Green Lantern: One Tragic Fact Settles the Hal vs. Kyle Debate

Is it possible to tell who has a stronger willpower between Kyle Rayner and Hal Jordan? Green Lantern antagonist Parallax appears to have an answer.

While fans debate on who they believe to be the best Green Lantern, a victor may have already been revealed in the argument between Kyle Rayner and Hal Jordan. While struggling against the fear entity Parallax, Kyle realized where he stands against his competition.

In order to keep the peace in the vast and infinite DC Universe, the Green Lantern Corps has selected some of the most capable beings around. While most of the Corps’ ranks are filled out from alien beings all across the galaxies, a number of Lanterns all hail from the same backwater planet. After Hal Jordan became Green Lantern, humans began to join the Corps in numbers greater than any other species in the Corps. With so many Lanterns from Earth, fans have often debated on which one is the best. Sure, Hal might have been the first, but Kyle Rayner kept the Corps going all by himself for years.

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So when it comes to Hal vs. Kyle, who exactly comes out on top? It seems that an answer has come from one of the most terrifying foes encountered by both Lanterns. In Tales Of The Sinestro Corps: Parallax #1 by Ron Marz and Adriana Melo, the scrappy Green Lantern is being held hostage in his own body. After being forced to become the newest host for Parallax, Kyle is trapped in his own mind. To make matters worse, the fear entity is there with Kyle, mocking the hero and his fruitless attempts to take back control. Kyle manages to slightly harm Parallax, but the villain reminds Kyle of one awful fact. It took the destruction of Coast City to break down Hal Jordan’s incredible willpower. But for Kyle, the death of his mother made him a much easier target for Parallax.

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As much as the words of Parallax may sting, the villain is right about the circumstances that led to Hal and Kyle becoming the entity’s hosts. Mongul and Cyborg Superman teamed up to kill Hal Jordan’s hometown of Coast City, an action that drove Hal crazy with grief and weakened him enough to let Parallax possess him. Kyle, on the other hand, was primed for Parallax after Sinestro orchestrated the murder of Kyle’s mother with a sentient virus.

Admittedly, it’s a bit of a challenge trying to pit two different experiences with emotional turmoil against one another and decide which is ‘worse’. After all, Hal Jordan loves Coast City, and Kyle Rayner loved his mother. Neither hero is any less for the loss they suffered before succumbing to Parallax. But it does raise the question on what would happen if the situation was reversed. Would Hal’s willpower suffer due to the death of a family member, or Kyle at the destruction of Los Angeles? Maybe it’s just because one Green Lantern is a bit more emotionally closed off, but it seems as though it takes a lot more to break down Hal Jordan than it does Kyle Rayner.

Next: Green Lantern: Why Kyle Rayner Is the Ultimate Version of Parallax