Out of all the DC superheroes, Green Lantern’s costume is undoubtedly the worst – and it’s unfortunately contributed to his decaying popularity. Many heroes have adopted the Green Lantern title, but Hal Jordan is perhaps the best-known – and also the unfortunate recipient of a terrible costume design mistake that, in over 6o years, has yet to be rectified. It’s an issue experienced by all Green Lanterns – except, oddly enough, the first one.
Green Lantern’s powers are virtually limitless. Hal Jordan can create anything he sees in his mind; his willpower is his greatest strength. An unfortunate and somewhat laughable weakness to the color yellow is the ring’s only handicap, but members of the Green Lantern Corps undergo extensive training to work around the yellow impurity. Sadly, no amount of training can improve Hal Jordan’s costume, as it breaks two cardinal rules of effective superhero costume design.
From the Golden Age onward, almost every major superhero used the colors red, blue and/or yellow in their design (see Superman, Thor, Wonder Woman, and Captain Marvel for examples in which all three colors are used to great effect). These are primary colors; the secondary colors – green, purple, and orange – are usually reserved for villains. Green Lantern’s green costume works against him here; the comic-reading audience subliminally identifies him as a villain, even if they know he’s a hero. Unfortunately, that’s only where the troubles begin.
Green Lantern’s costume is all green, with no secondary coloring to complement the main color. This is why Green Arrow has blonde hair, or why Kick-Ass has yellow lines on his suit: the yellow both breaks up the green and subliminally communicates to the audience that the characters are heroes. Both heroes and villains rarely have monochromatic costumes (Daredevil is a rare exception, but even he debuted with a red and yellow suit). More muted colors became increasingly popular with improved printing methods in the 70s and 80s, but even today, the major rules of effective costume design still apply. It’s important to note that Alan Scott, the Green Lantern of the 1940s, didn’t share Hal Jordan’s color problem; Scott’s costume had plenty of red and yellow in addition to green, immediately identifying him as a hero.
Green Lantern’s use of only one major color limits his overall appeal. Almost every major Avenger and Justice League member has at least some red, blue, or yellow in their design (even Batman, with his yellow utility belt and yellow oval encircling the bat symbol on his chest). The Hulk is a notable exception, but his villainous coloring is deliberate (he’s a danger to his allies as well as his enemies), and his signature purple pants compliment his green skin. Green Lantern, with a villainous color scheme and no secondary color to break up his look, is saddled with a terrible look that sends the wrong messages to readers.
