Green Lantern: First Flight

Since Justice League: The New Frontier firmly established an origin for the character, Green Lantern: First Flight is allowed to ditch the usual ability discovery and zap straight into intergalactic policing. Hal Jordan's Green Lantern hasn't ever maintained a constant presence in Bruce Timm's DC animated universe. His priors are limited to the aforementioned period piece and a brief cameo in a time-slipped Justice League Unlimited two-parter. First Flight plays it taciturn, Jordan quietly sniffing out the motives of his new allies and taskmasters, before shining in a series of hyperbolic beam battles. Director Lauren Montgomery's film seizes the cosmic implications of the Green Lantern Corp, wrapping Jordan's trainee efforts in a rich environment of baffling realities and alien otherness. Jordan, a daredevil test-pilot on Earth, takes it all in his stride. The spiky, extraterrestrial characters also work as a further departure from the usually rounded house style, and then as a sub-textual body ideal. Jordan is schlubby in Terra civvies, weighed down by oversized baggies that obscure his outline. In Lantern duds he's sleek and gleaming, his space-cop armour glistening like an insect's carapace. Animated man takes his place amongst the stars.

"In brightest day.."

The trailer for the newest direct-to-video animated offering from Warner Bros. Animation, Green Lantern: First Flight, is out. With rumours circulating that Warner Brothers are looking to Green Lantern as a rival super-franchise to Marvel's unfolding Iron Man series, it'd be easy to see this as product interest toe dipping. Thankfully, there's enough talent in this that it'll likely end up making a live-action take irrelevant: Lauren Montgomery follows up her directing stint on the lively Wonder Woman and Superman: Doomsday, with Bruce Timm producing, and Alan Burnett on writes. First Flight focuses on Silver Age space-cop Hal Jordan, his induction into the Green Lantern Corp, and burgeoning rivalry with assigned mentor Sinestro. Although barely clocking in over a minute, the First Flight trailer is full of promise: Star Wars Cantina brawls, inventive blunt trauma will objects, and determination Chakra Z-rays. See for yourself. First Flight is out July.