Lanterns Leaves All The Critics Stunned In First Reactions

HBO's new series "Lanterns" is finally here, so what do critics have to say about the latest TV series under the DC Comics umbrella? You can watch our video above to find out.

With that said, critics pretty generally enjoyed "Lanterns," which is helmed by showrunner Chris Mundy and was created by Mundy alongside Tom King and Damon Lindelof. The series stars Aaron Pierre and "Friday Night Lights" alum Kyle Chandler as Green Lanterns John Stewart and Hal Jordan, respectively, who team up to investigate a murder that unlocks a much larger mystery.

This superhero series is mostly super, according to critics, thanks to Pierre and Chandler specifically. As Alison Herman wrote for Variety, "This dual character study is where 'Lanterns' is at its best. Chandler and Pierre may be squarely in their comfort zones, but that also puts them in a position to succeed." At IndieWire, Ben Travers specifically praised veteran actor Chandler. "Hal is the irascible old-timer whose belittlement can be interpreted as tough love, so long as you believe he's one of the good guys," Travers declares. "How 'Lanterns' bucks and embraces that assumption at once, while savoring Chandler's wily persona, is one of its finest feats (as well as some of the Emmy-winning actor's finest work)."

Over at The Hollywood Reporter, Daniel Feinberg compared "Lanterns" to "Reacher," a hit series on Amazon Prime Video. "HBO's 'Lanterns' has DC Comics roots and some moments of effects-driven superhero bombast," he began. "But, as adapted by Chris Mundy, Damon Lindelof and Tom King, what it feels like is a Jack Reacher story with Aaron Pierre as the swaggering, oversized outsider who strolls into a small Nebraska town, undermines law enforcement, beds random women and refuses to leave before unraveling a mid-level conspiracy."

A particularly accessible thing about "Lanterns," according to IGN reviewer Jesse Schedeen, is that it doesn't necessarily feel like a superhero project. "It's as much a 'True Detective' and 'Slow Horses'-style murder mystery as it is a superhero drama (and, in fact, features veterans of both shows among its creative team)," Schedeen said, referencing Chris Mundy's previous involvement with the former. Schedeen thinks that's a good thing, though: "But for those willing to abandon preconceived notions and take 'Lanterns' for what it is, this strange combination of superhero adventure and terrestrial murder mystery works surprisingly well."

Cory Plante echoed this at Polygon, calling "Lanterns" "'True Detective' with superheroes." Plante expanded on that, though:

"Most importantly, 'Lanterns' understands that friction between two people can be frustrating, but it doesn't necessarily mean it'll lead to hatred. Hal and John don't need to like each other to respect one another. They butt heads constantly. But their conflict never feels manufactured, and neither does the connection that keeps them together. Like Rust and Marty in 'True Detective,' they recognize that the annoying man sitting beside them in the car is who they want by their side when everything goes wrong."

One critic really didn't like it, though — Inverse's Lyvie Scott. "The series tries too hard to turn this story into something it's not, and in the process, it pushes everything that makes it special just out of frame," Scott writes. "It's not that a grounded detective story couldn't soar, given the circumstances — but without heart, or at least a sense of wonder, Lanterns is stuck on the ground."

Decide for yourself. "Lanterns" is streaming on HBO Max now.