Lanterns Episode 7 Gives Us A Glimpse At John Stewart And Hal Jordan's DCU Future (And It's Brilliant)

Spoilers to follow for "Lanterns" Episode 7, "The Jordan Boys Legacy."

"Lanterns" Episode 7 is possibly the most emotional chapter in the series yet, revealing a harrowing backstory for Kyle Chandler's Hal Jordan and making his death feel all the more tragic. Thankfully, the show's writers have also hinted at a future in which Hal and Aaron Pierre's John Stewart can continue to work side-by-side — and it's pretty clever.

From the very beginning, "Lanterns" seemed to be signaling to fans that Hal Jordan would not be part of the DC Universe going forward. Indeed, "Lanterns" Episode 1 hit us with a major twist that raised all sorts of questions about the DCU, flashing forward to 2026 and revealing that Hal had been shot by an unknown killer. As egregious as fans of the character found such a development, it made sense as a way to establish John Stewart as the DCU's primary Green Lantern moving forward, even if the issue of Guy Gardner's (Nathan Fillion) Lantern remained. But after several more episodes of the HBO series, it became clear that John and Hal's relationship is a big part of why the show works so well. Knowing that Hal dies, therefore, became more and more of a bummer with each new "Lanterns" entry.

Now, however, the show appears to be hinting at how this superhero buddy cop team might be able to work together long into the future. Episode 7 sees John and the Halogram (a copy of Hal's consciousness that's stored in his Power Ring) develop a relationship that goes beyond John merely using the Halogram for a practical purpose. By the end, the pair even work together in a moment that suggests we'll be seeing plenty more tag-team superheroism from them down the line.

"Lanterns" Episode 6 saw the return of Guy Gardner, who unwittingly helps John Stewart on his mission to open a safe left behind by Hal Jordan. The safe needs to authenticate Hal's voice in order to unlock, so John uses Hal's Power Ring — helpfully supplied by Gardner — to summon the Halogram. In Episode 7, the Halogram refuses to speak when brought to the safe, insisting on seeing Sheriff Kerry Kane (Kelly Macdonald) before-hand. Prior to his death, Hal began a relationship with Kerry, and it seems the Halogram wants to meet the woman with whom his future self fell in love. Of course, that means he and John are forced to spend more time together, and after the Halogram begins materializing without John intending to summon him, we get plenty of Kyle Chandler/Aaron Pierre chemistry, reminding us of how great this duo is.

What's interesting, though, is that the Halogram is an earlier version of Hal than the one with which John clashed in 2016. The 2016 Hal was cynical and obsessive, ultimately sacrificing his duty to protect others in favor of keeping hold of his Power Ring. But the Halogram is much less jaded and at one point compliments John on being able to summon him without even wearing the Power Ring. As John notes at that moment, "It's kinda funny. Hal never complimented me before." It's the first sign that John may be able to forge a better relationship with this iteration of Hal than he ever did with the 2016 version.

More than that, as things develop, John and the Halogram start to look like a real superhero team — especially later in the episode when they work together to take down an old adversary.

"Lanterns" began by clarifying the DCU timeline, and now, it looks as though it's clarifying the DCU's future — at least in terms of John Stewart's place within it. After John and the Halogram discover a portal in Hal's safe, they travel to Antaan's (Paul Ben-Victor) home world, where renegade Lantern Sinestro (Ulrich Thomsen) is hiding following his escape from prison.

John and the Halogram enter the ruins of a building, where Sinestro emerges and holds a knife to the Halogram's throat. Of course, this manifestation of the Power Ring can't be killed, and without missing a beat the Halogram tells John, "Trainee, they're playing our song." John immediately understands, de-materializing the Halogram and landing a punch square on Sinestro's face. 

It's the first time we've seen Hal and John work together, and it's both touching and exciting. If John somehow finds a way to keep and recharge Hal's Power Ring, he'll forever have a version of his mentor with him that he can summon at will to help him with whatever threats he faces going forward. It also means we "Lanterns" fans get to see more of Kyle Chandler and Aaron Pierre together long after the show ends.

"Lanterns" has made it no secret it was inspired by "True Detective". Now, with Episode 7, it appears to be fully embracing the narrative arc of that seminal anthology series' debut season, in which Matthew McConnaughey and Woody Harrelson's detectives finally overcome decades of hostility to work together and solve a case. The final moments of that first season see the pair walking together beneath a starry night, and now "Lanterns" looks to be setting up something similar with Hal and John. It's an ingenious move from the DCU's architects.