Warning! This article contains SPOILERS for HBO’s Lanterns episode 1.Lanterns episode 1 did a lot of heavy lifting for the Green Lantern corner of the new DC Universe, but it ended by killing one of the most popular DC heroes, though it seems like the HBO series might have already set up the perfect way to bring him back. Lanterns is the Hal Jordan and John Stewart show, spotlighting those key characters.
Kyle Chandler and Aaron Pierre lead Lanterns‘ well-built cast of interesting characters as Hal and John, respectively, and it is impressive how both of them were perfectly cast in those roles. Chandler’s Hal is as cocky and confident as he should be, while Pierre’s John perfectly serves as his counterpoint, as a stoic and contained hero. Their dynamic makes episode 1 great.
Viewers watched as the new HBO series revealed how John looked up to Hal in awe when he was a kid and now merely tolerates him as the Green Lantern legend trains him against his will to serve as his replacement. This puts the Green Lanterns at odds. That said, the biggest moment of the episode comes at the end of the Lanterns premiere.
Shockingly, the DC series reveals that in the 2026 timeline, Hal Jordan is dead, as John and Kelly Macdonald’s Sheriff Kerry go up to his body, which is frozen in place in the bleachers back in Rushville, 10 years after Hal and John investigated an alien threat in the small town. While Hal’s death came as a blow to fans of the character, Lanterns revealed a reason not to be discouraged.
Lanterns Episode 1 Already Set Up A Way For Hal Jordan To Return
The HBO series reveals early in episode 1 that the Green Lanterns of the DCU are meant to upload their consciousness into their ring every week in case something happens to them. While Hal is not exactly keeping up with that schedule in Lanterns‘ 2016 timeline, as he had last done it in 2006, there is a kinder, less jaded version of him who interacts with John through the upload. That moment coming near the start of the Lanterns premiere feels like a solid setup for future episodes of the show, especially after Hal Jordan was revealed to be dead.There are two major ways in which this reveal could impact Chandler’s future as Hal Jordan in
Lanterns and the overall DCU. One of those is how this upload of Hal’s consciousness could be used with the advanced technology the DCU has shown to have — Lex Luthor cracked the code for interdimensional travel, after all — and inserted into Hal’s dead body or a new body created for the character. Another way Hal could remain in the DCU, though without a formal resurrection, is for Chandler’s Green Lantern to keep appearing as a mentor to John through the ring’s 2006 upload.
DC Comics’ Green Lantern: Rebirth Shows The Path To Hal Jordan’s DCU Resurrection
Hal Jordan dying and being resurrected is not new to Lanterns, as the iconic Green Lantern: Rebirth storyline from DC Comics showcases how James Gunn’s DCU could pull it off. In that event, Hal had been infected by the fear entity known as Parallax before his death. The Green Lantern’s soul would be successfully separated from Parallax by other DC heroes, finding its way back to Hal’s body. Two details from Lanterns episode 1 suggest this Parallax twist could be in play for the HBO series. The first is how Hal’s body was frozen in place, as if the show is conserving it for his resurrection.
The other is just how different the uploaded version of Hal from 2006 is to his 2016 counterpart. The younger Hal Jordan treated John Stewart with respect and was nicer than the real Hal who was training John, with the upload even questioning his methods. That personality shift, which John points out, could be due to Hal being infected by Parallax at some point between 2006 and 2016. If this theory is correct, all of those possible clues could lead to a version of Green Lantern: Rebirth that culminates in Hal being resurrected in Lanterns season 2 or the season 1 finale.
- Release Date
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August 16, 2026
- Network
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HBO
- Showrunner
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Chris Mundy
- Directors
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James Hawes
- Writers
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Chris Mundy, Damon Lindelof
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Aaron Pierre
John Stewart
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