Can you actually believed that I enjoyed an issue of The Omega Men last time? Now that all the pieces are fully in place for Tom King to progress the story forward, with one exception. That exception being Kyle Rayner and his role in the grander scheme of things with the spectrum of being a Green Lantern. For over twenty years Kyle has gone from reluctant artist to Godhood, with different incarnations in between. Johns morphed Kyle into this “chosen” one type character which then was dropped until Justin Jordan took over New Guardians. Be prepared Kyle fans, this issue is the deconstruction of Kyle Rayner.
Before we get into the meat of the story that King wrote, I have to commend him on his craft especially within this issue. This issue felt like an issue of Secret Origins anthology but weaved into an ongoing storyline, as King tells us the backstory of both Kyle and Princess Kalista. Each individual story is given enough time to breathe. Both stories serve as connective bond between Kyle and Kalista and while it appears that King may be hinting at a romance between the two, but knowing that Kalista is manipulating Kyle for the purposes of The Omega Men.
It’s eerie how similar Kalista and Kyle’s stories are, despite both coming from different back rounds. King speaks to consciousness of humanity that we can all understand. Questioning your past as the future draws closer, questioning your own future despite writing it s your journey continues. What will be your legacy? With all this in mind now readers actually have a personal connection to a member of The Omega Men, something this series has failed to do since it’s launch back in June.
For fans of Kyle Rayner this issue was the deconstruction of “chosen one” Kyle Rayner. In this instance Kyle admits that he was just in the right place at the right time and there really isn’t anything special about him. Which one could argue that is what makes him special but that’s not the point that King is trying to make. Kyle in this series is a victim of circumstance ever since he was given his Green Lantern ring. While I have no stake on Kyle’s personal place among the pantheon of Green Lanterns, to see King push Kyle away from his “chosen one” status is a breathe of fresh air from my perspective. It goes back to the corps of his inception back in 1994, which from my perspective made people like him to begin with is back.
While I enjoyed both back stories in this issue, the art change from Bagneda to Toby Cypress was jarring. I want to make it clear that Cypress’s art is not terrible but I personally felt that his cartoony style at points hurt the serious tone of the issue. There are splashes of brilliance from Cypress, namely the Sinestro Corps War reference as well as Kalista and the sea of bodies she has amassed growing up. It’s Cypress’s anatomy and irregular facial expressions took me out of the story more than it should have. Cypress is a talented artist but I’m not sure if he was the best pick for the mature tone of the series.
That’s two issues of The Omega Men that I have enjoyed and while I didn’t enjoy the art as much I did enjoy the themes that King is playing with. Now if only King could flesh out the other members of The Omega Men before DC cancels this and half their line….
The Omega Men #4 earns a 4/5
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