I've Got Your Devastation Right Here

Way back when...by which I mean 15 years ago, there was a short-lived title called Green Lantern - Mosaic. It starred John Stewart, who for the first twenty years or so of his existence had two distinguishing characteristics: He was an architect, and he was (originally, at least) an angry black man. He was charged with governing the "Mosaic" which was a community made up of a bunch of other planets put together by an insane Guardian. (Note: Green Lanterns and Green Lantern-related characters have about a 85% of going insane at some point)


The series also dared to ask deep questions like: who would win, anthropomorphic chipmunk with a power ring or a truck?



Anyway, the series wrapped up with issue #18 written by Gerard Jones with a cover date of November 1993. The previous issues had dealth with a bunch of aliens deciding they weren't thrilled with their living arrangement and sets up John Stewart's transformation into a Guardian of the Universe...yeah, the small blue guys...bear with me here.

The issue begins with John Stewart preventing the destruction of the Mosaic in his soon-to-be standard maniacal fashion:

Ah, Stewart, you are a delight.

Anyway, after that there is a wrap-up of a few loose ends , then Hal Jordan shows up to have a talk with John Stewart, a conversation that ends with a panel that always cracks me up for some reason:




Take that Jordan! Only John Stewart has the right to indiscriminately raise the dead and become a God.

But, having dealth with the unbeliever, it is now time for our buddy Stewart to evolve into a human Guardian. (For some reason this means he is practically omnipotent, but still mortal, which doesn't make a whole ton of sense, seems like he could just...anyway, back to the story)

Remember how I said that John Stewart was originally portrayed as an angry Black man, well...


Wow, even in context that doesn't seem....good. I guess this is how John Stewart personifies his blackness, but still.

Anyway, he deals with his crisis of personal identity the way any of us would...like Kano from Mortal Kombat:

I'll leave you with one ore piece of wisdom from John Stewart: