DC’s First Green Lantern Wants [SPOILER] to Lead the Justice League

Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths #4 includes a touching moment when Alan Scott, the original Green Lantern, urges Nightwing that he is the figure that DC’s superhero community needs at the moment.

The scene occurs in the hospital as Nightwing kneels over the bed of Beast Boy, who was severely wounded by Deathstroke in Dark Crisis #2 and may be traumatized for years to come. Nightwing blames himself for his friend’s current state, but Alan Scott tells the former Boy Wonder that now isn’t the time for self-criticism.

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The original Green Lantern relates a tale of watching Dick Grayson’s acrobat parents perform in Gotham years ago, explaining that they were amazing and relentless. “Gotham’s a rough town,” Alan says. “Not easy to stand out. But when your parents performed, they had everyone’s eyes on them. Just like you do now, kid… I look out there and I see heroes who have proven themselves time and time again, mixed with new faces who want to help. They want to show that they can carry on the legacy of those who have fallen. But we need the one who did it first.”

Nightwing and a Sense of Legacy

Dick Grayson, the original Robin, is widely regarded as one of the foremost examples of the sense of legacy that permeates the DC universe, where heroes typically have sidekicks that eventually grow up to surpass them. Even Black Adam recognizes this fact, and said in Dark Crisis #1 that Dick was the best figurehead for a new Justice League, now that the original League members are trapped in cosmic prisons at the hands of Pariah.

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Despite everyone looking up to him, Dick has often struggled with his role as a hero and faced self-doubt. When he stepped into his mentor’s boots in the now-classic “Prodigal” story arc of 1994 and Grant Morrison’s Batman and Robin series of 2009, Dick constantly questioned whether or not he could adequately match the deeds of Bruce Wayne — despite the fact that, for all intents and purposes, he surpassed Bruce and forged a new, more hopeful interpretation of Batman.

Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths #4 is written by Joshua Williamson, penciled by Daniel Sampere, colored by Alejandro Sánchez, lettered by Tom Napolitano and has covers by Sampere and Sánchez, Terry Dodson & Rachel Dodson, Dan Jurgens, Norm Rapmund & Hi-Fi, Nathan Szerdy, Brett Booth, Jonathan Glapion & Alex Sinclair, and Viktor Bogdanovic. The issue is on sale now from DC Comics.

Source: DC