Green Lantern: Jessica Cruz’s Comic Origins Explained

Jessica Cruz is one of the newest recruits to the Green Lantern Corps, and her origin is perhaps the most unique. The first woman Green Lantern from Earth, Jessica’s first appearance was a cameo in Green Lantern #20, and after another brief cameo in Justice League #30, she made her full debut the following issue. Created by Geoff Johns (Doomsday Clock) and Ethan Van Sciver (Green Lantern), she has quickly become one of the most popular Green Lanterns, appearing regularly in the Green Lantern and Justice League families of titles.

Cruz has made the leap into other media as well, appearing in video games, children’s cartoons, and animated films. And now she is poised to make the leap to live-action, appearing alongside many of her fellow Lanterns in an HBO Max series. But what about Jessica makes her so special? What qualities distinguish her from Hal Jordan, or John Stewart? How did she get her Power Ring? And just how powerful is she?

The Origin of Jessica Cruz, Green Lantern

On the surface, Jessica Cruz may not seem a likely candidate for the Green Lantern Corps. On a hike in the woods, she and some friends stumbled across some mobsters burying a body. The mobsters saw Jessica and her friends and killed everyone but Jessica. She escapes but finds herself dealing with crippling anxiety and PTSD, to the point where she holes up in her apartment and doesn’t come out for four years.

In Justice League #30-31, Earth was under siege by the Crime Syndicate of America from Earth-3. When the Syndicate’s Green Lantern equivalent, Power Ring, dies, his twisted ring, called The Ring of Volthoom, chooses Jessica as a host. Whereas a Green Lantern ring will choose someone based on their ability to overcome fear, The Ring of Volthoom forces itself on someone consumed by fear and guilt—someone like Jessica.

Corrupted by The Ring’s influence, Jessica becomes the new Power Ring. She quickly comes into conflict with The Justice League; Batman convinces Jessica to overcome her fears and she is freed from the Ring’s influence but is still able to wield its awesome power. She then joins the Justice League, with Hal Jordan mentoring her on using The Ring.

How Jessica Earned Her Green Lantern Ring

Under Hal’s guidance, Jessica began to flourish as a hero. Despite still wielding The Ring of Volthoom, Grail, Darkseid’s daughter, soon attacks Jessica, using the Ring to summon the Anti-Monitor to Prime Earth so that he can confront Darkseid. Now caught up in a multiversal war between two immensely powerful beings, the Justice League turned to the imprisoned Crime Syndicate for help. This meant Jessica fell under The Ring’s corrupting influence once again. Yet, in the final battle in Justice League #50, she was once again able to assert control over the Ring and in the process seemingly sacrificed herself to save The Flash from The Black Racer.

In reality, The Black Racer did not kill Jessica but instead destroyed Volthoom, freeing Jessica from his evil influence once and for all. She is then awarded a Green Lantern ring, becoming a full-fledged member of the Corps. Hal Jordan then pairs her up with another rookie Lantern, Simon Baz. In order to ensure cooperation between the two, he combines their power batteries; he then tasks them with protecting Earth while the other Earth-bound Lanterns were in space.

Jessica Cruz Has Become One of The Greatest Lanterns

Now charged with great responsibility, Jessica and Simon began to learn to work together. While Jessica was growing into her new role, she still had doubts over her true worthiness. She then found herself facing The Phantom Ring, an early Power Ring prototype that allowed its user to wield the entire Emotional Spectrum. However, unlike the White Lantern ring of Kyle Rayner, the user was only allowed one emotion at a time, and there was a potential the ring could kill her too. Wearing it herself at one point, the insight she gained was an affirmation, and she began to realize she truly was worthy of the Lantern position. This knowledge, coupled with her ability to wield one of the greatest power sources in the DC Universe, makes her one of the greatest Lanterns ever.

And on top of all of this, Jessica is now potentially one of the most powerful heroes in the DC Universe. In Justice League Odyssey #13, Jessica was revived as a living avatar of Omega Energy, after being seemingly killed by Darkseid and his Omega Beams.

In just a few short years, Jessica Cruz has gone from villain to one of the brightest stars in the Green Lantern Corps. And now, supercharged with Omega power, she is poised to become one of the most powerful members of the DC Universe period.

About The Author

Shaun Corley
(1377 Articles Published)

Shaun Corley is a pop culture enthusiast living in the Pacific Northwest. After stints in both customer service and academia, he’s turned his attention to writing about comic books–his lifelong passion. He is a graduate of Radford University, with a degree in English. When not reading comics, he enjoys spending time with his fiance and their dog.

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