Lanterns gives timeline jumps that keep you on your toes, and episode 5 kicks off with a big one.
We meet a young pre-Sheriff Kerry in 2007, sporting bangs that we are all glad she got rid of. Driving in a panic down the road, her car breaks down in Rushville, Nebraska. Kerry pushes the car to the town Cafe. But as she settles in for a cup of coffee, two men approach her. Apparently, Kerry fled Gotham after her father was killed for being a “snitch.” Now, to tie up loose ends, her father’s murderer sends two men to kill her. Before they can take her out of the Cafe, Zoe shows up and breaks the neck of one of the hitmen and comes dangerously close to breaking the arm of the other.
Photo Courtesy: Warner Bros. Discovery
Here, we see a new side of Zoe. We know her to be direct with John Stewart, but to be skilled in hand-to-hand combat was not on our bingo card. Zoe extracts from the surviving hitman a way for Kerry to move on with her life and not be hunted down again. However, the contract owner requires Kerry’s pinky as proof of her death. Zoe has Kerry cut off her own finger, gives it to the hitman, and sends him on his way with a stern warning not to return. In a conversation with Kerry, Zoe offers her help, a new pinky, and protection, with the promise that Kerry too will defend Zoe when the day comes.
We flash forward to 2016 where John is trapped in the wrecked car. Hal makes it clear that he will not help John out; he doesn’t trust John. The new plan is to use Anton (alien hit squad lead) to distract the town while Hal captures Zoe. Afterwards, Hal will give the Manhunter to the Guardians and keep the ring. Hal leaves John to figure his own way out of the car.
Meanwhile, the town prepares for the aliens to come for Zoe. She has a moment with her grandson Noah and tells him no matter what happens he must remember everything she told him. Then, she heads over to John’s crash scene. He sees her and calls for her, but she lets the car explode and watches him burn.
As the town prepares for the aliens, Hal summons his Hal-o-gram and sends it on a mission to find Zoe. Hal then heads off to confront Sheriff Kerry. She is clear that he has a kill order on his head and tells him to leave so things can return to how they were. Sheriff Kerry cannot betray Zoe; after all, Zoe gave her a “miracle.”
Photo Courtesy: Warner Bros. Discovery
The car fire badly burns John; Zoe rushes him to the hospital. They clear the air: John knows she’s the Manhunter and he doesn’t trust the Guardians. Zoe’s plan is to kill Hal, heal John and have John take the ring. She will help John become the Green Lantern for Earth’s sector but she has a price. For this, John must tell the Guardians that Anton’s men killed Hal during the invasion.
In town, Hal confronts Anton and his men in the Cafe. He tells them the Manhunter has compromised John, and that Will Macon is the Manhunter. The existence of a Manhunter on earth in male form surprises Anton. Apparently the Manhunter seduces the strongest in the community with sex, bending that person to their will. Anton then suggests that Will and John had to be intimate, since John was compromised. Suddenly Hal clarifies that he and Macon were very “coitus.” Anton is clear that he doesn’t trust Hal, but for now the aliens go after Will.
In the lab, Zoe prepares to heal John with her technology. Their conversation is deep; they discuss the concept of skin color and how adversity is an advantage. She heals John with a drop of her blood. After the healing process, John confronts her about killing Abin Sur to ensure she was not found. She does not deny it, and notes that John’s ability to see her is what draws her to him.
Photo Courtesy: Warner Bros. Discovery
Will calls Zoe and they say their goodbyes. She has trained him to speak her language, so he will pose as the Manhunter. Will and Zoe can easily blow-up Anton’s cars with the satellite detection system but they allow the aliens to come to the property to confront Macon. Anton meets Macon in his study, and they use the language Zoe has taught him to speak. We learn that Anton and the Manhunter (i.e. Zoe) had a past, a past that involved them possibly having children. But normally the Manhunter would never choose to die by giving itself up, and this tips Anton off that Will is not the Manhunter. He kills Will and rips out his heart; it doesn’t crystallize. Anton knows the Manhunter is still alive.
Meanwhile Zoe puts her laser beams to use on the town, to keep Hal busy and deplete his ring. A now fully healed John escapes the hospital and calls his parents to put him in touch with Lianna, the Guardian. John makes it to the gun store and takes a sniper gun. He is mad, and he makes it clear he will be taking the ring from Hal.
Elsewhere in town, Hal learns Zoe’s location is by the tower he and John once used to do surveillance. He manages to handcuff her to her helicopter, but Zoe’s men blow the tower, releasing the dark smoke that stopped him and John before. Hal manages to get one of the goggles and the episode gives us Hal’s point of view as he navigates the darkness. He hears beeping and sees Anton coming to detonate the area. In classic Hal style, he comes out of the darkness, puts Anton into a green cyclone and sends him to detonate in the sky. But, Zoe escapes and the ring needs charging.
Hal returns to his motel room to charge the ring, but John is waiting for him. Here, the tension between the two comes to a head, and they fight each other for the ring. The laser beams find their way to the motel, and Hal uses the ring’s power to protect him and John, since John has him in a head lock. When the dust clears, John runs out.
Shortly after, Zoe finds Hal in the rubble. She thinks John escaped to watch Hal die. But maybe Hal has learned something about John: he is not a coward. John left Hal there as bait for Zoe so John could kill her. When Hal says this, the truth of the realization hits Zoe. She turns to meet John’s gaze through his gun’s scope. His last words to her are, “I see you, Zoe,” as he fires one shot through her head, and he sheds a few tears. This was top tier, Denzel Washington in Glory, acting.
John comes down and retrieves her heart, which crystallizes the moment he removes it from her body. Next, he retrieves the ring from Hal, who asks John, “Was it worth it?” Almost symbolic, a bird appears in this moment as John prepares to leave. Hal calls after him that the Guardians will replace John as they did Hal. Lives have been lost; this town will never be the same. Sheriff Kerry tells the remaining town folk to stand down as John makes his way through, and he tells her where to find Hal.
John enters the bar where he, Sheriff Kerry, and Hal once met; Lianna is waiting for him. He is wearing the ring, and Lianna lets him know it looks “good” on him. He lets her know he did not kill Hal Jordan. John gives her the heart of Zoe and calls it Lianna’s “sins and consequences.” Lianna’s reaction is odd: accountable but cold. John tells her the ring makes him feel empty. He notes how Hal was broken by the ring, and how now John doesn’t desire the ring either. John leaves the ring, the heart, and the Lantern with Lianna and walks out.
A few points to keep in mind as we move on: James Gunn said, “All will be answered” when users on Threads asked how Guy Gardner comes into the picture. We might be seeing Gunn’s vision come to life now.
Also, Zoe names one thing as part of the crucible that forges one’s “greatest self”: fear. Now this is ironic as Lanterns are supposed to be fearless. So, are the Guardians purposefully looking for people who are not their greatest self? Are they using that last piece to prevent them from becoming so?
And lastly, what is the “miracle” that Zoe gave Sheriff Kerry? Now, it couldn’t be the pinky; seems like everyone in the town has had some medical miracle in that case. It could be the new life outside of Gotham. Or is it Noah? We only have three more episodes left, and with Will, Zoe, and Anton gone, what is next? Rumor has it Season 2 is already in the works (as it should be!), so there is more coming for us. This series is taking us on a journey many did not see coming.
