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I’ve been somewhat cranky of late of many things related to fandom, but luckily there are other things which never fail to fill me with fannish glee.
One of them is Alan Scott. He’s the original Green Lantern, and still the most awesome.
Alan Scott is old enough to be your grandfather. He’s arrogant, occasionally shortsighted, and not exactly someone you’d go to for a sympathetic ear. Also, he has no fashion sense at all.
No, really. There is no one else in the DCU who could not only pull off that costume, but manage an air of dignity while at it. I’ve been known to explain that he was going for the cracked out Christmas tree ornament effect, which is actually not all that far from the actual thought processes that went into the design.
Other things which seem to have gone into his costume design – a purple and green window drape.
“If I must fight evil beings, I must make myself a fearful figure! I must have a costume that is so bizarre that once I am seen, I will never be forgotten!”
Seriously. He was *this close* to becoming *Batman*. (And considering that Alan is also from Gotham*, that’s almost fitting.)
So who exactly is Alan Scott? I’m lazy, so I’ll have Batman explain it.
As you can see, even Batman has a healthy amount of respect for this guy.
They teamed up for a storyline in Detective. It was inevitable. I mean, Batman feels most comfortable fighting crime alongside someone wearing bright, distracting red and green, and Tim is not always around!
Alan *wins* at Robin.
Really, he does.
But that’s been enough making fun of Alan’s costume. It’s time to make fun of his editorially assigned weakness instead.
I don’t care what anyone tells me. It will never, ever, stop being funny.
And not just because it means he must be deathly allergic to papercuts. (Best excuse for avoiding paperwork I can think of.)
(See? It’s been about 60 years since this was published. It’s still funny.)
Yes, Alan wasn’t always senior and respected among his peers. He used to get defeated by coconuts. It’s amusing to keep this in mind whenever he’s unimpressed with the youth of today.
Random Alan Scott Fact: He doesn’t, actually, have a body. He only *thinks* he does.
One day, Alan woke up, and discovered he was suddenly young again. This lead to much existential angst on his part as well as that of his wife, Molly, who had a *much* more difficult time adjusting to her committed relationship with a hot young man than I imagine many would. Eventually, Alan regained his, shall we say, distinguished look. He didn’t delve too deeply into the why of the matter, but luckily there’s people in the JSA who’ll do it for him.
(If I was more twelve, I would *totally* make jokes about wooden tongue depressors. You don’t know how lucky you are.)
Of course, having a body entirely dependant on your willpower could be a bother. If you get distracted for a moment, you’ll start to *dissolve.* What happens if you have a dream where you’re a bird or a paperclip? And then, if you’re Green Lantern, there’s always supervillains to worry about.
Here’s another picture of an indisposed Alan in a ripped costume, because there really wasn’t much chance I wouldn’t try to work this in, somehow.
If only the image had had a better artist, I would be quite satisfied with the world. It’s a lovely pose.
On the theme of bad 90s art, there’s a page which no photo essay on Alan would be complete without…
He was provoked. Really.
(Also, if you look closely, you can see Nightwing and Starfire in the background. I’m not sure what they did to piss him off.)
The thing about being a Green Lantern, other than the powers and the cost in blue and yellow ink, is that you’re not alone. The Lanterns get together to commiserate, have games of poker, help each other out, play chess (Do you want to be green, or slightly darker green)… but here’s a couple shots of Alan and Kyle fighting instead.
This, of course, is also a traditional GL group activity.
I admit I just liked the sound effect. “Bloop!” Alan in a bubble!
Alan vs. Kyle take two. (Alan vs. Hal is already represented with the chains and ripped costume. Yes, yes, I know.)
Alan has a cool sense of humour, although you don’t see it that often. There was a panel I wanted to put as evidence here – he’s sealing the bad guys into giant green action figure boxes labelled “Thug” – but I couldn’t find it. If anyone remembers what issue it’s in, let me know?
Like most of the older heroes, Alan’s built himself a life. He’s married to a woman named Molly. She used to be a minor supervillain named the Harlequin, which is about par for Alan’s relationships. They run Gotham Broadcasting.
He’s got two** kids, Todd Rice and Jennie-Lynn Hayden, both with powers of their own. Their mother was also a minor supervillain, Rose and Thorn and… it’s complicated. He didn’t know about them until they were grown up, but that didn’t stop him from being kind of a crappy parent.
But it’s not because he doesn’t care.
In conclusion, Alan Scott is awesome. If you still don’t believe me, well, undeniable evidence that he’s far too sexy for a man his age probably won’t help. It’ll please the rest of us, however!
Alex Ross drew this one, and I’m quite impressed with it. Even though he got the costume wrong. It’s okay, Mr. Ross! I know the brown belt and purple cape and purple mask might seem a bit much on top of the red and green and yellow, but trust your subject! The outfit transcends mere ideas like colour coordination. Besides, whatever the designer was smoking when he put it together, now it’s *classic*. You can’t screw with *classic*.
Otherwise, Mmmm.
And that’s it for now. I don’t know about you, but I’m feeling much happier after this! If you want more examples of why Alan Scott is awesome, and I can't imagine why anyone wouldn't, I’d suggest the following comics. (I’ve uploaded a couple issues that are good and could otherwise be hard to track down.)
Detective Comics 784 to 786 – A very pretty arc. Brubaker is writing, so you *know* it’s good, and Zircher’s on pencils. (Zircher isn’t a name I personally recognize, but it’s quality.) There’s a serial killer who seems to be making a point to Alan in particular. Bruce and Alan team up to stop them, and there’s some good Jim Gordon moments in there as well. This bit probably sparked my Alan-love more than any other.
Green Lantern v3 140 - Alan’s a reoccurring character in Kyle’s run, but this issue’s mostly a fun one-shot. Kyle doesn’t know when to shut up. And then he brings Alan to a party. And then they spar/goof around with their rings for a while. And then Alan hits Kyle with a pie. Good times.
The Golden Age – An Elseworlds set in the 1940s. It’s well written and pretty, with art strangely reminiscent of the golden age style. After WWII, the heroes have retired. When a new threat surfaces, it’s not so easy for the JSA to come back.
Chase 8 – In which Bruce Wayne and Alan Scott fail to avoid the same party, Alan’s lack of dress sense is further evidenced, and an agent of the government has a good idea on the identity of Gotham’s Batman. The whole run of Chase is something I’d recommend, but Alan’s only in the one.
Checkmate – Greg Rucka is restarting the title in the near future, and he cast Alan Scott as the white king of the organization. I’m not sure how that’ll work, exactly, but Rucka is deft with the spy thriller genre as well as with most characterizations. I’m looking forward to it.
JSA – If you’re interested in Alan’s family issues, you might try 7 to 9 and 45 to 50. He’s in most of the run, but not usually as the focus.
Infinity Inc. – I lost this run before I finished reading it, so I can’t offer specific advice. You get to know Jen and Todd in this book.
Or… Golden Age comics are always good fun –
(I have to say, I *approve* of this solution!)
*After first Crisis, but who’s counting?
**Sure, Jen was killed off in this latest Crisis, but it’s an easy death to undo! And comics are *good* for that sort of thing! And I can be in denial if I want to!
One of them is Alan Scott. He’s the original Green Lantern, and still the most awesome.
Alan Scott is old enough to be your grandfather. He’s arrogant, occasionally shortsighted, and not exactly someone you’d go to for a sympathetic ear. Also, he has no fashion sense at all.
No, really. There is no one else in the DCU who could not only pull off that costume, but manage an air of dignity while at it. I’ve been known to explain that he was going for the cracked out Christmas tree ornament effect, which is actually not all that far from the actual thought processes that went into the design.
Other things which seem to have gone into his costume design – a purple and green window drape.
“If I must fight evil beings, I must make myself a fearful figure! I must have a costume that is so bizarre that once I am seen, I will never be forgotten!”
Seriously. He was *this close* to becoming *Batman*. (And considering that Alan is also from Gotham*, that’s almost fitting.)
So who exactly is Alan Scott? I’m lazy, so I’ll have Batman explain it.
As you can see, even Batman has a healthy amount of respect for this guy.
They teamed up for a storyline in Detective. It was inevitable. I mean, Batman feels most comfortable fighting crime alongside someone wearing bright, distracting red and green, and Tim is not always around!
Alan *wins* at Robin.
Really, he does.
But that’s been enough making fun of Alan’s costume. It’s time to make fun of his editorially assigned weakness instead.
I don’t care what anyone tells me. It will never, ever, stop being funny.
And not just because it means he must be deathly allergic to papercuts. (Best excuse for avoiding paperwork I can think of.)
(See? It’s been about 60 years since this was published. It’s still funny.)
Yes, Alan wasn’t always senior and respected among his peers. He used to get defeated by coconuts. It’s amusing to keep this in mind whenever he’s unimpressed with the youth of today.
Random Alan Scott Fact: He doesn’t, actually, have a body. He only *thinks* he does.
One day, Alan woke up, and discovered he was suddenly young again. This lead to much existential angst on his part as well as that of his wife, Molly, who had a *much* more difficult time adjusting to her committed relationship with a hot young man than I imagine many would. Eventually, Alan regained his, shall we say, distinguished look. He didn’t delve too deeply into the why of the matter, but luckily there’s people in the JSA who’ll do it for him.
(If I was more twelve, I would *totally* make jokes about wooden tongue depressors. You don’t know how lucky you are.)
Of course, having a body entirely dependant on your willpower could be a bother. If you get distracted for a moment, you’ll start to *dissolve.* What happens if you have a dream where you’re a bird or a paperclip? And then, if you’re Green Lantern, there’s always supervillains to worry about.
Here’s another picture of an indisposed Alan in a ripped costume, because there really wasn’t much chance I wouldn’t try to work this in, somehow.
If only the image had had a better artist, I would be quite satisfied with the world. It’s a lovely pose.
On the theme of bad 90s art, there’s a page which no photo essay on Alan would be complete without…
He was provoked. Really.
(Also, if you look closely, you can see Nightwing and Starfire in the background. I’m not sure what they did to piss him off.)
The thing about being a Green Lantern, other than the powers and the cost in blue and yellow ink, is that you’re not alone. The Lanterns get together to commiserate, have games of poker, help each other out, play chess (Do you want to be green, or slightly darker green)… but here’s a couple shots of Alan and Kyle fighting instead.
This, of course, is also a traditional GL group activity.
I admit I just liked the sound effect. “Bloop!” Alan in a bubble!
Alan vs. Kyle take two. (Alan vs. Hal is already represented with the chains and ripped costume. Yes, yes, I know.)
Alan has a cool sense of humour, although you don’t see it that often. There was a panel I wanted to put as evidence here – he’s sealing the bad guys into giant green action figure boxes labelled “Thug” – but I couldn’t find it. If anyone remembers what issue it’s in, let me know?
Like most of the older heroes, Alan’s built himself a life. He’s married to a woman named Molly. She used to be a minor supervillain named the Harlequin, which is about par for Alan’s relationships. They run Gotham Broadcasting.
He’s got two** kids, Todd Rice and Jennie-Lynn Hayden, both with powers of their own. Their mother was also a minor supervillain, Rose and Thorn and… it’s complicated. He didn’t know about them until they were grown up, but that didn’t stop him from being kind of a crappy parent.
But it’s not because he doesn’t care.
In conclusion, Alan Scott is awesome. If you still don’t believe me, well, undeniable evidence that he’s far too sexy for a man his age probably won’t help. It’ll please the rest of us, however!
Alex Ross drew this one, and I’m quite impressed with it. Even though he got the costume wrong. It’s okay, Mr. Ross! I know the brown belt and purple cape and purple mask might seem a bit much on top of the red and green and yellow, but trust your subject! The outfit transcends mere ideas like colour coordination. Besides, whatever the designer was smoking when he put it together, now it’s *classic*. You can’t screw with *classic*.
Otherwise, Mmmm.
And that’s it for now. I don’t know about you, but I’m feeling much happier after this! If you want more examples of why Alan Scott is awesome, and I can't imagine why anyone wouldn't, I’d suggest the following comics. (I’ve uploaded a couple issues that are good and could otherwise be hard to track down.)
Detective Comics 784 to 786 – A very pretty arc. Brubaker is writing, so you *know* it’s good, and Zircher’s on pencils. (Zircher isn’t a name I personally recognize, but it’s quality.) There’s a serial killer who seems to be making a point to Alan in particular. Bruce and Alan team up to stop them, and there’s some good Jim Gordon moments in there as well. This bit probably sparked my Alan-love more than any other.
Green Lantern v3 140 - Alan’s a reoccurring character in Kyle’s run, but this issue’s mostly a fun one-shot. Kyle doesn’t know when to shut up. And then he brings Alan to a party. And then they spar/goof around with their rings for a while. And then Alan hits Kyle with a pie. Good times.
The Golden Age – An Elseworlds set in the 1940s. It’s well written and pretty, with art strangely reminiscent of the golden age style. After WWII, the heroes have retired. When a new threat surfaces, it’s not so easy for the JSA to come back.
Chase 8 – In which Bruce Wayne and Alan Scott fail to avoid the same party, Alan’s lack of dress sense is further evidenced, and an agent of the government has a good idea on the identity of Gotham’s Batman. The whole run of Chase is something I’d recommend, but Alan’s only in the one.
Checkmate – Greg Rucka is restarting the title in the near future, and he cast Alan Scott as the white king of the organization. I’m not sure how that’ll work, exactly, but Rucka is deft with the spy thriller genre as well as with most characterizations. I’m looking forward to it.
JSA – If you’re interested in Alan’s family issues, you might try 7 to 9 and 45 to 50. He’s in most of the run, but not usually as the focus.
Infinity Inc. – I lost this run before I finished reading it, so I can’t offer specific advice. You get to know Jen and Todd in this book.
Or… Golden Age comics are always good fun –
(I have to say, I *approve* of this solution!)
*After first Crisis, but who’s counting?
**Sure, Jen was killed off in this latest Crisis, but it’s an easy death to undo! And comics are *good* for that sort of thing! And I can be in denial if I want to!
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