LANTERNS Blew Us Away at Comic-Con: The Hall H Clips Were Awesome!

Walking into the Lanterns panel at San Diego Comic-Con, I figured the new trailer would be the big moment. It was really cool, packed with mystery, great visuals, and enough intrigue to get DC fans talking. But then the lights stayed down, and DC rolled seven extended clips from the series.

That completely changed the conversation. Every new scene raised the bar. They gave us a much better feel for the show’s tone, the relationship between Hal Jordan and John Stewart, the mystery they’re caught up in, and just how much personality this series has.

It balances humor, tension, grounded character moments, and explosive Green Lantern action in a way that feels incredibly fresh.

There are definitely spoilers ahead, so if you’re hoping to experience everything for yourself when the show premieres, this is your warning.

Clip 1:

The first scene establishes the dynamic between Aaron Pierre’s John Stewart and Kyle Chandler‘s Hal Jordan, and it’s fantastic.

John is waiting on a quiet street when Hal pulls up in a black car blasting “Boogie Shoes” by KC and the Sunshine Band. Hal apologizes for being late, but instead of leaving it there, he keeps trying to provoke John into getting angry.

John remains calm, politely calling him “Sir” every chance he gets, which only annoys Hal even more. Hal even points out that every time John says “Sir,” it sounds like he’s really saying “Fuck you.” John simply replies, “No, sir.”

Hal explains he’s spent the last two weeks off-world settling a galactic dispute, then twists the knife a little by reminding John he hasn’t experienced any of that yet. John finally points out that the Guardians chose him, but Hal still hasn’t even let him use the ring.

So Hal finally hands it over… in the most Hal Jordan way imaginable. He places the ring onto the dashboard, tells John there’s a taco stand three miles up the road, then jumps out of the speeding car and lets it drive straight off a cliff.

As the vehicle flies through the air, John slips on the ring and desperately tries to create something to survive the crash.

When they finally meet at the taco stand, Hal is casually signing autographs and posing for photos like a celebrity. A fan tells him she misses the Green Lantern costume, and he jokes that he only wears it on special occasions.

John eventually arrives and simply says, “I could have died.” Hal’s response? “You wanted training. I’m training you.” When Hal asks what construct John created to survive, John reluctantly admits: “Bubble wrap.”

This entire sequence was an absolute blast. Chandler completely owns the cocky veteran role, while Pierre plays the straight man perfectly. Their chemistry already feels effortless.

Clip 2:

The second clip shifts gears and turns into one of the creepiest scenes shown during the panel. Hal is interrogating a man arrested during a high school football game. He casually quizzes him about Nebraska football, and the suspect answers every question correctly. Then Hal suddenly asks, “Where does Harry Potter go to school?”

The man has no clue. Hal explains that a real human naturally absorbs all kinds of random cultural knowledge. Someone pretending to be human would study only the identity they’ve created, leaving huge blind spots.

Then Hal brings up Barack Obama. “You’re from rural Nebraska, and that’s the extent of your opinion on Barack Hussein Obama? You’re definitely an alien.” He got him.

The suspect drops the act and calmly explains that, hypothetically speaking, if he were an alien hiding on Earth, he’d have spent years carefully blending in while avoiding organizations like the Green Lantern Corps.

Then he casually reveals he’d also have a mental trigger capable of detonating a bomb powerful enough to destroy the entire town.

Hal insists he can stop it with his ring. The man points out Hal has been on Earth for nearly two days without recharging it. The tension keeps building until Hal sarcastically asks: “Are we talking or exploding? Because it’s almost lunchtime.”

Then the suspect starts reciting the Green Lantern oath simply to irritate Hal before quietly whispering one word: “Vengeance.” He explodes. Hal manages to contain part of the blast by blocking the explosion with his ring by constructing a bubble around him, but the building is still devastated.

This scene had everyone locked in. It was suspenseful, unsettling, and showed just how dangerous the mystery at the center of this story really is.

Clip 3:

The third clip flashes back to John’s military career, giving us a better understanding of who he was before ever touching a power ring.

Wearing his Marine Corps dress uniform, John meets with a superior inside an Outback Steakhouse. The officer jokes that people usually choose the restaurant for discreet meetings, but John couldn’t care less. He’s completely mission-focused.

John is revealed to be a highly decorated sniper. He’s assigned to eliminate a target who only occasionally visits a remote cabin.

John immediately realizes this means waiting in isolation for weeks or even months. Even worse, three previous operatives attempted the mission and never returned. After being told to get his affairs in order, John boards a military aircraft, parachutes into hostile territory, and crashes during the descent.

It was a surprisingly intense sequence that adds another layer to John’s character. Then things become fun again.

Clip 4:

The fourth clip finds Hal and John sitting in a local bar while Melanie’s “Brand New Key” plays over and over. One irritated local warns Hal that if the song comes on one more time, somebody’s getting hurt.

John quickly realizes Hal is doing this on purpose. Hal admits he’s trying to start a fight so they’ll end up in jail. He removes his ring, places it on the bar, and tells John that no matter how badly things look, he isn’t allowed to interfere.

John agrees… perhaps a little too enthusiastically. While Hal gets absolutely pummeled across the room, Poorna Jagannathan’s mysterious woman strikes up a conversation with John.

She teasingly calls him a “space cop.” John explains he isn’t one yet. He’s still training after being chosen by the Guardians. She smiles and compares him to the backup quarterback. Meanwhile, Hal is getting destroyed in the background.

The contrast between the flirtation happening at one end of the bar and Hal’s disastrous plan unfolding at the other had the entire audience laughing.

Clip 5:

The fifth clip continues shortly afterward. Hal and John leave dinner with influential local William Macon, played by Garret Dillahunt. Everything appears friendly until Macon casually says: “Let’s just say we both share the interest of protecting the planet from people not born on it.”

Then he asks John how the tofu tasted. John says it was delicious. Macon responds: “There’s nothing better than eating off another man’s grill.” Hal immediately knows something strange just happened. “What was that about?”

John awkwardly replies that he may have slept with Macon’s wife. “May have? I definitely slept with his wife. And he knows? Apparently.”

Hal points out they’ve only been in town for 24 hours. He’s honestly impressed.

Clip 6
The sixth clip was probably the biggest surprise of the presentation because it finally gave us our first real look at Ulrich Thomsen’s Sinestro. Hal travels to a frozen prison world to visit his former mentor.

“What do you know about Manhunters?” Hal asks. Sinestro replies: “If one still existed, they’d be your second greatest threat.” Then Sinestro immediately changes the subject. “Tell me about John Stewart.”

Hal has no idea how Sinestro even knows John’s name while locked away in an isolated prison. Sinestro makes it clear John isn’t simply Hal’s trainee. He’s coming to replace him.

The scene then smash cuts back to Earth, where Hal and John suddenly launch into a brutal fight that sends them crashing through the room while an ominous siren grows louder and louder outside. John eventually locks Hal into a chokehold as an intense red light floods the room. Then…It ends.

I actually groaned when they cut away. Seriously, don’t do that to us! It was such an intense sequence, and I wanted to see where it was going. Ending it there felt almost cruel.

Scene 7

The final tease was much shorter but still got a huge reaction. Nathan Fillion‘s Guy Gardner arrives in town, walks into a jail, and wakes John Stewart. It’s immediately obvious these two already know each other. Just as they begin talking…

The footage is censored, and it couts to black. We didn’t see anything else.

The audience erupted with laughter and frustration because DC literally cut the scene off before anyone could hear the conversation.

By the end of all seven clips, I was completely sold. Everything we’ve seen from Lanterns has looked great, but these extended scenes made it clear this isn’t simply another superhero show.

It feels like a grounded mystery wrapped inside a Green Lantern story, filled with fantastic performances, sharp dialogue, genuine laughs, and some surprisingly tense moments.

Pierre and Chandler are phenomenal together. Their chemistry is exactly what you’d want from John Stewart and Hal Jordan, and every interaction feels authentic. Whether they’re arguing, joking around, investigating aliens, or throwing punches, they’re incredibly entertaining to watch.

If these clips are any indication of the finished series, DC and HBO may have something really special on their hands. I walked into Hall H excited about Lanterns. I walked out counting the days until we finally get to watch the whole thing. August 16 can’t get here fast enough.