10 Iconic Comic Book Moments Erased By Stupid Retcons
9. Hal Jordan Goes Insane
In the early 90s, DC was looking for various ways in which to modernize their characters. For Hal Jordan, the Green Lantern, this meant getting rid of him entirely and replacing him with a younger Green Lantern, Kyle Rayner. During the Reign of the Supermen story, one of the new Supermen was the Cyborg Superman, who was secretly a villain named Hank Henshaw. Along with the villain Mongul, Henshaw eradicated Jordans home, Coast City, including the citys inhabitants. This led to the Emerald Twilight arc, trying to use his ring to recreate the city and his loved ones. Admonished by the Guardians of Oa, Jordan goes insane and destroys the Guardians and the Green Lantern Corps, absorbing the power of the battery and taking on the name Parallax and becoming a villain. Parallax later tried to rewrite time itself in the Zero Hour story, but in the Final Night crossover, he attempted to redeem himself. Jordan gave his life in order to defeat the Sun-Eater and reignite the sun. Later, Jordan was given a chance to redeem himself by becoming the Spectre. Later, in the Green Lantern: Rebirth series, writer Geoff Johns sought to retcon Hals actions as not being his responsibility. Rather than Parallax being Jordan, Parallax was instead a fear entity that had corrupted Jordan and drove him to commit his actions in Emerald Twilight. Emerald Twilight was controversial for many Green Lantern fans, and the restoration of Hal as Green Lantern, his reputation untarnished, was viewed as a welcome retcon.
Percival Constantine is the author of several novels and short stories, including the Vanguard superhero series, and regularly writes and comments on movies, comics, and other pop culture. More information can be found at his website, PercivalConstantine.com
