‘Lanterns’ Episode 6 Recap And Review: 'Bad Optics'
Sunday night’s episode of Lanterns , “ Bad Optics ,” jumps ahead to 2026, ten years after the disaster in Rushville that left both our heroes ringless at the end of last week’s action-packed episode .
John Stewart (Aaron Pierre) has left the Green Lantern Corps behind and now runs an architecture firm (that rather ironically builds panic rooms) with his brother Marcus, but his estranged mother, who he refers to simply as “Bernadette”, tricks him into returning to Rushville by claiming Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler) wants to apologize. This is surprising to us and to John, since nobody expected her and Hal to be in contact. In the show’s most shocking twist yet, it turns out that the two have become friends.
John drives to Rushville where he finds Hal newly released from a decade in prison (apparently he “took the fall” for what happened in last week’s episode) and just as combative as ever. He taunts John over not taking the ring, claiming that it was because John was afraid, terrified, petrified. John punches him in the face and leaves, but as he goes Hal begs him not to tell anyone he was here. It’s a curious request, and we won’t learn why Hal made it in tonight’s episode.
Hours later, Sheriff Kerry Kane (Kelly Macdonald) calls John back to Rushville, to the football field, where Hal has been shot dead. That’s a lot of driving back and forth for poor John. Kerry reveals that Hal returned to Rushville for her and that the two had begun a relationship after her marriage ended.
Investigating Hal’s belongings, John discovers a mysterious voice-locked vault in a “Fortress of Storage” storage unit, but can’t open it with a recording of Hal that Kerry provides (in which he dubs her “buttercup.”) I suspect he’ll open it with the Halogram next week.
We also learn that current Green Lantern, Guy Gardner (Nathan Fillion), has set up a Green Lantern beacon in Rushville having stolen the idea from “the bat guy” in Gotham. On his way to dinner at Kerry’s, John summons Guy by activating the beacon (not sure how that works if he’s too far away to see it) but not before having to fend off a whole truckload of Nebraska hillbillies. One of these is Billy, Kerry’s ex-husband, and when she finds out she locks up John. Because it’s normal to lock up the guy that was jumped by five guys while letting all of them go free.
Guy shows up the next morning but refuses to investigate Hal’s murder because of the “bad optics,” though he ultimately agrees to retrieve Hal’s decommissioned ring and uniform for the funeral. Everyone in Rushville hated Hal so much that the medical examiner says they should just burn his body and flush it down the toilet like a goldfish, but John, perhaps taking pity on poor Kerry, or perhaps realizing that he himself has been too hard on Hal, suggests the funeral.
After a tiny service attended only by John, Kerry and Hal’s former girlfriend Carol Ferris, who provides a eulogy for John to read written by Hal himself, John secretly digs up Hal’s grave, takes the ring and uses its remaining charge to summon Hal’s holographic backup. The Halogram looks down at his own corpse and responds simply: “G#*
‘Lanterns’ Episode 6 Recap And Review: 'Bad Optics'
Sunday night’s episode of Lanterns , “ Bad Optics ,” jumps ahead to 2026, ten years after the disaster in Rushville that left both our heroes ringless at the end of last week’s action-packed episode .
John Stewart (Aaron Pierre) has left the Green Lantern Corps behind and now runs an architecture firm (that rather ironically builds panic rooms) with his brother Marcus, but his estranged mother, who he refers to simply as “Bernadette”, tricks him into returning to Rushville by claiming Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler) wants to apologize. This is surprising to us and to John, since nobody expected her and Hal to be in contact. In the show’s most shocking twist yet, it turns out that the two have become friends.
John drives to Rushville where he finds Hal newly released from a decade in prison (apparently he “took the fall” for what happened in last week’s episode) and just as combative as ever. He taunts John over not taking the ring, claiming that it was because John was afraid, terrified, petrified. John punches him in the face and leaves, but as he goes Hal begs him not to tell anyone he was here. It’s a curious request, and we won’t learn why Hal made it in tonight’s episode.
Hours later, Sheriff Kerry Kane (Kelly Macdonald) calls John back to Rushville, to the football field, where Hal has been shot dead. That’s a lot of driving back and forth for poor John. Kerry reveals that Hal returned to Rushville for her and that the two had begun a relationship after her marriage ended.
Investigating Hal’s belongings, John discovers a mysterious voice-locked vault in a “Fortress of Storage” storage unit, but can’t open it with a recording of Hal that Kerry provides (in which he dubs her “buttercup.”) I suspect he’ll open it with the Halogram next week.
We also learn that current Green Lantern, Guy Gardner (Nathan Fillion), has set up a Green Lantern beacon in Rushville having stolen the idea from “the bat guy” in Gotham. On his way to dinner at Kerry’s, John summons Guy by activating the beacon (not sure how that works if he’s too far away to see it) but not before having to fend off a whole truckload of Nebraska hillbillies. One of these is Billy, Kerry’s ex-husband, and when she finds out she locks up John. Because it’s normal to lock up the guy that was jumped by five guys while letting all of them go free.
Guy shows up the next morning but refuses to investigate Hal’s murder because of the “bad optics,” though he ultimately agrees to retrieve Hal’s decommissioned ring and uniform for the funeral. Everyone in Rushville hated Hal so much that the medical examiner says they should just burn his body and flush it down the toilet like a goldfish, but John, perhaps taking pity on poor Kerry, or perhaps realizing that he himself has been too hard on Hal, suggests the funeral.
After a tiny service attended only by John, Kerry and Hal’s former girlfriend Carol Ferris, who provides a eulogy for John to read written by Hal himself, John secretly digs up Hal’s grave, takes the ring and uses its remaining charge to summon Hal’s holographic backup. The Halogram looks down at his own corpse and responds simply: “G#**(#it.”
A few thoughts on this episode, which I think was probably my favorite so far since it finally feels like we’re getting to the actual story, after a long diversion hunting down the Manhunter.
First, the eulogy was the best part of the episode. All the bits with Hal were great, including that last scene with the Halogram. I also liked that John fed Earl, Hal’s plant, and then felt really bad for Earl when John let it slip that Hal was dead. Earl looked so dejected.
What I don’t understand is this show’s logic. Why does everyone hate Hal? Why do they hate John, for that matter? Hal and John saved Rushville from aliens who were going to blow it to smithereens. Why was Hal locked up for a decade? He was stopping both a Manhunter and a group of alien terrorists. He was a hero. Why does John accuse him of screwing up when they were both responsible and both were simply doing their jobs, trying to help people?
I sort of understand why John wants an apology: Hal left him in that car and the car caught on fire and burned him to a crisp. But Hal didn’t know it would catch on fire and it was Zoe, the Manhunter, who let John burn. As for blaming Hal for everything, Hal is right to point out that there’s more than one killer sitting at the dining room table. Also, it’s been ten years, John. Let it go. Life’s too short.
I just don’t get the logic behind any of this, and the conflict between Hal and John has felt contrived from the get-go. The emotional place this episode arrives at with the eulogy and the funeral feels unearned. We needed the duo’s relationship to grow more before their falling out. You honestly can’t have a falling out if you never got along to begin with. It’s weird.
Still, I’m curious what happened to Hal, who killed him and who busted Sinestro out of Spazkaban (Space Azkaban, as Guy calls it). Are these two events related? Nobody makes that connection in the episode, but it is odd.
You can watch my video review for “Bad Optics” below :
What did you think of this episode? Let me know on Twitter , Instagram , or Facebook .
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*(#it.”A few thoughts on this episode, which I think was probably my favorite so far since it finally feels like we’re getting to the actual story, after a long diversion hunting down the Manhunter.
First, the eulogy was the best part of the episode. All the bits with Hal were great, including that last scene with the Halogram. I also liked that John fed Earl, Hal’s plant, and then felt really bad for Earl when John let it slip that Hal was dead. Earl looked so dejected.
What I don’t understand is this show’s logic. Why does everyone hate Hal? Why do they hate John, for that matter? Hal and John saved Rushville from aliens who were going to blow it to smithereens. Why was Hal locked up for a decade? He was stopping both a Manhunter and a group of alien terrorists. He was a hero. Why does John accuse him of screwing up when they were both responsible and both were simply doing their jobs, trying to help people?
I sort of understand why John wants an apology: Hal left him in that car and the car caught on fire and burned him to a crisp. But Hal didn’t know it would catch on fire and it was Zoe, the Manhunter, who let John burn. As for blaming Hal for everything, Hal is right to point out that there’s more than one killer sitting at the dining room table. Also, it’s been ten years, John. Let it go. Life’s too short.
I just don’t get the logic behind any of this, and the conflict between Hal and John has felt contrived from the get-go. The emotional place this episode arrives at with the eulogy and the funeral feels unearned. We needed the duo’s relationship to grow more before their falling out. You honestly can’t have a falling out if you never got along to begin with. It’s weird.
Still, I’m curious what happened to Hal, who killed him and who busted Sinestro out of Spazkaban (Space Azkaban, as Guy calls it). Are these two events related? Nobody makes that connection in the episode, but it is odd.
You can watch my video review for “Bad Optics” below :
What did you think of this episode? Let me know on Twitter , Instagram , or Facebook .
