Joe Nerds Out: ‘Lanterns’ Season 1 Was A Fresh Take In A Stagnant Genre 

I can’t lie, folks. I’m really bummed that this is the first weekend that I don’t have a new episode of Lanterns to look forward to. As both a DC fan and someone who memorized the Green and Blue Lantern oaths in high school, Lanterns has easily become one of my all-time favorite superhero adaptations. 

Now, a loud minority on the internet has been complaining that the series wasn’t a space opera, and I’m going to assume those folks don’t actively read comic books. Sure, they may have read a few Green Lantern runs here and there, but there’s a difference between reading a handful of books (or worse, reading a Wikipedia article and acting like an expert) and actually going to a comic book shop every Wednesday to keep up with the new heat. 

Because I read new books every week and came of age when Marvel was pumping out Ultimate, Maxx, and Marvel Knights versions of its characters, I learned long ago there is never one set version of any character. As such, I don’t really care if an adaptation “follows the comics.” I just want it to stay true to the characters and tell an interesting story, and Lanterns did that in no small way.

Kyle Chandler is the definitive Hal Jordan. Aaron Pierre is the definitive John Stewart. Nathan Fillion is the definitive Guy Gardner. Through both the performances and the writing, it was crazy to tune in every week and see characters I’d only known through comics and cartoons come to vivid life. 

Since this adaptation was meant to introduce a wider audience to the Green Lantern mythos, I think they made a smart move by keeping the setting grounded and gradually introducing the Green Lantern lore throughout the series. 

As a comic book reader, Lanterns is the exact kind of adaptation I’ve been clamoring for. One that embraces its comic book roots while also creating an entirely new interpretation of the characters. This was a take on the characters I never could’ve imagined, but I’m so happy we got it.

I thought John’s origin was brilliantly done; the writers found a way to combine all his different comic backstories. We see him as the soldier, the artist, and the architect, and it all feels organic. While Hal is more broken than we’re used to, he still feels like Hal Jordan across the show’s time periods, with the hologram version being the standard Hal we’ve come to know and love in the comics. 

The series also did a fantastic job explaining what it would take for Guy Gardner to become Earth’s Green Lantern. The Rushville incident sullied the brand, so the Guardians needed someone who would blindly follow orders and play the PR game. It makes so much sense why he didn’t want to get involved in the Jarhanpur conflict during last year’s Superman, because the Guardians don’t want to be implicated in another Rushville-type incident.

Lanterns feels like a comic book in a way that a lot of superhero shows and movies don’t, especially in our post-Avengers world, where everything has to be part of a connected universe. Lanterns feels like a solid six-issue limited series that tells a cool, self-contained story while still tying into a larger universe. Something like this summer’s Wolverine: Weapons of Armageddon, a fun mini-series that had a cool impact on the larger Avengers Armageddon event that’s currently ongoing.   

If I had one problem with the show, it’s the Sinestro of it all. Sinestro is the biggest of the big bads in Green Lantern, but what makes his stories so compelling is his relationship with Hal. Sinestro was Hal’s mentor turned close friend in his early days of wielding the ring. While the show implies that this history, and Hal’s disillusionment, largely stems from having to imprison Sinestro, we still haven’t seen Sinestro at full power. 

They hint that the fear toxin on the dead planet Sinestro is trapped on will be what he uses to forge the Yellow Lantern ring, but Hal being dead before we even get to the Sinestro Corps War is gonna make some of those future storylines hit a little less hard. 

That said, Sinestro implied there is a way to resurrect Hal Jordan, which makes me think there could be Black Lantern magic in the future. Blackest Night is one of the most iconic Green Lantern stories, centered on the Black Lantern ring, which can revive the dead in a zombified form. This story also introduces the White Lantern ring, which can fully restore people to life. Sooooo, there is a lore-accurate, get-out-of-jail-free card should the writers want to bring back Hal Jordan. 

I also would’ve liked to see how Noah broke Sinestro out of jail. I think two more episodes focusing on Hal’s time post-jail and Noah coming into his own as a manhunter would’ve made the finale more impactful. I thought the finale worked well thematically, and I’m excited for the status quo it set up, but I think it rushed some key plot details. 

John has no meaningful relationship to Sinestro, and Guy is just the Guardians’ lapdog. While I think killing Hal worked thematically for Lanterns and paves the way for John to come into his own, I do think the decision could ultimately hurt future Green Lantern stories in the DCU. I really hope we get a prequel in the form of a show, animated series, maybe even a movie, because Chandler is too good as Hal Jordan for this to be his only at-bat. 

Those small quibbles aside, Lanterns is arguably one of the strongest DC projects ever made. As someone who saw Green Lantern (2011) in theaters at midnight and went home profoundly disappointed, I never thought we would ever have it this good as a Green Lantern fan. Lanterns manages to take itself seriously, have thematic and emotional depth, while never forgetting to have fun. We got manhunters, dead alien races, Earl the carnivorous alien plant! Sure, the aesthetic may read as serious HBO drama, but this is an ‘80s buddy-cop movie, Green Lantern-style. 

I’m excited to see what role John plays in next year’s Man of Tomorrow, but I’m also hoping we get a second season of Lanterns. I’m also hoping that they find an organic way to bring back Hal Jordan, because at the end of the day, this is comics, babe. And if I’ve learned one thing from comic books, it’s that no one is ever really gone.  

SEE ALSO:

‘Lanterns’ Season Finale Recap: Hal Jordan’s Killer Is Revealed

Lanterns Episode 7: Hal Jordan Confronts His Past And Future