White Lantern Corps: Bio, Origin & History

Name: White Lantern Corps

Founding Members: Hal Jordan

First Appearance: Blackest Night #7 (April, 2010)

Created By: Geoff Johns, Ian Reiss

Did You Know: It was Hal Jordan bonding with the Entity that triggered the birth of the White Lanterns

A Little History

The White Lanterns appeared as a direct result of the chaos that the Black Hand and Nekron were causing during the Blackest Night story arc.

Working as an opposite to the Black Lanterns, the White Lanterns are about life rather than death. The power of the White Lanterns is formed and given by life itself. The White Lanterns came to be when Hal Jordan fuses with the Entity. Unlike the embodiment of death, Nekron, The Entity is the bringer of all life in the DC Universe.

The White Light is the first light and in truth, it is the combination of all of the emotional spectrums responsible for the various Lantern Groups. Basically, this means that the user of the White ring is able to achieve any level of the emotional spectrum and use the powers of the Lanterns associated with that color. Further to that, the White Lanterns can access the Rings of the other Lanterns. In short, the White Lanterns are the most powerful of all the Lantern Groups.

Because the Black Lanterns can reanimate the dead and have them join their ranks, the White Lanterns can bring back the dead, not as living corpses but as living beings.

Origin

The first White Lantern was not a traditional superhero. Instead it was the super villain, Sinestro. This event happened near the end of the Blackest Night DC event when the embodiment of life itself, the Life Entity bonded with him. This was short lived, however, as Nekron quickly removed the Life Entity from Sinestro. Upon its removal, it then bonded with Hal Jordan.

Jordan, along with The Flash then used the power the Life Entity possessed and rescued Superman, Superboy, Donna Troy, Wonder Woman, Green Arrow and others from the Black Lantern imprisonment they found themselves in.

With his companions free from the Black hold that was held over them, Jordan used the Life Entity to cut off the connection that the embodiment of death, Nekron had to the leader of the Black Lanterns, Black Hand. The now free Black Hand then expelled 12 White Power Rings that subsequently destroyed Nekron all-the-while reviving a few more fallen heroes. Most notably of these were Martian Manhunter, Deadman, Hawkman, and Hawkgirl.

Of course, each member revived and chosen by a White Ring became a White Lantern.

With the Black Lanterns and Nekron now defeated, the White Lanterns are released from the White Lantern Corps with the exception of Deadman.

“In darkest day, in silent night

With souls full of light

Crush those who bring blackest night

By our hand…White Lantern’s Light”