(female narrator) Previously on "Justice League."
(Green Lantern) Stop!
You are the Green Lantern known as John Stewart?
- I am. - Your ring.
[indistinct shouting]
(Manhunter #1) 'Welcome to Adjouris 5'
'John Stewart.'
There.
'That's where he is.'
What is this? Some kind of trial?
I was on my way to sell weapons on Adjouris 4.
(Kanjar-Ro) I figured he was gonna try to stop me, but his aim was off.
Way off.
[explosion]
Three billion.
That's how many were on that planet.
That scum's an obvious liar.
Nobody's lying.
I did it.
I'm guilty.
[theme music]
[music continues]
Three billion gone.
I can't believe it.
Neither can I.
I want to take a closer look at what happened.
Why? John admits he's guilty.
No one's disputing the facts.
Maybe I am. J'onn, I need you to come with me.
Flash, Hawkgirl, can you buy us some time in court?
You're asking the world's fastest man to slow things down?
Won't be easy.
(J'onn) So, what do you expect to find on this moon?
I don't know. There's something bothering me.
- Just call it a-- - An intuition?
Exactly.
(male #1) John Stewart, you may now question your accuser.
No questions.
[indistinct chattering]
(female #1) None? Don't you intend to defend yourself?
No, I don't.
[indistinct chattering]
I object. You call this a trial?
I say it's a joke.
Are you out of your mind?
What do you think you're doing?
Prepare to be dazzled.
(male #1) Remove him!
Listen to me.
With something this important
you got to hear both sides.
Flash, I told you not to get involved.
They're railroading you, pal.
[grunting]
Hey!
(female #1) 'Wait.'
This being may have a point.
We don't want any lingering doubts
about our final judgment, do we?
(male #3) No. Of course not.
But who would speak for John Stewart?
Don't you have any lawyers here?
(male #1) We solved our lawyer problem
a long time ago.
(female #1) However, you could
speak for him, if you wish.
(male #1) 'But be aware, if you lose'
'you'll share the same penalty as the accused.'
The same penalty?
You mean..
- That's crazy. - No.
That's how we solved our lawyer problem.
- What's your answer? - Don't do it.
What, you think I'm gonna sit back and watch
while you play martyr? I'll defend him.
Very well. Proceed.
[clears throat] Right, sure.
But first, I'd like to say a few words about..
...about habeas corpus.
Yeah, habeas corpus.
'And ipso facto and..'
'...Phi Beta Kappa.'
[indistinct chattering]
Waiter, another round.
Why aren't you at the trial?
Huh, we couldn't stand it anymore.
John Stewart's made us all look bad.
So much for the vaunted loyalty of the Lantern Corps.
Oh, don't get so high and mighty, lady.
If you're smart, you'll stay away from him too.
Otherwise, you'll wind up reeking of his stench yourself.
thud
Cowards! Huh!
[grunting]
My friends, please!
No weapons! No weapons!
You think I need this mace to take you down?
crash
Uh-h!
grrr
[grunting]
[screaming]
[grunting]
[sizzling]
[grunting]
[growling]
[grunting]
[shattering]
[grunting]
No more. Hawkgirl's right.
John Stewart's one of us.
And I'm going to help him.
Have you asked yourself why this rush to judgment?
If the ring wasn't lit..
...you must acquit. And furthermore--
(male #1) Enough! You're just wasting time.
Who? Me?
(Killowog) Out of my way.
[indistinct chattering]
(male #1) Now what?
Uh, looks like we've
got a surprise witness.
Surprise witness?
He was nowhere near the crime.
What kind of witness can he be?
A big scary one.
See anything wrong with this picture?
Where do I start?
The loss of life, the echoes of our own pasts.
No, not up there. Down here.
- It can't be. - But it is.
This moon is still orbiting a planet which doesn't exist.
It should have flown off into space
the moment the planet was destroyed.
But it didn't, did it?
(Killowog) 'The Nethorians would have gotten me for sure'
if it hadn't been for John Stewart.
He saved my life, and risked his own to do it.
- That's the kind of guy he is. - Thank you, Killowog.
John couldn't have asked for a better character witness.
Your turn.
Killowog, can you tell me
exactly what a Green Lantern does?
Oh, that's easy. We catch bad guys.
Commendable. But how do you know who the bad guys are?
How? Uh, I just know.
Oh, so, you're saying you use
your obviously superior intellect
to routinely sort out matters of life and death?
I didn't say, I mean, well, yeah, kind of.
And then you and the other Green Lanterns
enforce these decisions
with those incredibly deadly rings.
Well, I guess you could put it that way.
Who said you could do this?
Who gave you the right?
(male #2) 'We did.'
[indistinct chattering]
[intense music]
J'onn, I hope you're doing better than I am.
All I see are craters.
(J'onn) 'Well, I have found something'
but I'm not sure what.
[intense music]
(Superman) Any idea what this thing does?
When I was a child on Mars
we had small toys called illusitrons.
They could project crude images
over objects and even empty space.
And you think this is a larger version?
The engineering principles appear to be the same.
(Superman) 'So, it's an illusion.'
It would explain why this moon's
orbit has remained intact.
But who..
[both grunting]
pew pew
[rumbling]
The secret will stay buried with them.
[grunts]
pew pew pew
This moon is filled with surprises.
pew pew pew
[intense music]
[beeping]
[grunts]
thud thud
[grunts]
I followed him here from Adjouris 5.
I had to, uh, borrow
one of the defense forces' fighters.
So, he's behind all this?
Not exactly.
(Manhunter #1) 'It is time, brothers.'
Time to avenge a thousand years of grievances.
Time to regain our power and dignity.
[all cheering]
Our plan has worked flawlessly so far.
We've sown dissension among the Lantern Corps
and stained their reputation forever.
But beyond that... we've succeeded in luring
the leaders of our most hated enemy
away from their home planet of Oa.
Yes, they're here.
The Guardians.
(all) Destroy them!
(all) Destroy them all!
No, my brothers. Not here, not now.
Our destiny lies elsewhere.
But rest assured, the Guardians will burn
for we are the Manhunters!
(all) No man escapes the Manhunters!
It's true that we Guardians control
the Lantern Corps' power source.
But the individual Lanterns
have complete autonomy.
So, if one of them does something wrong
it's not your fault.
Uh, you misunderstand.
We give them autonomy because we trust their experience and--
No other questions!
How much more must we hear?
We demand an immediate judgment!
I object!
(all judges) 'Overruled.'
(male #1) Having heard all the facts
we will now consider.
[indistinct chattering]
I did everything I could.
I wish you hadn't.
That was fast.
(male #1) The facts are clear.
John Stewart is guilty.
(female #1) Do you wish to make a statement
before we pass sentence?
No.
(male #2) Very well.
The sentence is termination..
...for you and your advocate.
[Flash grunts] Whoa! Time out!
I want an appeal.
Will you show some dignity for once in your life?
This isn't right. We can't just sit here.
We have to.
Think of the others like us.
We all need to be held accountable.
We have too much power not to be.
[Flash grunts]
[Flash grunting]
[pulsating]
hiss
[coughing]
[intense music]
Stop!
(male #1) How dare you?
John's innocent!
That's your cue, Hawkgirl.
- 'Hope you can hear me.' - Loud and clear.
[grunting]
boom boom boom
[indistinct chattering]
(Superman) Adjouris 4 was never destroyed.
It's right where it always was.
It was all an illusion.
'A frame-up, as they say on my planet.'
You!
Why did you do this to me? Why?
For...for money.
Whose money?
The Manhunters'.
[indistinct chattering]
Come on!
G.L.!
[instrumental music]
We're too late. We have to go back immediately.
Not so fast.
What's going on?
We don't have time for this.
Where are the Manhunters?
Headed back to Oa.
"Back to Oa?" They've been there before?
- Yes. We created them there. - Say what?
It was before the Lantern Corps.
We thought robots would make good peacekeepers
but they were flawed.
They couldn't understand the subtle gradations
between good and evil.
Why didn't you decommission them?
We reprogrammed them for lesser duties.
Tracking, hunting, guarding.
They didn't seem to object.
Not out loud, anyway.
[intense music]
zap zap zap
pew pew pew
[rumbling]
Don't let up, brothers! They're weakening!
pew pew pew
thud
sizzle
They can't hide in there forever. Rip it open!
pew pew pew
Rip them too!
[instrumental music]
They can't stop us, brothers.
No one can!
thud thud
Got your back.
Look out!
pew pew pew
Use the gun! The gun!
boom
zap zap zap
[beeping]
thud
pew pew pew
boom
[instrumental music]
You three, take the North tower.
Killowog and I will take the South.
[grunting]
thud
boom
zap zap zap
[groans]
pew
[Green Lantern grunting]
thud
Manhunter, stop!
Not till we've regained what is rightfully ours.
Yours?
The power that the Guardians
stole from us.
pew pew
It was never yours.
It was always the Guardians'.
And they betrayed us, just as they betrayed you.
[grunts]
This power is our destiny.
[grunts]
thud
No!
[screaming]
[grunting]
Now, I am the power!
crash
[gasps]
[Guardians groaning]
All is lost.
Not while I'm standing.
crackle crackle
In brightest day, in blackest night
no evil shall escape my sight.
[growling]
Let those who worship evil's might..
...beware my power
Green Lantern's light!
No-o-o!
We chose wisely when we offered you the ring.
Thank you, John Stewart.
You're some fighter, lady.
But we already knew that, didn't we?
[Green Lanterns laughing]
John, good work.
I guess we were wrong about you, John.
'We should have known better.'
Yeah, you should have.
Are you alright, John?
You believed in me even when I didn't believe in myself.
Hey, what are friends for?
(Green Lantern) Let's go home.
[theme music]