*Warning: Spoilers ahead for Lanterns episode five* In Lanterns episode five, John Stewart manages to kill the Manhunter (aka Zoe), get the Green Lantern ring from Hal Jordan and subsequently turn down the role from the Guardians. It served as a finale for the 2016 timeline, which begs the question: what’s next? Earlier in the fifth episode of the DCU series, things seriously fall apart between John (Aaron Pierre) and Hal (Kyle Chandler). Hal has already discovered that the Guardians intend for John to replace him, but after realising John also knew Zoe (Poorna Jagannathan) was the Manhunter they’d been searching for and kept it from him, he deliberately crashes their car and leaves John trapped inside as it catches fire. Zoe finds John badly burned but alive and takes him to the hospital, where she offers to heal him using her alien technology. But there’s a catch: John has to let Hal die and tell the Guardians everything in Rushville is under control. It’s essentially the same kind of deal Zoe has been making for years – a flashback reveals she once saved Kerry (Kelly Macdonald) from Gotham hitmen, offering her a safe life in Rushville in exchange for protecting Zoe when the time came. John agrees to Zoe’s deal and is healed, but he ultimately betrays her. As Rushville descends into chaos, he uses Hal as bait to lure Zoe into a trap before shooting her in the head and cutting out her crystallised heart as proof to the Guardians that the Manhunter is dead. He also grabs the ring from Hal’s hand, but when he brings it to Lianna (Laura Linney), John makes a shocking decision: he hands the ring back and walks away. And so marks the end of Lanterns… Well, the 2016 timeline anyway. Lanterns episode 6 preview confirms key details about Hal’s death You see, even though episode five felt like a finale, the story is far from over. Lanterns is dealing with multiple timelines – hence why Nathan Fillion’s Guy Gardner is the Green Lantern in the present day of the DCU. As you’ll no doubt recall, the end of episode one jumped forward to 2026, where Kerry and John discover Hal has been killed. And judging by the episode six preview, it looks like this will be the new mystery at the centre of the show. In the trailer, we learn a little more about Hal’s death. Kerry says there are “no witnesses,” and that “whoever broke his nose probably killed him.” John then asks why Hal came back to Rushville, to which Kerry says, “He came back for me.” Further details are revealed by the coroner, who confirms there are no signs of Hal fighting back and that the shooter was looking at him head on. “I just wanted someone else around who’d care that he was gone,” Kerry says, before we see John investigating Hal’s death. Oh, and right at the end we see John in prison and we finally get more context: he gets into a fight with Billy Macon (Jason Ritter). And as was revealed before, Fillion’s Guy Garner is set to pay him a visit. Already fans have theories about what’s next in the HBO series, with one Redditor speculating whether Hal really is alive – and the dead body is his backup. “The dead Hal is the backup. Calling it,” they wrote. Others have questions, with one writing, “So it seems that the final three episodes will focus on Stewart investigating Jordan’s death.” Another pointed out, “Not that it’s completely opposite your point, but we do know ep 7 covers Hal’s backstory.” So yes, episode five did feel like a finale, but there’s still plenty more story to tell. Why episode 5 felt like a finale Credit: HBO If you finished episode five and briefly wondered whether you’d somehow skipped a series of episodes, you’re not alone. Even the host of Lanterns’ official podcast, Juju Green, admitted the destruction of Rushville “feels like a finale”. And according to episode writer Justin Britt-Gibson, there’s a pretty good reason for that. The devastating events of ‘Lights Out’ was something the team had been building towards from the very beginning, and they set up what comes next. “Chris Mundy, our showrunner, was very adamant from the very beginning that this event would sort of be the sort of defining moment that ultimately brings John back to Rushville,” Britt-Gibson explained. “Having that goal post so early on actually made this one of the easier episodes to build structurally, because we always knew where we were headed. There was always going to be this event.” He added, “Every character in that episode sort of had to earn their place in what becomes this sort of huge action-packed episode.” Why John gave the Green Lantern ring back Credit: HBO As for the shocking ending of episode five, John spent years believing the Green Lantern ring is what he deserves, but actually getting it – and the way he gets it – forces him to confront what it’s cost him. He has just killed Zoe, nearly beaten Hal to death to take the ring from him and seen firsthand what being a Green Lantern has done to Hal. “Hal betrayed everything to keep this ring,” John tells Lianna. “His code, the oath, even himself, and it broke him. Probably doesn’t even remember why he wanted the damn thing.” Rather than feeling triumphant when he finally puts it on, John feels empty, and decides he doesn’t want to become a Lantern this way. And Britt-Gibson confirmed John’s decision is essentially about realising the reality of becoming a Green Lantern. Speaking on the official Lanterns podcast, he explained, “We weren’t telling this sort of wish fulfillment story. We were sort of exploring the cost of carrying that much power, right? And what that power does to you.” The writer said John had spent his life with a “fantasy” of what becoming a Green Lantern would be like, but compared the reality to finally landing a dream job and discovering it isn’t what you imagined. By the time John actually gets the ring, Britt-Gibson said, “it isn’t a victory lap. It’s a burden,” and John doesn’t feel as though he’s earned it. It’s also why John ultimately stops short of killing Hal during their brutal fight. The pair have spent the season against each other, and John wants the ring, but Britt-Gibson stressed that neither man actually wants the other dead. “These guys may hate each other, but they’re not going to kill each other,” he said, noting how that’s “another building block” of why John doesn’t take the ring. He thinks, “It shouldn’t be this way. I shouldn’t have to do this to get the ring.” How many episodes are actually left? Credit: HBO The 2016 timeline might be wrapped up, but it’s far from the end of Lanterns. In fact, there are still three episodes left in season one. You can check out the full release schedule below: Episode 6 – Sunday, September 20 Episode 7 – Sunday, September 27 Episode 8 – Sunday, October 4 Episode six specifically premieres on September 20 at 6pm PT and 9pm ET. If you’re in the US, you can watch it live on the HBO channel or on HBO Max, while the rest of the world can watch it on HBO Max. 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