The Sinestro Corps Should Be Heroes

The Green Lantern Corps aren’t the only heroes in the galaxy, and now that one of their own is in the Sinestro Corps, they have new potential.

Over the years, the Green Lanterns have consistently fought with their opposites: the Sinestro Corps, wielders of the yellow power rings. The Yellow Lanterns have been written as villains, with the main arch nemesis of the famous Hal Jordan spearheading their campaign against the universe. However, one of the more recent takes on the Lanterns of fear shows a new route that the Corps should follow, as a new force for good in the galaxy.

Despite being so heavily affiliated with villainy, the Sinestro Corps have the potential to be heroes, and most of the Lanterns have the choice to use their abilities for good. In fact, with Jessica Cruz becoming a Yellow Lantern, she’s able to highlight how members of the Corps don’t have to follow Sinestro’s ruling and are able to twist their abilities to help people. Her take on the power of the ring shows that fear isn’t something inherently bad, and can instead help push people to accomplish things they never thought possible.

Related: Green Lantern’s Nemesis Could Have Been DC’s Greatest White Lantern

Jessica Cruz came into possession of a Yellow Power Ring in Future State: Green Lantern by Geoffrey Thorne, Tom Raney, and Michael Atiyeh. After an intense battle between her and some Yellow Lantern Corps, she walked away wielding a ring of her own after it chose her. Having been a Green Lantern previously, Jessica is shown to have an iron will and a heart of gold, which she uses to help the people in need all over the galaxy. The Yellow Ring choosing her to take possession of it was a surprising move, but when she went to confront Sinestro about the attack, he saw the potential she has with the ring.

Jessica Cruz Using Her Powers For Good

While initially she believed she should only tap into the power for a method of transportation back to Earth, she saw that Sinestro made some key points in just how to use the powers the ring gives her. Even if it’s typically considered an ‘evil’ emotion, Jessica learns that fear isn’t actually always a bad thing. She reveals in Green Lantern 2021 Annual #1 by Ryan Cady, Sami Basri, Tom Derenick, and Rob Leigh, that while the Sinestro Corps abuse their power, fear can be a motivating factor. Using fear as a way to help people and become a hero is something that DC is no stranger to, and in fact they use fear as one of the main motivators behind their biggest hero, Batman.

Batman’s effectiveness as a crime fighter is driven by the fear he instills in the city, motivating them to do better and prevents crime before it begins by providing a clear consequence. The Yellow Lanterns have the potential to do something incredibly similar with their fear based powers and could help the galaxy progress by motivating people to do better. Jessica demonstrated the effectiveness of this method by using it on a group of engineers who are too afraid to fix inner wiring in a crashing ship. She showed them the alternative, something that scared them even more than the task at hand, and in an instant they were able to muster the courage to fix their ship. Fear can be a deterrent for crime and can help people overcome the small fears they have to face every day, thus helping the galaxy in the end.

The Yellow Lanterns becoming a force for good in the galaxy could be a fascinating case study into the mindset and ideology behind fear, and what motivates people to do better. Not every Lantern has to follow Sinestro’s lead, as demonstrated by Jessica Cruz, and conquering one’s fears is the first step to becoming a hero in most cases. Many people can be guided by fear, and a former Green Lantern can be the pioneer that leads the Sinestro Corps down the path to heroism.

Next: Even Sinestro’s Heroism Proves He Never Deserved to be a Green Lantern