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EPISODE REVIEWS - "COLD FURY"

Green Lantern: The Animated Series
Cold Fury

Original Airdate - February 2nd, 2013

A horde of Manhunters gives chase as our heroes' hope runs thin. Their will is truly tested as they prepare for an inevitable face-off against the unstoppable Anti-Monitor - a battle for the lives of everyone in the galaxy.

Written by Ernie Altbacker
Directed by Rick Morales

Review by Neo Yi

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Review:
Aya's supposed death from "Loss" made me reluctant for a bit because the possibility of her being killed off her real was dripping with potential unfortunate implication: the infuriating "Women in Fridge" moniker seem to be in effect for the time when the major female protagonist died to advance Razer's character. Thankfully, she did what I suspected she'd do: download her CPU to a destroyed Manhunter. I was a bit disappointed for the time because I was expecting her to dig up some secret codes or method of defeating the Anti-Monitor from the Manhunter she took over, but by the end of "Cold Fury", I definitely didn't stick with that train of thought! With Aya alive, the episode thankfully dives deeper into both their character arcs.

Razer, yeah, let's talk about him. With Aya back and forced to confront the love issue, he dives back into denial and rejection, refusing to see her as anything but a machine who so happens to resemble his late wife. I'm glad they finally had Razer bring up the issue with Aya possessing her face. After so much progress between the two, Razer's rejection and refusal to love Aya warps them straight back to Square One. Frustrating yes, but understandable. He lost two loves in his life and it definitely took a toll on this guy. Aya may have returned, but it's not enough. Fearful it'll happen again (perhaps permanently the next time), he cuts off any potential romance between the two. I guess hiding emotions/affections towards Aya is the best defense mechanism he can employ to himself.

Which is why I find it really interesting that Aya does the same. Her entire growth is about her gaining humanity and Razer was at the heart and center of it. To have him reject her brings out an interior pain she's never felt before. I really love the stunned expression she makes as she repeats "Processing" over and over, but I love her confession to Hal more. She forces the issue on him and repeatedly questions what went wrong. It's like watching a broken little kid: something negative happens to her and she doesn't like it and she'll keep whining about it because it really, really, really bothers her. And like a broken little kid, it lingers constantly in her processor until confronting Razer who tells her to shut down everything when it comes to focusing on the mission. OH RAZER, of course she would take it super-literally because she can actually do that.

So Aya gets Super Green Lantern and becomes the new head of the Manhunters. On the one hand, it's a very good and even logical step after Razer essentially pulled her heart out. She's never felt emotional pain before, but she dislikes it so much that she can't comprehend why it has to exist. The episode "Blue Hope" had her vicariously chat to a Manhunter why she disagrees with their philosophy: emotions are super awesome and so amazingly expressive that she can't understand their action. To have her in the complete opposite of the spectrum is really saddening to see, but a great irony. Now she gets the Manhunters goals and wants all emotions destroyed. And I also just realized (and I'm aware I'm an idiot for not figuring this out sooner) this works on a thematic level, too. My Green Lantern lore is lacking, but all the major rings represent a core emotion or expression of action from emotionally-driven species (love, fear, hope, will, etc), so for a villain to get rid of them is well, brilliant. My only possible complaint is that the major female protagonist, previously dead, is now officially "the villain." However, it's still an extension of her character arc and something that can easily develop her in the process. Yeah, I though the Anit-Monitor died too quickly, but if it means another deeper look at Aya, I'm curious to see where it'll go.

The rest of the cast was fine. I like Hal playing "Team Dad" when he tries to comfort Aya over her woes. I like the Zox giving Hal a short good luck before the big fight and of course, big wavy energy from the Oa Guardian. All in all, it's a great episode with some pretty lofty expectations to fill. (Blue) hopefully it'll be worth the ride.


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