Green Lantern Pre Crisis: Is There Anything Worth Reading?

[BillCarson]

I've been buying a lot of pre-crisis DC comics lately. DC sucks at reprinting anything before 1987 so I've missed out on a ton of this stuff. I've found that Superman and Batman have plenty worth reading from the 70s and early 80s and I am enjoying the Satellite Justice League as well. I'm looking at Green Lantern back issues and there doesn't seem to be a lot written on it. Neal Adams and Denny O Neil had their famous run that lasted 12 issues and some people seem to like Steve Englehart's run near the end. Is there anything else worth reading? Does the book at least provide some consistently solid super hero action?

[Hound of UIster]

Steve Engelhart's Green Lantern and Green Lantern Corps
Dennis O'Neil's Green Lantern

They are both solid runs that helped define not only the character, but also the DC Universe back then.

[StoopKidLivesOn]

They've been releasing Len Wein's run as "Green Lantern: Sector 2814," with volume 1 out already and 2 solicited for August, I'm a big fan of that era as well, especially for John Stewart.

[Desaad]

I've been buying a lot of pre-crisis DC comics lately. DC sucks at reprinting anything before 1987 so I've missed out on a ton of this stuff. I've found that Superman and Batman have plenty worth reading from the 70s and early 80s and I am enjoying the Satellite Justice League as well. I'm looking at Green Lantern back issues and there doesn't seem to be a lot written on it. Neal Adams and Denny O Neil had their famous run that lasted 12 issues and some people seem to like Steve Englehart's run near the end. Is there anything else worth reading? Does the book at least provide some consistently solid super hero action?

Sure. If you can get your hands on it, pick up...

The (short) Marv Wolfman run. There is a great bit where Hal gets stranded in the north pole without his ring, blind...and still manages to overcome.

"Tales of the Green Lantern Corps" by Barr, Wein and Staton. 3 issue mini series. Introduces Nekron, brings back Krona.

"Tales of the Green Lantern Corps Annuals 1-3", 3 Annuals with a bunch of great short stories; this is where the Alan Moore stuff initially appeared.

Steve Englehart's run. Pretty much a highpoint for the series and the characters, I think, but it gets...uncomfortable for a bit.

The Barr/Pollard run. Nothing that blows anyone away, but solid superhero space stories.

Len Wein's with Dave Gibbons run starts off quite nicely but becomes pretty mediocre quickly. The first issue or two are nicely character focused, though.

[Buried Alien]

Also don't overlook the early John Broome/Gil Kane stuff. I don't know how deeply your tastes run for Silver Age stories, but those early GL tales were fun. Looking back today, it's difficult to imagine the GL franchise being so lighthearted once.

Buried Alien (The Fastest Post Alive!)