By Zack Quaintance — Far Sector #12 marks the end of what has been a very different sort of Green Lantern maxiseries, one that has essentially operated entirely free of most (if not all) past continuity. Placing its main character in a titular far sector (a verrrrrrry far sector), the book has featured all new cosmic worlds, races, and conventions, with the only thing ranking as familiar being that said main character is a Green Lantern…sort of. That, however, is not the only part of Far Sector that has felt novel, divergent, and free.

It occurred to me while reading this finale that Far Sector’s very approach to comic storytelling is far outside (heh) that of the usual Big 2 story, even those billed as different or experimental. There’s no recognizable villains, not any that we can immediately understand, anyway. And there are certainly no contrived reasons for our hero, Sojourner "Jo" Mullein, to punch any aliens (or to create a giant green fist from her ring to punch said aliens). There haven’t even been many traditional big comics set pieces to ramp up the drama, no deaths that the hero just couldn’t stop, no dastardly betrayals by hidden villains, no giant cosmic disasters or destinies to ratchet up the tension.

That’s not to say that the series entirely lacked parts of these things, or action, or dramatics. It just took a different path through them, often backgrounding them or moving past them in ways that freed up narrative space for other, different interests. As I finished reading this 12th issue — roughly 18 months since I read the first issue — the scenes I remembered most were of a very different nature. I remembered giant set pieces around dancing, I remembered complex misunderstandings around the inherent qualities of existing that differ between species, and I remembered issue after issue where communications breakdowns felt like the chief obstacle or challenge. This phrase gets tossed around often (to be fair, on this very website), but I truly don’t think I’ve ever read a comic quite like Far Sector, especially not one published by either of the Big 2.

This finale in and of itself was all sorts of excellent, too. As you can see from the preview pages within this review, Jamal Campbell really holds nothing back with this ending issue, delivering colorful and vibrant sci-fi theatrics that power us toward the book’s conclusion. Campbell — whose star has been rising some time, most recently via the breakout hit he illustrated immediately before this book, Naomi — has done incredible work throughout, to the point I can call this book with confidence the best work of his career. Jemisin’s storytelling might function with another artist, but this feels like just as much Campbell’s book, featuring as it does a new sort of aesthetic for a Green Lantern comic that I’ve had a hard time shaking when I try to read other new stories within the property.

In the end, Far Sector feels destined to be an evergreen hit comic for DC, a different sort of book with a wider appeal, perhaps viable in indie bookstores the way mainline and more traditional superhero stories are not, free as it is from continuity and relatively predictable storytelling tropes. The thing I’m most excited about as I put down this finale issue is reading these comics as whole all at once. Month to month — and eventually two months to two months — the complexities of what this series was trying to do were at times hard to recollect, especially for those of us who lack time to reread issues, or who read dozens of other comics between each new chapter. I know at times I certainly had a sense that some of the nuance of these comics was being lost on me. I’m thrilled to soon have a chance to read it all at once.

Overall: Far Sector #12 marks the end of a tremendous run of comics, a different sort of cosmic Big 2 comic that has the potential to be a long-term evergreen seller, even in bookshops that don’t specialize in selling comics. 9.5/10

REVIEW: Far Sector #12

Far Sector #12
Writer: N.K. Jemisin
Artist: Jamal Campbell
Letterer: Deron Bennett
Publisher: DC Comics - Young Animal
When Jo Mullein left Earth for parts unknown, little did she know she’d end up becoming a Green Lantern at the farthest outpost in the known universe, dealing with a complex culture that was about to have its first murder in centuries. Investigating that death unearthed a lot of secrets and made her a lot of enemies, and it all comes to a head in this rousing final issue. Written by multiple Hugo Award winner N.K. Jemisin and drawn by Naomi co-creator Jamal Campbell, this epic space adventure is one you will want to read over and over again.
Price: $3.99
More Info: Far Sector #12
Collected Edition: Far Sector is due out Oct. 19

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Zack Quaintance is a tech reporter by day and freelance writer by night/weekend. He Tweets compulsively about storytelling and comics as Comics Bookcase.