It seems like only yesterday that I was at Walgreens with my parents and they asked if they could buy me a comic. The comic I wanted was Green Lantern (Vol. 3) #48. When I saw the cover and title of the story above, I knew I had to have it; if the Death of Superman And Knightfall I haven’t learned anything, but I shouldn’t miss these crazy storylines from DC Comics. But the title of this special I’m reviewing reminds me that it was 30 years ago. Wow! Time is a wild concept, and Zero Hour: Crisis of Time was a huge event in the mid-90s. So what do Ron Marz and Dan Jurgens have planned for us with this return visit?
DC Comics
Once you get past those beautiful covers and open the issue, you see quite a roster of talent, and it’s so great to see them back on the comic page. Then when you get to the actual pages, it’s so cool to see Kyle Rayner back in action as GL with Darryl Banks as artist. It totally takes me back. The opener has quite a bit of slang, with the Flash coming through a portal asking for help. It seems like a crisis is coming, but for some, it will be. Rayner is ripped into a splinter dimension where things are familiar, but not quite as we’re used to. If you’re a fan of the ’90s, though, you’ll love the characters Rayner encounters.
DC Comics
There are some wild twists, like Superman and Batman not returning from their respective situations, or that in this splinter dimension, no one knows about a Green Lantern. I can understand the characters not knowing Rayner, but the idea of a GL is completely foreign to them, which explains why they rally behind Parallax. Things heat up when the Oblivion effects show up, and what an interesting name for these, since they have a history with Kyle Rayner. Something else pretty wild about this Anniversary Special is that it should take place before Green Lantern (Volume 7) No. 8 … I knew the clock on the cover had a connection!
DC Comics
Overall, this special is a little hard to read, but its 90s characters make it an entertaining adventure. I have all my Emerald Twilight And Zero hour Comics and wanted to put this anniversary special in with them, but I probably won’t since it didn’t seem all that connected aside from the name. Instead, I’m going to put it in with the current Green Lantern series by Jeremy Adams, Xermanico, and others since there are some implications of the special that I hope make their way into the series. I hope they use that element wisely when dealing with what’s happening with the Emotional Spectrum. Now I have to put my “Spider-Man Clone Saga 30th Anniversary Special” in or I can look at Chasm: The Curse of Kaine. Ah, nostalgia!
Review of “Zero Hour 30th-Anniversary Special” No. 1: A Journey Through Time
Zero Hour 30th Anniversary Special No. 1
A fun trip down memory lane where we visit DC heroes of the 90s in a pretty crazy situation with images from some excellent artists of the time. Kyle Rayner finds himself literally a man out of time, so can he stop the Oblivion effects from destroying everything? Have fun remembering your slang and prepare for an ending that could impact the modern DC Universe!
It is always a welcome change when some artists return to figures from this period.
The surprise at the end makes this edition an eye-catcher
Kyle Rayner’s role as director of an adventure is a great win for his fans
The story seemed incoherent in some places
