From 2004's Green Lantern: Rebirth to the return of Hal Jordan as the DC Universe's primary Lantern in 2005's Green Lantern series, right up to successful events like Sinestro Corps War and Blackest Night and then the New 52 relaunch in September 2011, Geoff Johns has been the head honcho of the Green Lantern universe for about nine years. As of May's Green Lantern #20, Johns will be making his exit from the world of Green Lantern to focus on his Justice League work.

In an interview with the AP , Johns said, "I was getting to an end point and a story line that made sense for me. I felt like it was time to close my run and focus all my energies on the Justice League corner of the DC Universe. It was a very, very hard decision. I absolutely love these characters but I felt like I had a story line that really made sense and felt emotionally satisfying and felt very big and very epic."

"I'm really proud of all the stuff we've built with Green Lantern — from Larfleeze to the different corps," Johns continued. "The universe has expanded and will live well past my run. It was more than just telling another story, but really giving back to the character by expanding and adding to their mythology."With Justice League of America launching later this month and the big Throne of Atlantis crossover storyline about to wrap up, Johns is focused on building that corner of the universe and letting someone else take the reigns of the Green Lantern title. But if you're concerned that this might mean the end of new Lantern Simon Baz, don't forget that he's a cast member of JLA. And don't worry, Arthur Curry fans, Johns is still sticking around on Aquaman as well.There's no word on who will be taking over Green Lantern, but expect that announcement in the coming weeks.In a post on the DC Comics blog , Johns revealed that issue #20 will be an extra-sized 64-page issue, and revealed this killer gatefold cover by Doug Mahnke:

Joey is a Senior Editor at IGN and a comic book creator. Follow Joey on Twitter @JoeyEsposito , or find him on IGN at Joey-IGN . He will love Star Wars until he becomes one with the Force, and then he will continue loving it as a blue ghost.