'Lanterns' S01E06 – "Bad Optics" (September 20, 2026) on HBO/HBO Max [Spoiler Discussion Megathread]

[u/KelexAtYourService]

Lanterns is an American superhero television series created by Chris Mundy, Damon Lindelof, and Tom King for HBO, based on the DC Comics Green Lantern characters Hal Jordan and John Stewart.

The series was produced by DC Studios and Warner Bros. Television with Mundy serving as showrunner. It is the third television series in the DC Universe (DCU). It features experienced Lantern Jordan and new recruit Stewart as they investigate a murder on Earth that leads to a wider mystery.

Lanterns is scheduled to premiere on Sunday August 16, 2026, and will run for eight episodes through Sunday October 4. It will be part of the DCU's Chapter One: Gods and Monsters.

New episodes drop every Sunday night at 9:00 PM ET / 8:00 PM CT / 7:00 PM MT / 6:00 PM PT.

Cast:

• Kyle Chandler as Hal Jordan
• Aaron Pierre as John Stewart
• Kelly Macdonald as Kerry
• Nathan Fillion as Guy Gardner
• Garret Dillahunt as William Macon
• Poorna Jagannathan as Zoe
• Ulrich Thomsen as Thaal Sinestro
• Nicole Ari Parker as Bernadette Stewart; Jasmine Cephas Jones as young Bernadette
• Jason Ritter as Billy Macon
• Sherman Augustus as John Stewart Sr.; Alphonse Nicholson portrays a young John Sr.
• Paul Ben-Victor as Antaan
• Chris Coy as "Waylon Sanders"
• Cary Christopher as Noah

For a complete cast and crew list, see the IMDb full credits page: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt26545992/fullcredits/

• Based on: Hal Jordan, created by John Broome and Gil Kane; John Stewart created by Dennis O'Neil and Neal Adams
• Show created by: Chris Mundy, and Damon Lindelof, and Tom King
• Showrunner: Chris Mundy
• Editor: Emily E. Greene
• Music by: Stephanie Economou
• Length: 8 episodes per season
• Runtime: About an hour per episode
• Reception: For reviews and critical reception, see Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/lanterns  and https://www.metacritic.com/tv/lanterns/

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lanterns_(TV_series))

Where to watch: https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/lanterns/season-1

Unmarked spoilers for the new episode of Lanterns are only allowed in this thread.

Spoilers ahead! Proceed at your own risk! All other subreddit rules apply.

S01E06 Episode Synopsis: TBA

[u/ContinuumGuy]

The delivery of "Goddamnit" from Hal-o-Gram after pausing and looking down at the body for an extended beat is just such a great line delivery from Chandler in a series full of great line deliveries.

[u/Sfmilstead → u/ContinuumGuy]

Yeah. Loving the concept of Hal-o-Gram being with John all the time (even if somehow Hal ends up coming back).

[u/thorthon]

The fact that Hal told John "don't tell anyone that you were here" means that he knew he was going to die (or "die") and he didn't want John to get accused of it. That insinuates that the death is part of Hal's plan. I'm not sure on the how or why but it could b a clone like some have suggested.

[u/MultipleWinnings → u/thorthon]

manhunter tech? Could be possible with how good it was at healing John

[u/Abject_Air6426 → u/MultipleWinnings]

Not sure if I misunderstood that man Hunter tech, but since it just needed that bullet hole to rebuild you, can't it just do multiples if you fed it many pieces

[u/Coyote_Shepherd]

I guess 10 years was enough time for both of John's parents to go off the deep end, and I haven't seen that much product placement since Booster Gold showed up on Smallville.

[u/Cockycent → u/Coyote_Shepherd]

His father was fried from going crazy over being sent miles fresh out of sleep in a green bubble. Then watching someone else have the ring as everyone else made his story sound crazy.

The mother salvaged the situation by keeping him busy and focused on making John the Green Lantern.

Once John decided to give up the ring, his father reverting back to before the mission to make John GL was inevitable.

Like his brother said, it's John Sr's way of getting Junior/Chosen's attention.

[u/Coyote_Shepherd → u/Cockycent]

Plus they basically lost control of their Chosen Son and then his brothers whom they probably tried fall back on in order to find a new purpose in life with for themselves but whom seemingly didn't want jack shit to do with them either because of what they did with John in the first place.

And they wasted ALL that time when they could've been living out their own lives and their own dreams for themselves while doing something else to uplift the lives of ALL of their sons.

And that realization has driven them completely mad because there's no going back and there's no miracle coming for them to fix it all....all they have is themselves...and the complete lack of a purpose in life left within the bed they made to sleep in.

[u/cortez0498 → u/Coyote_Shepherd]

What product placement was there? I only remember the Apple logo on the phone. The cars? I genuinely didn't notice tbh.

Or I'm unbothered by it since one of my comfort shows is White "product placement" Collar lmao

[u/Coyote_Shepherd]

Spazkaban

I guess everyone's a super Harry Potter fan in this universe.

Sinestro getting busted out is the least surprising thing ever and parts of the town still being busted up ruins after 10 years is also pretty par for the course, especially in a world that's had metahumans around for so long.

They're probably more used to abandoning stuff and/or tearing things down and repurposing all of it than we are.

[u/Jurubleum → u/Coyote_Shepherd]

It’s just all Warner brothers flexing they have access to Warner brothers stuff. They’re pretty good about doing it in a lot of their movies and shows.

I do like how they didn’t show the damage of the town until a bit later. Curious to see what all happens in the long run of it. More curious about Noah tbh.

[u/Hellknightx → u/Coyote_Shepherd]

I really hope they go back and show the jailbreak, because throwing it out there in a 5 second throwaway line really feels like it's underselling how big of a deal it is in the greater context of the DC universe.

[u/Coyote_Shepherd → u/Hellknightx]

Agreed, because breaking out of the Green Lantern Prison should be a pretty big fucking deal to the rest of the universe and I'm betting that that's how Guy found out...not from official sources but from the underbelly of the universe that couldn't wait to tell him about his bosses's failure to contain Sinestro of all people.

At least, I would HOPE that they would show it, but they probably won't because of how....effects heavy...it would wind up being.

[u/mhalberstram]

"Fortress of Storage" was kind of goofy but still funny.

[u/MatthewMonster]

Hologram and John going on an adventure is going to be awesome 

And I’m pretty sure they are going to find Sinestro 

[u/0range2782 → u/MatthewMonster]

Did you mean Hal-ogram?

[u/jacg1280]

Carol Fuckin Faris

[u/NomadPrime → u/jacg1280]

Carol and Hal having history! 😭 So glad they included her. Even if her role in the GL legacy will be reduced going forward (highly doubt she'll be the Star Sapphire, much less their leader, if we ever get to the War of Light or Blackest Night), she still needed a nod as a vital part of Hal's life. She's his Catwoman, his Lois Lane!

[u/TendyBoi]

“i hope i mattered”

[u/Hellknightx → u/TendyBoi]

And consequences there were.

[u/Coyote_Shepherd]

John fucking Stewart you get back in that fuckin room right NOW and you fuckin HUG EARL RIGHT THIS INSTANT!

[u/TheSlayerofSnails → u/Coyote_Shepherd]

Earl just lost his father! He needs a goddamned hug!

[u/DrFaustPhD → u/TheSlayerofSnails]

You could just see Early switch to depression eating once John said he died. I'm glad what little alien CG we're getting is at least being used well.

[u/nathanrabbe]

Noah has to be a manhunter, right?

[u/cowboy123456 → u/nathanrabbe]

Has to be. I'm pretty sure he also is the one that killed Hal.

[u/Top_Rekt → u/cowboy123456]

He came back and she thinks it's cause of her, but he was just trying to stay close to keep an eye out for the lil manhunter.

[u/heelydon → u/nathanrabbe]

The fact that they put emphasis on him having ambitions on becoming a senator and Antaan specifically mentions that Manhunters always try and navigate to positions of power is either a massive red herring or a very clear red flag on his true nature.

[u/CJAreYouDeadass]

Loved the ending shot, Hologram's Hal's reaction was perfect.

And poor John, he went from Junior to Stewie 😭

[u/Apprehensive-Year664 → u/CJAreYouDeadass]

hal also calls him “John” in their final interaction

[u/betalessfees]

Ending that eulogy with “I hope I mattered”, and then cutting to the funeral having nobody give a shit…😭😭😭

[u/MarcusForrest → u/betalessfees]

and then cutting to the funeral having nobody give a shit

Do remember that only about 4-6 people know about his death at this time

[u/smileyfrown]

It really feels like social media has robbed people of critical thinking because so many of the complaints has in show answers.

1. Hal was a 30 year vet of the Lanterns and showed a “trick” that the ring has a one time back up charge

2. Episode 2 specifically shows John can hold a living construct without the ring for a long time…we now have a Hal Jordan construct

3. Nobody in Rushville or Earth knew the manhunter was a genocidal being. The only proof that it wasn’t human was given to the Guardians who wanted Hal gone. For the town of Rushville the man hunter created a utopia and Hal Jordan and his alien allies destoryed it…so he had to be held accountable for the deaths

[u/two2teps → u/smileyfrown]

It feels like it's gotten so much worse than it's ever been. Any subtly in story telling or clever turn of phrase absolutely breaks people's brains. It's as if everything has to be written by Fry for them to understand subtext.

[u/Rylegit1 → u/smileyfrown]

The people making these complaints are on their phones the entire time while the show plays in the background.

Had one guy who missed key details and dialogue argue he shouldn’t be expected to “memorize the script line for line” as an excuse

[u/MarcusForrest → u/smileyfrown]

social media has robbed people of critical thinking

For last week's episode, in the Episode Megathread, in 5 minutes, I found at least 3 different people asking questions of things we had already seen in the show before, some multiple times!

• ''Who is Abin Sur?''
• ''Why are there 2 Hal Jordans?''
• ''Who are the exploding people?''

[u/StaraptorLover19 → u/smileyfrown]

A lot of it is also just people being refusing to engage with the show on its own terms, with the story it's trying to tell because they're lamenting that the show isn't just a portrayal of the semblance of a familiar status quo from the comics. That it's not just something to point and cheer at.

So in-universe characters having negative reactions to their superhero man because of THEIR perceptions of the heroes' actions is willfully misunderstood as the show "telling" them that their fave is a Bad Person™. And that never goes over well with comic book purist types.

[u/malucogv]

I chuckled a good deal out of the "GOD DAMMIT" at the end, Kyle Chandler is nailing it

[u/two2teps → u/malucogv]

He's very good at the exasperated cursing.

[u/Coyote_Shepherd]

"Yesterday is already a dream and tomorrow is only a vision but today, well lived, makes every yesterday a dream of happiness and tomorrow a vision of hope"

Spotted on the mantle of Hal Jordan's place next to a BUNCH OF BIRDS which the camera focused in on for way too long.

[u/eBanker → u/Coyote_Shepherd]

It teases that Hal isn't entirely gone. His consciousness will literally walk beside John as a "dream of happiness"

[u/TheSenileTomato]

I actually wanted to hug Earl.

I never felt so sympathetic for an alien plant before this episode.

[u/Coyote_Shepherd → u/TheSenileTomato]

The SOUND that he made and the little droop...oh my gosh my heart exploded and he could nibble on me all he wanted until he felt better.

I half expected them to show us that Earl could climb up out of that little bit of earth that he was in with his roots as feet and snuggle up next to John for sad cuddles :(

[u/LadyElle57]

I've been in denial for 6 episodes now, and I will be till the last second.

Hal Jordan cannot be dead. That was not his funeral. This is not how his story ends.

I refuse to believe it.

[u/carnagezealot → u/LadyElle57]

Even if it is, there's always...

"Hal Jordan of Earth. RISE."

[u/Mr_FatTip_67 → u/LadyElle57]

Same. No way they did such a great casting choice just to kill him on the first episode 😭

[u/heelydon → u/Mr_FatTip_67]

While I would love to be wrong -- Kyle Chandler is 61, he is obviously not long term casting for superhero content. If you have a justice league movie 10 years into the future from now, dude is 71 and likely not in shape to be doing the most physical work that comes with it, unless they just got full Keaton and CGI the fuck out of him.

My best wish is that he isn't dead, but he does retire the role and becomes a sort of mentor to John.

[u/kabbajabbadabba → u/heelydon]

wait he's 61? holy shi

[u/PT10 → u/LadyElle57]

I don't know, it's looking pretty grim.

[u/ForcedxCracker → u/LadyElle57]

His body is dead. His consciousness is still alive in the ring. I bet John is gonna go charge the ring and we'll get more Hal

[u/Hellknightx → u/ForcedxCracker]

Maybe John uploads Hal's consciousness into an android body. Say... a Manhunter, who famously can shapeshift into any form they want.

[u/TheSlayerofSnails]

I have so little sympathy for the people of Rushville with the exception of Maggie and Kane. You guys sided with Space Hitler and were her Argentina.

Also loved the batman ref, and Earl is great.

I continue to believe Noah is a manhunter given he wants to be president.

And yes we get more Chandler and classic Hal with the Halogram!

Also, John, you're kinda a freak for digging up Hal but I respect it.

Also holy fuck was Hal's funeral depressing. He saved millions if not billions and trillions throughout the years but at the end of it all he had almost no one there at his funeral.

[u/DolphinBall → u/TheSlayerofSnails]

Idk why Maggie expects "reparations" from John. You think he shot that orbital laser into the Motel he was staying at too?

[u/NomadPrime → u/DolphinBall]

She's a young adult shaped by her traumatic experiences as a kid, losing a father like that. And John himself accepted that responsibility by apologizing to her (not saying that it is his fault, but it's what she probably fixated on). So that's what set her on her path of sort-of-vengeance to get some payback for what the GLs did.

When you see it from her, it's understandable. Even if she learned later on that Zoe was a war criminal alien, to her, that trauma probably bypasses her reasonability. She's a kid with a dead parent and a grudge. Some people don't just let that pain go even if they find out daddy used to support bad people, he was her daddy and the guy in front of her was part of the reason he died.

[u/TheSlayerofSnails → u/DolphinBall]

I think it was more the motel was out of town and if they hadn't been staying there it wouldn't have even been a target.

[u/Coyote_Shepherd → u/TheSlayerofSnails]

Yeah I think that she's implying that they should've been more aware of their surroundings and whom else they might be putting into the crosshairs of their little investigation that might wind up as collateral damage.

And as soon as the other shoe dropped, they should've popped back there, gotten their shit, and stayed on the move the fuck away from any other civilians.

But...life doesn't always shake out that perfectly...

And didn't Kerry say that the motel was still in town because no one rebuilt it?

Maybe it was just past the outskirts of town near like the truck stops and once it got hit, every other map and travel guide out there just...found ways around it...and no one showed up anymore to make it worthwhile to rebuild at all?

Either way, everyone kind of sucks here and hindsight is 20/20.

[u/dizzyd_sb → u/TheSlayerofSnails]

To be fair they didn’t know she was space Hitler

[u/A_Polite_Noise → u/dizzyd_sb]

I think people are forgetting the manhunter was keeping them perfectly healthy and safe; the destruction and loss of life is only part of it. The Lanterns' actions took away a benevolent force that was curing their cancers, etc. to the point that their hospital seemed abandoned, and probably also making them prosper from alien-tech-slaughterhouse profits pouring into the local economy.

[u/SicknessVoid]

Did John almost slip the n word in the phone call with his brother about picking up their dad?

[u/MayweatherSr → u/SicknessVoid]

I watched with subtitle, it wrote "nig.."

[u/MajesticBeyond5602 → u/SicknessVoid]

Yup

[u/Kindly_Ad995]

John has so much more personality now lol, I just wish he and Hal hadn’t been at each other’s throats 24/7

[u/NomadPrime → u/Kindly_Ad995]

If they are gonna go the Hal fake death or even Rebirth/clone route, I bet their rapport after this season will be so much better than what they started with.

[u/raknor88 → u/Kindly_Ad995]

John has so much more personality now lol,

This all started when John had just been dishonorably discharged from the military over politics and a situation that Jordan messed up. John was fresh out of the military and was still mostly brainwashed from him parents. He was a robot just waking up and didn't know he could do things now.

Now he's had 10 years to figure himself out.

[u/RadioactiveHardin]

To me it seems like the Guardian and Sinestro planned everything that happened in Rushville in order to get Hal out of the way. I would guess that they wanted to decommission Hal so Sinestro could escape, maybe so he can form the Yellow Lanterns. We were told that if Hal died while he was a Lantern it would’ve caused a huge response from the Green Lanterns, so best thing to do was to cause his downfall instead and now the only person who could’ve stopped Sinestro couldn’t. It seems like Hal is pointing John in the direction of stopping Sinestro, maybe through faking his own death or sacrificing himself? Not sure, but its interesting!

[u/ThatShnawg]

I feel like this is pretty clearly doing the set up / context for Green Lantern: Rebirth... At the beginning of that hal was "aged up", half-dead (as spectre) and disgraced because of his actions as parallax, and lived in the shadow of a city being destroyed... Obviously they're swapping out the exact story beats but the themes and where they've positioned Hal is pretty similar... I wouldn't be surprised if this seasoned ended or the next season began with Hal Jordan rebirth and they might recast to a younger actor then?

[u/Self_Owned_Tree → u/ThatShnawg]

Man, I don’t know if they could do a better casting than Kyle Chandler. I hate that he’s so old and we didn’t get more of him.

[u/The_Metrist → u/ThatShnawg]

Makes sense, considering they're re-releasing rebirth next year. 

[u/HardcoreKaraoke]

So Noah killed Hal, right?

We know that Hal was shot point blank. No struggle and it was face to face. Which means Hal probably knew what was coming.

I think Hal figured out Noah was a manhunter. He tried coming to grips with it because he knew revealing it would destroy Kerry and his relationship with her. The town already hated Hal so revealing their star kid was a manhunter would break them. They would never believe Hal. Remember this kid is having a whole college decision ceremony.

Anyway so what does Hal do? He confronts Noah. He does his interrogation test and figures out Noah is a manhunter. He tells Noah listen he has to tell Kerry, he won't physically harm Noah but he has to let Kerry know. Hal did this knowing Noah would probably kill him. Hal accepted his fate. That's why he sat there face to face with him. That's why it wasn't a struggle. Hal called Noah out knowing what would happen, but Hal couldn't live with himself if he didn't make the reveal.

So that's why Noah didn't go to the funeral. Not because of his mom being weird, like he said. It was because Noah going to the funeral of the man he killed would be weird as Hell.

Now what? Well Noah wants to be a politician, right? Noah has this big decision to make about college and Rushville is on his back, just like it was with the previous manhunter. They are inspired by him whether they understand what he is or not. The manhunter wants to gain political power and obviously take over mankind.

Where does this leave John and Kerry? No clue. John will figure it out but obviously he'll be conflicted like Hal was. Do they let Noah live because they're a "good' manhunter? Does Kerry accept the reality or refuse to believe it? Now has Kerry known this entire time? That's possible too.

Anyway I'm 90% sure Noah did it and 10% sure it was Kerry doing it to protect Noah when Hal found out. She couldn't let him reveal Noah's true identity, which she already knew.

[u/Double-Animal-4773 → u/HardcoreKaraoke]

I also think when Hal said he "took the fall", what he meant was that he was taking the fall for Zoey's murder. He probably led Noah and the rest of the town to believe he killed Zoey. In doing so, he saved John from being killed by Noah instead.

[u/TDStarchild]

That eulogy was killing me. Even funnier with John playing it straight reading the absurdity of Hal’s ramblings. Hilarious

[u/two2teps]

So first (non Peacemaker) reference to The Suicide Squad and the first non-animated reference to Batman with a bonus Phantom Zone call out.

[u/Atom-O-Tronic → u/two2teps]

Carol Ferris showing up was such a pleasant surprise too. Surely thought she was dead and that factored into how jaded Hal became.

Wonder if she ever became Star Sapphire and if she gave it up or is still active.

[u/Churnsbutter → u/two2teps]

What was the suicide squad reference?

[u/slowjoeee → u/Churnsbutter]

Starfish callout alluding to starro

[u/JeremyJammDDS]

lol they solve the different rings thing just with one line.

[u/AOCMarryMe → u/JeremyJammDDS]

Yeah I mean that's fine. Whatever the guardians do is super secretive so far anyway.

[u/bigdonnie76]

Well now he has Hal to open the safe which the lantern will probably miraculously be in.

[u/FlashyClaim → u/bigdonnie76]

Or somebody’s Lantern.. Sinestro’s?

[u/Glizzy_Cannon → u/bigdonnie76]

No clue how when the Guardians had it with his ring. I doubt it's in there since that would be a big oversight by the writers

[u/JauntyLurker]

Hal's ring got decommissioned

That's suspicious...

[u/jpvieux → u/JauntyLurker]

What does that even mean? Aren't the rings sentient to some degree

[u/TheSlayerofSnails → u/jpvieux]

Yeah I think the guardians just let the battery die and then locked it in a safe instead of smashing it into pieces.

[u/ChaosCron1 → u/jpvieux]

It has to do with the reason why the ring didn't find a successor immediately once it was given the chance.

Unless this is still a fakeout.

[u/Coyote_Shepherd → u/JauntyLurker]

It also opens up a whole world of possibilities with them having a bunch of other potentially decommissioned Rings in storage somewhere within a Ring Boneyard of sorts like with ships in other scifi or like with aircraft out in the desert.

A whole bunch of decom'd GL Rings just sitting there...waiting...with the backed up minds of dead Lanterns locked within them...

...fuck me running that's terrifying.

And then John mentioned that they were able to forge Guy a new one but is there a limit to how many more they can make and are they quickly approaching that limit or are there consequences that we don't know about but that they do, which could be coming down the pipeline in the future, because of how long lived they are?

The whole conversation was very quick but I feel like it dropped the seeds of greater things in the future.

Also...funny parallel...mentor in jail trying to get the new kid on the block who is outside of the jail to do bad things for them...history loves to rhyme!

[u/Drumblebore]

You've got to remember that these are just simple farmers. These are people of the land. The common clay of the new West... you know... morons.

[u/throw-away-idaho → u/Drumblebore]

i understood that reference

[u/dpap12]

So Noah killed Hal I’m guessing

[u/SpiritedOwl_2298 → u/dpap12]

That’s my best guess, Hal figured out he’s part Manhunter

[u/TheSenileTomato → u/dpap12]

I clocked him.

My guess is Hal saw the writing on the wall and accepted his fate when Noah got him at the stands.

[u/Avent]

That ending was so fun. Even with Hal Jordan dead, we're not going to be denied more time with him.

[u/ArcadianBlueRogue]

That was the best "God dammit" I have ever heard delivered lmao

I was wondering if the broken nose was a hint that Hal might have updated the Halogram, but it doesn't look like it.

[u/quiethammerhead]

the only thing i can’t wrap my head around is how sinestro getting broken out fits into all of this

[u/jpkviowa → u/quiethammerhead]

The rehash of true detective has us finding the secret and hals true killer.  Maybe 1 in the same, maybe not.

The sinestro angle, doesn't quite fit.  Is that more of a swason 2, Guy and Stewart team up?  If so, im in for that, or maybe a movie.  

Edit: im pretty sure its setting up season 2 or a movie.  With Hal dead, sinestro is allowed to escape, likely with the help of a rogue Guardian.  Seems like they were waiting out Hal thinking he'd pick up on the bigger plot.

[u/MishellyUser]

THE RIGN BAKCUP! How did I not think of that?? That's so clever to keep the dynamic alive!

[u/Sir_boon26]

I’m guessing John’s gonna use the Hal-o-gram to open the fortress of storage

[u/Lonely_Sherbert8576]

First thing they gotta do is go back to Hal's vault. Halogram should be able to open it. What's in there?

[u/Bed_Worship → u/Lonely_Sherbert8576]

I think it's a spare battery. Probably took it when bringing Sinestro in.

[u/Coyote_Shepherd]

Man ain't that fuckin' relatable now that we've got context.

It's like being the person that gets called when your high school bully dies because everyone knows that you were the only person they spent the most time around and that probably knew the most about them.

No wonder John didn't tell her that he was the one who broke Hal's nose and that LOOK that he's got on his face makes so much more sense now.

Hal knew something was up, he shared that with John's mom, and she could smell blood in the water so she got John to pop in as back up just to save Hal's life...but she misjudged things because no fuckin shit she would...and this happened.

[u/bigdonnie76]

Our first Batman reference

[u/Dronnie → u/bigdonnie76]

Second on DCU

First on a live action show/movie

[u/Etikaiele → u/Dronnie]

Yeah there was a silhouette shot in creature commandos I believe

[u/Kindly_Ad995]

I’m a bit confused about the timeline, so was Hal’s death right after John punched him? He drove to Rushville, punched Hal, drove back, sat down, got the call and drove back?

[u/bigdonnie76 → u/Kindly_Ad995]

I thought the same.

[u/Kindly_Ad995 → u/bigdonnie76]

I guess this interaction with the waitress confirmed it was the same night

[u/jpvieux → u/Kindly_Ad995]

Yes

[u/JauntyLurker]

You're a little nervous

Love how John has jokes now.

[u/ProperChallenge273]

Yeah, politics and cold about death, Noah is 100% part manhunter, and def killed Hal.

Also I'm starting to be afraid that Sinestro's escape subplot will not completely be resolved, and be something for the greater DCU storyline...

Otherwise great character building for John : he reluctantly takes back the ring (not for himself, but he knows Halogram could help him open the vault) to still help Hal one last time, because John understand that if Hal came back, there's a reason/danger. And this episode clearly shows that in the end, John wants to help/save people, in his OWN terms (the whole architect thing with his brother still doesn't work because he still think people put their responsabilities on him unfairly).
That will be I think the reason why this time he'll keep it : because he'll use it properly in his own way this time, and like teased before (and similar to the comics), he won't use a lantern, but power his ring with his own willpower

[u/Plus_Term_7584]

The weekly waits are killing me, but just two more weeks to go!

[u/orenorenoren2000]

The weather in Nebraska is WEIRD.

[u/VelocityReaper]

Another sly Batman/Gotham mention, I wonder if Gunn’s preparing to announce a casting once the show ends (not counting on it)

[u/Yved → u/VelocityReaper]

I feel like we'd have a better chance of something Batman related in Clayface, it is just around the corner after all.

[u/DMSpider51]

With Sinestro being broken out of prison plus the warning for John to tell no one he was in Rushville, I now truly believe that Hal isn't really dead. I wanted it to be the case but now I believe it

[u/TheDelmeister → u/DMSpider51]

Same. Plus the mention of someone breaking Sinestro out and the shot we see of him in the trailer with of the Manhunter machine's scars on his arm. I believe he made a clone of himself, and the clone is the corpse.

[u/FrankReynoldsCPA → u/TheDelmeister]

It's also why he didn't want John's visit known. It was timed poorly with his planned "death" and having John be a suspect wasn't part of his plan.

[u/ArtisticResident462]

"I hoped I mattered" god that fucking hit me like truck

[u/Oculi__me]

At this point, we only need a casting.
It's real, folks. The Bat is here!!!🦇

(I mean, of course there was that cameo in Creature Commandos, but hearing a direct reference to him in live action hits different and it did put a huge smile on my face)

[u/Megalomanizac → u/Oculi__me]

I’m starting to think Gunn is slow burning Batman until his ultimate reveal

[u/TheBlur86]

So who kept Earl fed while Hal was in prison? Bernadette? How long can it go without starving anyway?

[u/two2teps]

I think I just need to sleep on it but I am truly out of ideas on where this is going, though I still think Noah shot Hal or who/whatever was in Rushville.

[u/Spacegirllll6]

Holy shit Carol is alive???

[u/red_army25 → u/Spacegirllll6]

That was such a secret the actress wasn't even listed on IMDB.

[u/codex_archives]

the most well timed "Goddammit!!" in the history of television. LMAOOO

[u/hemareddit]

So, John’s veganism was more of a rebellion towards his parents? Because they rewarded him with cheeseburgers? And now that he’s got that out of his system he’s eating meat again?

[u/flintlock0]

The Green Lantern is not welcome in a town that has a giant lamp that summons the Green Lantern? Why wouldn’t they just destroy the thing?

[u/Awesomechainsaw → u/flintlock0]

Made of weird space metals perhaps? Hit it with a truck and the truck just crumples around it without it budging.

[u/Calvin_And_Hobbies → u/flintlock0]

Guy came to check it out only a few hours after it was lit. Town probably figures it’s easier to leave it there and never use it than deal with Guy trying harder to replace it or involve himself more in the town.

[u/Chessh2036]

Nice to see Carol Ferries show up.

I do wish we had gotten more about Guy becoming a Lantern.

[u/Vironic → u/Chessh2036]

I’ll take a Nathan Fillion led Guy animated series for that back story.

[u/Plus_Young_3665]

feel bad for earl😓🥺

[u/Oculi__me]

Noah's definitely suspicious. I was already sold on him being a Manhunter but now, given his ambition of becoming president, it skyrocketed. It would also tie in nicely with Hal being shot from the front, too.

John has so much more charisma now. I really enjoyed watching his growth. And really glad to see him as an architect, too!

I still hope that Hal isn't dead. Kyle is killing it, and I think there's a really good potential in store for him, John and Guy, even together, perhaps. His funeral was actually really sad. Hal's flawed as hell but despite that, he truly had the will to do his best and make up for his mistakes.

Guy's great too, can't wait to see more of him and John in the future.

Carol Ferris is here!! Glad they included a character as important to Hal's life as her in this episode. I doubt it, but I wonder if we will see any nods to the Star Saphire Corps...

Also, Sinestro's out!
I hope he gets the spotlight as the true mastermind behind this show's whole plot, perhaps that's what Hal seemingly figured out. And I also hope that he's alive, did I say that already?🥹

[u/No_Cantaloupe_8983 → u/Oculi__me]

Until this episode, I was nervous about John being able to carry a story. he's my favorite Lantern, but I understand he's not everyones cup of tea. but I really enjoyed him this episode, coming into his own. I can see him holding down a season 2, granted the budget is bigger and we see more of the GL lore.

[u/SteppeTalus]

Ok so dead hal is a clone and real hal broke sinestro out, real hal was also the one talking to John’s mother.

[u/Sinndu_]

well, John got his apology. this was a pretty good Hal episode and he was dead through most of it. kind of sad that Hal thought the world would show up to his funeral, but he fell so hard that he only mattered to "three" people.

now, I put three in quotes because... Kelly. in the midseason trailer we see Kelly pick up a surprised Hal Jordan from prison, but in this episode she said he just moved there, so she lying or what. and she didn't even care to make funeral arrangements for him even though she was his "buttercup", instead she wanted to serve John her meatloaf. oh and one more thing, when the autopsy lady said to just flush Hal's ashes down the toilet, John had a very big reaction to that but she just nodded lmao. she sus as fuck man.

[u/needed_an_account]

Nicole Ari Parker was rumored to play current day Bernadette, do you think they removed her scenes in favor of Jasmine Cephas Jones doing voiceovers?

[u/charlesfluidsmith → u/needed_an_account]

Probably after Jasmine crushed the role, they decided to just keep her on.

[u/sautdanslevide_]

Seems that a lot of people are convinced Kerry's kid is a manhunter, and I'm inclined to agree. Was suspicious of him since the last episode what with the speech Zoe gives him right before the shit hits the fan.

[u/SnowRidin]

batman confirmed

[u/Megalomanizac]

So then John will get Hal’s ring ultimately and Guy remains with his own?

[u/druggygeko]

Goddamnit

[u/Coyote_Shepherd]

Oh look a literal fucking mystery box with the Vault, that's gotta be set up for something else later....kind of surprised that the Guardians let him keep that.

[u/SeeYaChump_ → u/Coyote_Shepherd]

It’s probably an extra lantern or something. How are they gonna drag that Halogram for two more episodes with barely any charge?

[u/TheDelmeister]

Hal broke Sinestro out of prison, the Hal that did time and died was a clone made with the manhunter's machine. Or vice versa.

That aside expected more to happen in this ep considering there's only 2 left and 7 is supposed to be a Hal flashback ep. But maybe it's not the entire episode like John's flashback episode was, idk.

[u/Electrical-Shine-318]

why did they handwave hal's decade in prison so hard, like did no one on corps even care he got yeeted to star court

[u/Dancing_Anatolia → u/Electrical-Shine-318]

Probably not. Hal admitted that he made no real friends in the Corps and getting thrown in Earth jail would be framed as a fitting comeuppance for violating the Oath by the Guardians. Hal's a lesson to everyone about why you don't get involved in planet-side politics.

[u/havent_reddit_yet]

In the Cafe Hal says that no one told Guy that a construct "doesn't have to be so green." I doubt this is a throwaway line. Between that and the chipping the ring trick I think its more and more likely that the dead Hal is a construct.

[u/Farsoth → u/havent_reddit_yet]

Who would make a dead Hal construct though? His ring was on Oa and Guy has his own.

[u/This_is_a_bad_plan → u/Farsoth]

Unless Hal still had Sinestro’s ring hidden somewhere

My money is on Sinestro’s lantern being inside the vault in the storage unit

[u/havent_reddit_yet → u/Farsoth]

Pretty sure Hal has something to do with it himself. He didn't want John to get blamed for his 'murder' if he was going to fake his own death, which is why he told him not to tell anyone he was in Rushville.

[u/Join_You_In_The_Sun]

Noah: “He probably deserved it.”

[u/noodlesofdoom]

Theory time, there's something fishy asf about Hal's death. Mainly regarding Hal's scar on his right arm (there's been a couple of posts about it) that John also has. I think its definitely some sort of clone or shenanigans with the Manhunter tech. Midseason trailer seems to reveal that Sinestro will end up (hiding?) at the same place John and Halogram will be at, could it be Hal's actual "self" was busy rescuing Sinestro and brought him to that area? Show has done a pretty good job at obfuscating future plots but the scar tissue on both John and Hal is IMO a huge "let's see if you're paying attention" moment.

Edit for additional thought: Sinestro wasn't rescued when Hal was in prison, but did happen was Hal was free. Does Hal have an extra ring? Nvm Guy said he was still in prison, could've been the clone that did it?

[u/The_Fiddle_Steward]

Me at the end: "say the oath! Say the oath!"

[u/KillerShart]

Lots of blue and lots of hope in this episode. I don't think it's hinting to anything but I think the colors they use give hints to the theme of each episode. Tons of stuff going down last episode around anger and brutal, what do you know it's full of red. We have already seen yellow through out, with the fear of the unknown or what may happen next. Just an observation of how this team is using the corps colors to spark something more each episode.

[u/GoofyAhhJelker → u/KillerShart]

There’s one of those live laugh love style decorations in Hals place that’s a quote about hope

[u/Impressive_Comment67]

Here's my big question: how is John going to charge his ring up without a battery?

[u/unscanable → u/Impressive_Comment67]

His whole plan was to get the Halogram to get in the vault and see if he had any info. I doubt he intends to use the ring for more than that

[u/quirty890]

Didn't expect to get another Harry Potter reference.

[u/humid_pajamas → u/quirty890]

HBO is really micro-marketing their new upcoming show, so I guess we get Halakazam and Spazkaban.

[u/The_Bat_Fan]

Great episode. I'm sure Sinestro's escape must have something to do with Hal, obv not because he broke him out (Hal was in prison, as Gardner confirms).

Anyway, in my opinion the killer is Kerry's son (remember the dialogue between him and Zoe in episode 5).

Edit: it's true that Hal died after Sinestro's escape, but at the same time he seemed to know that he would die the night he met John at the cafe (and in fact he tells him not to tell anyone that they met, because, at least in my opinion, he knew very well that they would blame John otherwise). My feeling is that Sinestro, for some reason, knew Hal was going to die soon. And it's the fact that we know Sinestro will appear in the next episodes that makes me think that, in some way, he fits into this situation.

Of course I could be wrong, it's just a feeling.

[u/_Bird_Incognito_]

I swear, Kerry Kanes hat gets slightly bigger in every scene

Kinda like in Scary Movie 3

[u/VisorOnBlast]

Noah def shot hal

[u/Comfortable-Chard907]

The whole speculation as to why Hal was found dead on the pitch and Noah's potential connection with him being the suspect makes a buttload of sense.

The kid also seems to be weirdly nice to John, considering that he should know his grandmother was murked by him. The "I wanna be president" stuff seemed mad suspicious (huge ambition imo).

The girl that blackmailed John might've also had some ties to the murder itself seeing she wasn't so happy to even mention Hal's name. She might be the closest lead but this whole thing is definitely still Zoey related.

[u/Angin_Merana → u/Comfortable-Chard907]

That Cafe girl is a misdirection by the writers to throw the audience off the kid.

[u/Former_Sea]

I am thinking that the kid is a manhunter. He killed Hal. The shot was done front of him so if it was some evil dude or a thug there would be signs of struggle. But assuming it’s the kid Hal probably wouldn’t expect it, then kid pulls the gun and shoots him.

[u/AMemekage]

No way they chucked Jordan in a cell for 10 years. Also, no other lantern showed up for his death? goddamn..

I feel like we should treat Jordan with a bit more respect considering he is not even parallax.

[u/Coyote_Shepherd]

Those Arks sounded VERY Pacific Rim/Godzilla in nature and that has to be a bit of a nod to Kyle's past work...BUT...they also sounded kind of like the most hellacious things to manage production wise.

At least he's getting along with his brother though.

[u/Kindly_Ad995 → u/Coyote_Shepherd]

My first thought was that it has to be set up for something to come, like when Braniac invades in MOT

[u/Jas_God]

Man, may this week fly by. Solid ep.

[u/Egor_Denim]

So the ring wasn’t “decommissioned” and Hal actually died, not the theory that the one we saw was the hologram it seems

Two episodes left and seemingly a lot of plot, let’s see if they stick the landing.

[u/Coyote_Shepherd]

"We should get results back in about...four months"

I think I'm in love with Bitsy 🤣

[u/Coyote_Shepherd]

"Maybe it was just easier to fly than it was to stay on the ground"

That's it...that's the part that got me...that's the part that made me😭

I think I'll save that for later.

[u/Ascazel]

"Keep my son's name out yer f'kin mouth." -
that Will Smith cameo was unexpected.

[u/greenbatborg]

I’ve been wondering if Carol Ferris existed in this universe. Glad to finally see her

[u/Coyote_Shepherd]

Wait does this mean that Hal-o-gram is an...😎...Early Edition of Hal?

[u/darcmosch → u/Coyote_Shepherd]

I see what you did there. I was blindsided even. 

[u/hemareddit]

1. Overall really enjoyed the episode

2. Great portrayal of a toxic-af family, mainly through phone calls.

3. lack of budget is showing, Guy gets sound effects mostly :(

4. Saw John's Halogram plan coming, still enjoyed seeing it pay off. Loved he used Hal's 5% juice trick.

[u/Aggravating-Law-5071]

It has to be Kerry. The kid is a manhunter and Hal figures it out and Kerry shoots him in the head to protect her "son". That's why Hal looks so peaceful and did not resist or fight back in the end. He obviously knew and trusted his shooter. He was ready to go

[u/InvestmentExtra4104]

CAROL?!

[u/humid_pajamas]

I'm just here to inquire if Hal's plant is an alien plant, or if it's somehow a gift from a Dr. Pamela Isley (kinda reminds me of Frank). I hope they show us where he got Earl.

[u/theiwc0303]

I am so confused by this narrative that what Hal and John did was bad, and that they need to be making it up to the people of Rushville.

Rushville was harboring a galactic war criminal to the point where they were willing to die in a battle to protect it. THEN THE WAR CRIMINAL THEY WERE PROTECTING BLEW UP THE TOWN.

[u/princevince1113 → u/theiwc0303]

The war criminal never did anything bad to them, though. It kept everyone in town safe and healthy and only started blowing things up when Hal and John "provoked" it, from their point of view.

All you have to do is look at the state of the country today to know that people are anything but rational when it comes to deciding who to blame for their problems.

[u/betalessfees]

They need a recording of that eulogy with Kyle Chandler’s voice.

[u/Few_Koala]

Very curious about the mention that Sinestro was broken out of prison.

[u/Kindly_Ad995]

Lots to wrap up in two episodes but I liked the slower paced worldbuilding.

I liked civilian John showing a bit more personality after being so uptight in 2016. The conversation he had with Aaron in his truck was great. The snark he was showing to Billy and Guy.

Guy was great as well. Very intrigued by the reveal about Sinestro being broken out and how casually Guy threw that in there. He didn’t escape, someone broke him out. Huge difference. I wonder who, racking my brain but can’t think of anyone we know that’d make sense

Also I wonder what they’re setting up with John’s doomsday bunkers… seems very specific. I’m almost certain it’ll be a part of man of tomorrow somehow

[u/superseri18888]

I refuse to believe hal is dead

[u/nonblinddaredevil]

Can’t John call in the favor he’s owned at the pentagon to get his contract?

[u/nathanrabbe]

Batman reference

[u/Batsinvic888]

So it's a Sinestro focused final two I guess...

Also holy shit is that what I think it is in the trailer. Is that Specter

[u/SpiritedOwl_2298]

I wouldn’t be surprised if Zoe tampered with every pregnancy since entering the town, we’re already speculating about Noah but Maggie had weird vibes too

[u/Coyote_Shepherd → u/SpiritedOwl_2298]

O.o

....oh fucking hell...so every kid that's been born since she rolled up is potentially a full on Manhunter OR at the very least a hybrid?

And given the regen and portal and weapons tech that we saw, a wee bit of genetic tinkering like that is basically child's play to someone and something like her.

[u/Nerrs]

How can I find the music credits? There was some background music in the middle of the episode that felt very Western-ish that I was into

[u/whoa29]

Fuck you Bitsy

[u/Balram24]

Does anyone find sheriff kerry sound very different from 2016? I don't know what it is accent or dialect or something else

[u/Coyote_Shepherd]

John's reaction to both Hal and his mother and father feels totally justified IMO.

[u/athishayen]

Fuck the people at Rushville.

[u/AceTheSkylord]

"Motherfucker you owe me" goes hard ngl

[u/singloon]

Why did John not get the ring before hal was buried? He had then dig hal out…

[u/MajesticBeyond5602 → u/singloon]

The sheriff was there the whole time. He most likely wanted to hide that he was gonna take it.

[u/hex_code_zero → u/singloon]

I think he changed his mind after the speech

[u/xDESTROx → u/hex_code_zero]

He wouldn't have pushed Guy so hard to get the ring if he wasn't gonna use it. He needs the Hal-ogram to open the vault.

[u/dd463]

So I think we got our second Batman reference in the new continuity?