# Lanterns (the green kind) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** tv-shows-scripted, hbomax-wb-dc\ **Created:** [August 17, 2026, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lanterns-the-green-kind/1032374 "2026-08-17T05:23:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2026, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lanterns-the-green-kind/1032374/141 "2026-09-09T20:52:35Z")
It would be disappointing if Zoe is the Manhunter, although that seems to be confirmed. Two sentences in the episode may be important. Zoe said that Will owes her, which could now mean not as a nurse but as an alien who saved his life. Yet Hal said the Manhunter has to be someone who came into the town 1986 or later. Does that mean Zoe appeared after 1986 and her saving Will came later? How old is Billy, then? Or does it mean that the real Zoe was killed in 1986 and replaced? That doesn’t fit what we know about Manhunters. I’m hoping that more twists are coming. Also have to say that one of things I’ve always least liked about Green Lantern is that the ring is next to all powerful, but it can’t just push aside dirt to make a tunnel, or levitate people so they don’t step on stuff, or make them invisible, or anything that might be useful in a dangerous situation. Sure, the ring can run out of power, but it can move planets. A little invisibility should be trivial. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2026, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lanterns-the-green-kind/1032374/142 "2026-09-09T21:07:00Z")
Do we know that Zoe is Billy’s mother, as opposed to his stepmother? ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2026, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lanterns-the-green-kind/1032374/143 "2026-09-09T21:10:41Z")
I don’t think we know anything about the lives, especially early lives, of anyone in Rushville. The writers have infinite leeway. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2026, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lanterns-the-green-kind/1032374/144 "2026-09-09T21:15:24Z")
Jason Ritter, the actor playing Billy, was born in 1980 so he’s 46 years old. It’s _possible_ that he’s portraying someone born after Zoe appeared in 1986, or that she’s his stepmother. Edited to add, I don’t think we’ve seen Billy and Zoe interact, which _might_ indicate whether it’s a mother-child or a stepmother-stepchild relationship. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2026, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lanterns-the-green-kind/1032374/145 "2026-09-09T21:19:20Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > The Lanterns of other colors are nerdy comic book speculation and to my recollection isn’t something that has been mentioned in the show (and may never be). Correct, other lantern colors have not been mentioned. However, Sinestro is imprisoned by the Guardians just prior to the creation of the yellow power battery, granted there are some steps he still needs to go through to be comic accurate. Also, there is the Red Lantern corps. and it seems that the show is telling that story, to some degree. > Before recruiting sentient beings to the [Green Lantern Corps](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Lantern_Corps "Green Lantern Corps"), the [Guardians of the Universe](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guardians_of_the_Universe "Guardians of the Universe") created the [Manhunters](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manhunters_(DC_Comics) "Manhunters (DC Comics)"), a group of robotic peacekeepers. However, the Manhunters massacre the inhabitants of space sector 666, with the survivors forming the Five Inversions, a terrorist cell bent on destroying the Guardians.[[5]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Lantern_Corps#cite_note-5) Inversions member [Atrocitus](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atrocitus "Atrocitus") is consumed by rage, becomes the first Red Lantern, and kills the other members.[[6]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Lantern_Corps#cite_note-gl28-6) This is the story of the non-Green Lantern group hunting the Manhunter. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2026, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lanterns-the-green-kind/1032374/146 "2026-09-09T21:49:42Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Jason Ritter, the actor playing Billy, was born in 1980 so he’s 46 years old. It’s _possible_ that he’s portraying someone born after Zoe appeared in 1986, or that she’s his stepmother. We’re seeing events from 2016. Billy would have to be in his 20s. Possible. He looks young the few times we see him. I still think something is fudged with the timeline, if we’re supposed to take Hal’s comment seriously and not just a slip-up from the writers. ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2026, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lanterns-the-green-kind/1032374/147 "2026-09-09T22:00:13Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Do we know that Zoe is Billy’s mother, as opposed to his stepmother? Sheriff referred to her as her son’s grandmother, so I think it’s safe to assume she’s supposed to be Billy’s mom until proven otherwise. I think Jason Ritter is supposed to be playing younger, considering he’s only 15 years younger that Garret Dillahunt. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2026, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lanterns-the-green-kind/1032374/148 "2026-09-09T22:18:17Z")
I forgot that some scenes are set in 2016. ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2026, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lanterns-the-green-kind/1032374/149 "2026-09-09T23:04:26Z")
Most are. The only one set in 2026 so far has been the cliffhanger from episode 1. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2026, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lanterns-the-green-kind/1032374/150 "2026-09-14T03:37:34Z")
Well, this season’s budget went into episode 5. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2026, 11:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lanterns-the-green-kind/1032374/151 "2026-09-14T11:03:49Z")
Gosh. That was unpleasantly graphic. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2026, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lanterns-the-green-kind/1032374/152 "2026-09-14T11:58:36Z")
I shouldn’t be surprised that the hunt for the Manhunter concluded in episode five of eight, given that they’re telling a larger story. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2026, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lanterns-the-green-kind/1032374/153 "2026-09-14T12:21:19Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > It would be disappointing if Zoe is the Manhunter, although that seems to be confirmed. Two sentences in the episode may be important. Zoe said that Will owes her, which could now mean not as a nurse but as an alien who saved his life. Yet Hal said the Manhunter has to be someone who came into the town 1986 or later. Does that mean Zoe appeared after 1986 and her saving Will came later? How old is Billy, then? Or does it mean that the real Zoe was killed in 1986 and replaced? That doesn’t fit what we know about Manhunters. I’m hoping that more twists are coming. BTW, the AV Club has an [interview](https://www.avclub.com/poorna-jagannathan-interview-lanterns-episode-5) with Poorna Jagannathan. the actress who plays Zoe Macon that addresses the question of whether Zoe is Billy’s mother. > **AVC: Her emotional side rears its head in the scenes with her grandson, which speaks to their connection and Zoe’s love for him.** > > **PJ** : Yeah, Zoe came into this town probably after Jason Ritter’s character was born. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2026, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lanterns-the-green-kind/1032374/154 "2026-09-14T12:41:35Z")
The dog, at the very end, stopping to eat something off the ground was the absolute worst. It was nice of the show to give us a look at the younger sheriff, with bangs. Questions now turn to who killed Hal, or is it even him? When did Guy get his ring? There was no body of Antaan, so I’m still holding out the possibility he becomes the first red lantern but that is less likely now. No matter what you think of Hal, he is/was very good at his job. Zoe, stopping to speak with Noah before the battle now raises some questions for me. If Billy was around before Zoe came to town. Noah was for sure not around. Is he actually the sheriffs son, or something else? ---
**Author:** ![Scoobysnax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c4cdca/32.png) [@Scoobysnax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scoobysnax)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2026, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lanterns-the-green-kind/1032374/155 "2026-09-14T14:28:19Z")
Considering that there are still three episodes left, a lot of the plotlines seem to have ended in Episode 5. Now that John has turned it down, will the ring go back to Hal or is this when Guy gets tapped to be the next Green Lantern? ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2026, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lanterns-the-green-kind/1032374/156 "2026-09-14T14:53:21Z")
Regarding your spoiler box speculation, the IMDB listing for the show lists Nathan Fillion in the cast as Guy Gardner for three episodes. Though, to be honest, I perceived his character as a comical one in Peacemaker and Superman. ---
**Author:** ![Scoobysnax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c4cdca/32.png) [@Scoobysnax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scoobysnax)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2026, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lanterns-the-green-kind/1032374/157 "2026-09-14T15:10:45Z")
They had him listed in 4 episodes last week, so I question when he will show up. However, after this week’s events, adding a new character next week makes sense. I too am a little nervous with how well he will fit in. His characters in The Suicide Squad, Guardians 3, and Peacemaker have all been comic relief. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2026, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lanterns-the-green-kind/1032374/158 "2026-09-14T15:17:11Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Though, to be honest, I perceived his character as a comical one in Peacemaker and Superman. That’s how Gardner has often been portrayed in the books, too. He’s often been shown as over-the-top egotistical and jerkish, especially since around the 1980s, though the character’s edges have been softened a bit over time. ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2026, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lanterns-the-green-kind/1032374/159 "2026-09-14T16:44:26Z")
> [@Ike\_Witt](#): > > Zoe, stopping to speak with Noah before the battle now raises some questions for me. If Billy was around before Zoe came to town. Noah was for sure not around. Is he actually the sheriffs son, or something else? Yeah, there’s definitely something going on with Billy and Noah. They were adamant that Billy stay out of danger. Is Noah a Manhunter Jr.? ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2026, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lanterns-the-green-kind/1032374/160 "2026-09-14T17:41:25Z")
I doubt it. I think they just wanted to protect Billy and Noah, which is probably a good thing, given how many died in that battle. I don’t expect the show to even return to Rushville, Nebraska, as the storyline there concluded. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lanterns-the-green-kind/1032374.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lanterns-the-green-kind/1032374.md?page=9)