After 15 Years, DC Finally Debuts The Comic-Accurate Green Lantern Fans Have Waited For

Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for Lanterns episode 8

15 years after 2011’s Green Lantern movie starring Ryan Reynolds, we now have a brand-new and uniquely comics-accurate Green Lantern (in more than a few key ways). Beyond Kyle Chandler’s Hal Jordan, who meets a tragic end at the end of HBO’s Lanterns season 1, James Gunn’s DC Universe now has Aaron Pierre’s John Stewart, a brand-new Green Lantern with an evolution bearing more similarities to the page than most may realize.

It’s worth noting that Lanterns likely features more deviations from the original DC Comics source material than similarities. However, this is by no means a bad thing, as it’s allowed the show to rework and create an engaging and original story while still using classic characters and crucial pieces of the established lore. Keeping that in mind, it’s truly fascinating to compare John Stewart’s DCU origins and ultimate evolution by the end of Lanterns season 1 to his “secret origins” in the comics.

Despite possessing a new oath and status quo as a Green Lantern following Lanterns’ finale, James Gunn’s DC Universe has still delivered a very comics-accurate John Stewart in one very important way now that he’s finally made his live-action debut after years of waiting.

There May Be Differences, But The DCU’s John Stewart Is More Comics-Accurate Than You Think

Lanterns opens with the reveal that Aaron Pierre’s John Stewart was chosen as a child to one day become a Green Lantern after Abin Sur’s ring rejected his father due to admitting his fear. Making a deal with one of the Guardians, John’s parents raised him to be fearless with the singular goal that he would one day take Hal Jordan’s place.

However, we gradually see John struggle with the expectations placed on him by his parents as well as the will of the Guardians once he becomes Hal’s trainee. By the series’ end, John determines that, regardless of his “programming/upbringing”, he still has the ability to make his own choices. For this reason, combined with seeing Hal’s obsession with the ring and the true nature of the Guardians, John initially rejects Hal’s ring in 2016.

It’s only 10 years later after uncovering Hal’s murder that John chooses to take the responsibility of Hal’s ring…on his own terms. As seen in the finale of Lanterns season 1, John makes a deal with Guy Gardner that he’ll protect Earth as a more independent Green Lantern, leaving Guy with a message for the Guardians implying that he’ll expose their role in creating the rogue genocidal Manhunters if they have a problem with it.

It’s that defiance of authority for the sake of doing the right thing that is perhaps once of the most comic-accurate parts of John’s character by Lanterns’ end, especially when we look at DC’s Secret Origins Vol. 3 #9 and its back-up story “The Architect”, published in 2014 by Van Jensen & Pat Broderick. Featuring more modern origins for John Stewart, there are also some key parallels to what was shown in the DCU’s Lanterns.

In Secret Origins, we see John at protests with his mother before joining the Marines, his honorable discharge, and his journey to becoming an architect. Throughout the story, the Guardians of Oa are shown observing Stewart for much of his life, discussing whether to induct him into the Green Lantern Corps.

Ultimately, the Guardians send a Manhunter to test his resolve and willpower. Using a ring to take on the Manhuner, the Guardians are impressed with John and recruit him. However, they also note that while John could become “one of our brightest lights”, they acknowledge that he could certainly come to challenge them if he ever had cause, agreeing that Stewart must never know that they were the ones who sent the Manhunter and endangered lives to test him.

While Lanterns may have started with John implicitly following orders and obeying his “programming”, the result is a John Stewart who’s far more like the John we see in this original Secret Origins story. Likewise, John’s new oath reinforces that comics-accurate evolution, despite being a brand-new change for his character in the DCU.

John Stewart Is Now One of Man of Tomorrow’s Most Exciting Characters

Aaron Pierre as John Stewart looking at someone with the Green Lantern signal behind him

There may have been liberties taken with the journey, but the end result still feels quite faithful to the spirit of the original comics. As such, it’s going to be absolutely fascinating to see where the DCU’s new Green Lantern goes next. 2027’s Man of Tomorrow is set to bring Superman, Lex Luthor, and more DCU heroes back to the big screen for a confrontation involving Brainiac (including Aaron Pierre’s John Stewart).

As such, there’s definitely an opportunity to further explore John’s new role post-Lanterns role as a unique kind of Green Lantern. Hopefully, the DCU will continue to build on the exciting foundation created in Lanterns, as John Stewart is more than ready to become one of the interconnected universe’s very best heroes.