One of the strongest and most recognized emotions in the universe is the power of love. Whether through heartbreak, rekindling of an old flame, or something entirely brand new, everyone has experienced this emotion in one form or another, and in the DC Universe where the space cops known as the Green Lantern Corps patrol the stars with their green power of will, it’s the violet light of the Star Sapphires that bring all things love to the cosmos.
But who are these Violet Lanterns, and why did they choose the sometimes-overwhelming emotion of love as the basis for a Corps that more people can relate to than any other? Furthermore, where exactly did the original idea of Star Sapphires come from to begin with?
Click the button below to start this article in quick view.
The Origins of The Star Sapphires
Before becoming a full-blown Corps of their own, the original Star Sapphire was less a wielder of the Emotional Spectrum and more a singular being possessed by the corrupt power of an object known as a Star Sapphire crystal. Over the years, many have played host and been consumed by the gem, including Violet Lantern vet Carol Ferris (more on her later), but outside of sharing a few similarities with the current incarnations of the Violet Lanterns, this version of the Star Sapphire has more or less fallen by the wayside in favor of the current Corps of love. But that doesn’t mean that the idea of the Star Sapphire crystal was forgotten with the creation of the Violet Lanterns. In fact, the origin of the Corps is very much entwined with the crystal to a point that it served as the spark that would eventually bring the violet light of love to the universe.
Billions of years ago, a group of female Guardians of the Universe, or the bosses of the Green Lanterns, decided that they could not follow in the footsteps of their fellow Oans by ridding themselves of their emotions and struck out on their own to find a path less traveled. Settling on a planet named Zamaron, these ex-Guardians came across a parasitic crystal that they molded into the aforementioned Star Sapphire gem to help spread and protect love across the universe while also allowing the crystals’ hosts to enact revenge on any males that had wronged them. But after years of using the crystal for well-intentioned yet mostly villainous acts of love, Green Lantern Hal Jordan forced the Zamarons to confront the overwhelming and barely containable nature of the gem, leading them to rethink their use of the Star Sapphire power in general. They soon got to work, and after using the crystal to craft a Central Power Battery and violet power ring, the new and improved Star Sapphire Corps was born.
Carol Ferris, The Leader and Queen of The Violet Lanterns Explained
Premiering in 1959 and created by John Broome and Gil Kane, Carol Ferris has been portrayed as an on again off again love interest of Jordan as well as an executive in her family business of Ferris Air. Having been subject to the original incarnation of the Star Sapphire gem on more than one occasion as well as being an adept pilot herself, Carol has always been a character that can deal with things on her own terms with a steadfast spirit and love in her heart. But after realizing the strength of the love she felt for Hal, feelings that she could not act on due to her personal policy of not dating Ferris Air employees (Hal was a pilot at her company for a time) as well as feeling a debilitating heartache when he leaves the job, Carol yet again draws the attention of the Zamarons to her little corner of Earth.
Having just forged their first power rings of violet light, the Zamarons sent one out to Carol as her feelings of unrequited and unattainable love grew to untold heights, and as the ring slipped onto her finger, she was transformed into a familiar yet entirely different version of a Star Sapphire complete with powers that rivaled even the greatest of the Green Lantern Corps. By using her limited experience from previously wielding a version of love that corrupted the user in more ways than the power ring she had just acquired ever would, Carol became the leader and eventual Queen of the Zamarons during her tenure with the Violet Lanterns, spreading love and trumping hate with her fellow Corps members as best she could in a universe that was suddenly getting awfully crowded with new forces of the Emotional Spectrum seemingly popping up every other day.
The Power of Love Binds All Together
Being one of the Corps at the far end of the Emotional Spectrum, the Violet Lanterns, (along with the Red Lanterns on the other end of the spectrum) are one of the most powerful lights to wield and one of the most dangerous. Similar to the Green Lanterns, Yellow Lanterns, and any of the other Corps that uses energy constructs as their primary weapon of choice as well as the usual flight capabilities and space-surviving aura, the love of Star Sapphires also has the power to recruit others to their cause in the most unusual way.
By encasing their newest recruits in a crystalline structure that resembled the original Star Sapphire gem, the power of the Violet Lanterns keeps them in stasis as they are slowly transformed into beings that covet love over everything else. This process can also be used to take members of other Corps, such as the evil beings that are part of the feared Sinestro Corps, and not only drain the power from their rings, but also simultaneously convert that power into the violet energy of love, essentially forcing the being to join the Violet Lanterns without their explicit permission. And since the emotion of love is at the far end of the Emotional Spectrum, it’s known to be a corrupting influence that takes away some of the free will the user would otherwise normally hold, and at times, also making their “rehabilitation” an experience that leads them to take extreme and sometimes violent measures to express the depths of their love.
Love Is Love In The Violet Lantern Corps
Over the years, and specifically in the Green Lantern event known as Blackest Night, different heroes have donned the violet ring of love with varying degrees of success. With the user of the ring needing to be able to hold great love in their hearts as well as love unconditionally in a world that more often than not is full of anything but, temporary recruits like Wonder Woman have been able to harness the power of the Star Sapphires in a way that transcends her own immense power and extrapolates the love she feels for mankind as well as the light that flows through all living beings. And even with the overwhelming majority of the Violet Lanterns being female, the Star Sapphires have also been known to allow the power of love to shine brightly in the opposite gender as well.
Outside of a few instances where men wielded the violet light for a short amount of time such as White Lantern Kyle Rayner or even the hot-headed Guy Gardner, another male member of the Green Lantern Corps was the first to officially be inducted into the Violet Lantern Corps, and it’s none other than Green Lantern great, John Stewart. And while anyone of any gender can join the Corps of love, it’s often understood that most men simply aren’t worthy of a power that permeates and penetrates every being in the universe, a fact that makes sense but isn’t necessarily a hard set rule in the grand scheme of the Corps.
Love is love, and in the world of the Green Lantern Corps, the Violet Lantern Corps, known as the Star Sapphires, champion this emotion without hesitation. And although love may be one of the most corrupting emotions on the Emotional Spectrum, it has also been used to repair and recharge the love of all those it touches, making it one of the most influential forces in the universe. After all, that’s the power of love!
About The Author