The Big Picture

• Lanterns, a new Max series, will focus on Hal Jordan and John Stewart, highlighting the Emerald Guardians and their unique abilities.
• The Green Lantern Corps has a rich history, with iconic characters like Alan Scott, Hal Jordan, Guy Gardner, John Stewart, Kyle Rayner, and newer additions like Simon Baz and Jessica Cruz.
• The Green Lantern legacy extends beyond traditional heroes, with other characters taking up the mantle and exploring cosmic adventures in the vast universe.

One of the greatest superheroes of all time, DC Comics' very own Green Lantern, is a hero who has been around since the Golden Age. Though the Emerald Knight has gone through plenty of different incarnations in the past 80-something years, with countless costumes and characters to choose from, one thing has always been clear: no evil will escape his sight. James Gunn and Peter Safran have announced the upcoming Max series Lanterns, a True Detective-inspired series that will be the first attempt at a live-action series surrounding the character, and we couldn't be more excited.

For the first time since Green Lantern: The Animated Series, the Emerald Guardians will be highlighted all on their own, which is truthfully how they shine best. Reportedly, Lanterns will focus specifically on the Hal Jordan and John Stewart incarnations of the hero, though we still have hope that some of the other Green Lanterns of Earth will make their way onto the series at some point. No, we can't cover everyone to ever don a Green Lantern ring here, but we'll do our best to highlight Earth's primary Lanterns as best as we possibly can.

Alan Scott

The Original Golden Age Hero

Way back in 1940, the very first Green Lantern appeared in All-American Comics #16. Created by Martin Nodell and Bill Finger, Alan Scott was based more on the fantastical story of Aladdin and his magic lamp than he was on any science-fiction tale, and that's remained true of the character ever since. A founding member of the Justice Society of America, Scott was primarily based in New York City, though he also had connections to Batman's hometown of Gotham. In fact, modern Batman stories recognize Scott as a direct influence on the Dark Knight's crime-fighting career. He's also been an influence on Superman too, as the character cameoed in the famed "Absolute Justice" two-parter on Smallville.

Green Lantern was born in the Golden Age, which ran throughout the 1940s, and heavily focused on fighting the social ills of the time. This became a defining period for the JSA, and even well into the 21st century their origins (including Scott's) still involve the Second World War. During the Modern Age, it was revealed that Scott's power ring and lantern were derived from a meteorite called the Starheart, a weapon that the Guardians of the Universe (who created the Green Lantern Corps) failed to attain before it reached Earth. This gave Scott an honorary membership in the Corps as Earth's first Green Lantern. Well, at least as far as humanity knew. While most Green Lanterns have a weakness to the color yellow, Scott's ring strangely didn't work on wood.

Hal Jordan

The Silver Age Standard

Probably the most famous of all the Green Lanterns, and traditionally known as the "greatest" of the Corps, Hal Jordan made his debut as the new Green Lantern in Showcase #22 in 1959. A former fighter pilot-turned-test pilot, Jordan discovered an alien named Abin Sur after he crash-landed on Earth, bestowing upon him his power ring and lantern, and the responsibility associated with it. After joining the Corps, Jordan effectively became a space cop, securing Sector 2814, helping to found the Justice League of America, and saving the galaxy time and again. Well, until he became the supervillain Parallax, that is, where he wiped out the entire Green Lantern Corps.

Thankfully, all that was explained away in Geoff Johns' groundbreaking Green Lantern: Rebirth where Jordan was revived as a hero. It also explained that Parallax is actually an evil alien entity, so that helped smooth some things over too. Jordan's actions during The Sinestro Corps War, Blackest Night, War of the Green Lanterns, and more only solidified his status as a true superhero and redeemed him in the hearts of many. He even leads the Corps for a while after the space cops were in dire need of new leadership. In other media, Hal Jordan's Green Lantern is the star of the 2011 Green Lantern film where he's played by Ryan Reynolds, Green Lantern: The Animated Series, various animated films (including Green Lantern: First Flight), and even the original Super Friends!

Guy Gardner

The Bronze Age Replacement

Hal Jordan's first replacement, Guy Gardner was in the running to receive Jordan's ring originally, but because Jordan was closer, Guy was passed on. Nearly a decade after Jordan's debut, Guy was introduced in 1968, though he didn't take over the mantle immediately. After completing his training on Oa, Guy returned to help Jordan on a few cases until he was hit by a bus and landed in the hospital. This trauma put Guy's personality through some drastic revisions as he became a lot more hot-headed, ill-tempered, and conceited, though he still served as a member of the Justice League International. He even helped Superman battle Doomsday during The Death of Superman.

Unlike some of the other Lanterns, Guy has spent some time with other power sets as well. For a while, he used Sinestro's yellow power ring and even donned a Red Lantern ring in recent years. In between that, he gained a sort of alien-shape-shifting ability through a race called the Vuldarians, becoming the hero Warrior, though that was short-lived. When Jordan returned in Rebirth, so did Guy, who took on a power ring for himself once more to help reignite the fallen Green Lantern Corps. Over the years, Guy has made his way into various animated appearances, namely on Batman: The Brave and the Bold and Green Lantern: The Animated Series​​​​​, and even appeared in the terrible live-action Justice League of America pilot (albeit, with Kyle Rayner's costume).

John Stewart

The Fan Favorite

Arguably the most loved Green Lantern besides Hal Jordan, John Stewart was Jordan's second replacement after Guy Gardner sort of took on a life of his own. Both a U.S. Marine sniper and an architect, Stewart's constructs are a lot more complex and intricate than some of the other Lanterns out there, and he takes real pride in that. First appearing in Green Lantern #87 in 1971, Stewart quickly became a fan favorite, appearing in some of DC's biggest events at the time including Crisis on Infinite Earths, Cosmic Odyssey, and eventually Green Lantern: Mosaic, which was a defining arc for the character as he dealt with his failures as a hero and a husband.

In more recent years, John Stewart received a huge boost in popularity through his role in the Justice League animated series and its follow-up, Justice League Unlimited. Though he didn't originate in the series, his complex character arc and prominence earned him lots of well-deserved love from an entirely new generation. Of course, he's also appeared in other animated ventures such as the recent animated film Green Lantern: Beware My Power, but his time on JLU solidified his role within the DC Universe. In fact, the character was even supposed to appear in Zack Snyder's Justice League, played by Wayne T. Carr, but it didn't work out due to the development of the HBO Max series. It's also worth noting that Arrow's John Diggle (played by David Ramsey) was retconned into being an alternate-universe John Stewart within the Arrowverse, though that isn't reflected in the comics where both Stewart and Diggle exist separately.

Kyle Rayner

The Torchbearer

After Parallax destroyed the Green Lantern Corps, Kyle Rayner was introduced as the universe's last Green Lantern after a surviving Guardian of the Universe named Ganthet bestowed upon him the very last working power ring. Since Guy Gardiner didn't want it, the job came to Kyle, a struggling artist who quickly became one of the prominent members of the JLA. It didn't take long for Kyle's popularity to skyrocket among fans, and he was quickly introduced into Superman: The Animated Series before briefly appearing in Justice League Unlimited alongside John Stewart.

Kyle became known as the torchbearer as he almost single-handedly kept the Green Lantern Corps going, and proved vital to their reconstruction. He's also worn more Lantern rings than most, becoming the sole owner of a White Lantern ring for a while after he had first bonded with the green willpower entity Ion, giving him near god-like powers. As an artist, Kyle's constructs are often a bit cartoonish, but that doesn't mean there isn't power behind them. Without Kyle, Hal Jordan might have never been resurrected as a hero, and the Corps would've never returned. No doubt, he's one of the most faithful members of the Green Lantern Corps who kept them afloat at a time when all hope seemed lost.

Simon Baz

The New Guy

Introduced in the final act of Geoff Johns' Green Lantern run, Simon Baz was accidentally conscripted into the Corps after Hal Jordan and Sinestro's power rings merged, choosing Baz as the latest recruit. After a tussle with the Justice League, Baz eventually helps the Green Lantern Corps defeat the Third Army, an evil experiment by the Guardians of the Universe who hoped to replace the Corps with mindless automatons. Thankfully, Baz got the hang of it quickly and proved invaluable to the fight.

After Johns' run, Baz was instructed by Hal Jordan to team up with another new Green Lantern, Jessica Cruz. The two of them became the co-Green Lanterns of Earth while the other four Lanterns were off saving the galaxy elsewhere, even taking Jordan's place on the Justice League for a time. It's also worth noting that Baz is the only Green Lantern to carry a firearm with him on duty, though Batman eventually persuades him to give up his gun and stick to the power ring instead.

Jessica Cruz

The Breakout Star

Not long after Simon Baz was introduced, Geoff Johns introduced Jessica Cruz in The New 52 run of Justice League. Jessica had accidentally attained the supervillain Power Ring's titular weapon, which drove her further into a state of fear. As a shut-in with agoraphobia, Jessica had experienced trauma that had consumed her, but only upon getting hold of the power ring was she able to work with the Justice League and overcome her own fears. Eventually, the villain's ring left her finger, only to be replaced by a Green Lantern ring. Impressed by her courage, the Corps inducted her into their ranks.

As Baz's partner and a member of the League, Jessica became a breakout star among her Green Lantern contemporaries. Her courage and perseverance, especially in spite of her own fears, are inspiring, and are obvious reasons why we love the character. Appearing in the JLU animated film Justice League vs the Fatal Five and briefly in the theatrical feature DC's League of Super Pets, there's no doubt that Jessica's popularity will only increase going forward, and that she's well-earned her place within the Green Lantern mythos.

Sojourner “Jo” Mullein and Beyond

The most recent addition to the Green Lantern moniker, Sojourner "Jo" Mullein first appeared in the 2019 series Far Sector, written by science-fiction writer N. K. Jemisin. After Jo is approached by a Guardian of the Universe, she's given one year to use her Green Lantern ring to make a difference in the world, or else lose it. Aside from her solo series, Jo has made her way into the mainstream Green Lantern books as well and seems to be here to stay following DC's Infinite Frontier initiative.

Beyond the traditional heroes, others have taken up the Green Lantern name too. Alan Scott's daughter Jade aka Jennifer-Lynn Hayden, who dated Kyle Rayner for a time, was the first female hero to take up the mantle as the Green Lantern of Earth. There's also Young Justice member Keli Quintela aka the Teen Lantern, the former monk Kai-Ro of Batman Beyond, the alternate universe Tai Pham, and even variants of Batman and Superman themselves. No doubt, the Green Lantern name and legacy have extended far beyond its original mission, but that just means more cosmic adventures in the future.

Green Lantern is available to stream on Netflix in the U.S.

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