- Title: Green Lantern #87
- Comic Vine: link
- Writer: Dennis O’Neil
- Artist: Neal Adams
Wayback Wednesday takes us back to the first appearance of John Stewart. With an earthquake in Coast City leaves Guy Gardner injured, and unable to perform the task of being Hal Jordan‘s backup in an emergency, the Guardians choose a new Lantern prospect. Not exactly pleased with the Guardians’ choice, Jordan trains the angry young man who, despite the pair’s differences, earns Hal’s respect in the end by seeing something he missed and preventing a racist Senator’s evil plot.
Although it would be more than a decade before Stewart officially stepped into Jordan’s shoes during the events leading up to Crisis on Infinite Earths, his journey begins here with an issue that gives the character room to be both an angry young black man but also a smart and reliable recruit for the Green Lantern Corps.
Once he became an official Green Lantern of Earth, John Stewart continued to be a staple of the DCU for decades to come including being the Green Lantern chosen for both Justice League and Justice League Unlimited.
While some of the dialogue may feel a bit dated, the issue does what it sets out to do in introducing a completely different Green Lantern to the comic’s readers. The issue also includes a Green Arrow back-up story where the archer gives running for office a serious consideration, especially after seeing the destruction of a riot on the streets of Star City, as well as reprinting an Abin Sur story from Green Lantern #16.
[DC, 25¢]