WARNING: Spoilers for the first two episodes of Lanterns.

I have owned or co-owned three comic book stores in my life. The first was Exodus Comics, which operated out of the rec room in my parents’ house. I later joined my friends Steven Boyd and Shannon Dickens to open Vortex Comics. Years after that, I started an Outer Limits Comics franchise. It was the most successful of the three, but sales dried up after 9/11, forcing me to close by the end of that year.

Despite spending so much of my life around comics, Hal Jordan never resonated with me. I knew all about him and the Green Lantern Corps, but he seemed bland compared to Batman or Spider-Man. That changed with the Parallax saga. After the destruction of Coast City pushed Hal over the edge, the once-valiant hero became cruel, crazed and unpredictable. It added the intrigue I had always felt the character was missing and, for the first time, made me care about what Hal Jordan would do next.

Now, HBO’s Lanterns has found another way to make me care about him.

The first two episodes follow a veteran Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler) as he trains a new Green Lantern named John Stewart (Aaron Pierre). John is not simply Hal’s partner or student. He is being trained to replace him, immediately placing an uncomfortable tension between the two men.

Their training is interrupted when a mass shooting leads them into a much larger mystery. Hal and John attempt to investigate, but Sheriff Kerry Kane (Kelly Macdonald) wants them nowhere near her case. She insists that the crime has no extraterrestrial connection and resents what she sees as an alien police force intruding upon her jurisdiction.

Hal, unsurprisingly, disregards her orders and begins investigating on his own. He discovers that the people killed in the shooting were actually aliens. At the same time, John uncovers evidence suggesting that an artificial being known as a Manhunter may have been involved.

That is a strong setup, but the mystery is not the only reason the series works. The relationship between Hal and John is just as important as the investigation, and the two characters could hardly be more different.

Kyle Chandler is great as Hal. He is brash, cocky and hardheaded, but those qualities feel natural for this version of the character. Hal has served as a Green Lantern for years. He has seen things most people could not begin to understand, and all that experience has left him jaded and somewhat apathetic. There is a sense that Hal may have once approached the job with more enthusiasm, but those days are behind him. His confidence occasionally crosses the line into arrogance, while his unwillingness to listen creates problems for everyone around him. He acts like a man who believes he has earned the right to ignore the rules because he has been doing the job longer than anyone else in the room.

Chandler brings enough charisma to the role to keep Hal likable, even when the character is being difficult. His performance makes Hal feel worn down rather than simply unpleasant. This is a hero who has been carrying the responsibility for too long, and that makes the idea of training his replacement more complicated than it initially appears.

Aaron Pierre’s John Stewart is very different. John was trained from childhood to suppress fear, even having his father shoot apples off his head as part of that training. That history gives the character a much darker edge than I expected. John is intense, angry and determined to prove himself. He has the discipline required to become a Green Lantern, but there is also something unsettled beneath the surface. At times, he seems to genuinely dislike Hal. Whether that resentment comes from Hal’s attitude, John’s need to establish himself or something deeper remains to be seen.

That tension makes their partnership compelling. Hal is the experienced Lantern who has become careless and jaded. John is the new Lantern who takes everything seriously but may be carrying more anger than he realizes. Neither man is presented as perfect, and each possesses qualities that could eventually become dangerous.

Kelly Macdonald’s Sheriff Kane provides a more grounded perspective. Her frustration with Hal and John is completely understandable. From her point of view, two outsiders have arrived and decided that their authority is more important than hers. She does not want them sticking their noses into her investigation, especially when there appears to be no reason for an extraterrestrial police force to become involved.

At the same time, Kane is practical enough to recognize when their help may be necessary. She does not suddenly become happy about their presence, but she understands that allowing them to participate could serve the greater good.

That balance makes her relatable. She is not an obstacle placed in the story simply to slow the heroes down. She is a capable law-enforcement officer trying to protect her investigation and her community.

The grounded crime-drama approach is one of the smartest decisions the show has made. Green Lantern stories often feature nearly nonstop battles with aliens, cosmic threats and entire worlds in danger. Lanterns takes that mythology and brings it into a more realistic setting. Rather than feeling like Star Trek, the series is closer to an old-fashioned detective show such as Jake and the Fatman. Hal and John may have power rings and connections to an intergalactic police force, but they are still searching for evidence, questioning what happened and dealing with a local sheriff who does not appreciate their involvement.

In some ways, the creators have made Green Lantern feel more like Batman. The powers and cosmic mythology are still present, but the story is built around a mystery. Grounding the series in a criminal investigation allows the characters to become more important than the spectacle. It also makes the alien elements feel stranger and more threatening when they appear.

So, with two episodes down, what do I hope to see in the remaining six episodes of Season 1?

The second episode introduces Sinestro (Ulrich Thomsen). Hal visits him in prison to learn more about the Manhunters, but Sinestro seems more interested in asking questions about John than providing answers. I hope the show allows Sinestro to take on a Hannibal Lecter type of role. He could manipulate Hal and John from inside his cell, offering just enough information to remain useful while quietly moving the pieces into place for his own plan.

Sinestro should always be the smartest person in the room, or at least believe that he is, and Thomsen already gives him an unsettling presence. It feels as though Sinestro may be preparing for an escape. His interest in John cannot be accidental, and he may see the new recruit as someone he can manipulate. John’s anger, ambition and strained relationship with Hal could give Sinestro exactly the opening he needs.

The mystery surrounding Hal’s fate also raises several questions. We know from the ending of the first episode that Hal will die and that his ring will be missing. John is already a Green Lantern, so where does Hal’s ring go? Is Sinestro involved? Does a Manhunter take it? Could John somehow be connected to its disappearance?

There is a significant gap between the main investigation and the point when we learn Hal’s fate. Something important clearly happens during that missing period, and I am eager to see how the series fills in those blanks.

Since this is a comic-book story, Hal’s death does not necessarily have to be permanent. It would be a shame to lose Kyle Chandler after he has brought so much personality to the role. The “AI avatar” contained within the ring could provide a way for Chandler to remain part of the series even after Hal’s death, although I would still like to see the real Hal return eventually.

I am also looking forward to seeing Guy Gardner (Nathan Fillion). After watching Fillion play the character in Superman, I am stoked to see him enter this story. His hotheaded, brash and comical personality should create a fascinating contrast with John’s stoic and much darker demeanor.

John’s relationship with Hal is already defined by tension, resentment and the pressure of replacing a veteran. Guy would bring an entirely different kind of conflict. His ego and sense of humor could irritate John in ways Hal does not, while John’s seriousness could make Guy even more determined to get a reaction from him. Fillion’s Guy Gardner is exactly the kind of disruptive energy the series could use.

One thing I do not want the show to rush is Parallax. That story only works if the audience has developed a genuine connection with Hal. We need time to understand him, appreciate him and eventually love him before watching him fall. If Hal becomes Parallax too soon, the transformation will feel like another plot twist. If the writers spend several seasons building him into someone viewers truly care about, it could become a tragedy.

I would save Parallax for a third season, even if getting there requires the show to find a comic-book way to bring Hal back to life first.

After two episodes, Lanterns has found a fresh way to explore Green Lantern mythology. It has also made Hal Jordan more interesting to me than he ever was during my years around comic books. The central mystery has me hooked, the performances are excellent and the grounded crime-drama format was exactly the right choice. There are still plenty of unanswered questions, but that is part of the appeal.

I want to know what the Manhunters are planning, what Sinestro really wants, what happens to Hal and where his ring ultimately goes. Most importantly, I want to spend more time with these characters.

So far, I give Lanterns five out of five stars.