John Stewart has always been a conflicted character. His history as a member of the Green Lantern Corps is similarly conflicted. However, a new story in Batman/Superman World’s Finest Annual 2025 retcons it all, presenting a new history that honors all the character has ever been.
“That’s the Way of the World” by Morgan Hampton and Clayton Henry reveals the new history of John Stewart. We open on John as a child, growing up in Detroit, Michigan. A shy boy with a stutter, who required braces to walk, John had dreams of being an architect. His father was less than supportive, however, and often insulted his intellectual son.
The death of his sister in an undefined accident pushed John Stewart to improve himself. Physical and speech therapy helped him become “the John I felt I was supposed to be.” He was able to join the United States Marine Corps and did two tours of duty overseas. However, the life of a Marine did not suit him, and even his father’s approval felt hollow. John hated how “the boy who built things grew up to be a man that tore them down.”
(Image Source: DC / Clayton Henry)
Upon returning home, John Stewart earned his architecture degree and worked to build up his community. It was during this time that he came to the attention of the Guardians of the Universe and was approached about becoming a Green Lantern reservist. However, he was reluctant to sign-on, give his bad experiences as a Marine. He changed his mind after an encounter with Hal Jordan, where he helped the first Green Lantern of Earth fight a Manhunter robot. This pushed John so that he “ran toward something for a change” and joined the Corps.
The chief reason why “That’s the Way of the World” was necessary was because of a growing conflict in John Stewart’s portrayals. When the character first appeared in 1972’s Green Lantern/Green Arrow #87, he was introduced as an activist and architect. Later stories would flesh out his family history, explaining his confrontational personality.
(Image Source: DC / Neal Adams)
However, when Bruce Timm decided to have John Stewart be the Green Lantern of his 2000 Justice League cartoon, he changed John’s background to that of a career military man. Timm reportedly didn’t think the classic background was relevant in the 21st century. He also thought an order-minded Marine would be a good contrast to the more independent heroes in the Justice League. This iteration proved popular, and the comics were retconned to give Stewart a background as a Marine sniper.
(Image Source: DC / Mike McKone)
However, some Green Lantern writers neglected John Stewart’s original background as an architect. Many wrote him as a generic Jarhead, without any consideration of why he became a Green Lantern in the first place. The new history presented in “That’s the Way of the World” offers a balance between the two version of John Stewart. It also neatly updates the classic origin story, which has not aged well thanks to some dated slang. However, Stewart’s ponderances about wanting to create while being trained to kill seem to honor his co-creator Dennis O’Neil, who voiced similar thoughts after his time in the US Navy.
Batman/Superman: World’s Finest 2025 Annual is now available in comic shops everywhere.