Actually, you probably don't care at all and are just hoping it will be one more cool summer movie. Me too! But here are my picks for some Green Lantern reading that represents the core of who GL is and what he's about that are serving as my primer for my movie experience this weekend.
Green Lantern: Emerald Dawn
This trade paperback was my first comic book exposure to Green Lantern and remains one of the best Green Lantern stories I've read. Hal Jordan's origin is presented wonderfully, and although a few elements have been "ret-conned" out of more recent versions, other key elements have been retained because of their power in providing motive and heart to Hal's character. It also serves as a great introduction to the Green Lantern Corps and was originally going to be used as the chief source material for the live action movie. (I even remember seeing concept art for the villain "Legion", who has been replaced by a different villain in the movie, though some visual elements of Legion are retained.) Just a couple of years ago this trade paperback was re-released with new digital coloring, but even in its original form the art is beautiful and I consider it to have aged very well. It remains possibly the best introduction to Hal and the Green Lantern Corps.
Green Lantern: Secret Origin
This more recent retelling of Hal Jordan's origin story by superstar writer Geoff Johns is another great representation of Green Lantern essentials. Even more than "Emerald Dawn", we see more of who Hal Jordan is and are given greater reason to invest in him as a character. The art is some of the best in the business and the visuals alone make this worth the read. Hector Hammond is featured prominently as a villain, and this story served as significant source material for the character as he appears in the new movie. But despite the movie tie-in cover art, this is NOT an adaptation of the movie story. So you're safe to read it before or after seeing the new movie.
My only complaint is that Johns used this origins story to plant elements for a story he was writing at the time in the main storyline of Green Lantern comics, infecting what should be a timeless origins story with elements that tie it to a then-current story. The result is that new readers who choose this trade paperback as their starting point will repeatedly run into elements that have no bearing on the immediate story and never seem to be properly resolved. Despite this, it's a great read that should be considered by newbies to the world of Green Lantern.
Green Lantern: Rebirth
Although appreciating this tradepaperback fully requires you to know who the chief characters are before starting it, it can also be enjoyed by someone coming in with no Green Lantern exposure. This story was a necessary step to bringing Hal Jordan back from the dead, and cleans up a mess of continuity while somehow also telling a compelling and character driven story. Despite being harder to follow for the uninitiated than "Secret Origin" or "Emerald Dawn", enough details are given to get you up to speed quickly and some very significant concepts are established here that changed the nature of the Green Lantern Corps for every comic published afterward.
If after seeing the movie you'd like to try out the comics, this should be your first stop before starting the main series. Just know that if you feel a little lost, it will be offset by how much you'll likely enjoy the rest of this book and the main Green Lantern series, should you continue reading afterward.
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