New Lanterns Clip Brings John Stewart and Guy Gardner Together for the First Time in the DCU, And We Have Questions

A new Lanterns clip brings Nathan Fillion’s Guy Gardner into the show, but it leaves us with so many mysteries. The latest DCU project, Lanterns has broken viewing records on HBO Max – and with good reason. This is superhero action as premiere TV, and the first two episodes have left us with so many questions: Why is Hal Jordan dead in 2026? What are the Manhunters doing in Rushville, and which Manhunter in particular are John and Hal looking for in 2016? And why did the Power Ring wind up with Guy Gardner instead of John Stewart?

Nathan Fillion unveiled a new Lanterns clip on Jimmy Kimmel Live, perhaps teasing answers to some of those questions. Presumably set in the 2026 period, the clip shows Guy Gardner arrive at the Sheridan County Sheriffs Department to visit John Stewart in jail. Naturally, though, this clip stops short of clearing anything up. In fact, it anything, it just raises the mystery level: Why is John in jail in the first place?

What’s Going On With Guy Gardner & John Stewart?

The clip ends on a hilarious note, “REDACTED BY THE GREEN LANTERN CORPS.” But it’s enough to confirm what we’d already assumed to be the case: John Stewart and Guy Gardner have history. It looks as though John has been kept in jail until Guy arrives, because he asks John whether he’s ready – presumably meaning this is a prisoner transfer. At a guess, John has been held so he can be taken to the Guardians of the Universe. We’ve seen trailers teasing John’s historic connection to at least one Guardian, but that could even conceivably be a rogue; there have been many rogue Guardians in the comics.

The Power Ring remains one of Lanterns‘ most intriguing mysteries. Episode 2 confirmed John Stewart is a prodigy when it comes to ringwork, given he created a bird construct that broke so many typical Green Lantern rules. The bird seemed to have a degree of independence, still existed when he took the ring off, and was even sustained while he was unconscious. It’s anybody’s guess what this means – some have theorized John isn’t entirely human, or is perhaps a Manhunter himself – but it seems odd the Guardians would let such talent go to waste. Regardless, we know they pick Guy Gardner for this sector instead of John.

Lanterns episode 2 remained in 2016, deliberately avoiding building on the cliffhanger ending of episode 1 – which revealed Hal Jordan dead in 2026. Still, Guy’s presence suggests at least part of episode 3 is in the later time period, meaning we’ll be spinning out of that cliffhanger at last. We don’t know why Hal died, why his body was apparently frozen, or why he wound up back at Rushville. There’s only one thing we can be sure of; somehow, we go from Hal’s death to John Stewart in jail. The most reasonable explanation is that he’s been blamed – which raises the stakes even higher.