10 Problems No One Wants To Admit About Green Lantern

2. Alan Scott Is Criminally Overlooked

Green Lantern Alan Scott
DC Comics/Alex Ross

Alan Scott might not be a Lantern along the same lines as Hal, Guy or John, but he's no less important. The character arrived during forties as a part of DC's first generation of heroes, utilising magic while donning an extraordinary cape to battle mobsters and spies during his earliest adventures, and while there's no denying the comic's space-age reboot is superior, that's no reason to overlook the publisher's first Lantern.

For starters, Scott's focus on magic over science is a big strength. Marvel may have Doctor Strange, Ghost Rider and Blade, but DC have had their rivals beat in the supernatural department for decades, mainly because they've focused on that corner of their mythos more than the House of Ideas have.

Scott is a cornerstone of that mythos alongside the likes of Zatanna and Doctor Fate, and his position on the Justice Society of America makes him a storied character in DC's library. Add in the New 52 reveal that the character was gay too, and it's clear DC have an amazing platform with the hero that they're yet to take full advantage of.

Fortunately the Golden Age Lantern is staging a comeback in the pages of Young Justice, but the fact remains he's an overlooked aspect of the GL mythos.

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WhatCulture's very own resident movie guy, Ewan has been working in the content creation biz for over 10 years now, having started as a freelance contributor to WhatCulture Gaming all the way back in 2015. After graduating with a First-Class Honours in History from Northumbria University in 2017 (where he won a prize for a totally killer dissertation on the Watergate years), Ewan took on the role of Comics Editor at WhatCulture and quickly developed WhatCulture Comics into one of the biggest superhero-focused channels on YouTube. He followed this with a brief hiatus at Screen Rant in 2021, where he worked across the Gaming and Film sections as a writer and editor, before returning to WhatCulture as a Senior Content Producer / Presenter in 2023. He started his own podcast, We Love Dad Movies, in 2022, and has contributed several written pieces to the Eisner-nominated comics website Shelfdust as well. In his current role, Ewan incorporates his love of cinema, comic books, and history into written pieces and video essays for WhatCulture's Film & TV channel, as well as WhatCulture Gaming and WhatCulture Horror, with a particular focus on nineties-era Dad Movies, old school Westerns, and Golden Age Hollywood Noir. John Carpenter is his fave, and he thinks Batman Beyond should never have been cancelled. If that's your vibe, you'll probably like his stuff.