- Sometimes you follow a road for years and then it drops off in front of you. Where all your destinations used to be, now there's just a hole. A lot's dropped out from under me in fifteen years. Fifteen years since I crash-landed that plane, since I picked up the ring from the desert floor. The "Guardians of the Universe" and the Green Lantern Corps. Tomar-Re, Katma-Tui, and a dozen other friends on a dozen different planets. Carol Ferris and the aircraft company that bears her name. An engineering group called the gremlins, who won't talk to me anymore. Jets. When you start on them, the roads stretch away endlessly into the countryside. But then you top the last ride and you find nothing but the hole. And when you reach the hole, there's nowhere to go. Nowhere--and everywhere!
Green Lantern (Volume 3) #1 is an issue of the series Green Lantern (Volume 3) with a cover date of June, 1990.
Synopsis for "Down to Earth"
It's been 15 years since Hal Jordan first found the fallen spacecraft of Abin Sur, and was given his Green Lantern Ring.
Hal visits the headquarters of Justice League of America to see if there is anything there that might inspire him to rejoin the team. When he arrives, it becomes clear that many of the League members would like him to replace their current Green Lantern, Guy Gardner. The playful antics of the League members, and more specifically, Guy Gardner's bad attitude, convince him that the League simply isn't the place for him. Truthfully, Hal feels that too much time spent around super-powered people has been wearing on him.
So Hal embarks upon a journey to reconnect with himself, as a non-powered human. He recalls earlier years in his life, like his cross-country trip with his friend Green Arrow.
Meanwhile, John Stewart is suffering from a nervous breakdown due to his actions, which once led to the destruction of a planet called Xanshi. Unable to deal with his guilt any longer, he flies to the ruins of the planet Oa.
Hal's travels take him to the town of Hope Springs, West Virginia (Which had previously been known as Desolation). He tracks down a woman he met once named Rose Lewis-Hardin. Rose only met him once as Green Lantern and has no idea who Hal really is. He offers to help her with the farm work for some room and board. He befriends Rose's young son, Toby. There is romantic tension between Hal and Rose, but he is content to let nothing come of it.
Eventually, Guy Gardner arrives and bullies Hal into competing with him once again. The two engage in a ring-powered arm wrestling match. Unfortunately, Rose witnesses their argument, and despite Hal's reassurances that he is just a man, she believes that he can never be anything but a super-hero. She asks him to leave.
Appearing in "Down to Earth"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- Green Arrow (Flashback only)
- Appa Ali Apsa (Flashback only)
Villains:
- None
Other Characters:
- Oberon
- Priest (Appears only as a corpse)
- Rose Lewis Hardin (First appearance)
- Toby Hardin (First appearance)
Locations:
- Hope Springs (First appearance)
Items:
Vehicles:
- None
Notes
- This issue is reprinted in the Green Lantern: The Road Back trade paperback.
- The Green Lantern cast recently came off of a stint from the anthology series Action Comics Weekly. Hal Jordan was last seen in Action Comics Weekly #642.
- John Stewart inadvertently caused Xanshi's destruction in Cosmic Odyssey #3.
- Priest appears as a corpse only on Oa.
- The town of Hope Springs was once known as Desolation and first appeared in Green Lantern (Volume 2) #77.
- Despite Hal mentioning that he had met Rose Lewis Hardin when he was last in Hope Springs, she does not appear in the story depicting that visit.
Trivia
- Hal Jordan's hair begins going gray with this issue.
Related Articles
- Green Lantern
- Green Lantern Corps
- Green Lantern Rogues gallery
- Green Lantern image gallery
- Green Lantern (Hal Jordan) image gallery
- Green Lantern (Hal Jordan) appearances list
- Green Lantern (Hal Jordan) quotes page
See Also
Recommended Reading
- Green Lantern (Volume 2) #1-224
- Green Lantern (Volume 3) #1-50
- Green Lantern (Volume 4) #1-up
- Green Lantern: Emerald Dawn #1-6
- Green Lantern: Emerald Dawn II #1-6
- Action Comics Weekly #601-646
Links and References
- Green Lantern article at Wikipedia
- Green Lantern (Hal Jordan) article at Wikipedia
- Green Lantern (Hal Jordan) profile at the Book of Oa
- Green Lantern (Hal Jordan) profile at the Unofficial Guide to the DC Universe
- Green Lantern (Hal Jordan) profile by Alan Kistler
- Green Lantern Corps article at Wikipedia