Batlantern thoughts about JLA/The Spectre: Soul War (2003)
(It’s been weeks since I read it but I’ve had this on my mind since then so bear with me pls)
Okay so first of all: amazing comic book. The dynamics are excellent. Maybe a bit confusing at times, but DeMatteis really understood the characters and I love Darryl Banks’ style (shoutout to Kyle’s era in the 90s GL!)
That being said, THE BATLANTERN?!? This is their divorced couple reconciliation era.
Bruce refused to see Hal at first, trying to make himself believe that the man he admired and loved was lost and what remained was a ghost. Hal accepted that, and accommodated Bruce as much as he physically could within the circumstances and the situation, not willing to fight him on this, trying to make Bruce as comfortable as he can be in his presence. He respects the distance, as much as it pains him. He accepts it. We love a boundary-respecting king.
But also, that’s quite sad because it comes from a place of understanding, yes, and empathy, but it also comes from self-loathing and guilt. Hal thinks he deserves this treatment, because he believes he’s the monster that Bruce insists that he is. And while it’s fair for Bruce to stand back and put a wall between them (given what’s happened, and that Parallax being a parasite that possessed Hal wasn’t a thing yet), it’s kind of unfair because Hal would never do that same thing to Bruce.
During the first issue, he admits it: “Sometimes, I think, [Bruce] believed the lies, the distorted images that he encouraged people to project on him. I never did."
And Hal is such an understanding and forgiving person. You don’t even have to dig deep to see how much he cares and how empathetic he is (traits that he shares with Kyle and that I talked about on another post), how easy it is for him to put others’ comfort and wellbeing first. I don’t know where the selfish/self-obsessed/shallow Hal narrative comes from, but I’d like to have a word with anyone that misunderstands him so deeply as to truly believe that he’s any of those things. Hal takes accountability. He is responsible. He is smart.
Yes, he is cocky, sometimes reckless, has trouble following orders and is too self-confident at times. But he’s also dependable, a strategic mastermind, a very valuable asset and a person who loves madly and deeply.
It was John Stewart who said (in GL Rebirth, I think) that he never doubted Hal. That Hal might not always have a plan, but he always believed him when he said it would be alright, because he would come up with a solution and he would make it okay.
Hal is trustworthy. And Bruce doesn’t trust him anymore. And he takes that and rolls with it because he doesn’t trust himself either, which is why he’s broken and conflicted, because he was the man without fear until fear itself possessed him, because he was understanding and kind until the spirit of vengeance possessed him, because he always had a place to call home until he came back and found a crater where it was supposed to be, because he lost himself that day and he couldn’t find the man he used to be.
So he stops seeing himself as a person, and he can’t pretend to still be Hal Jordan, which gives him permission to become the means to an end and sacrifice himself (yet again!)
(For anyone that wasn’t aware, from the moment he became Parallax until this comic, he sacrificed himself three times. One of them, he did it to prove himself to Batman (and the rest, but very especially Batman.))
"So I sift through all the whirling yesterdays and find strange comfort... I'll simply cease to be." / "Not even the Spectre can raise the dead. Not without paying a price. And that price... was all that I am."
If Bruce is mourning him, let him mourn himself.
And in the midst of all the chaos, knowing that there is a high chance that he will disappear and cease to exist, he still finds it in himself to leave Bruce a gift: the chance to see his parents again. Mind you, he didn’t do this to make Bruce change his mind about him (which is ultimately what happens) but because he saw the chance to give Bruce what he’d always wanted.
For a moment, they can’t bring him back because Bruce doesn’t believe. He just can’t. He can’t find it in himself to believe that Hal is still in there. But after the whole parents thing, that’s when Bruce realizes that the Hal they lost (the selfless, loving, caring, generous man that was his friend) is still alive, and that the reason they can’t bring him back is his guilt and his shame, which Bruce has been making worse for a long time.
(There is also a point to be made about how at the beginning of the story, Bruce issues that guilt and shame to get Hal to react to the situation and bring him back to the present, whereas at the end, the guilt and shame is what’s pushing him away and trapping him, so Bruce looks deeper inside and finds the honesty, the respect, the fear and the admiration that he was hiding. Don’t quote me on this though, it’s kind of blurry in my head.)
And when he comes back, (when Bruce brings him back) Hal is relieved. The faith and love of that one man made all the difference. That must mean there was something to love and trust, something to keep fighting for, to keep holding on for.
In conclusion, I’m obsessed with this two. They’re so violent and so caring with each other in so many different ways throughout this comic that I got whiplash. This is a story about guilt, grief, redemption, friendship, duty and love.
This is a batlantern story.
