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How did Guy Gardner become a Green Lantern? His DC Comics origin explained

When Abin Sur’s spacecraft crashed on Earth, the dying alien’s power ring chose two candidates to replace him as Earth’s Green Lantern

HBO’s ‘Lanterns’ premiered on August 16 and revealed that Hal Jordan is dead. The show began by sending John Stewart (Aaron Pierre) back to the small Nebraska town where he’d been a trainee for Hal 10 years earlier, only to find him dead and ringless on the football field. Jumping between 2016 and 2026, the present-day episode finds Hal clutching a gunshot wound. While it's a compelling series opener, it raises the question of who exactly has the ring now, because plenty of characters have worn one over the years, and not all of them got invited back for a second round.

First up: Guy Gardner. Nathan Fillion’s Gardner appears in the ‘Lanterns’ trailer, warning Hal before disappearing. He is set to appear in each of the eight episodes, having already worn the bowl haircut once before. First appearing in ‘Superman’ (2025), Fillion also reprises his role as Gardner in ‘Peacemaker’ Season 2. Exactly what connection he has to Hal’s death, if one exists, has yet to be established on-screen, but the comics have a documented history of how Gardner got the ring in the first place.

Starting at the beginning, in 1968, DC Comics writers John Broome and Gil Kane created Green Lantern #59, featuring Gardner for the first time, based on actor Martin Milner and named after fan Guy H. Lillian III and writer Gardner Fox. They needed a backup Lantern for the sector containing Earth, and so created Guy Gardner. However, an important detail most casual fans might not know concerns the origin of his ring.

When Abin Sur’s spacecraft crashed on Earth, the dying alien’s power ring chose two candidates to replace him as Earth’s Green Lantern: Hal Jordan, a test pilot in California, and Guy Gardner, a high school teacher on the East Coast. Both men were considered for the honor, but since Hal lived closer to where Abin Sur’s ship had landed, he was selected as Earth’s Lantern over Gardner.

Gardner was intended to serve as Hal’s backup, should anything happen to him. That didn’t last long; Gardner was struck by a bus while trying to save one of his students, leaving him comatose for an extended period due to severe head trauma (in-universe). Another attack on Oa’s power battery years later left him stranded on Qward, the antimatter universe, and so his time as a Green Lantern was limited to brief periods between these two incidents. Gardner’s Silver Age persona was defined largely by time spent unconscious or unwell.

As the 1980s dawned, ‘Green Lantern’ comics saw a major shift: Hal Jordan quit the Corps, and John Stewart took over as Earth’s sole Lantern. Gardner himself was written out of continuity, left in an unrevealed coma, and so his coma went largely unremarked upon. It wasn’t until the ‘Crisis on Infinite Earths’ that the Guardians even remembered him, and so Gardner got a second chance at the power ring after 17 years. 

Gardner did not take kindly to this second chance. He was brain-damaged from being trapped in the Phantom Zone and knocked out for several years. He returned jingoistic and confrontational, quoting Ronald Reagan and emulating Schwarzenegger- and Stallone-inspired action heroes. He even learned that his girlfriend Kari Limbo had moved on to Hal in the interim. Writer Steve Englehart got the most out of this new persona, creating the gruff, loud, and brash personality that would define Gardner from then on.

As it turns out, that persona wasn’t very well-received either. During the ‘Legends’ storyline, Gardner fought seven other Green Lanterns for the right to lead the Earth Corps – including Hal Jordan, John Stewart, Kilowog, Katma Tui, Arisia, Salakk, and Ch’p. He lost rather handily and was nearly imprisoned by the Lantern Honor Guard for his troubles. The Guardians reconsidered his fate, however, and sent him off-planet to continue his training with Appa Ali Apsa, the lone Guardian remaining on Maltus. After a brief stint on Maltus, Gardner returned to Earth, having apparently learned nothing from his experience.

In fact, he learned so little that he joined the newly-formed Justice League International in 1987, finding popularity (of a scornful sort) as a member of the team. He spent years trying to declare himself leader of the JLI. Despite his abrasive attitude, many of his teammates still held a fondness for him, and he became something of a reluctant leader of the group. It’s a legacy that continues to this day, as Guy Gardner's character is best known for his sheer unwillingness to give up, despite being repeatedly told that he is not fit to be in charge.

In conclusion, Guy Gardner never got to be the first choice for leader of the Green Lantern Corps. He had to settle for having a ring shoved down his throat during a crisis, and he wasted no time in ruining the moment for everyone involved. He fought for the right to lead, even when he knew he was unfit to do so, and continued to refuse to relinquish control even after his failures became obvious.