Lanterns, the highly anticipated DCU television show focusing on two Green Lanterns working together, finally dropped on HBO on Sunday night. It has taken up the coveted 9 pm slot previously held by House of the Dragon. In other words, it’s perhaps the heaviest hitter in streaming television right now. That slot is valuable, and it’s what HBO is hinging its continued success on.
The DCU is also hinging its continued success, or rather, survival, on the show. Lanterns comes out after a tumultuous period. After Superman, things have gone really downhill. James Gunn has reportedly been beefing with Craig Gillespie over Supergirl. Projects are being cancelled. But Lanterns is here, and it may be just what the DCU needed.
Lanterns is Must-See TV on HBO Sunday Nights
Some of the biggest HBO shows have held that prestigious 9 pm Sunday slot: House of the Dragon, IT: Welcome to Derry, The White Lotus, and more. It is reserved for the biggest and best shows that HBO, long one of the top streamers in terms of original projects, has to offer. Now, it is for Lanterns, and after one episode, it certainly looks deserved.
Pilot episodes have a ton of work to do. They have to introduce characters, settings, timelines, dynamics, and the plot. Consider the solid pilot of Ted Lasso Season 4 not too long ago: it had to reintroduce the characters and justify why Ted might go back to England. In doing so, it ran out of time before the actual season plot could get underway.
Lanterns, on the other hand, introduced both Hal Jordan and John Stewart, providing rich characterization in very little time. Their dynamic, the central cog of this entire show, was on full display throughout. The plot was established with a surprising cliffhanger, and there are several fascinating thematic threads sprinkled throughout.
In other words, while it’s not a perfect episode of television, it’s pretty close. There are still seven episodes to go in this season, which may or may not be the only season. Given the early reaction, we fully expect more seasons to follow, because it looks like it will be a hit with fans and critics.
Still, there are seven episodes for the streaming show to derail itself, which happens even to the best shows. Lanterns has set up a very promising show for the DCU, and it needs to fulfill the promise the first episode showcases. But since we don’t know what episodes two through eight contain, we can only judge based on the first.
And that episode has positioned Lanterns as the next must-see television project in what’s been a delightful year for the medium. Streaming may have ruined film in some ways, but it’s been a blessing to television in other ways.
This could be a much-needed win for the DCU. Superman was great, and Peacemaker Season 2 was well-received, but Supergirl was a catastrophic flop, and there’s no telling what Clayface will do in the wake of that. The DCU, only a year old, is already on shaky ground.
But this show brings in TV veteran stars like Damon Lindelof and Chris Mundy, along with comic writer Tom King. It stars the criminally underused (both of them) Kyle Chandler and Aaron Pierre. It has all the pieces of something special, and that’s the kind of thing the fledgling DCU could really use right now. Most of the goodwill from Superman has evaporated.
Fortunately, Lanterns appears poised to restore that goodwill and then some. So if you’re looking for a way to spend your Sunday evenings, we highly recommend checking out the HBO show.
