One of the major conflicts of superhero stories is that, for the most part, lots of superheroes operate outside of the confines of the law. Batman’s nightly activities frequently incur the ire of the GCPD (a crucial element of the 2022 film The Batman), and vigilantes like Daredevil have a...complicated relationship with the law enforcement officials (a dynamic explored in depth by the TV show Daredevil: Born Again).Unlike many superpowered individuals in the Big Two’s pantheon, the Green Lantern Corps are different. More so than lots of other heroes, the Green Lanterns act as intergalactic police officers — they have sectors they patrol, protocols they’re not allowed to break, and they even have bosses, the blue-skinned Guardians of the Universe. The HBO Max series Lanterns has teased the Guardians throughout the first two episodes, but the third episode of the series, “OutKast,” gives us our best look yet at the overseers of the Emerald Knights — and their presence is just as mysterious and morally nuanced as they are in the source material.Warning! Spoilers ahead for Lanterns Episode 3, “OutKast.”Laura Linney gives us our first glimpse at the Guardians in Lanterns, and aside from a brief glimpse, the show is keeping their true form under wraps. | HBO MaxThe Watchdogs of the Green Lantern CorpsThe most recent episode of Lanterns is dedicated almost exclusively to John Stewart’s backstory and fraught childhood, and it also gives us our first glimpse yet at the mysterious Guardians of the Universe. “OutKast” revealed that John Stewart’s father (U.S. Marine John Stewart Sr.) was initially observed as a potential candidate for Earth’s Green Lantern before Hal Jordan was chosen. However, John’s mother Bernadette was visited by a Guardian named Lianna (played by Laura Linney), an event that convinced both mother and father that John was destined to become Earth’s Green Lantern after Hal Jordan — a future that they made sure he was prepared for through a rigorous and militaristic childhood worth of training.While the original Green Lantern, Alan Scott, debuted in the pages of All-American Comics #16 back in 1940, and Hal Jordan and the rest of the peacekeeping Green Lantern Corps was introduced in 1959’s Showcase #22, the Guardians of the Universe themselves didn’t make their first appearance until Green Lantern vol. 2 #1, which was released in 1960. The Guardians of the Universe are made up of a blue-skinned race of aliens known as the Malthusians from planet Maltus, who may have been the first intelligent life in the universe — they evolved from a warlike species to one of scientists and geniuses. One of which, Krona, conducted an experiment to view the beginning of the universe, which went horribly wrong and resulted in the creation of (one of many) versions of the DC Multiverse as well as the antimatter universe of Qward (the dimension which birthed the Yellow Lantern ring used by Sinestro). Sharing a feeling of guilt and responsibility over this, the Malthusians decided to become the “Guardians” of a universe of peace and prosperity, moving to the planet Oa (a locational change that transforms the Oans into the extremely short bobble-headed creatures recognizable in comics) and creating an organization dedicated to precisely that.Despite their altruistic intentions, the Guardians have also created their fair share of problems in the DC Universe. | DC ComicsFar From Perfect GuardiansWhile the Green Lantern Corps is a clear success and their most recognizable creation, they were not the first attempt at peacekeeping created by the Guardians. Debuting in 1975’s 1st Issue Special #5 (created by none other than comic book royalty Jack Kirby), the Manhunters were the result of the first time the Guardians tried their hands at creating a force for intergalactic protection. However, they were a race of unfeeling androids who eventually went rogue because they grew to believe that the concept of “justice” was unattainable without the rigorous punishment of those they believed “wicked” — a concept that slowly came to describe all sentient life in their eyes. Long before the flawed Manhunters wiped out an entire sector of space (which gave birth to the GL villain Atrocitus), 2012’s Green Lantern Annual vol 5. #1 introduced Volthoom, the First Lantern — a scientist from another Earth in the Multiverse who became aware of the existence of the emotional light spectrum (the metaphysical force which gives Green Lanterns and other Lantern Corps their powers) and attempted to harness it alongside the Guardians to disastrous results.Even outside of their frequently broken and dangerous creations, the Guardians of the Universe themselves have oftentimes been besieged by former members turned villainous, and their own organizational structure has led them to harmful acts out of what they believe to be the “greater good.” Krona, the Guardian whose experiment led to the creation of Qward, would return later as a major villain for the Green Lanterns, and a Guardian named Scar would prove instrumental in helping orchestrate the Blackest Night (a DC Comics crossover where numerous dead characters were resurrected as zombies by the villainous Black Lantern Corps) from the inside.The Guardians represent a certain degree of oversight for the Green Lanterns, but despite purging themselves of the “impurity” of emotion, they’ve still been left open to corruption and attack throughout their existence. And if Lanterns is any indication, the presence of the Manhunters and the mysterious circumstances of Sinestro’s coup are proof that the Guardians of the cinematic DCU are just as morally complex and imperfect as they are in the source material.New episodes of Lanterns release Sundays on HBO Max.