For more than eight decades, Green Lantern comics have told stories of cosmic adventure centered on heroes chosen for their extraordinary willpower and ability to overcome fear.
The HBO Max series Lanterns, the latest entry in James Gunn’s DCU, has taken a considerably more grounded approach to the material. What might have been a thrilling and inspiring adventure has instead become a flashpoint for debates about some of humanity’s worst tendencies.
John Stewart in Lanterns – HBO Max
The most recent episode now has viewers debating the cast and crew over where the line falls between pushing a child to reach his potential and subjecting him to abuse.
Lanterns Cast Praises John Stewart’s Mother
The cast and creative team behind Lanterns are defending the extreme methods used by John Stewart’s mother, describing her as an “unsung hero” responsible for shaping her son into a superhero.
The third episode of the HBO series, titled “OutKast,” reveals that John’s mother, Bernadette Stewart, spent years conditioning him to become a Green Lantern. Although her methods could easily be interpreted as abusive, actress Jasmine Cephas Jones believes the episode celebrates mothers who accomplish the seemingly impossible.
“To me, when I read this episode, this is a love letter to the unsung hero of the mother,” Jones told The Knockturnal. “And especially black mothers and making the possible out of the impossible. She is the superhero without the cape.”
John Stewart’s Parents Attempt to Eliminate His Fear
“OutKast” reveals that a Green Lantern ring considered John Stewart Sr. before ultimately choosing Hal Jordan. However, the ring rejected Stewart after asking whether he was afraid and receiving an honest answer.
Bernadette later confronts a Guardian over the decision.
“Do you understand how unfair it is to ask a black man in America if he’s afraid?” she asks.
The Guardian suggests that Bernadette’s infant son could eventually become a candidate if his parents raise him without fear. Bernadette and her husband subsequently dedicate themselves to preparing John for a destiny he is too young to understand or choose.
Critics have noted that the absence of fear is commonly associated with psychopathy. Green Lanterns, by contrast, have traditionally been admired for possessing the willpower to acknowledge and overcome their fears.
The Green Lantern Corps working together – YouTube, Comics Explained
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John’s training begins with his parents giving him a Green Lantern costume and firearm as a child. His father shoots an apple from his head, while Bernadette later expects John to perform the same trick.
His parents also abandon him at night and force him to walk home through a dangerous neighborhood. Bernadette tells her son that birds are secretly observing and evaluating him on behalf of the Guardians, ensuring that he constantly feels watched and judged.
As an adult, John admits that the relentless training isolated him from his siblings. Although they shared a home for 18 years, he says he “grew up missing them.”
Jasmine Cephas Jones Defends Bernadette’s Actions
Despite the obvious harm inflicted upon John, Jones interpreted Bernadette’s behavior as an attempt to reclaim control after discovering that her husband had been telling the truth about encountering the ring.
“That’s her getting her power back,” she explained. “She is a Jill of all Trades, just like, so many mothers are.”
Jones acknowledged that Bernadette makes “some really, really hard decisions.” However, she said the production deliberately attempted to prevent viewers from dismissing the character as completely insane.
“We wanted to make sure that she’s not going complete psycho,” Jones said. “We still see why she’s doing it and still showing love to her family and her sons. So that was really important as well.”
Her remarks suggest that the production does not intend audiences to view Bernadette merely as a fanatical parent who traumatized her son. Instead, her severe methods are presented as difficult decisions motivated by love and a desire to reclaim power for her family.
J. Alphonse Nicholson Says Bernadette Created a Superhero
J. Alphonse Nicholson, who plays John Sr., similarly presented John’s upbringing as difficult preparation that ultimately produces beneficial results.
“But you know it’s going to build a certain type of skill set that they can carry for life,” he said. “And for little John, we know that it’s going to build a set where he’ll be able to protect us and protect other people and possibly be one of the greatest Green Lanterns of all time.”
John Stewart as Green Lantern – YouTube, Comics Explained
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During a separate interview with DC Studios Showcase co-host Fantastic Frankey, Nicholson directly credited Bernadette with determining her son’s future.
“I think this show hits at home that this black woman is the reason why this young man goes where he needs to go,” he said.
Nicholson then connected the storyline to former Vice President Kamala Harris and the 2024 presidential election.
“Could you imagine where we would be right now if Kamala got up in there, dog?” he asked. “Could you imagine how it would’ve been? It’d be a lot different. So we’re experiencing the consequences of not trusting a black woman.”
He added that Lanterns demonstrates “how great of a superhero we can create and have—if you trust a black woman.”
Lanterns Writer Calls the Green Lantern Ring “Sexist”
Episode writer and co-executive producer Vanessa Baden Kelly also appears to admire Bernadette rather than view her solely as a deeply flawed parent.
“The thing that I would always say in the room is that if the ring wasn’t sexist, Bernadette would have been chosen, because she really is just the most fearless of everybody,” Kelly reportedly told Collider in an interview quoted by TechTimes.
Kelly acknowledged during the show’s official podcast that she expected viewers to debate whether John’s treatment constituted abuse.
Aaron Pierre as John Stewart and Kyle Chandler as Hal Jordan in Lanterns – HBO, DC Studios
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“I hope they’re arguing about it,” she said. “I hope, like, on Reddit, they’re like, ‘John’s parents are abusive.’ And other ones are like, ‘This is how you make Serena Williams.’”
That comparison frames the Stewarts’ actions as an extreme route to greatness rather than conduct audiences should unequivocally reject.
Viewers can decide whether terrifying, isolating, and endangering a child represents loving preparation or abuse. However, the cast and writer have made their admiration for Bernadette unmistakably clear.
They consider her the hero who made John Stewart possible.
How do you feel about Lanterns and its treatment of John Stewart’s mother? Sound off and let us know!
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