In Review: Lanterns (S1 – EP2) Trust Fall

Synopsis: In “Trust Fall,” John’s seemingly mundane errand proves eventful, while Hal makes waves in Rushville—only inspiring him to dig deeper.

The Story

In 2016, Hal wakes John and sends him on an errand to retrieve the lantern he needs to recharge his ring. While John and the bird he manifested during his failed flying lesson carry out the errand, Hal digs deeper into the mystery in Rushville. He breaks into the morgue and takes the three alien bodies to the football stadium, where he runs them through its security system. This confirms his suspicion that the security equipment at the Rushville football team’s ground is made from alien technology.

Hal takes this information to Sheriff Kerry Kane, who reveals that she already knew about it. The equipment was installed by Will Macon and his anti-alien group.

Meanwhile, John struggles to find the rock concealing the key to Hal’s house. Hal remotely guides him to it and talks him through where to find the lantern. After feeding Hal’s man-eating pet plant, Earl, John leaves but soon finds himself abducted by Antaan, the leader of the alien group that was in Rushville.

Antaan tells John that they are searching for a Manhunter—a shapeshifting alien with whom they have a score to settle. He claims that Hal may have been protecting the Manhunter and gives John 48 hours to uncover its identity—or else. John returns to Hal with this information, adding even more intrigue to the mystery and prompting Hal to pay a visit to Sinestro.

Acting

Kyle Chandler continues to make this show fun with his rather cynical take on Hal Jordan. The sequence in which he drags dead alien corpses from the morgue while giving John directions over the phone and simultaneously stuffing a body into the boot of his car is borderline comic. Indeed, Hal’s entire attitude and unconventional method of investigation make for some genuinely entertaining moments. Also great fun is the way Hal continually butts heads with Kelly Macdonald’s Sheriff Kerry Kane.

Aaron Pierre’s portrayal of John Stewart provides a nice contrast to the cynical version of Hal Jordan we see in this show. Pierre has some great scenes in this episode, particularly at the very beginning, when John is trying to fly. The scene is genuinely funny, but funnier still is the little green bird his efforts inadvertently manifest, which proves surprisingly useful as the episode progresses.

In this universe, John grew up idolising Hal Jordan but is now learning that age-old lesson about the difference between how you perceive someone and who they actually are. The heroic Hal Jordan whom John idolised as a child is not the same Hal Jordan he now finds himself training under.

Pierre also has a key scene that introduces Antaan, the leader of the alien group that came to Rushville for the football game. Paul Ben-Victor does a fantastic job of bringing the character to life, and I look forward to learning more about him and his group of aliens in the weeks ahead.

Overall

“Trust Fall” is a solid episode that expands upon the mystery introduced in last week’s pilot while adding several new characters and elements to the plot. The possibility that a Manhunter could be involved only makes the story more intriguing.

Much like Hal, I’m keen to discover the identity of the mysterious benefactor funding Will Macon’s anti-alien militia group. Once we know who is behind it, we’ll likely begin to see more elements of the mystery unravel. Hopefully, the reveal will not come too quickly and will instead be teased out gradually, as there is always a danger of revealing too much too soon with this type of show.