Lanterns may have already revealed who killed Hal Jordan with this one cryptic clue

The central question that’s been with us since the very start of Lanterns has been who killed Hal Jordan in the present timeline. Episode 6 may have dropped some major clues, but it also makes one moment from earlier in the season look even more sus. 

Last week’s episode of the DCU series wrapped up the 2016 storyline, with John Stewart (Aaron Pierre) killing the Manhunter, aka Zoe Macon (Poorna Jagannathan), obtaining the ring from Hal (Kyle Chandler), and ultimately deciding to turn down the position of Green Lantern. 

Episode 6, ‘Bad Optics’, takes us to the present day, with John and Hal having a pretty tense reunion in Rushville. While John is now running an architecture firm, Hal has just gotten out of prison, having taken the fall for what happened in last week’s episode. 

Although John thinks Hal’s ready to apologise, he’s most certainly not and they eventually come to blows. John punches Hal in the face and leaves him with a bloody nose before walking away.

But on his way out, Hal asks John not to tell anyone he’s there – and he’s still very much alive when John leaves. Later that night, Sheriff Kerry Kane (Kelly Macdonald) calls John to reveal Hal’s been killed with a gunshot to the head. 

Kerry believes the person who broke his nose is most likely the killer, even though we know that’s not the case. But episode 6 stops short of revealing who pulled the trigger, and there are multiple suspects right now, as well as theories that Hal isn’t really dead. 

But one person who could be far more important than he initially appears is Noah Macon (Shea Pritchard), the son of Kerry and Billy Macon (Jason Ritter). 

This Noah clue could explain who really killed Hal

In episode 5, Zoe catches a young Noah (her grandson) spying on the adults and asks him what she taught him. He replies, “See without being seen.” Shortly afterwards, Zoe warns him people are going to die, before telling him, “No matter what happens, don’t forget everything I’ve told you.”

This exchange already seemed significant given Zoe was revealed to be the Manhunter. It’s led to theories that she may have been secretly training Noah, or that he could somehow be another Manhunter himself – particularly given Kerry’s earlier claim that Zoe gave her and Billy their “miracle” by helping them have a child.

Fast forward 10 years in episode 6 and Noah is now an adult, and the show makes a point of bringing him back into John’s life. He reveals he’s studying political science and has some seriously lofty ambitions, with Kerry telling John he wants to become a senator before eventually running for president. 

There’s also the fact that Noah seems fine with John despite the entire town hating him, which is… odd. And Noah wouldn’t exactly be short of a motive for resenting Hal. 

Plus, as the autopsy reveals, Hal was shot point-blank in the head and there were no signs he tried to fight back, indicating that he most likely knew the killer.  

All of these clues paired with his relationship with Zoe has led to the theory that Noah could very well be the person (or manhunter) who killed Hal. One Redditor shared this theory following the release of Lanterns episode 6, and many fans agreed. 

“Honestly? It’s a valid theory,” wrote one. “I think they made a little too big of a deal about what a good kid he is. ‘Oh, he’s doing his college selection hat ceremony!’ And ‘oh, he wants to be a senator and then President!’. They’re definitely setting him up for a fall.”

Another agreed, “He’s also super nice to everybody. Everyone in the town hates John Stewart, and then he punched out Noah’s dad, but he still shows up at his house all ‘hey Mr Stewart, swell morning aint it’ working everyone like his grandmother.”

A third pointed to the funeral, writing, “He also specifically gave John the suit he wears for the remainder of the episode, after Zoe told him to watch without being seen. What are the odds he put a hidden camera or microphone somewhere in that suit to spy on John at the funeral, and to monitor what happened next?”

Noah right before he killed Hal
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Multiple viewers pointed to the exact conversation between young Noah and Zoe, including this person who said, “Remember, the last scene we saw him in episode 5 was a conversation with Zoe. Telling him to ‘remember all she taught him.’ Zoe raised Noah for a specific purpose. We’re gonna see what that purpose is in these last two episodes.”

That much is true – there’s still plenty more to come. Lanterns episode 7 lands on HBO and HBO Max on Sunday, September 27. 

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Featured image credit: HBO