HBO's Lanterns is a hit. Tom King and David Lindelof have crafted a small but engaging world for Hal Jordan (Kyle Chander) and John Stewart (Aaron Pierre) to play in. The True Detective-style setup sees longtime Green Lantern Hal Jordan "training" would-be GL John Stewart. They are investigating a murder in the small Nebraskan town of Rushville, which they believe has something to do with aliens. Why else would a Green Lantern care, right? Throughout the show, John is presented as the ideal candidate for the next Green Lantern of cosmic sector 2184. His ability to follow orders, his discipline, military training, and, more so, his ability to manipulate Green Lantern constructs. Lanterns presents this version of John Stewart as the greatest Green Lantern to ever wield the ring, and he is only a trainee. All thanks to his ability to conjure and maintain constructs, sometimes without the ring.
A bird in the hand...
John's first true test is after Hal instructs him to fly. Instead of taking flight, John inadvertently manifests a small bird construct. This small misstep becomes proof of John's unmatched capability as a Green Lantern. For the entirety of the episode, John is followed around by his bird construct. The bird acts independently of Stewart as a seemingly autonomous living being. It reacts to its surroundings and situations as a bird would. Then a van full of aliens jumps John. Standard fare for a Green Lantern in training. This is a pivotal moment for us as viewers, and John as well. When he regains consciousness, he asks about his bird, and the abductors reassure him that it's fine.
How is that bird fine? John was unconscious. How could he maintain his construct without actively focusing on it? At the end of the episode, Hal quips that the bird must have some deeper meaning for John to keep it active for so long. Stewart replies, "It's just a bird," and dusts the construct that has diligently followed him around the entire episode.
Is worth a Hal in the bush...
Spoilers for episode 7 of Lanterns
The penultimate episode of Lanterns season one has John working alongside a hardlight construct of Hal Jordan. A hologram pulled from the ring. In a previous episode, we learn the ring is only at 5% charge as John manifests the Halogram. "Hal" tells John they may have only an hour of "talk time" left before he disappears forever. The bulk of the early episode is dedicated to the whole, showing how little time John has with Hal, based on the ring's charge level. Then the show has this low-battery Hal appear throughout. He travels back and forth with John throughout Rushville. They have multiple conversations, some even heartfelt. The duo even get into a physical squabble with Sinestro at the end, with the Hal hologram completely intact.
Thought you only had an hour's worth of juice, John?
Now, the hour comment could be Hal manipulating John, but that doesn't feel like that version of Hal's M.O. The more plausible idea is that despite the ring's lack of charge, John is keeping the Hal hologram "alive" the same way he did with the bird. Stewart is obviously in tune with the Green Lantern ring in some deeper way. Did the Guardians change him as a baby? Does he just get it? Perhaps HE is a Manhunter. The fact that John can wield Hal's old ring, which has been "decommissioned" by the Guardians, is suspicious enough. By Hal's own admission, no Lantern has ever conjured something without wearing the ring, and John did it with a complex manifestation like Hal's clone.
The best to never do it
As of now, John is not the Green Lantern of Sector 2184. That honor goes to the gold-toothed gym teacher, Guy Gardner. By rejecting the ring, John became the best to never do it. The man with all the power and no power at all. John Stewart has a bright green future in James Gunn's DCU, with his next appearance being the Man of Tomorrow movie. Will he be a Green Lantern in that? Right now, he joins the ranks of countless street basketball players, shy musicians, and humble painters who are better than the rest but simply never got the recognition. With John's seemingly innate ability to manipulate the most powerful weapon, or perhaps force, in the universe, he stands as the greatest Lantern in history. And he doesn't even have the damn ring.
