Lanterns’ Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score Is Almost as Amazing as Critics’ Reviews

DC Studios’ Lanterns has found an encouraging early sweet spot with viewers. The first season currently carries a very impressive audience, and critics score on Rotten Tomatoes, putting fan reaction almost perfectly alongside professional reviews. Early viewers have praised its mystery, performances and the chemistry between its two leading Green Lanterns.

Lanterns’ audience score on Rotten Tomatoes shows fans are loving the show

Lanterns is still winning over viewers, with a 95% critics’ score and 88% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. The audience rating was previously as high as 92%, but slipped a few points as more fans watched the episode and reacted to its brutal ending, which takes a major character off the board. Even with that dip, the overall fan response remains seriously strong. However, with more viewers tuning in, expect those numbers to keep bouncing around.

Several reactions praised the series for delivering intensity beyond what its marketing suggested, with one viewer calling it “really fun” and saying the story became “intense as hell.” Others singled out Kyle Chandler’s Hal Jordan and Aaron Pierre’s John Stewart as major reasons to keep watching.

The Hal-John partnership has become one of the show’s biggest talking points. Fans have highlighted their chemistry, comic-book accuracy and the show’s Green Lantern constructs, while also enjoying lighter moments that break up its darker material. Another fan said the series left them intrigued and wanting more despite taking some liberties with the source material.

Critics have landed in roughly the same neighborhood. Meghan O’Keefe praised Lanterns as an HBO “must-see” and called it a “creative win” for DC Studios, while Sonal Pandya highlighted the emotional work from Chandler and Pierre. Judy Berman also praised the show’s deeper exploration of the relationship between Hal and John as the season develops.

Josh Davis offered a more mixed comparison, describing the series as a confident take on True Detective while questioning some of its creative decisions. Dominic Griffin, meanwhile, viewed the show as an important step for the DC Universe and praised its entertaining, absorbing approach.

Lanterns is currently streaming on HBO Max.