Lighting The ‘Lanterns’ — Ranking Earth’s Green Lanterns

Last night, the Green Lantern Corps returned to live action. The debut episode of HBO Max’s Lanterns got us thinking about Earth’s many Green Lanterns, and exactly how they rank.

So we started taking a look at Earth’s many Lanterns and placing them in order.

As always in a ranking like this, we would be here forever if we included every resident of Earth that’s used the Green Lantern name/ ring, so we need to have some restrictions. First of all, the character has to be Earth-born, so no Arisa or Kilowog. Their powers need to come from a ring issued from Oa (sorry Alan Scott). And they need to have an extended run as Green Lantern, because those single story characters would all fall to the bottom of the list.

8. Teen Lantern

Keli Quintela is a Bolivian 11 year old who joined the re-formed Young Justice when Dark Opal invaded Earth. The team rapidly began to discover that Keli wasn’t an actual Lantern. Rather, the gauntlet she was wearing was able to hack into and utilize the energy of a Green Lantern power battery.

Keli would later be gifted an actual Green Lantern ring. She’s an interesting character, with an interesting background, but with only a few appearances under her belt, she does fall to the bottom of the stack.

7. Simon Baz

Simon Baz is a Lebanese-American from Detroit, Michigan. As a post-9/11 Muslim growing up in the United States, he faced intense racism his entire life, resulting in a young man who was angry, but intelligent. Simon graduated from college with a degree in automotive engineering though, getting a job at one of Detroit’s automotive plants until the financial crises of the early 2010s caused him to lose his job.

He defaulted to making money through illegal street racing, leading to an arrest and jail time, and then stealing cars. As he was faced with another arrest, a Green Lantern ring suddenly burst into the room and deputized him.

Simon is absolutely full of depth, but he’s also been held back by the fact that Earth’s contingent of Lanterns just keeps growing, not allowing him much page time to grow as a character.

6. Jo Mullein

Sojounier Mullein is a former US Army soldier and NYPD officer who was recruited by the Guardians after reporting her partner for brutality. She became the Lantern of a Sector so far away from Oa, that she wasn’t sure that it had been numbered.

After the events of Far Sector, Jo returned to Oa and became an important part of the Corps, and a key part of the Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths. She’s continued to grow from there, but she’s also still so new that she has a way to go before she can climb this list (but considering she’s the Green Lantern of Future State, I’d say she gets there).

5. Guy Gardner

Guy Gardner was the first substitute Lantern that Green Lantern fans ever met. The only reason the ring picked Hal Jordan over him was because, well, Hal was closer. He would step in for Hal in his introduction, but was injured and lapsed into a coma.

Guy eventually would recover, though his personality was altered by his brain injury, and gain a ring permanently. He joined the Justice League, got kicked out of the Corps, used a Yellow Lantern ring, learned he was an alien, then returned to the Corps, becoming one of the Corps’ most prominent members.

Guy is a great character. He’s even grown into a great hero. He’s mostly this low because, well … he’s a jerk

4. Hal Jordan

The original Lantern of Earth, Hal Jordan is a former US Air Force pilot, a test pilot, and was completely fearless. Hal served as the primary Lantern of Earth and Sector 2814 for years, until the intergalactic despot Mongul bombed his home of Coast City, murdering millions in one horrific moment.

This failure caused Hal to become vulnerable, leading to his possession by the primal fear entity Parallax. He would be a villainous presence in the DC Universe until a Sun Eater ate Earth’s sun. Hal sacrificed his life to reignite the sun, then a few years later became the new human host for the Spectre. Eventually he’d be returned to life and regain his ring and role as Earth’s primary Lantern, not leaving that position since.

Hal is often considered Earth’s first and best Lantern, but he’s this low on the list because, frankly, he’s kinda boring. His progression since his resurrection has helped, but he’s still a bit on the milquetoast side of the character spectrum.

3. Kyle Rayner

Hal’s first act as Parallax was to exterminate the Green Lantern Corps. The Guardian Ganthet survived, and escaped to Earth with the last Power Ring. He gave that ring to the struggling artist, Kyle Rayner.

Kyle would go on to be the universe’s only Lantern for years, serving on the Justice League and saving the universe many times over. He would eventually reform the Corps, then acted as an essential part of the Corps as it rebuilt in the wake of Hal’s return.

His growth and progression as Green Lantern and as hero was one of the greatest stories of the 1990s and early 2000s. Kyle cemented his place at the top of the Corps.

2. John Stewart

After a difficult childhood, John Stewart became a decorated member of the US Marine Corps as a marksman and sharpshooter. After leaving the Corps, John earned a degree in architecture. Unknown to him, the Guardians of Oa had been watching him his entire life, and they tested him by sending a Manhunter to attack his workplace. His bravery during the attack earned him a place in the Green Lantern Corps.

John stepped away from the Corps shortly before Hal went crazy, but then rejoined as Kyle became to reform the group. Since then, he’s been one of the Corps’ leaders, and a key hero on Earth.

John has developed across his existence into one of comics’ greatest characters. For an entire generation, he’s the Green Lantern, after he was depicted as the primary Lantern in Justice League and Justice League Unlimited. He’s not just one of the greatest Lanterns, he’s one of the greats, period, a well rounded and fascinating character who continues to grow and evolve by the issue.

1. Jessica Cruz

Though Jessica is one of the youngest characters on this list, she’s also grown so much. Initially introduced as a young woman traumatized after being pursued by a group of criminals who killed two of her friends, Jessica was chosen to hold the ring of the Crime Syndicate’s Power Ring. This led to her joining the Justice League, while battling the entity within the ring, Volthoom. After showing she could overcome her fears, she was given a Green Lantern ring and officially joined the Corps.

Not long after, Hal Jordan left Earth, deputizing Jessica and Simon as Earth’s primary Lanterns. She continued to rise to the occasion time and again, embodying the spirit of the Corps, even after becoming a Yellow Lantern, and then returning to the Corps.

Given her PTSD and anxiety, Jessica proved the ability to overcome great fear more than pretty much any other Lantern. She’s also become the second most prominent Lantern in other media, outside of John Stewart — appearing in multiple animated projects, including the upcoming My Adventures with Green Lantern.