William Macon
It’s probably a bit too obvious for a JJ Abrams protégé like Damon Lindelof, but I’m going out on a limb and saying the crypto-fascist billionaire, with access to the secret alien technology and whose immense wealth is propping Rushville up, is the genocidal Manhunter. Yes, William Macon (Garret Dillahunt), the most sinister guy on the show not named Sinestro, is my pick. Where else would he get the tech to track extraterrestrials wearing the proverbial Edgar suit, let alone the confidence to shoot a Green Lantern? The mask of anti-alien rancher, who holds Rushville in the palm of his hand, is the perfect cover. Of course, that also makes him the perfect red herring, especially for a mystery box builder like Lindelof. Still, the most obvious choice is probably the right one in this case. At least, in reality, the most obvious evil-doer around is usually the one with the most money anyway. [Matt Schimkowitz]
Hal Jordan
I’m still not convinced that the most bewildering, potentially frustrating Manhunter suspect isn’t the most obvious one currently sneering in John Stewart’s face. While Zoe Macon and her husband are the most conspicuous suspects—Zoe’s death scene is a bit too peripheral to take at face value, and Will is undoubtedly an alien-level weirdo—I choose to have fun with the show’s Lindelofian ambiguity by putting long odds on Lanterns’ twist landing on Hal Jordan. Three reasons: It’d explain why the Jordan stashed in the ring’s memory is so different from the surly one we have in 2016; it deepens the Manhunter threat by showing how convincing it is at masquerading as a complicated human being; last, it opens the door for Kyle Chandler to appear in future DCU projects despite the pilot episode’s shock finale. I did say I think the twist will be frustrating, right? Well, how about another theory: Everyone in Rushville is a Manhunter? [Jarrod Jones]
John Stewart
Who do I think is the relentless, inhuman killer capable of disguising himself among a population for long periods of time before bursting into sudden bouts of cold, dispassionate violence? Gosh, I don’t know: How about the former military sniper whose biggest regret in life is that someone else stole his chance to kill the target he’d been patiently waiting nine months to murder? To my mind, the only argument against John Stewart being the Manhunter everybody’s so worried about in Lanterns is that making the show’s protagonist its secret monster is the kind of rote Damon Lindelof is usually pretty good at avoiding. But it would explain so much: The Guardians’ bizarre interest in Stewart, his alien willingness to sit in a chair for 18 hours to make a point, Hal Jordan’s worried antipathy toward him. All the better if John himself doesn’t know his true identity; after all, we already know aliens in this universe have technology to “imprint” feelings and experiences onto people, right? [William Hughes]
Billy Macon
Something’s definitely going on with Zoe, but I don’t think she’s the Manhunter—if William’s really trying to protect her identity, why insist she stick around for the interrogation? She could be keeping the truth from him, I suppose; or, if Manhunters can replicate beings they’ve encountered, maybe one has taken her place without him realizing. But that could also apply to Billy Macon, who, if he is the intergalactic threat in question, is doing a better job of hiding in plain sight. Billy’s rich and imposing dad, his sheriff wife, and his job as a lawyer afford him all kinds of opportunities to track any investigations into aliens and stay two steps ahead. Episode four revealed that Manhunters assimilate into communities through “weak spots,” which would seem to describe Billy more aptly than Zoe. Hal made a crack about William hiding behind a Keyser Söze-like ruse just before getting shot, which could still hold up if it turns out Billy is the Roger “Verbal” Kint in all of this. [Danette Chavez]
Keep scrolling for more great stories.