Lanterns Opens to Strong Reviews as HBO's Green Lantern Mystery Debuts

HBO’s Lanterns has begun its eight-episode run with a strong first wave of reviews, as DC Studios takes Green Lantern in a much more grounded direction.

The series premiered August 16 on HBO and HBO Max, with Kyle Chandler playing veteran Lantern Hal Jordan opposite Aaron Pierre’s new recruit John Stewart. The pair are drawn into a murder investigation in Rushville, Nebraska, giving the cosmic DC property the structure of a small-town crime mystery.

As of August 18, Lanterns holds a 94% Tomatometer score from 68 Season 1 reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, with an 86% Popcornmeter from more than 500 audience ratings. Those figures are still early and can change as more reviews and viewer scores arrive.

Chandler and Pierre Lead the Praise

A recurring point across the critical response is the chemistry between the two leads. Rotten Tomatoes’ current critics consensus highlights Chandler and Pierre’s performances, grounded writing and their chemistry, while Variety and The Hollywood Reporter also point to the pairing as one of the show’s strongest elements.

The grounded approach has drawn repeated comparisons to True Detective, but that influence has not worked for everyone. TIME describes the show’s mix of creative influences as uneven, while more skeptical reviews have argued that the crime-drama approach can hold back some of Green Lantern’s more imaginative superhero possibilities.

For now, the reception is clearly positive overall — just not universal.

New episodes continue Sundays through the October 4 season finale. Warner Bros. Discovery has not announced an official premiere viewership total, so early review scores and online discussion should not be confused with confirmed ratings success.