HBO's 'Lanterns' Finale Officially Proves That Superhero TV Shows Need a New Formula

Published Oct 6, 2026, 7:18 PM EDT

Kendall Myers is a Senior Author with Collider. As part of the TV and Movies Features team, she writes about some of the most popular releases before, during, and after they premiere. In three years, she has written over 900 articles with topics ranging from classic sitcoms to fantasy epics.

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Editor's note: The below contains spoilers for the Lanterns finale.

Lanterns isn't your typical superhero show. The latest DCU series may be a chapter in the new connected universe, but it doesn't rely on the same conventions as previous projects. Most notably, John Stewart (Aaron Pierre) doesn't actually become a Green Lantern until the end, and even then, he never appears in his own supersuit, while the finale doesn't end on a cliffhanger or with any big hints about the DCU's next project. The series wraps up the mystery of Hal's (Kyle Chandler) death and what's been going on in Rushville, giving the story the end it needs without tying it to any other part of a bigger franchise.

Lanterns does tee up recurring appearances for its characters within the DCU, with John taking up the mantle of Earth's newest protector. Fans already expect to see Pierre reprise the role in James Gunn's upcoming Superman sequel Man of Tomorrow, but the series doesn't use its final minutes to tease that appearance. It's a refreshing change of pace that allows Lanterns to stand on its own, and the DCU — as well as superhero storytelling in general — needs more of that.

'Lanterns' Delivers a Satisfying Ending for Its Own Story

While Lanterns is part of a larger franchise, the conclusion focuses exclusively on the story from the previous episodes. Rather than delivering a tie-in cliffhanger, the eighth and final episode focuses on John's journey to becoming Green Lantern in his own way, as he creates a personal oath without fully joining the Lantern Corps. It's a moment that also represents his individual growth, as he accepts the ring he once rejected while still staying true to his own choices. Ultimately, Lanterns represents an origin story for John, so it's only fitting for the finale to focus on that rather than worrying about the larger DCU universe.

Since the premiere, fans have waited impatiently to learn the truth about Hal Jordan's tragic death, and the finale solves the mystery, with flashbacks revealing Kerry Kane's (Kelly Macdonald) guilt and showing how much Hal had truly changed. Though it is a tragic story, and the finale wraps up every loose end about Hal's murder, the episode certainly leaves room for the series to return. There's even a possibility that Chandler could reprise his role as the "Halogram" who forges a meaningful relationship with John by the end of the season. Although no official announcement has been made and a second season is reportedly in early development, Lanterns doesn't rely on a cliffhanger to force a necessary continuation, allowing the finale the freedom to do what's right for the sake of this particular story.

'Lanterns' Doesn't Rely on Bigger Connections to the DCU

Even with its conclusion, Lanterns doesn't rely on any larger connection to the DCU, and that is an important choice. The franchise may still be in its early days, but as it grows, not every installment has been for every fan. Already in 2026, fans have gotten both Lanterns and Supergirl, and Clayface is still to come. While many are excited about every new release, casual fans may not be keeping up as closely, and Lanterns' more removed approach makes that easy. The series still includes some crossover, like Guy Gardner's (Nathan Fillion) appearances or the way the finale tees up John as a hero with a larger role to play, but doesn't rely on them too heavily. This keeps the franchise accessible, which will encourage larger audiences to show up for the major releases.

Collider Exclusive · 8 Questions · 2 Minutes Which Superhero Team Should You Join? Avengers · X-Men · Teen Titans · The Boys

Every team is a personality test with a uniform. One saves the world and argues about it the whole way home. One has been fighting for the right to exist since the day it formed. One is still working out who it is while the fighting happens. And one has no powers at all, plus no intention of playing fair. Eight questions decide where you actually belong.

🛡️Avengers(Marvel Studios)

🧬X-Men(Marvel)

🐦Teen Titans(DC)

💊The Boys(Prime Video)

FIND YOUR TEAM →

01

What kind of power would you actually want? The power matters less than what you would be willing to do with it.

ASomething enormous and obvious. I would not hide it. BSomething I was born with, whether I wanted it or not. CSomething still growing that I cannot quite control. DNone at all. I would rather nobody sees me coming.

NEXT QUESTION →

02

Why join a team at all? Nobody puts on the suit for the reason they say out loud.

ABecause some threats are too big for anyone alone. BBecause people like me are safer together than apart. CBecause I did not want to do any of this alone. DBecause somebody has to hold these people accountable.

NEXT QUESTION →

03

How do you feel about the people in charge? Every team has a chain of command. Very few of them survive contact.

AI will follow a good leader and argue with a bad one. BThey have never protected people like me. I expect nothing. CI am still learning who to trust, and getting it wrong. DThey are the problem. That is the entire point.

NEXT QUESTION →

04

What is your role inside a group? Every roster needs the same handful of people to function.

AThe big personality. I take up room and I earn it. BThe one who protects whoever arrived most recently. CThe heart. I keep everybody talking to each other. DThe one who says the uncomfortable thing out loud.

NEXT QUESTION →

05

How do you win a fight you should lose? This is the scene the entire film gets built around.

AOverwhelming force, and a very good landing. BWorking together in a way nobody saw coming. CRefusing to give up long after I should have. DPreparation, leverage, and one extremely dirty trick.

NEXT QUESTION →

06

What is this work costing you? Nobody does this for free. The bill just arrives differently for everyone.

AMy private life. Everybody knows my face now. BMy safety. The world is frightened of me. CMy childhood. I grew up faster than I should have. DMy peace. I cannot stop now that I know.

NEXT QUESTION →

07

How should the world see your team? Half of this job is public relations, and everybody knows it.

AAs icons. The team everyone is relieved to see arrive. BAs people. Just people, which is all we ever asked. CAs proof the next generation is going to be fine. DThey should not see us at all until it is done.

NEXT QUESTION →

08

The offer arrives. What makes you say yes? Eight questions in, this is the one that decides your team.

AThe scale. If the world is ending, I want to be there. BThe promise that I would not have to hide anymore. CThe people. I would be joining friends, not an employer. DThe chance to take down somebody who deserves it.

REVEAL MY TEAM →

Recruitment Is Complete Your Team Is…

Four teams, four completely different reasons to put yourself in danger for strangers. This is the roster you actually belong on, what they would want from you, and what it would cost you to stay.

The Avengers

You belong where the stakes are largest and the personalities are loudest. This is a team of people who are all used to being the most important person in the room, which is exactly why it works and exactly why it keeps nearly falling apart.

• The Avengers are not friends who became a team. They are a team that slowly and reluctantly became friends, and you would recognise every stage of that process.
• You can hold your own among big egos without needing to win every exchange, which is the real entry requirement here.
• The arguing is part of the method. This group does its best thinking mid-disagreement, usually at volume, usually in a very expensive building.
• When the sky opens, they are who shows up. You would want to be standing in that line.

The X-Men

You have never had the luxury of being thanked for this. The X-Men protect a world that has never once been comfortable with them existing, and something in you understands exactly why they keep doing it anyway.

• This is the only team on the list whose central conflict is not a villain. It is being wanted gone by the same people they keep saving.
• You know what it is to be the outsider in a room and to decide, anyway, that you will not make yourself smaller so everyone else is comfortable.
• The X-Men are the most genuine found family in comics. People arrive with nowhere else to go and are never once asked to explain themselves.
• You would not be joining for the glory. There has never been any.

The Teen Titans

You do not want colleagues, you want your people. The Titans are the team where the friendship came first and the world-saving turned up afterwards as an inconvenient side effect.

• Every Titan is somebody's sidekick who decided to stop being one. That decision, not the villain of the week, is what the team is actually about.
• You would be joining people who are all working themselves out at the same time as you, which is far less lonely than being the only one.
• The Titans lose regularly. Then they eat together and come back better, which is a more honest model of growing up than any other team here manages.
• The tower would be loud, chaotic, and the first place that ever felt like yours.

The Boys

You are not asking who to trust. You worked out the answer a while ago and it was nobody in a cape. This is where you go once you have decided the people in charge need watching, and that nobody else is going to do it.

• The Boys have no powers, no mandate and no funding. What they have is leverage, patience, and a very high tolerance for consequences.
• You are the person in the room who notices the thing everybody else has quietly agreed not to mention.
• This is not a heroic team and it has never pretended otherwise. It is a group of damaged people doing necessary work in ways nobody would call clean.
• You would not sleep well. You would keep going anyway.

↻ RETAKE THE QUIZ

Lanterns has set an important example for the DCU, which should continue allowing its various installments to stand on their own. It's also a solid series because it doesn't follow the expected formula as seen in Peacemaker Season 2 and many others, refusing to lean on connections to the larger universe in order to prioritize a more intimate and character-driven narrative. Ultimately, Lanterns delivers a satisfying conclusion to a self-contained story, something that superhero storytelling could only use more of moving forward.

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  Hal Jordan

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  Aaron Pierre

  John Stewart

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  Sheriff Kerry Kane

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  William 'Will' Macon