HBO's Lanterns continues its unconventional take on the Green Lantern mythos, using episode five to close out the show's 2016-set mystery involving the Manhunter while jumping between timelines. Rather than following a typical superhero structure, the episode functions as a turning point that deconstructs Hal Jordan and John Stewart's dynamic and sets up a betrayal that upends expectations for the series' remaining three episodes.

The episode intercuts a 2007 flashback, in which Kerry Kane escapes a criminal past and is taken in by Zoe after a violent confrontation, with 2016 events in Rushville, where Hal and John close in on Zoe while Rushville's residents brace for conflict. John becomes trapped in a burning car after a crash, and rather than saving him, Zoe watches him burn alive, while Hal uses a "Halogram" to track down Kerry, who reveals a deeper, unexplained connection to Zoe.