Red Lanterns. There’s more news about the launch date of the Green Lantern animated series as well as the loss of one of the show’s cast as well as information about other Green Lantern websites and podcasts.

The Podcast of Oa is the official podcast of the Blog of Oa and a proud member of the Comics Podcast Network. Share your comments and questions by calling the show’s voicemail line at 406-PODOFOA (406-763-6362) and Skype users can leave a voicemail on the show's account, blogofoa. Send your emails to greenlantern@stny.rr.com. You can also find the Blog and Podcast of Oa on Facebook and Google+.

Green Lantern and other related characters are the copyrighted property of DC Comics Inc. and are used without permission. The Blog of Oa and the Podcast of Oa are fan productions and do not claim any ownership over the Green Lantern or any other copyrighted properties.

Show Links
Heroes Your Mom Threw Out Digital Comics Portal
Comicbloc
The Green Lantern Corps Website / Forum
Lanterncast
Raging Bullets

Show Notes
00:00:00 Intro
00:01:56 The First Lantern
00:13:18 GL Corp #5
00:28:00 Salaak Interview
00:34:43 New Guardians #5
00:44:58 Listener Feedback
01:03:59 News and Outro

2/02/2012

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Perhaps the most intriguing mystery coming out of the first story arcs in the Green Lantern titles is the coming of the Third Army and the return of the First Lantern. Recently on the Podcast of Oa and in our new feature, Green Lantern 101, there was talk of the first Green Lantern, Rori Dag. For several reasons the first Green Lantern is not likely to be the aforementioned First Lantern, but then again this is comics and one can never be too sure about anything. So just who is the First Lantern if it's not Rori Dag? There are some fascinating clues that Geoff Johns has been sprinkling in the comics since issue 62 about this individual and piecing them together helps narrow down the likely scenarios.

The first and most obvious choice for the First Lantern is indeed Rori Dag since that plays to the continuity that was established way back in 1969's Green Lantern volume 2 issue 67. Rori Dag's role as the first Green Lantern has been alluded to several times throughout the Green Lantern mythology, but a few things lead to him being discounted as the First Lantern. For one thing Rori Dag died and his body is included in the crypts of Oa and identified as resting there in the diagram of the crypts included in the Sinestro Corps Secret Files special.

While the circumstances of Rori Dag's death remains a mystery and it wouldn't be the first time someone we were led to believe were dead wasn't, there are a couple of things which would make this quite a stretch. The first is that Rori Dag appeared during Blackest Night as one of the Green Lanterns turned into a Black Lantern, or at least someone who bears a striking resemblance to Dag did, but the likelihood is very slim that he is to be the leader of the Third Army.

Rori Dag is likely to stay dead.

What is really the last nail in Dag's coffin is something that we've learned since Blackest Night, and that's the fact that there were indeed two other beings harnessing the power of will before him - Krona and the First Lantern. During the War of the Green Lanterns the four Earth Lanterns discover a secret chamber that houses several artifacts, one of which is a will powered gauntlet that we previously saw Krona use in a flashback sequence in Green Lantern number 63. While we're led to believe that Krona forged the gauntlet, the inscription on the display case indicates something different; that the gauntlet originally belonged to the First Lantern - note that this person isn't called the first Green Lantern which leaves our Silver Age continuity intact.

In Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors #9 we learn the true origin of the will gauntlet.

This sense of time placement is reinforced by a another panel from the comics and reveals that someone harnessed the power of will before Krona and before the birth of the Green Lantern Corps. The Guardians in this panel give us the historical order of the failure of their greatest champions putting the First Lantern directly in front of Krona.

A scene from Green Lantern #64

Clearly this is not Rori Dag unless there is a far different story being told, and I personally doubt that. We also know that, according to Krona, the Guardians betrayed the First Lantern for some reason, and I would say that this betrayal is detaining him or her in the Chamber of Shadows as mentioned in Green Lantern #5.

A climatic scene from Green Lantern #67 where Krona lists the Guardians' mistakes, indicating a betrayal of the First Lantern.

A key image from Green Lantern #62

There's also some key information to be gleaned from two more panels from Green Lantern #62 which provide some interesting information for us to consider. First there is a flashback image of Ganthet and Krona in the days before Krona's research into the nature of the emotional spectrum. Both Maltusans are in a room of some sort in front of a hooded being in chains. Ganthet proclaims that the being is far too dangerous to be let loose while Krona begs to differ saying that the captive could teach them about the emotional entities rather than being left there. Notice that here, and in the other flashback that opens the same issue the Guardians wear the insignia of the White Lantern on their robes. Later in the issue when they confront Krona they still wear the White Lantern logo, but they have evolved and no longer have the same height they had earlier, indicating that significant time has passed.

So we know that there is someone chained up somewhere on Oa that knew more about the emotional spectrum and that this being's knowledge may well be what pushed Krona down the path that led him to his destiny. We also know that the Guardians had been doing something with the white light for an untold number of years during which time they evolved into the diminutive beings we know today and eventually chose to focus on the power of Will. I'm going to say that the person in chains we see here is indeed the First Lantern and that the will gauntlet was one of perhaps several that he or she created - perhaps one for each color as each emotion was being studied.

This leads me to one other image from Green Lantern #62 that I think we're going to see again in the near future. Take a look:

Hal's vision from Green Lantern #62

This is one of the visions that Hal Jordan has when he is blasted by Krona just prior to the War of the Green Lanterns. We see the Guardians in a very similar location to the one from the flashback image of Ganthet and Krona, albeit one that's in far worse shape. When this issue came out everyone including myself paid particular attention to the line from Ganthet about the loss of the one of the Earth Lanterns assuming that one of them would die in the story.

What I believe is that this event takes place in the near future and we have lost one of the four Earth Lanterns, Kyle Rayner, who was basically kicked out of the Corps in Green Lantern: New Guardians #4. This is same being who was imprisoned eons before in the very same location which we will come to know as the Chamber of Shadows, now the worse for wear after all these years. Hal is now the most dangerous because of his ability to kill Krona, his ability to wield several of the different rings, and then there's the matter of his body possibly being altered by his experience in Sinestro's power battery in Green Lantern #4.

So in my opinion the First Lantern will have been this person who predated Krona in his or her ability to harness the emotional spectrum and was able to create weapons that could channel their various energies. This will be someone completely new to the Green Lantern mythology, but whose story and revelations his or her emergence will cause will likely change what we know about the origins of the all of the corps of the emotional spectrum.