If you have any love for DC Comics, check out the latest (and possibly coolest) mega-event Blackest Night. The story's been building for years but it started in earnest in Green Lantern #43. So far there are only 3 major issues to read to catch up: that one, Blackest Night #0 and Blackest Night #1. If you love DC, you'll love this story.
I bought it but haven't read it yet because I didn't keep up with the preludes and I was worried I'd be all cornfused (one of the owners of my favorite bbq place says this all the time and I'm adopting it from here on out) like I was with Final Crisis. I don't read GL usually, in this economy you gotta keep a limited roster of books, but I am going to read this. So I just need GL 43 and Blackest Night 0 you say, I am on it.
I'm sure it does, I know they mentioned Blackest Night in those issues. I think there were also multiple "corps" of people with similar powers previewed. Obviously you had the Green Lanterns, the Yellow Sinestros, but also the Purple Star Sapphires etc (it's like Legends of the Hidden Temple).
It ties in with all the different colored corps that have been created over the last year or two, including the Sinestro Corps (yellow/fear). But you really don't need to know anything more than the fact that there are these other corps and they're each driven by an emotion. Green Lanterns - Will Yellow (Sinestro) - Fear Blue - Hope Red - Anger or Hate (can't remember) Orange - Avarice Violet - Love (Star Sapphire is one of these) Indigo (can't remember which this was) This series is about the coming of a new group called Black Lanterns. They represent death. So the kicker is that virtually every character that's ever died in DC history is rising from the dead as a Black Lantern. Sounds a little cheesy, but Blackest Night #1 is the best comic I've read in years. Especially if you like the JLA, this is a can't miss. If there's any story I'd recommend reading before this one it would be Identity Crisis as this follows up on a lot of the stuff in there. But it's pretty well re-capped in these issues. And nothing will ever confuse anyone more than Final Crisis. I'm pretty well caught up on everything and I couldn't follow that either.
I don't really read comics but I just read #0 and was pretty impressed. I'm going to pick up #1 sometime soon. Red I believe is rage while Indigo is compassion.
Turns out Blackest Night #0 was a free comic book day book, but I don't remember seeing it, so you may have to find a summary or download it which is what I did. Green Lantern #43 came out earlier this month. The shops usually keep quite a few back issues available per title at normal price unless it's some kind of landmark or event issue that sells out consistently.
I've heard nothing but good things with Final Crisis, 52, and Sinestro Corps but I don't know any of the underlying history of the DC universe so I don't know which series are there to jump in easily. Which is unfortunate because most of Marvel's stories right now aren't really worth reading, with the exception of War of Kings.
Invisible Fan: I'd recommend getting Identity Crisis (best modern superhero comic of all) and then getting the Blackest Night books. You shouldn't need anything else to follow IC and that should prime you fine for BN.
If you're interested in Green Lantern (and what Johns has been building leading up to BN) these are some good trades to get: GL: Rebirth GL: Sinestro Corps War GL: Secret Origin Final Crisis is kinda important in that the fate of some of the characters in there will have an impact in BN. and then a lot of the stuff last few months leading up to BN. These will lay out: the modern day GL, the origins of the different 'Corps' that are in place, and most of the main characters. And yeah, the first issue was pretty awesome.
Sounds pretty damn cool. I've gravitated to Marvel since I was a kid a good 30 years ago, but GL was always my favorite hero in the DC Universe. I'll have to check it out.
I agree with Rokkit those are all good background for Blackest Night (and good stories). But even if you skip all of them you should still be able to follow the story alright. I've been careful not to spoil anything in here that wasn't in the interviews and articles months before the series started. But even better if you don't know the set up at all. Hope you like it!
If you're a big IC fan then I'm sure you must have been pretty wowed by the Spoiler Ralph and Sue 'I smell a mystery!' scene in BN. The whole book was pretty harsh, but I thought that was a nice gruesome touch.
I think that and Guy's Spoiler "What the *#@!" reaction to the army of dead GLs were my favorite parts.
