Green Lantern: First Antimatter Lantern Teases a New Corps

WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for The Green Lantern #1 by Grant Morrison, Liam Sharpe and Steve Oliff, on sale now.

Grant Morrison and Liam Sharpe's The Green Lantern gives Hal Jordan a fresh start and new mission. Living on Earth, he keeps a low profile before the Guardians of the Universe summon him to New Oa in order to investigate a mysterious prisoner who escaped custody. This is a different Green Lantern Corps than we have seen in recent years, as they are portrayed as a true police force, rather than a military unit.

As the first issue comes to a close, we learn the identity of the escaped prisoner, and why he is so dangerous. This new, yet familiar enemy is the Antimatter Lantern, and he represents the start of a new cosmic adventure. But who is he, and what will happen next?

The Antimatter Lantern Stands Revealed

The issue starts out with the introduction of Maxim Tox, the Green Lantern of Sector 2018.2. Unfortunately, he soon meets his end when he comes up against an unknown assailant composed of antimatter. First introduced in Green Lantern comics back in 1960, the Antimatter Universe has a longstanding connection with the GLC, and anything related to it is never a good thing for the DC Universe at large.

By the end of the issue, we see that this mysterious Antimatter Lantern has been captured by the Blackstars (a group seemingly related to, but separate from, the Darkstars), who are about to remove the character's heart. We don't yet know what this Lantern's abilities are, or if he has his own ring, but it's clear that this is the Antimatter Universe equivalent of Hal Jordan.

Given the yellow and black uniform he wears, it is clear that Morrison and Sharpe are pulling from the depths of Green Lantern lore. Yellow has always been the color of opposition to green, representing fear instead of willpower. It wouldn't be surprising, then, to learn that this Antimatter Lantern harnesses the power of fear, much as the Green Lanterns must overcome it.

NEXT PAGE: Antimatter Lantern: The History of Counter Earth

While this Antimatter Lantern might sound like something we have seen before, an Antimatter Universe equivalent of Hal Jordan in a yellow costume is something completely original. We've seen Power Ring from Earth-3, yellow rings from Qward, and even a Yellow Lantern from Bizzaro World, but never something that brings all these elements together in one being.

Morrison has an interesting fascination with doppelgangers that he continues to play with throughout his career. When he's not adding versions of Marvel superheroes into the DC Universe, he's playing with evil counterparts of heroes. He and Frank Quitely created a new Crime Syndicate for their JLA: Earth-2 graphic novel, alternate Supermen played a major role in Final Crisis, and The Multiversity was filled with alternate counterparts of familiar faces.

Bringing in an alternate version of Hal Jordan sounds like the next step in Morrison's continuing exploration of this theme. Given the current state of the Green Lantern universe, where multiple Corps of Lanterns exist out in space, it's always worth wondering if this new character is just the tip of the iceberg.

The original Yellow Power Ring was created on Qward for Sinestro to use against his enemies, so if this Antimatter Lantern has his own ring, could he have a whole Corps out there waiting for him? Could there be another Crime Syndicate of Amerika? We'll have to wait and see.

Welcome to the Largest Corps of Them All

It seems that no matter how big the Green Lantern Corps gets, there is always some group that is ready to outnumber them. First there was the Sinestro Corps, then it was the entire Emotional Spectrum, all before the Black Lantern Corps attacked. Most recently, Sinestro unleashed the Invisible Spectrum against the Justice League, but The Green Lantern #1 could be leading to the biggest Corps to ever exist.

On the last page of the book are several teases of things to come. The Blackstars, a team-up between Green Lantern and Green Arrow, and a broken Power Battery all give us something to look forward to. But then there's the hint of a multiversal Green Lantern Corps, and that blows everything else out of the water.

Looking at the image, there are several familiar faces among the group, including Abin Sur of Earth-20 (pulp heroes), Kair-Ro of Earth-12 (Batman Beyond), and Bat-Lantern Earth-32 (amalgam). Other standouts include John Stewart of Earth-23 (President Superman) and Earth-50 (Justice Lords), Flashlight of Earth-36 (Justice 9), Len Lewis of Earth-6 (Just Imagine), and Magic Lantern of Earth-47 (Love Syndicate). There also seems to be some kind of Green Lantern equivalent from Earth-29 (Bizarro World).

There are 52 (and maybe more) alternate Earths in the DC Universe, so it's hard to say if these will be all we see or if more are on the way. Just the fact that a grouping of these heroes would come together promises something big that needs to be put down. Could a multiversal Green Lantern Corps be all that can stop an Antimatter Lantern Corps from taking over all of existence? We seem to have more questions than answers right now, and that's the fun part.