Green Lantern Corps

 

In the early days of the universe, natives of the overpopulated planet Maltus evolved into immortals of great power. They subsequently settled the planet Oa and declared themselves the Guardians of the Universe and enemies of evil after one of their own, the renegade Maltusian scientist Krona, performed a forbidden experiment that had terrible consequences for the universe at large.

Exactly what those consequences were have varied with different versions of the stories; originally, it was supposed to have unleashed evil in the first place. Later, it was attributed to have created the Antimatter Universe of Qward. Later still, it was used as the explanation for the existence of parallel universes in the DC Multiverse (and the creation of the Monitor), which eventually led to the rearrangement of Time itself, as seen in the Crisis on Infinite Earths. Finally, it has been stated that it accelerated entropy, shortening the duration of the universe by a billion years.

Some of the Guardians, however, disagreed on how to deal with the chaos that had been unleashed. One group, calling itself the Controllers, separated itself from the others and favored using more violent methods to achieve their ends (a later interpretation says they left over a disagreement on how to use the Manhunters - see below). They would later found the Darkstars organization. The female Maltusians, feeling no need to involve themselves in the situation, also left, becoming later known as the Zamarons.

To enforce their will and guard against alien menaces of all sorts, the Guardians had created a legion of robotic sentinels called the Manhunters about 3.5 billion years ago. The Manhunters eventually came to resent their servitude and were also viewed as flawed due to their inability to recognize and/or feel fear. They rebelled against the Guardians and fought a millennia long war that culminated with an attack on the planet Oa. Ultimately, the Guardians overcame their android servants, stripping them of their power and banishing them across the universe. Eventually, they formed their own robotic society where they pursued their own agenda (which often included interfering with and foiling the plans of the Guardians).

Chastened by the failure of the Manhunters, the Guardians decided that their newest force of soldiers for good would consist of living beings, ones who had free will and strong moral character. To arm this new legion of celestial knights, the Guardians created the Power Rings, rings of inconceivably-advanced technology that allowed their wearers to project green beams of energy with which the bearer could conjure objects of any size or shape, limited only by his or her imagination and willpower.

Although the connection between the Guardian Oans and the origin of the Green Lantern symbol has yet to be clarified, it has been revealed that the lantern itself has its roots in the first life in the universe. Allegedly, the first life in the galaxy emerged on an unnamed foggy world, and when they developed a police force - the first in the universe - the constabulary carried a lantern lit with a green chemical flame, hence a corp of Green Lanterns. It is intimated that this ideal was adopted and spread throughout the galaxy as a symbol for law and justice and its ability to pierce confusion and uncertainty, eventually resulting in the formation of the Green Lantern Corps, with requisite Power Rings and Lantern-shaped batteries along traditional lines. Initially consisting of only a few dozen agents at a time, the Corps radically increased its numbers approximately 1000 years ago. The Guardians sought to bring order to the planet known as Apokolips. Home to Darkseid, a galactic tyrant, Apokolips was and is a stronghold of evil. Green Lantern Raker Qarrigat sought to remove Darkseid from power, only to be humbled by Darkseid's might. Raker returned to Oa, where he convinced the Guardians that taking Apokolips would require an army. Authorized to start a massive recruitment, Raker and his fellow Lanterns inducted thousands of new members, bringing total membership up to 3600.

Both the Corps and the Guardians suffered casualties during the Crisis on Infinite Earths. The Guardians' failure to take appropriate action during the Crisis led to their decision to depart Oa in the company of their female counterparts, the Zamarons. Left to their own devices, the Corps underwent a major reorganization. A team of Green Lanterns led by Hal Jordan was stationed on Earth, and the system of assigning one Green Lantern to a sector was temporarily abandoned. The decision of the Corps to execute Sinestro resulted in the activation of a previously unknown fail-safe that depowered the rings of every Green Lantern except for Hal Jordan, Guy Gardner, G'nort and Ch'p.

The Guardians eventually returned to Oa and began the reconstruction of the Corps, assigning Guy Gardner to Earth, John Stewart to the Mosaic World, and Hal Jordan to recruit new members. Ironically, Jordan himself would eventually be responsible for destroying the incarnation of the Corps that he had helped create.

The Green Lantern Corps patrolled the DC Universe for over three billion years. In that vast length of time, some Green Lanterns rebelled and turned against the Corps. A rogue Green Lantern, Universo, was briefly shown to exist in the future epoch of the Legion of Super-Heroes, but multiple retcons have long since eliminated this possible future. Two of the most important fallen Lanterns were Sinestro, the rogue Green Lantern, and Hal Jordan, who would unknowingly become possessed by Parallax the ancient fear parasite trapped in the Battery. At the ruins of his home Coast City, Jordan consumed by grief allowed fear in not knowing it was tainted by the creature Parallax.

The Green Lantern Corps ranks were decimated by the Parallax possessed Jordan, its power source, the Main Battery, extinguished; and Oa destroyed, removing the original power source for the rings.

After the fall of the Corps, other organizations tried to fill in the power vacuum left by the Guardians. Two organizations had initial notable successes; the Darkstars and L.E.G.I.O.N. However neither ever achieved the power and reach of the Green Lantern Corps.

Recently, Hal Jordan sacrificed his life re-igniting the sun, where upon Oa and the Central Battery were completely rebuilt by the physical manifestation of Jordan’s dying will channeled through his old friend and confidant Tom Kalmaku. Shortly thereafter Kyle Rayner, funneled the remaining energy left in the sun that was once the immortal Guardians back into the Central Battery where they were reborn as children. The resurrections did not stop there. It was discovered that Hal Jordan had been possessed by the living embodiment of fear, an ancient parasite called Parallax. Parallax had been imprisoned within the Central Power Battery for billions of years and is the mysterious "Yellow Impurity" within the Corps' green light that leaves them vulnerable against yellow. Once Hal Jordan learned the truth about Parallax, he separated himself from it, and was reborn as a Green Lantern once again, together with the help of John Stewart, Guy Gardner, Kyle Rayner and Kilowog, they re-imprisoned Parallax. With that, the Guardians continued the re-construction and expansion of the Corps. The new Corps, under the training of Kilowog, Kyle Rayner, Guy Gardner and other veterans, was primarily filled by new recruits. Only a handful of veteran Lanterns are back in the ranks. Each sector has two Lanterns assigned to protect it (with Hal Jordan and John Stewart assigned as the protectors of Earth). Due to an ancient pact with the Spider Guild, the Vega star system is off limits to all members of the Corps.

With 3600 sectors and two Green Lanterns per sector, it will be many years before the Corps regains its former strength. It presently lacks both the manpower and the political influence it once had due to its years-long absence from many sectors. This has left it currently unable to intervene in situations it might have before Parallax destroyed the old Corps, including conflicts such as the Rann-Thanagar War. The Guardians remain staunchly uninvolved in what they see as a conflict that could destabilize many sectors, but that has not stopped Kyle Rayner and Kilowog from helping refugees.

Despite these difficulties, the Corps played a key role in defeating Superboy-Prime. Several Lanterns were killed slowing the renegade Superboy's advance on Oa, a sacrifice that enabled Earth's most powerful heroes to execute their plan to restrain him. Mogo, the sentient planet and Corps member, positioned himself to act as a final battleground between Superboy-Prime and the two Supermen. The Corps took responsibility for imprisoning Superboy-Prime, incarcerating him inside a small red Sun-Eater with fifty Green Lanterns on constant guard duty. "Prime Duty" is considered one of the lowlier functions of the Corps, and Guy Gardner was sentenced to a month of such duty for one of his frequent rules infractions.

As of the "One Year Later" timeframe, the Green Lantern Corps has increased its numbers, with many former trainees now full-fledged officers. The lack of truly experienced GLs remains an issue, with Guy Gardner being called upon often to assist the rookies. The transformation of Kyle Rayner to Ion also holds unknown ramifications for the future of the Corps.

 

Rogue Green Lantern Sinestro, working with the Anti-Monitor, has created his own version of the Corps. Dubbed the "Sinestro Corps", it recruits beings capable of generating great fear. Armed with yellow Power Rings and Lanterns manufactured on Qward, the Sinestro Corps recently staged an attack on Oa, killing dozens of GLC officers, kidnapping Kyle Rayner and freeing Superboy-Prime, Parallax and the Cyborg Superman from the Corps' supervision.

As the Sinestro Corps' campaign of terror spreads, the Guardians, in desperation, rewrite the first Law of Ten in the Book of Oa, enabling the remaining Lanterns to use lethal force.

The Corps is an organization of 7200 Green Lanterns (the old Corps had 3600) who are chosen by the ring for being able to overcome great fear, with two assigned to sectors of space that require the protection of more than one Green Lantern (Earth, home to Hal Jordan and John Stewart, is in Sector 2814). Heavily-populated Sectors like 2814 can have several Lanterns. While the primary Lanterns of Sector 2814 are Hal Jordan and John Stewart, Kyle Rayner and Guy Gardner call Earth home, but are stationed on Oa, first as teachers, and then specially assigned to cases that are too difficult for the average GL.

Each member has a great deal of autonomy as to their methods in their jurisdiction, subject to review by the Guardians if they feel the Green Lantern in question has abused his/her assigned authority. The individual Lanterns are responsible for arranging their replacements if they are near retirement or death. If the Lantern dies before that obligation is met, the ring will find and seek another to be trained on its own. In rare circumstances, Guardians will personally go out into the field to recruit a replacement.

Upon recruitment each Green Lantern in the original Corps received a Power Ring, a Power Battery shaped like a lantern (with which the ring is recharged), and a uniform. The default uniform design for humanoids was a green section covering the torso and shoulders, black arms and leggings, green boots, white gloves, green domino mask and a chest symbol of a stylized Green Lantern icon on a white circle. Lanterns were allowed to customize their uniforms as long as the color scheme and the symbol were present. When the nature of the being precludes a standard uniform, an equivalent arrangement is expected as a substitute. For instance, Mogo, a sentient planet, arranges his foliage to create a green circling band and lantern symbol on his body. Jack T. Chance, a humanoid, refused to wear a uniform, but conceded to wearing a badge on the lapel of his coat. Lanterns were also allowed the option of a secret identity as a security measure and it is implied that the Corps were instructed to honor that choice by taking care not to expose them. Training in the use of the ring was optional and appropriate facilities and personnel were available on Oa upon request. In addition, a senior Lantern can be assigned to coach a recruit while in the field in their sector.

The New Green Lantern Corps being built by the Guardians is far more formal and structured than the old one that was destroyed by Parallax. Recruits, after being found by their Power Rings, are taken to Oa for training. Not all recruits will make it through training - indeed a great many of them might even fail, forcing the ring to find another candidate. Lantern trainees have a simplified version of the old Green Lantern uniform (with green covering more of the torso) with the white circle on their chest blank, presumably until the Lantern insignia is added upon completion of their training. Additionally, all Power Rings, not just Kyle Rayner's ring, now work on the color yellow, provided the user can feel the fear behind the color and overcome it.

Upon recruitment, a Green Lantern is expected to uphold certain principles of his/her/its duty. These principles include:

1. Protection of life and liberty with the assigned sector.
2. Following the orders of the Guardians without question.
3. Noninterference with a planet's culture, political structure or its population's collective will.
4. Acting within local laws and obey the local authority within reason. (Presumably, The Guardians' orders can overrule this when necessary).
5. Taking no action against anyone or anything until they are proven to be a threat against life and liberty.
6. Refusing to use the equipment, resources or authority of The Corps for personal gain.
7. Showing respect for and cooperating with other members of the Corps and the Guardians.
8. Showing respect for life which includes restraint of force unless there is no reasonable alternative.
9. Giving top priority to the greatest danger in the assigned sector.
10. Upholding the honor of the Corps.

To enforce these principles, the Guardians closely monitor the activities of the Lanterns. If they feel a violation of Corps regulations occurred, they will summon the offender to Oa and hold a trial in which the charges are read and the Lantern is allowed to explain his/her/its actions. If the Guardians are not satisfied by the explanation, they have a number of disciplinary options which include:

• Probation
• Personal supervision by the Guardians on Oa
• Temporary exile from the Lantern's homeworld
• Ritual Trial of Endurance - a Lantern must attempt a dangerous passage through the Anti-Matter Universe.
• Expulsion from the Corps.

 

The Corps headquarters are on the planet of Oa, in the center of the universe. The main features include a great hall with a raised dais for the Guardians to meet in conference as well as other formal functions. There are also training facilities for recruits and holding cells called Sciencells for particularly dangerous criminals. The most prominent feature is the Central Power Battery, a giant size version of the Lantern's power batteries that channeled the energy of the Guardians and amplified it, to feed energy to the individual power batteries. The fear entity known as Parallax was imprisoned within the center of the Battery. It was vital to maintain security on this device since major damage to it would preclude recharging the Power Rings - which required energy once every rotation of the wielder's planet - thus robbing the Corps of their primary weapons, the exception being Kyle Rayner's ring which is based upon energy output, not a time limit. Oa was destroyed shortly after Hal Jordan became Parallax, but was later reconstituted by Jordan's friend Tom Kalmaku.

The Guardians recently increased the capabilities of Oa's defensive systems by creating an armored structure that protects the planet.

After helping the Corps defeat Krona and Nekron, Hal Jordan is offered “The Crimson Mantle of Command, symbol of those who would become Corps Leader!” Jordan declines the honor, on the grounds that he is “no different than any other ring-slinger” who did “what any GL would have done given the chance!” Whether the rank and offer still stand remains to be seen.

The Green Lantern Honor Guard is an elite group of Green Lanterns not restricted to one Sector. They are based on Oa. Green Lantern Guy Gardner was promoted to Lantern number one (by contrast, Hal Jordan is 2814.1 and John Stewart is 2814.2), during the Green Lantern Corps: Recharge miniseries.

Guy serves as a flexible trouble-shooter, aiding any sector in need and has also served in a leadership role during battle.^[1]

You've just been inducted into the coldest, hardest, meanest division of the Green Lantern Corps you never even knew existed. Can't handle it? Tough luck, you don't have a choice. We live in the places that are too dark for the light of the Corps. We handle the jobs too dirty for the green. Welcome to The Corpse

— Von Daggle

The "Green Lantern Corpse" is an elite, top-secret black ops division of the Green Lantern Corps. They are not restricted by the same rules that regular Lanterns follow, and they perform the darkest, most dangerous missions. They do not use Power Rings; instead, they swallow special coin-like disks that give them all of the powers of the standard ring for a limited time. These disks produce purple energy instead of the traditional green. Members of the "Corpse" do not wear Green Lantern uniforms, or display the Green Lantern symbol. Instead, they seem to prefer black uniforms that have no symbol.

Very few Lanterns are even aware of the existence of the "Corpse". Guy Gardner said that in all of his years in the Corps, he never heard of them.

When recharging their weapons, some Corps members recite an oath. This oath can differ from Corps member to member, but the most popular seems to be:

In brightest day, in blackest night,

no evil shall escape my sight!

Let those who worship evil's might,

beware my power... Green Lantern's light!

A notably different version, created for Rot Lop Fan, a power ring holder from a sightless race, (from Alan Moore's story "In Blackest Night", found in Tales of the Green Lantern Corps Annual #3, 1987) is:

In loudest din or hush profound,

My ears catch evil's slightest sound.

Let those who toll out evil's knell,

Beware my power: The F-Sharp Bell!

The Green Lantern Corps made an appearance in Duck Dodgers in an episode titled "The Green Loontern". After Dodgers accidentally takes Hal Jordan's uniform from the dry cleaners, he is teleported to the Corps location by the ring, where they are in a fight with a large number of Sinestro's robots. During the fight, the entire Corps is kidnapped by Sinestro to act as a power source for a doomsday device. Duck Dodgers manages to save them (more through accident than skill) before giving the uniform back to Hal Jordan and being stranded in Sinestro's hideout.

The Green Lantern Corps also appear in a few episodes of the Justice League and Justice League Unlimited animated series, including "In Blackest Night," "Hearts and Minds" and "The Return."

In Amalgam Comics, the Green Lantern Corps are combined with the Star Brand to form the Starbrand Corps.

• List of Green Lanterns
• Darkstars
• L.E.G.I.O.N.
• Sinestro Corps

• Green Lantern: The New Corps #1-2 (1999; limited series)
• Green Lantern Corps #201-224 (June 1986 – May 1988) (formerly Green Lantern Vol. 2 series)
  • Annuals #2 (Dec. 1986), #3 (Aug. 1987)
• Green Lantern Corps Vol. 2 #1 - present (August 2006 - present)
• Green Lantern Corps Quarterly #1-8 (Summer, 1992 - Spring, 1994)
• Green Lantern Corps: Recharge #1 - 5 (November 2005 - March 2006) (limited series)
• Tales of the Green Lantern Corps Annual #1 (1981) (first annual issue for Green Lantern Vol. 2 series)

• Alan Kistler's profile on Green Lantern
• The Green Lantern Webpage Great Book of OA
• Interview with Keith Champagne about the Green Lantern "Corpse"