We're not speaking of the Ryan Reynolds movie,so let's not speak of that again.We're speaking of the cartoon that was part of the late lamented DC Nation bloc on Cartoon Network.It was my own favorite of the shows on that block.Coming from a roster that included shows such as Young Justice and Beware the Batman,that should show you how good it was.

Opening title.


Not the most inspired of openings,unfortunately.

"Beware My Power" (part 1)
In deep space,a Green Lantern comes to the rescue of a stranded spaceship,only to find it's a trap.He's attacked by two humanoids who favor the color red.One (Razer) has bone white skin;the other (Zax) is a giant head with arms and legs. They both wear rings that emit a red colored energy. They put those rings to use in brutally murdering the Green Lantern. As they argue about their unseen boss (Atrocitus) the GL's ring makes its escape and heads out into space.
18 months later,Hal Jordan is taking a jet on a test flight for Ferris Aircraft.He's talking on the radio to his boss (Carol Ferris) trying to set a dinner date.Just then,Coast City is hit by an earthquake.Flying above the desert,Hal sees a railroad bridge collapse,endangering an oncoming train.Becoming Green Lantern,he saves the train but wrecks the plane.
Later,in Carol's office,she and Hal are about to have an inappropriate smooch when his ring pages him on GL business. Making a hasty exit (Carol doesn't know of his moonlighting) Hal rings his way to Oa, homeworld of the Guardians and the GL Corps.
Arriving on Oa,Hal is met by fellow GL Kilowog.The Guardians have summoned Hal about his conduct on his last mission (conduct unbecoming) when the ring of the murdered GL finally makes its way to the Guardians.Hal and Kilowog learn that this is just the latest of a number of GLers who have gone missing.Hal is about to ream out his bosses when Guardian Ganthet suggests that the meeting adjorn and takes Hal and Kilowog for a coffee break.
On the way,Ganthet goes out of his way to show Hal a brand new spacecraft the Guardians have just built.Called the Interceptor,powered by its own green energy battery,it's supposedly the fastest spaceship ever built,but it has never been flown.Ganthet just thought Hal would be interested in seeing it...
Taking the hint,Hal makes his way to the Interceptor,bumping into Kilowog,who also took the hint and brought along both their power lanterns.Eluding the Guardians,Hal pilots the ship to where another GL was reported to be under attack.They find the wounded GL and fight off his attackers,who are the same ones who killed the GL at the start of the episode.They call themselves Red Lanterns.During the fight,Hal's ring loses its charge.He recharges it from the ship's engine,which he does after leaping off a cliff,reciting the Green Lantern oath as he falls towards the ship.Hal is a badass.
The Red Lanterns are defeated,but escape.Hal and Kilowog set out after them,to bring them to justice and to solve the mystery of the Red Lanterns.

Visually,this is a confectioner's box of eye candy.If you liked The Incredibles,you'll like the look of this show.Josh Keaton plays Hal Jordan;he also played the title character of Spectacular Spider-Man.Didn't recognize the voice at first,that's how good he is.The cocksure ringslinger of this show is quite different from the trash talking webslinger of the other show. Kevin Michael Richardson plays Kilowog as both gruff and loveable.
The Interceptor is one sweet ride.Streamlined on the outside,the inside is clean to the point of sterility. The ship has a talking AI,which Hal names Aya. "It" will be part of the regular cast.
Solid start.

(pretend they're rings)

I watched this show regularly. I was annoyed it got cancelled. I liked it.

"Beware My Power,pt. 2"
On their ship,Hal,Kilowog,and fellow GL Shyir Rev are having an interstellar conference call with the Guardians going over the last episode when the ship is attacked by a Red Lantern drone.They destroy the drone,but not before it puts a tracer on the ship.
Damaged in the battle,the ship is unable to go back to Oa to get re-enforcements.Instead,they go to Rev's homeworld,and we meet his family,who are so sweet and loving the blood chills with dread over what's likely to happen to them.There's a funny little scene over Hal's desire for a secret identity,as it seems to be a rarity among the GL Corp.We also learn that Kilowog's homeworld was destroyed,and that Hal was unaware of this before now.
Cut to Shard,an asteroid remade into a giant spacecraft.It's the home base of the Red Lanterns.We meet their leader Atrocitus,a giant with blood red skin and a face twisted into a permanent sneer. Shard is a remnant of his homeworld, whose destruction he blames on the Guardians.He's yelling at Razer and Zox over their failure to kill the Green Lanterns when Razer receives the tracer signal.Shard heads for Rev's homeworld.
Once there,the RLs put a planet-destroying bomb on the surface.While the other GLs fight Atrocitus, Rev tries to disarm the bomb.He fails,but manages to delay detonation long enough for Kilowog to save Rev's people.
Overcome with guilt over his part in the planet's destruction,Razer tries to goad Hal so that Hal will kill him;suicide by GL. Hal doesn't take the bait,instead removing the RL's ring and taking him prisoner. Hal rejoins Kilowog and asks what happened to Rev.Just then,their comrade's ring files by on its journey back to Oa,giving Hal his answer.
Rev's people are relocated to another planet.There's a melancholy final scene with Rev's wife and daughter.With their ship still unable to make the trip to Oa,Hal and Kilowog resolve to stop the Red Lanterns on their own.They also wonder what to do with their prisoner Razer.
This isn't shaping up to be a lighthearted romp.

"Razer's Edge"
Having gotten sanction from the Guardians to go after the Red Lanterns,Hal and Kilowog drop off their own ex-Red Lantern at a nearby prison planet,run by a staff of bug people.Leaving the planet,they nab an escaping prisoner,who's a squid/bat hybrid with one large tooth.It tells the GLs the jailers tortures the prisoners.Leaving the convict on the ship,they go to investigate the prison,and are soon captured by the bug people.The planet has rocks that nullify a GL's power ring. Yellow rocks.
The torture inflicted on the prisoners involves having them relive their worst memories.For Razer,that's the memory of his wife's death while he was fighting a war on his homeworld.It was then that Atrocitus recruited him for the Red Lanterns. After torturing their prisoners,the jailers then devour them.Torturing the prisoners must make then tastier,maybe.
Back at the ship,Aya converts into green energy and leaves the ship to find the others,but the yellow rocks block her as well.Making contact with Razer,Aya takes the image of his dead wife to convince him to free Hal and Kilowog,who are wrapped in webs.Razer does so with his Red Lantern ring,which the yellow rocks have no effect on.Once free of the webbing,the GLers take out their captors without the use of their rings because they're just that tough.
Later,the former prison guards are now the prisoners,and the escaped convict is now put in temporary charge of the prison (who else will be guarding the prisoners?) As for Razer,Hal invites him to join them in hunting down the Red Lanterns,much to Kilowog's surprise.
To be continued.

Never saw these. They sound good.

"Into the Abyss"
The Interceptor and its crew come to the aid of a cargo ship being pulled into a black hole. Complications ensue:the ship's cargo are the eggs of a nearly extinct race,and they're about to hatch. Razer and Kilowog are not getting along.And at the worst possible moment,Aya goes offline.
It all works out---the eggs are saved,Kilowog and Razer learn to respect each other,and Aya has created a mechanical body for herself;white casing,powered by green energy,with a face that resembles Razer's late wife.
Razer is without a power battery for his ring,but it still works because it is powered by his rage.
The captain of the stricken ship is voiced by Wayne Knight:"Newman."
Best line--Razer:"We're past the point of no return!"
Hal:"I live past the point of no return."
Best moment--Hal tries to play peacemaker.


Superb on every level.

It was good. I think it was on after The Brave & Bold.

I recently got all of the Brave and the Bold episodes on Blu-ray. I think I missed seeing some of the 3rd season.

I loved that series!

"Heir Apparent"
Our GLs and Razer and Aya have arrived at the home of the local GL to ask for his aid.They find him contending with another challenger for the hand of the newly crowned Queen.On the day of the contest, the GL goes missing.Hal takes his place in the contest,which involves jousting on flying jet cycles.
Aya and Razer do some investigating and find the corpse of the GL with its ring missing.There's some palace intrigue with the Queen's brother,some jousting,and it ends with the Queen as the new GL. She refuses Hal's request to join them,as her duty is to her people.
It's an odd sci-fi trope;no matter how technologically advanced some civilizations get,they still cling to medieval customs like monarchies and gladiatorial sports.
Hal is a charmer with the ladies,of any species.He and the Queen have a flirtatious,if brief,relationship.
Engaging enough,but light on surprises.

"Lost Planet"
The ring of the slain GL Shyir Rev (from "Beware My Power") has been located.Instead of returning to Oa,it landed on a world that's in the path of an asteroid Hal and his friends are unable to stop or destroy. Landing on the planet themselves, the Interceptor crew find 3 castaways--Zartok,Drusa,and Grood (not the gorilla).They all split off in search of the ring;Hal and Grood,Aya and Drusa,Kilowog and Zartok.Razer goes it alone.
Quickly,the castaways reveal themselves as scalawags.Grood shoves Hal off a cliff where something odd happens;Hal is nearly engulfed by rock until his ring flares up,which makes the rocks recede.He soon finds Grood,now transformed into rock.
Drusa,feigning an injury,makes Aya take her to the Interceptor.She disables Aya and takes control of the ship.
Razer comes across a field of crashed spacecraft.He also meets Saint Walker,a philosophical sentient who Razer tries to engage in battle,without success.He could give The Flash lessons in speed and nimbleness.He also has the GL ring, which he gives to Razer (after immobilizing him with a nerve pinch) saying he "walks a different path".
Kilowog and Zartok come to blows,which ends in Kilowog throwing him off a cliff.He's saved by Drusa in the stolen ship, and they're about to take off when the ship is prevented from leaving...by the planet itself.
As the asteroid looms into view,Hal figures out who the ring is meant for.Drilling a hole in the ground, he drops the ring down the hole.A shaft of green energy shoots up,destroying the asteroid.For GL fans, the story becomes clear when you learn that the planet's name is...Mogo.
The new Green Lantern tells the others to leave the castaways with him so he can "reform" them (by turning them into rock,like Grood?) Hal & Co. depart,promising to stay in touch.
The surface of Mogo is visually splendid,filled with blue trees.

"Reckoning"
Our heroes have been shadowing the Red Lanterns' home rock,gathering intel on them.Razer, impatient to strike (and harboring a death wish) breaks from the others and speeds off to kill Atrocitus. The others chase after Razer,sneaking into enemy territory.They end up fighting the whole of the Red Lantern Corp--a lot of them,anyway.
The Red Lanterns have patterned themselves on their sworn enemies,even down to having power batteries resembling lanterns.They also have their own oath that they recite while charging their rings.
The RL Corps have a chapel where they pray to their "Lord" Atrocitus.While there,a disguised Hal sees a stained glass display that tells some backstory on their feud with the Guardians;according to it, the homeworld of Atrocitus was destroyed by the Guardians' automated Manhunters.
Razer learns that Atrocitus not only caused civil war to break out on Razer's world,but that Atocitus personally killed Razer's wife,all in order to recruit him to the Red Lantern's cause.Seems a lot of effort to get just one recruit,but then BIg Red clearly isn't playing with a full deck.
Hearing this really puts Razer in a rage.He KOs his old boss and nearly kills him,but instead retrieves a badly damaged Aya and helps the GLs escape.
Lots of ring zapping action.Mostly beams of force,but Hal does ring up some brass knuckles to clobber Atrocitus.
Back on the ship,Hal tears into Razer for his attack when Aya interrupts with some intel she got-a fleet of warships poised for invasion. Definitely to be continued.

"Fear Itself"
Running out of food,the Interceptor heads for the nearest planet.Upon arrival,Hal and Kilowog set out to get provisions, leaving Razer and a still-repairing Aya behind.The two GLs separate and soon run into trouble.Kilowog encounters the Zoar,a race of beings seemingly under siege from large floating creatures that resemble jellyfish.
Hal also meets up with those jellyfish folk,who are called the Nidura.Just before he does,his ring stops working and he's overcome with panic attacks.The reason for that is a mineral called Aurem,the same yellow rocks that were on the prison planet in episode #3.That stuff gets around more than Kryptonite.
It has no effect on the Nidura (who can't speak) but it makes the Zoar hostile and paranoid.It has the same effect on Kilowog,leading to a GL vs GL clash.But,Hal and the Nidura eventually set things right.
Back on the ship,Razer is having his own problems.He can't charge his ring without reciting his Red Lantern oath,which he has grown to loathe.It's creating a crisis for him.
The Zoar look very similar to Kilowog,which is never remarked on.Are they native to this planet? Are the Nidura? Why have they apparently never met before now?
The story does a good job of keeping you guessing,and the visuals are a joy to behold.

"...In Love and War"
Our GLs encounter the Star Sapphires,fellow ringbearers,whose rings emit a violet colored energy and are powered by love,so they claim.They once lived on Oa,but broke from the Guardians,rejecting their turn towards cold logic and away from emotion, and probably not wanting to become blue dwarves themselves.
The Queen invites the GL team to their planet Zamaron.They accept,in part to recruit the Zamarians in the fight against the Red Lanterns,but some R&R wouldn't hurt;they've been in space a long time. The Zamarians are all women,and seductive ones.But not all is smooth with the seducing;Kilowog misses Galia of the Zoar,who he left behind last episode. Hal is also missing his gal pal Carol,who he left behind on Earth.To make their guests happy,the Sapphires bring Galia and Carol to their world,and give them sapphire rings of their own that even endow them with new clothes.Carol is especially enticing in a daring outfit complete with thigh boots.If she looked more human,it might even seem sexy.
But it's a trap! Thanks to cranky Razer and emotionless Aya,the Zamarians true motives are uncovered.They lure beings (presumably male) to their place and encase them in amber-like pods for...reasons. Their stated goal is to teach the universe to make love not war,but how this does that isn't explained. Anyway,Kilowog is freed from his pod,and the GL team take their leave.
It's on Zamaron that Carol learns that Hal is GL.She's been having the police run a missing persons investigation on him, and she's justifiably upset that he didn't bother telling her where he's at.This leads to a ring-fight with Hal as a new Star Sapphire, but it's a brief one.She accepts the situation,removes her ring,and goes back to Earth.More forgiving than most would be, in her shoes.
It's also on Zamaron that Razer first notices that Aya resembles his late wife.Her green face must've thrown him off,or he's just blinded by rage all the time.
This one needed more work.

"Regime Change"
The Red Lanterns have recruited a new member---the mad Price Ragnar from "Heir Apparent".He and the RL Corps have deposed her sister Queen Iolande ( who's also a Green Lantern) and taken over the planet.Hal and his amazing friends receive Iolande's distress signal and are off to the rescue.
Back on Oa,the GL Corps are leaving to fight the RL army.They're traveling by ring power,a trip which at top speed will take 18 months to make.Traveling thru empty space like that doesn't bear thinking about. By interstellar Zoom call,Hal is asking for more immediate help from the Guardians.Ganthet presses the Guardian leader Appa for action,but to no avail.
Back on the besieged planet,the Reds have set up another of their planet-busting bombs,because evil.
Back on Oa,Appa has found out that it was Ganthet who gave Hal the Interceptor.The Guardians exile Ganthet from Oa.
On another conference call,Hal and Kilowog find out from the Guardians that the Red Lantern's story about the robot Manhunters laying waste to planets and lifeforms billions of years ago was true. Which brings up another question: Atrocitus spoke of the Manhunter's destroying his homeworld as if he was an eyewitness to the event,but if it happened billions of years ago,that means Atrocitus is...he's an unreliable witness,true,but that doesn't bear thinking about.
Ganthet is surreptitiously brought back to Oa by Sayd,a Guardian sympathetic to his cause.Ganthet activates a secret weapon hidden on the Interceptor,a power lantern that turns blue,supercharges the Green Lanterns (temporarily),and cuts off the Red Lanterns' power (Razer is nearly killed). The boosted GLs lift the bomb into space,where it explodes without harm. Its work done,the Blue Lantern leaves the Interceptor and heads off into space.
Ganthet also heads off into space,saying he can do more good away from Oa.He reveals that the Blue Lantern is powered by hope.
There's a dedication to the actor Ian Abercrombie,who played Ganthet.He died before these episodes aired.
Hal is irreverent towards the Guardians,referring to them as "Blue Man Group". He springs Ioloande from her jail cell by ringing up a key card.
Lots of action,but also lots of questions remain.

"Flight Club"
Sifting thru data obtained by Hal's crew,the Guardians learn that the Red Lanterns intend to invade GL territory by going thru the asteroid belt that marks the boundary of that territory.Normally impassable,the only way through the belt is by going around it something called the Lighthouse, a device that when given the correct password,opens a portal thru the belt.It was built so long ago that no one remembers the password.A Green Lantern archeologist that may have discovered the password was last reported to be a captive of the prison planet visited by Hal a few episodes back,the one with the yellow rocks that nullify a Green Lantern's power ring.So that's where the Interceptor goes next.
On arrival,they find the cowardly squid-thing Goggan still in charge.They find the GL archeologist,dead. They find a final message from he/her/it saying the knowledge of that secret password now rests with Byth,erstwile leader of a flock of prisoners from Thanagar,home of the Hawkpeople.Byth is a slippery customer;he wants his freedom in exchange for the password,among other things.Complicating matters is the arrival of a spaceship full of Red Lanterns who are also after the password--and their rings aren't bothered by anything yellow.
It's a series of tricks and more tricks as the Green team try to keep Byth out of the Red team's clutches while getting the Lighthouse password out of him.Looking out for #1,Byth will only give up the word for the right price,and that's assuming he'll even reveal the right word.
Byth is the first villain Hawkman encountered when he was revived in the Silver Age.There,he was a shape-shifter;here, his only power is being devious.It would be a shame if this was his only spot on this show,as such a shifty bird rates another appearance.
Hal begins the episode looking for his power battery,indicating that it was his lantern that became the Blue Lantern seen last episode.
The implausibility of the "impassable" asteroid belt is the only drawback to this story.

"Invasion"
The Red Lanterns have caught Byth. Atroticus tortures the password that activates the Lighthouse out of him,even though Byth offered to sell it to him for half price.
The Green Lanterns arrive at the asteroid barrier,at the coordinates where the opening should appear. The password is transmited,and the rocks are spread apart by spiraling beams of force.Flying thru the tunnel formed by the beams,the Interceptor arrives at the Lighthouse itself,in the middle of the asteroid belt.The GLs mission is to destroy the Lighthouse before the Red Lantern invasion fleet arrives at the barrier.
On Mogo,Zartok and Drusa are awaiting a Red Lantern response to their distress signal.Zartok in particular is anxious to join the Reds in battle.Saint Walker is also on the planet.Talking to Mogo,he tells how his planet was destroyed by the Reds and asks how he can help defeat them.Mogo,who tends to be cryptic,tells Walker to climb a nearby mountain.
The Interceptor crew run up against both the automated defenses of the Lighthouse and three Red Lanterns left guarding the place (just 3?) They are forced to retreat. Aya sneaks back and reprograms the Lighthouse to attack the Reds,who then retreat.
Back on Mogo,a Red Lantern craft arrives and picks up Zartok and Drusa,and then takes off despite Mogo's efforts to stop them.Mogo isn't very good at being a Green Lantern. (on what side of the "impassible barrier" is Mogo situated,anyway?) Saint Walker keeps climbing.
Razer sets up a bomb timed to destroy the Lighthouse.As they depart,a Red ship carrying Atrocitus and his goons come up behind them.When the Lighthouse explodes,the tunnel begins to collapse.In a thrilling chase,the two ships crash into each other as they speed out of the asteroid belt before the rocks crush them.
The Interceptor makes it out intact.The Red's ship is heavily damaged.Aya informs the others that the ultra warp drive on their ship is now working and they can go back to Oa.Hal decides to take Kilowog and Razer to the Red's ship to check for survivors.
Back on Mogo,Saint Walker arrives at the mountain top.There,he finds the Blue Lantern,and from it emerges a blue ring...
The GLs and Razer board the Red ship only to have it explode in their faces.They survive,only to find that Atrocitus and his gang have hijacked the Interceptor and Drusa has taken control of Aya.No sign of Zartok;he could be in the bathroom, but I don't think so.
The Interceptor takes off for Oa,leaving Hal,Kilowog,and Razer stranded in space.If that wasn't bad enough,a series of explosions rip thru the asteroid barrier,opening up enough space for the Red armada to pass thru...so destroying the Lighthouse was all for naught.
Things look bad.

"Homecoming"
Hoo boy...
Hal has a plan for getting to Oa ahead of Atrocitus.Kilowog doesn't like it,but volunteers to stay behind to hold off the entire Red Lantern invasion fleet single-ringed.There's a moment between Kilowog and Razer, who's going with Hal;is it a sign of grudging respect from Kilowog to the former Red Lantern,or is it anger that Razer isn't staying behind with him? Whatever it is,Hal and Razer depart.
The hijacked Interceptor arrives at Oa. The invading army consists of Atrocitus and 4 others,which is sufficent as there's just one Green Lantern on the planet to guard the Guardians;the rest of the Corps, you may recall,are in deep space at the moment.The GL puts up a valiant fight,aided by various defense mechanisms,but the Reds are soon burning their way into the Guardian's panic room.
The Red Lantern fleet comes into Kilowog 's sight,its ships seemingly numbering in the thousands. The gap in the asteroid barrier is just large enough that the ships will have to travel thru single file.This barrier is huge,stretching into infinity. Kilowog creates some huge guns and makes his stand.
Hal and Razer arrive at their destination;Zamaron,home of the Star Sapphires.Hal asks the Queen to open a portal to Earth;from there,he can make his way to Oa.She does so,and the story takes a weird turn as the trip gives Hal amnesia and he forgets he's a Green Lantern even though Carol Ferris made the same trip with no such effects (?!)
Kilowog is giving his all in the fight,but the sheer number of Reds is wearing him down.Just when all is lost,a blue light appears in the form of Saint Walker,the first Blue Lantern,supercharging Kilowog as before.If that wasn't enough,Mogo appears.Yes,an ENTIRE PLANET enters the scene without anyone noticing.Pretty sure one or two laws of physics have been broken there.
On the Interceptor,Drusa is about to lobotomize Aya when a Zamarian portal appears,and from it steps Razer,who takes out Drusa and frees Aya.When this first aired,no doubt every kid watching stood up and said,"Why didn't the Queen just send Hal straight to Oa?"
Speaking of which,Carol takes Hal to his locker at the airbase where he works.She finds his power battery,which has been on Earth this whole time (just when did she even learn about it?) and makes him charge his ring,hoping it will restore his memory. It does.
At the barrier,Saint Walker supercharges Mogo to such a level that it takes out the entire invading armada.
Atrocitus finally breaks into the Guardians stronghold.Just when all seems lost,Hal makes a dramatic entrance,and then makes an offer of peace to Atrocitus.He doesn't take Hal up on it,so it quickly becomes a slugfest between the two Lanterns. The Red one has the muscle,but the Green one has the will--in the end,Hal is the one left standing.
Witnessing all this,Guardian Appa finally acknowledges that mistakes were made and pledges to visit the ruined worlds to undo what damage can still be undone all these billions of years later,or whenever this all happened.Getting what is probably a rare "thank you" from the Guardians,Hal leaves for Earth. In her office,Carol looks out the window and sees a green light in the sky heading her way. It's a nice image...
...for a lousy climax to the Red Lantern storyline.It just made little sense.Atrocitus was a one note villain, cartoonishly so even for a cartoon.The music for this episode was nice,having a John Williams style sound to it. Otherwise,the whole storyline was a big fizzle.

Above a far off planet,a rift opens in spacetime.From it emerges a giant,metallic figure decorated in Kirbytech.The figure makes its way to the planet's surface,a place strewn with the ruins of a long dead civilization. An aircraft stops in from of the figure,demanding its surrender.In response,the figure emits a beam that splits the aircraft in two.It then announces, "Soon you will all work for me" and transmits a signal that activates dormant Manhunters laying among the rubble.
Smells like a new storyarc.

"The New Guy"
Back on Earth,Hal finds out that no man is replaceable,even one who saved the universe.At Ferris Air, Carol has hired a new pilot and put everything of Hal's in a box,even his power battery.Hoping to change her mind,Hal offers to take her out to dinner.Just then,news comes of trouble at a construction site.Hal leaves as GL,vowing to be back in time for their dinner date.
At the site,Hal encounters another Green Lantern,one Guy Gardner. After the trouble is fixed,the two GLs meet on a rooftop,where Guy tells Hal the Guardians chose him to be Earth's Green Lantern.Hal doesn't take this well,and soon the two are having a fight that goes from space to the desert and back to the rooftop.What really burns Hal is that the new guy is more popular that he is.Everybody likes Guy.Even the tight assed Guardian Appa likes Guy.
Just then,news comes of a disturbance at an archeological dig inside a glacier.Hal and Guy fly off to investigate,and find a buried chamber with alien writings that translate as"No Man Escapes the Manhunters" They also find a trio of Manhunters that has been reactivated by the signal sent by the mystery thing at the start of the show. These Manhunters are killing machines,going after any form of life that registers "emotion".The GLs manage to destroy the Manhunters after a hard fought battle.But victory comes at a price:Hal has missed his dinner date with Carol.She calls Hal and breaks up with him, over the phone.There's another call from the Guardians,ordering Hal back to Oa. Facing the Guardians,Hal is told he has been taken off Earth and promoted to the GL Honor Guard.

What a breath of fresh air this was.It feels like a new show.After all the spacefaring,this show needed to come back to Earth,literally and figuratively.Looks like that won't last past this episode,but there's always hope.
Never had any use for Guy Gardner in the comics.Why the Green Lanterns or the Justice League would tolerate a crass, hostile thug like him in their ranks was a mystery.His only redeeming quality was serving as Batman's punching bag.What a relief that this show did a complete personality shift on Guy,turning him into a laid back,regular guy who was still a brawler.The relationship between Hal and Guy is a lot of fun,equal parts camaraderie and competition.This tone of the show has also lightened;among the constructs the frenemies have their rings create in their battles are such objects as baseball bats, baseball gloves,a boot,a catapult,a rock,a pair of scissors,and other sports gear.
Highest rating.

"Reboot"
Hal and fellow GL Tomar-Re are investigating a Manhunter base on another planet.It's similar to the one on Earth,even having three very old and rusty yet active Manhunters on site.They are joined by three more Manhunters,which look newly made.The GLs manage to trash them all.
In a meeting with the Guardians,Hal states his belief that some unknown force are reactivating the Manhunters,but has no evidence to back that up.He requests and gets the Interceptor to track down the Manhunters. Hal finds Kilowog,who has resumed his former job of training GL recruits. Hal asks Kilowog to go back into space with him.After Hal loses a fight to a recruit from the planet of squirrels,Kilowog accepts the offer.Must be nice to be in an organization where you can switch duties just like that.
On the Interceptor,the GLs find a new AI has been installed and that Aya is due to be taken apart.It quickly becomes apparent that the new AI will not do,so steps are taken to retrieve Aya before she's terminated.The rescue of Aya is played for laughs and involves longtime GLs Larvox,Chaselon,and Ch'p (the squirrel that beat up Hal).Mission accomplished,Aya is back in control of the ship,which now has another member, Tomar-Re.
Heading into space,Tomar-Re tells of his discovery of anti-matter waves that are reactivating the Manhunters.The Interceptor tracks the waves to their source,the planet Biot,the same planet seen at the start of the last episode.They find a Manhunter factory at work making more of the killbots.The GLs try to sabotage the place,and in so doing encounter the Manhunter's leader,the giant who was also seen last episode.It has just arrived from another universe.It feeds off anti-matter,which it gets from the conversion of matter.Having laid waste to his universe,it has come to ours to feed.
Being out-powered,the GLs retreat.Hal shields the others as they make their escape,but his shield fails and Hal is engulfed by the giant's energy blast,and he vanishes.
Bummer.Now what?

"Steam Lantern"
Relax--Hal's not dead after all.Instead,he was blasted into another universe,landing on an inhabited planet.At first glance,it looks like Victorian England.A second glance reveals sights like giant robots with televisual screens and other machinery anachronistic to the period.This is the Steampunk World,where the 19th century and the 21st century are cohabitating.
The people here are under the thumb of the despotic Duke Nigel Fortenberry.Leading the fight against him are the plucky Lady Catherine and her beau Gil Broome,the Steam Lantern. He uses a steam powered jet pack for flight,yet can harness the energy of the Green Lanterns.He met a Lantern once, and his description sounds like the Golden Age Green Lantern. Steam Lantern's jet pack/power battery is fueled by a mineral called "hardtofindium".The script is full of those kinds of words.
From their base of operations,the Battling Berthilda (a dirigiblimp) the three heroes compare notes. Hal learns that this universe is about to burn out,due to the damage caused by a "space dragoon",the giant that blasted Hal into this universe. You may know it by another name:the Anti-Monitor.
After many trials,Hal eventually makes it back to his universe by opening the rift in the sky,Not only that, he brings the Steampunk World along with him.An incredible feat that nearly kills him,as his ring runs out of power doing it.Gotta keep those things charged.
Gil Broome is a nod to John Broome,the great Silver Age writer.
Hal rings up a fire extinguisher to put out the Battling Berthilda.
A great episode that may turn out to be my favorite of the entire series.It's the kind of fanciful,Silver Age type of concept I wish this show had done more of.

"Blue Hope"
The Interceptor crew of Hal,Kilowog,and Aya have come to the planet Odym,where Ganthet has set up his competing band of hopeful ringers:the Blue Lanterns,consisting of Saint Walker and Warth of the elephant people.There is another one residing with the Blues;Razer,former Red Lantern.He's there trying to learn peace of mind from Saint Walker's meditation classes.He still wears his Red Lantern uniform even though his ring doesn't work in the presence of the Blue Lanterns.In their own restrained way,Razer and Aya are happy to see each other again.
Hal has brought a smashed-up Manhunter to Ganthet in hope of finding any weaknesses in these machines the Guardians made.Ganthet says they were made to be indestructible.Aya actives its speech center to get some insight about its programming.The Manhunter states that it was made to destroy evil.Evil comes from emotion.Therefore,all beings with emotion must be destroyed.Ganthet admits the Manhunters' programming may be faulty.
Later,Ganthet kicks off the Blue Lantern Corp by firing up their main power battery,which also resembles a giant lantern. Ganthet then recites the Blue Lantern oath,climaxing with a wave of energy that supercharges the Green Lanterns once again.Unfortunately,it also supercharges the Manhunter, who promptly attacks everyone.You get the feeling that for all their advanced scientific and and technological skills,the Guardians don't really think things thru.
The Manhunter is defeated and put back on the ship.Unknown to the others,Aya takes the Manhunter to a spot where they can talk by themselves.Aya offers to help the Manhunter to rewrite its original programing,but it refuses,saying machines like it and Aya cannot change from what they are made to be.This doesn't sit well with Aya.
The blue energy wave hurdles through space,supercharging three Manhunters who just happened to be passing by.D'oh. They head for Odym to take the Blue Lantern for themselves.In the resulting battle,Aya is zapped by the would-be lantern thieves when they suddenly detect emotion from this "machine".Enraged,Razer's ring blazes with energy,even though this was supposed to be impossible on this planet,and he destroys the Manhunters.
Afterwards,the Blue Lantern is extinguished;the debut of the BL Corps will have to wait until the Manhunters are put down. Razer rejoins the Interceptor crew in their mission to hunt down the Manhunters.Aya seems pleased.It's old home week.
Best line comes from Aya:"Sigh." It's funny in context.
There's clearly more to Aya than meets the eye-a.