‘Lanterns’ Season 1 Episode 2 Ending Explained: Who is Sinestro? Green Lantern turns to his archenemy for help
'Lanterns' surprised fans with that brutal twist in the first episode. 'Trust Fall' sheds light on the mystery behind the fan-favorite's demise. The show went back ten years, when Green Lantern Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler) was training John Stewart (Aaron Pierre) and trying to find out who was behind the attacks in Rushville. It surprisingly led him to Sinestro (Ulrich Thomsen). For those unaware, Sinestro is often considered Green Lantern's archenemy in comic books. The supervillain was a former member of the Green Lantern Corps who was discharged after being caught abusing his power. Since then, he has been causing trouble for Green Lantern in multiple iterations and has now appeared in 'Lanterns.'
The episode kicks off with Hal waking John by pouring a bucket full of water on his face. After much back-and-forth, Hal finally reveals their task of the day. He is going to teach his protege how to fly. Hal gives John the ring and asks him to do the trick. John is a bit surprised. Hal explains that "it is supposed to be instinctual." John tries several times. He takes flying poses, but ultimately conjures just a green bird. The bird comes and sits on his shoulder as Hal eyes John after the uncanny state of affairs. Just then, the ring gives a battery depletion alert. Hal does a one-time trick re-up, charging the ring to 5%. Then he instructs John to go to Coast City and fetch the lantern to charge the ring. He also instructs him to bring the bird back alive. Hal reveals that the bird's life source is John's concentration. If he loses focus, the bird will lose life.
As Hal moves about in the town, his suspicions rise. In the town hall meeting, he interrogates Billy (Jason Ritter) about how his father knew which men to kill in the last episode. Billy had no answers, which made it clear that the people in the town are not being honest. He takes away some dead bodies for examination without the authorities' knowledge. Hal then makes them go through the metal detector on the football field and realizes that it is actually an alien detector. Therefore, Billy's father, Macon (Garret Dillahunt), knew which exact men to target that day. He decides to go to Macon himself, but is stopped by Sheriff Kerry Kane (Kelly Macdonald) on the way, who, after much discussion, decides to accompany him. The confrontation soon turns deadly, as Macon instructs his guard to shoot him.
The bullet takes him to the hospital. Sheriff Kane is at his bedside when he wakes up. She mentions Sinestro, shocking Hal. The sheriff claims that he was constantly saying his name in his sleep. She did some research and found out that "He was a Lantern, attempted a coup, killed one of the bosses. It says that you were the one who took him down." Meanwhile, John is fighting for his life against a bunch of abductors. After retrieving the Lantern, John is caught by a group of aliens pursuing a Manhunter in Rushville, a being that can shapeshift into other forms. They aim to recruit John, asking him to spot the Manhunter, since they cannot enter the town due to Macon's technology. John returns to the town and informs freshly discharged Hal about it.
Hal suits up and goes to an intergalactic prison. He goes to a specific cell to meet none other than Sinestro (Ulrich Thomsen). Hal asks Sinestro about Manhunters. "If one still existed, then it would be the second-biggest threat you are currently facing," the supervillain replied. Things get even murkier when Sinestro asks about John Stewart. To find out how the mystery unfolds, catch 'Lanterns' every Sunday only on HBO and HBO Max.
