What They Say:
Kilowog is leery of the new team member.
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
After a two part opening episode that had gotten me to enjoy the small changes made to the franchise overall and adjusting to the different kind of animation, I was pretty keen to see where they were going to go with the next new episode of the CG animated series. The use of the Red Lanterns is a big selling point for me since there’s a lot of fun things about them in the comcis realm and they definitely give it a good visual feel here with the CG stylings. One of the things that the third episode does from the start though is keeping to the serial nature as it has Hal and Kilowing trying to figure out what to do with Razer now that he doesn’t have his Red ring and is abandoned by the Red Lanterns.
While Razer is remanded to the prison facility that the Corps uses with the Spider Guild, it’s something that’s a bit unnerving to Hal with how the operation. The supposed rehabilitation is something that just gnaws at him, so when the opportunity arises for him and Kilowog to return in secret to get a good look inside, they take advantage to it. This part of the show plays out against a look at Razer himself as we see his rehabilitation starting with a look at his past, something that definitely helps to make him a much more empathetic character than one might have thought based on the first two episodes. Seeing what gave him the rage that he has, that pushed him into becoming a Red Lantern, definitely is a nice addition to the show.
Of course, Hal and Kilowog can’t go too far without getting captured themselves and being thrown into the rehabilitation machine as well, though thankfully their issues aren’t given much in the way of display here. The real focus is on Razer and includes his transformation which, while brief, is well done. And having that play out as the ship works its own magic in an attempt to make sure that Hal and Kilowog aren’t killed adds a new flavor to it. While we get a brief physical manifestation of her, even if just in a dream esquence of sorts, it does a lot to give her a bit more personality. But surprisingly, the show is far less about th Green Lanterns here than one would expect as Razer is the real draw. And it’s a very good draw in seeing how he’s being pushed and used in different ways by two different organizations.
In Summary:
While the episode has only a ltitle action and mostly just at the end, it’s the right kind of material to help cement the story itself. The focus here is largely on character and that of a Red Lantern no less, which really is surprising since it’s just the third episode and you’d expect the focus to be more on some of the Green Lantern’s. Razer really shines here and becomes the great kind of villain in that you can completely understand and sympathize with him for what he’s been through, though it’s not something that Hal and Kilowog get to understand so it doesn’t change anything for them. Seeing the changes that Razer is going through is really good stuff here and that the character is changed from the start of this episode to the end has me very hopeful for more with this series as it goes on.
Grade: B+
Readers Rating: [ratings]
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