DC has taken one of its most cosmic superheroes and done something surprisingly grounded with Lanterns. Instead of immediately sending Hal Jordan and John Stewart across the universe, the series places the Green Lanterns in rural Nebraska, where they are tasked with investigating a mysterious murder.
It sounds like an unusual way to introduce one of DC's biggest mythologies. But that decision is precisely what makes Lanterns work.
The HBO series follows veteran Green Lantern Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler) as he mentors rookie Lantern John Stewart (Aaron Pierre). Their first assignment takes them to rural America, where what initially appears to be a straightforward murder investigation gradually points towards something much larger.
The series combines a small-town mystery with superhero mythology, creating what is arguably DC's strongest television outing since The Batman.
Hal Jordan and John Stewart are the heart of Lanterns
The murder mystery provides the show's central hook, but Hal and John are the reason to keep watching.
Hal is an experienced Green Lantern who has spent years dealing with the responsibilities that come with serving in the Corps. He is confident, occasionally arrogant and clearly carrying the weight of his past.
Kyle Chandler gets the character's balance right.
His Hal isn't presented as a perfect mentor who constantly delivers wisdom. He can be cocky, frustrating and stubborn, but Chandler gives him enough vulnerability to make the character feel human.
John Stewart provides the perfect contrast.
Aaron Pierre plays him with a seriousness that never becomes one-dimensional. John isn't simply a rookie waiting for Hal to teach him everything. He has his own understanding of responsibility, his own reasons for questioning authority and his own vision of what being a Green Lantern should mean.
Their relationship is one of the show's biggest strengths.
The humour comes naturally from their disagreements and irritation with each other rather than from forced jokes. The two men clearly don't trust each other at first, but Lanterns allows that relationship to evolve gradually into mutual respect.
That makes their partnership feel earned.
A Green Lantern story disguised as a crime drama
The murder investigation is deliberately slow.
Rather than immediately introducing a parade of aliens, planets and cosmic battles, Lanterns spends time establishing its Nebraska setting and the people who live there.
The town is filled with suspicious characters, hidden relationships and secrets. Hal and John are outsiders trying to determine which pieces of information actually matter.
The approach inevitably invites comparisons with prestige crime dramas such as True Detective. The isolated landscapes, troubled characters, local secrets and slow-burning investigation are all familiar elements.
But Lanterns manages to give the formula its own identity because the Green Lantern mythology isn't simply pasted onto the story.
The cosmic elements gradually become more important as the investigation develops.
That makes the transition from ordinary crime story to superhero mythology more effective.
The superhero mythology takes its time
One of the smartest decisions in Lanterns is its restraint.
The series doesn't immediately overwhelm viewers with the Green Lantern Corps, alien worlds and cosmic mythology. Instead, it first establishes Hal and John as characters.
The rings, their abilities and the larger implications of the Corps become more meaningful because the audience understands the people wearing them.
However, this approach can also become the show's biggest weakness.
There are stretches where Lanterns feels almost too committed to being a grounded crime drama. The superhero mythology sometimes feels secondary, particularly for viewers expecting a traditional comic-book spectacle.
The show is clearly building towards something much bigger, but it asks viewers to be patient.
Strong supporting cast keeps Nebraska interesting
The supporting cast gives the small-town setting additional depth.
Kelly Macdonald brings a sceptical edge to the local sheriff, while Laura Linney and the rest of the ensemble help make the town feel like a functioning community rather than merely the backdrop for Hal and John's investigation.
Nathan Fillion's Guy Gardner adds another layer of comic-book energy. His presence connects Lanterns to the wider DC universe without allowing those connections to dominate the story.
That balance is important.
The series feels like part of a larger universe, but viewers aren't required to constantly think about what comes next in the DC franchise.
The slow pace won't work for everyone
Lanterns is not a conventional superhero series.
The measured pacing works well for the murder mystery, but some sections could have benefited from greater momentum. The emotional development between the characters is often more compelling than the mechanics of the investigation itself.
This means expectations will matter.
If you're looking for constant action, elaborate superhero battles and a steady stream of comic-book spectacle, Lanterns may feel frustratingly restrained.
But if the idea of a detective story where the detectives happen to be intergalactic police officers carrying power rings sounds appealing, the series becomes much easier to appreciate.
Why Lanterns could be important for DC
After years of superhero franchises competing to become bigger, louder and increasingly interconnected, Lanterns takes a different approach.
It focuses on a simple premise: two men who don't completely trust each other investigating a murder.
The mythology provides the larger canvas, but the characters remain at the centre.
That could make Lanterns an important starting point for DC's Green Lantern mythology. The show doesn't need to explain everything immediately. It establishes its characters and world first, leaving the larger cosmic universe waiting beyond the horizon.
And that restraint makes the mythology feel more intriguing rather than less.
Verdict
Lanterns is a confident and unusually grounded addition to the DC universe.
Kyle Chandler and Aaron Pierre are excellent together, giving the series an emotional centre that keeps the slow-burning mystery engaging. The supporting cast strengthens the small-town atmosphere, while the gradual introduction of Green Lantern mythology gives the show room to expand.
Its biggest weakness is also its biggest creative gamble: the series sometimes feels more like a prestige crime drama than a superhero show.
But that may ultimately be what makes it stand out.
Lanterns is a superhero story disguised as a murder mystery, and a character drama wrapped inside a cosmic DC mythology. It isn't perfect, and its deliberate pace won't appeal to everyone.
But when Hal Jordan and John Stewart share the screen, the series finds something that many recent superhero projects have struggled to achieve: a sense of character-driven momentum.
For DC, that's an encouraging beginning.
Lanterns Rating: 4/5
Where to watch: Lanterns is streaming on JioHotstar in India.
