WARNING: The following contains spoilers for the short story "Four" in the Green Lantern 80th Anniversary 100-Page Super Spectacular #1, by Robert Venditti, Rafa Sandoval, Jordi Tarragona, Ivan Plascencia and Dave Sharpe, on sale now.
One of the tightest, most beloved ensembles in the DC Universe can be found in the dynamic between the first four Earth-based Green Lanterns: Hal Jordan, Guy Gardner, John Stewart and Kyle Rayner. The four superheroes proved instrumental in rebuilding the Green Lantern Corps after its initial destruction at the hands of Parallax, going on to help lead the Corps in defending the DCU from escalating threats while forming their own effective rapport. While the number of Earth-based Green Lanterns would grow to include Simon Baz, Jessica Cruz and Jo Mullein, the original four would continue to have their own strong interplay.
This dynamic is given a possible future in a short story in the Green Lantern 80th Anniversary special by Robert Venditti, Rafa Sandoval and Jordi Tarragona. Set decades into the relative future of the DCU, visibly older incarnations of Hal, John and Kyle convene at a quiet bar in Baltimore, Guy's old hometown. As the three veteran Green Lanterns down beers, they swap their favorite stories about Guy across their friendship with their fellow Lantern, reveling in how hot-headed, overconfident and boorish their teammate could be at times.
Over the course of their conversation, it is revealed that the three older Green Lanterns hold this same tradition once a year before visiting Guy's grave. It is unclear how their longtime teammate and friend had passed away in the interim time, but the three surviving Lanterns make it clear that things haven't been the same for the quartet without them. As they recalled, Guy providing a vital part of the Corps and community of superheroes on Earth. It is a heartbreaking look at how the Green Lanterns handle the loss of one of their own while affirming the friendship between them, as contentious as it could occasionally get.
For all his personality flaws, Guy Gardner was a committed superhero, who chosen by the Guardians of the Universe to as a back-up Green Lantern in John Broome and Gil Kane's Green Lantern #59 before becoming the latest Green Lantern during Crisis on Infinite Earths. The boisterous Guy went on to become a key member of the Justice League International, despite forming a rivalry with Batman, before inheriting an old Sinestro Power Ring to become a very different kind of superhero. After discovering he had Vuldarian DNA in his system, Guy transformed into the superhero Warrior before the extraterrestrial DNA was purged and Guy became a purely human Green Lantern once again, briefly going undercover to investigate the Red Lantern Corps and become one of their rage-fueled number.
Given his impulsive, stubborn behavior it is not entirely surprising that Guy would be the first of the Earth-based Green Lanterns to meet his end since he's even more reckless than Hal Jordan. A possible future had Guy opening his own deep-space bar frequented by cosmic bikers and other rough-and-tumble types. It is unknown if this future still took place before his demise, but the short story underscores that these four Lanterns will always hold each other in high regard, no matter what fate has in store for them.
Through their shared experience and partnership in serving as a prominent part of the Green Lantern Corps and as defenders of the Earth. these Lanterns forged a bond. And while Guy might be the most abrasive of that core four, he was just as vital to the group as his more level-headed teammates.