Over the past several months, we've seen images that allude to a change in the ring design being used for Martin Capbell's
Green Lantern film. The first being the revamped Lantern logo, which has a bejeweled center with a textured, metallic surrounding. The second being the newly revealed promotional artwork from
Warner Bros. Consumer Products division; a homage to the popular Green Lantern comic cover pose.
This design has divided fans evenly. There are those who like the movie version of the ring and feel it will translate well to film; while others consider it a design failure that doesn't respect the source material, pointing out it's similarity to Green Lantern Kyle Rayner's ring or the Corps Honor Guard as apposed to the rounded-ring Hal Jordan wears in the modern comics. Though the ring may be "new" to some fans' eyes, it most definitely is not new to Green Lantern comics. As a matter of fact, that design is over 20 years old!
Below you'll find images, courtesy of SHH poster Mondragon, that reveal the origin of the movie ring. It appears the production designers dug into the archives to use the Neal Adams/Mike Grell comics run from the mid-1970s as a basis for Hal Jordan's intergalactic weapon:
Now that we know the ring is in fact actually based on Green Lantern mythology, and not some designer's unique experiment, fans should have a bit more hope that the studio has done their research.
MPP - Personally, I very much like the ring's look, at least from what we've seen. It can't look like something you can pick up at a flea market, so giving it an odd shape with an ancient feel is definitely a good thing.
Oh, and in case you were wondering if WBCP President Brad Globe was wearing a ring replica from the film in the License Magazine advertisement; it doesn't appear so. More than likely it is one of the rings from the
Blackest Night Ring Spectrum Set, which not only light up, but will became available for purchase this July.