Hal Jordan's Green Lantern Legacy Actually Makes His Successors Weaker

BY JUSTIN EPPS PUBLISHED 6 DAYS AGO

An exploration into the psyche of Kyle Rayner hints that the greatest achievements of Hal Jordan may be doing damage to his fellow Green Lanterns.

Green Lantern Hal Jordan and Kyle Rayner DC Comics It looks like the notable ring-slinger Hal Jordan casts a dark shadow over the legacy of the Green Lanterns. A deep fear of Kyle Rayner's exposes how Jordan may be inadvertently harming his fellow members of the Corps.

The Green Lantern Corps is composed of individuals all across the galaxy, and though the organization has existed for eons, there's been an uptick in members recruited from Earth. It all started with Hal Jordan after receiving a ring from a dying Abin Sur. Since Jordan's acceptance into the Corps, there have been a decent number of Green Lanterns hailing from Earth. While every member of the Corps has something special to their name, Jordan is often regarded as the 'greatest' Lantern. Even after his destruction of the Corps during his Parallax phase, the hero was able to reclaim his honorary title and even lead the Corps on several

And it seems that some members may be floundering under the legacy that Hal Jordan has left behind. Kyle Rayner revealed his own insecurities in DCU Halloween Special #1's short story "Fear of the Dark" by Eddie Berzanga and Tervor Hairsine. It’s Halloween and Kyle is spending it with the Green Lantern Corps’ Mogo. The planet sized Lantern is using its particular telepathic abilities to help Kyle master his fear after his intense battle with the Sinestro Corps. Mogo conjures up a number of nightmares for Kyle to overcome: Lanterns Kyle has failed, the ghost of Kyle's mother, even the ghastly visage of Sinestro appears to voice strong criticisms against Rayner. Nothing speaks to Kyle's inner doubts more than when he witnesses his own origin story with Hal Jordan replacing him and informing Kyle of how inefficient he is as a Lantern.

Hal Jordan is Hurting His Fellow Green Lanterns Hal Jordan and Kyle Rayner Legacy DC Comics Kyle’s insecurities likely stem from when he was forced to host the Sinestro Corps’ entity of fear, Parallax. During the Sinestro Corps War crossover, Kyle was broken down by Sinestro in order to properly serve Parallax. Everything Kyle feared was magnified to an extreme degree. So it may not be the most pressing anxiety on Kyle’s mind all the time. But deep down, Kyle likely fears that he may not be as worthy as Hal Jordan of a Green Lantern Power Ring.

Truth be told, Hal isn’t any better a Lantern than any of his fellow Earth compatriots. Jordan may have had some grand achievements, but so has every other member of the Green Lantern Corps. Even Kyle took on the arduous task of keeping the Corps going after its light was nearly extinguished by Parallax. But Hal is likely the most venerated Lantern of all time, and it seems to be taking a toll on his allies. Hal could probably stand to refute the claims that he's the 'greatest' Green Lantern, if only to take the pressure off of his allies and assure them that the Corps' efforts are a team one. Otherwise, Hal Jordan's legacy may become a crippling weakness for his friends in the Green Lantern Corps.

One early Green Lantern story shows Hal Jordan in a less than heroic light, predicting the fall to darkness that was waiting in his future.

green lantern hal jordan One early Green Lantern story shows Hal Jordan has always been the Justice League's resident jerk. Though he wasn't technically the first to wear the symbol of the Green Lantern in comics, Hal Jordan was the character who brought Green Lantern to prominence, as well as the first human to be a member of the intergalactic Green Lantern Corps. Hal Jordan first appeared in Showcase #22 in October 1959, the creation of writer John Broome and artist Gil Kane, who would come to define the majority of Hal Jordan's iconic early adventures. Hal's early adventures, however, didn't exactly focus on his sense of empathy or depict him in a heroic light.

Of course, most fans know by now that Hal Jordan's legacy as a Green Lantern, and as a superhero, are controversial to say the least. The 1993 destruction of Coast City (during Reign of the Supermen) led directly into the infamous Emerald Twilight arc, which features Hal Jordan taking on the villainous persona of Parallax. Although much has been done in the way of redeeming the character in the years since, at this point Hal Jordan's reputation is somewhat tarnished by his anti-heroic actions, not just as Parallax, but later as the Spectre. Not only that, but in retrospect, even many of Hal Jordan's earliest moments seem somewhat unbefitting of a heroic figure.

Even as far back as Green Lantern Vol. 2 No. 1 (from John Broome, Gil Kane, and Murphy Anderson), the inaugural issue of Hal Jordan's first solo series, Hal could be seen behaving in a less than heroic manner. In the case of the "Menace of the Giant Puppet," Hal takes on the Puppeteer, a villain with the technological capability to control the actions of others against their will. The Puppeteer wreaks havoc in the city, using his technology to force local criminals to carry out crimes on his behalf. When Hal tracks down the Puppeteer, he finds that he is dressed in yellow - which, at the time, was the one weakness that the Green Lantern power ring had. Because he couldn't act on the Puppeteer directly, he had to work creatively. His solution was to tie the Puppeteer's limbs to ropes, and then walk him to the nearest police precinct like a puppet, humiliating him in full public view.

green lantern cruel hal jordan Hal's decision demonstrates a vindictiveness completely unbecoming of a superhero, especially one who is also a law officer. The job of even a cosmic law enforcement officer is to protect and serve the public - not to publicly humiliate suspects. Heroes like Superman endeavor to perceive and encourage the humanity of their enemies, but when things don't go his way, Green Lantern is only too willing to take it out on his enemy. Batman frequently gets called out for his inner darkness, but from the very start, Hal Jordan treated his powers as giving him license to treat others however he sees fit.

Of course, Hal Jordan would later be guilty of much worse - and he was also capable of much better, performing a countless number of actual heroic deeds throughout his superhero career. Nonetheless, this moment of utter and undisguised spite seems completely unbefitting of someone in Hal Jordan's position of power and authority, and it was perhaps the first hint of the darker things lurking inside his heart. Though Parallax has since been explained away as a distinct entity - a fear-eating parasite which took over Hal Jordan - it is hard to look at Hal Jordan's early behavior as a Green Lantern and not see the darker side evident within him even from the start.

Jessica Sula. I wonder which role?

Derek Theler- Guy Gardner Diane Guerrero- Jessica Cruz Riz Ahmed- Simon Baz Cheyenne Jackson- Alan Scott

Comment below your fancast

Reading starting in New 52 with GL, Corps and Guardians. Is the Red lantern run essential to understanding everything?

I was never one of these "Nathan Fillion for Hal Jordan" fancast guys but with Green Lantern now a TV series instead of a movie I think he has a much more realistic chance at playing the character,. Especially since Hal will most likely be the older mentor to John Stewart and the rest of the corps.

What do you guys think? Is he too old or would you like to see Nathan Fillion play Hal in the TV series

Recently Geoff Johns teases updates on Green Lantern projects, what can it be ?

• Makeup.

Honestly, I'm gonna assume that this show will need an extraordinary talented makeup artist. It's basically the next big sci-fi/space opera TV show. No way it can do without at least one alien character in a prominent role. While there are some known lanterns from other planets in the comic book who will be relatively easier to depict, like Sinestro, Sodam Yat, Arisia and Soranik Natu for example. It will be very interesting to see which route the production team will choose in case of characters with much more otherworldly looks like Salaak, Tomar-Tu, Saint Walker etc. If they want to push the boundaries of comic book adaptations on TV, it will be their chance.

• CGI and VFX

One can only resort to so many contrivances in terms of VFX use when it comes to TV show about space cop until it becomes obvious. Sure, they can spend half a season on Earth dealing with local threats like an ancient Manhunter who has suddenly become active after hundred years of slumber. Talented writer can make an excellent story about officer who has to fight against enemies without his ring. But eventually the main plot must gain a grandiose scale. It's inevitable.

Kilowog and Arkillo have to look humongous and scary. Beautiful views of space should be impressive and visually striking. It's a major part of DC cosmos. This world needs to evoke sense of wonder and fear. It has to be both immersive and extraordinary. So I hope they will find a VFX artist with a remarkable vision of this world.

• Set pieces design.

How will TV version of Oa or Korugar look? Will sciencells and the crypt of fallen GLC members be as memorable as they should? What details we will see on one of the Corps distant outposts? How scary are the interiors of Ranx and how beautiful are the halls of Zamaron's palace? There are a lot of challenges for the production crew in terms of set design. They need to find a person who will be up for such difficult task.

What other challenges do you think that production team will face? Which one will be the hardest in your opinion? Do you know any candidates for the job? Maybe you have an additional suggestion for the position of a composer or a costume designer.

• 1. Extensive worldbuilding.

It's quite simple. Long episodic form allows to tell more detailed story. It just has more time for all the ancient history of the Corps. More information can be broken onto smaller pieces and conveyed with lesser or no harm to pacing. They will have enough amount of screen time to flesh out another sector of the universe or a different Corps. We can spend several episodes on Korugar and experience how it changed under Sinestro regime and after it fell. They can show more aspects of what it means to be a Lantern. One moment heroes can work as space detectives, the other one as peacekeepers and then later as soldiers on the battlefield.

• 2. Cast rotation.

In a similar fashion, with a TV show one can use more characters. Today it's a story of a rookie Lantern Kyle Rayner taking his first flight and a year later it will be his turn to teach Jessica Cruz how to overcome her greatest fear.

It also will have a much bigger impact when the story will lose a character you've known for a several seasons, rather than a random face who appeared on screen for a couple of minutes. Heroes will come and go and each of their individual story could have a meaningful introduction, then lots of memorable moments and eventually a meaningful end.

• 3. Alien perspective and a different sci-fi angle.

That's probably going to sound really weird, but I'm certain that a film adaptation is bound to be strictly human centric. Typical story of an earthman who gets caught up in the distant worlds' wars. Something akin to Flash Gordon or John Carter. When the whole story is conveyed through the eyes of a human protagonist. With a TV show they can make one or several of the main characters an alien Lanterns. Soranik Natu, Arisia, Sodam Yat for example. We could see the main story through their perspective. Maybe it's a small detail, but I think that's a very important aspect which I really don't want to lose.