James Gunn’s upcomingSupermanfilm is one of the most anticipated films of the year, but that doesn’t mean it has escaped criticism. The potshots are largely unfair, given how little the trailer gives away. But we do live in a world that can’t decide ifKrypto the Superdogis the greatest thing to happen to the franchise ever (it is) or an abomination that’s doomed the DCU, somethingZack Snyderwould never have done if he was still in charge (seriously, move on). But one element that has some fans up in arms is the film’s Green Lantern,Nathan Fillion’s Guy Gardner. Quite simply: His bowl cut is funny, and it makes him look like a dweeb. He appears to be an arrogant S.O.B. And, dammit, that’s not what a Green Lantern should be! Well, suck it up, snowflakes, because like it or not,Fillion’s Gardner is right on point.
Green Lantern Guy Gardner Goes from Backup to Braggart in DC Comics
Guy Gardner came to prominence in the 1980s, but his first appearance in DC Comics is in the pages of 1968’sGreen Lantern#59. As played out in the comics (and in 2011’sGreen Lantern), Hal Jordan was bequeathed the Green Lantern power ring by thedying alien Abin Sur, becoming the greatest and most well-known Green Lantern. In the pages of the 1968 comic, though, there’s a little more to the story. Abin Sur had two options that day: Hal Jordan and phys ed teacher Guy Gardner. Jordan was closer, and was given the ring as a result. Instead, Gardner is selected as Jordan’s backup for Sector 2814 in the event of Jordan’s incapacitation. That didn’t last long, as Gardner would get hit by a bus while trying to save a student during an earthquake, resulting in a brain injury.John Stewartwas then made Jordan’s backup, a far more popular choice, andGardner was largely forgotten.
Then came the iconic events of 1985’sCrisis on Infinite Earths. Gardner was resuscitated and given a permanent power ring by the powers that be from Oa. Only Gardner wasn’t playing with a full deck, thanks to that head injury, some time in the Phantom Zone, and the subsequent coma that kept him off the radar. He wasn’t a kindly teacher anymore, either, buta brash, rude antagonist with a new costume and that now iconic bowl cut. He was a parody of the 1980s alpha-male, quotingRonald Reaganand likening himself to the action movie characters of the time. Earth’s other Green Lanterns couldn’t stand him, so in 1987 he joined the Justice League International.It was during that run that Gardner’s popularity was at its highest — not for being well-liked, mind you, but for being the character fans loved to hate.
James Gunn Says ‘Lanterns’ Is Exactly the Kind of “Different Feel” He Wants to Bring to DCU
The series will star Kyle Chandler and Aaron Pierre.
Nathan Fillion Gets Green Lantern Guy Gardner, and You Should Too
Guy Gardner was a braggart, a bully, and he royally pissed his teammates off … at least until Batman sucker punched him. That changed him for a time into a sweet, sentimental sap, which was no less irritating, but it wouldn’t be long until “jerk” Gardner reemerged. He was the butt of the joke, but he did have a good side under that braggadacio. Readers came to actually love love him. In the 1990s,Gardner was reimagined as Warrior, one of those unfortunate 90s “extreme” characters that, thankfully, didn’t last, and eventually he became the brash Gardner (only a little less jerky) again in the 2000s. It would appear that the Guy Gardner we see inSuperman(and likely to some degree inLanterns) is the one from the 1980s that still stands as Gardner’s most recognizable. And Nathan Fillion gets it,telling TV Guide,“You don’t have to be good to be a Green Lantern; you just have to be fearless. I think if he has a superpower, it might be his overconfidence, in that he thinks he could take on Superman. He can’t!”
Fillion makes an excellent point, where the only thing that really defines a Green Lantern is that fearlessness. Being a Boy Scout is merely a bonus. And you can see how well Fillion understands Gardner even in those few brief moments from the trailer. That look of arrogant smugness says more than words ever could, and he clearly doesn’t care that he looks ridiculous. Fillion knows Gardner is meant to be the butt of the joke, and he’s embracing it fully, just as he did with his portrayal of The Detachable Kid, aka T.D.K., inThe Suicide Squad. No one does it better than Fillion, and if he understands that Gardner is supposed to be an asshole, then, dammit, viewers need to accept it, too!
Follows the titular superhero as he reconciles his heritage with his human upbringing. He is the embodiment of truth, justice and the American way in a world that views kindness as old-fashioned.
