hosted by popgeeks.com | Forum DC Comics Solicitations June 2024 DC Comics Solicitations May 2024
The World's Finest Presents



EPISODE REVIEWS - "RANX"

Green Lantern: The Animated Series
"Ranx"

Original Airdate - March 9th, 2013

The Aya Monitor is after a secret weapon on the deserted planet Ranx, and sends a massive army of Manhunters to retrieve it. While Hal, Kilowog and Razer are ordered to the planet, the Green Lantern Corps, led by Guy Gardner, launch a simultaneous attack to beat her to it.

Written by Ernie Atlbacker
Directed by Sam Liu
Review by Neo Yi
Media by Warner Bros. Animation

Images

Additional Images









Review:
Honestly, I really liked the episode. "Ranx" stood out to me because of the stunning revelations and twists. The stranger that kept calling Hal? The Anti-Monitor. Didn't see that coming. Aya's plan? I cannot believe they found a way for her to top her previous plan of killing billions. The idea of traveling through time to prevent the birth of the universe is a brilliant twist. I really hope Hal's crew will somehow travel back in time to stop her. I wouldn't mind if the next episode is a race against, er time, to stop Aya; similar to the way the heroes pulled at the end of the Justice League Unlimited episode, "The Once and Future Thing."

I know a lot of people want her dead because she's become irredeemable, but I'm honestly mixed on this. The whole point of Aya's journey is to understand and grasp the concept of emotions. It was a logical approach to her to be in this state when Razer spurred her, but the deaths of billions cannot be ignored. This isn't one of those situations where everything should be fixed instantly. Like others commented, Aya should not get off so easily, she has murder in her hands. ...But I don't really want her to die out of admitted bias that I like her character a lot and dang it, I want her and Razer to have a happy ending. At best I'm hoping the series will end with implications that Hal and friends are glad to have her back, but she has a long way to go to redeem for her actions. I'm very happy Razer brought up his guilt for murdering thousands. Since Aya helped him with his problems, it's only fitting to go full circle and have Razer do the same. It's a parallel I like, brings thing to full circle, and compliments the two beautifully. It'd make me sad if Razer has to part with his lover yet again. This time permanently. I think it's counterproductive to what he's learned and moved on over the episodes.

However, the idea of Aya dying is also interesting because now Razer agrees she needs to be put down. He's been Aya's staunchest supporter, but now he's realized she's gone too far off the edge that even he thinks she's a loss cause. Killing her for the greater good is a hard decision to make and something a lot of kid's show wouldn't pull. They would usually resort to a third option or keep trying to save their friend. To kill Aya would be a very interesting twist and the idea of Razer personally pulling it has a tragically poetic element that appeals to me. Decisions. Decisions. do I follow my fangirl shipping heart and raise the Aya/Razer banner or follow my love for bittersweet where Razer (and if this is the case, I hope it's him) has to kill his love to save everyone? Or, again will there be a (potentially cheap) third option somehow? I think my only concern is that with just one episode left, Aya's character arc (and to a smaller extent, Razer's) might not have a satisfying conclusion.

Speaking of Razer, awesome job of bringing back his training with Saint Walker. His plan to temporarily drive away emotions through meditation in order to get inside Ranx unharmed is ingenious. Irredeemable or not, I do applaud Aya for being a significantly ballsy and intelligent villain - I'm glad she's smart enough to destroy the Anti-Monitor instead of foolishly joining up with him. I also loved the little humorous moments between Guy and the others. Poor Chaselon, he's so naive that he has no idea Guy's being sarcastic and/or a jerk. Though I agree largely with others said, the fighting is surprisingly dull. I guess they had to compensate due to all the Green Lanterns and Manhunters. Speaking of the latter, is there a reason why they now possess Aya's voice? They never did prior and I felt it was merely a cheap tactic slapped in in order for Razer to lose focus.

Needless to say, I'm excited for the last episode, but also very apprehensive. Can they reach a satisfying conclusion in just one episode?


CHARACTERS · REVIEWS · GUIDES · MEDIA · RELEASES · BACKSTAGE · NEWS · FORUM


 

DC Comics on popgeeks.com