Recap / With This Ring Episode 36

Episode 36: Stars, Crossed, Part 1

Takes place February 22, 2011 (universe 16) and January 7, 2004 (universe 50)

Short version

The Renegade kills Klarion and hands himself in, then is visited in jail by an alternate version of Batman, who brings him to universe 50 to fight off a Thanagarian plot to destroy the Earth.

Longer version

This is a Renegade episode, with just a brief Paragon interlude at the start, where Paul speaks to a group of people at KordTech, discussing how Earth technology is tracking compared to the rest of the universe.

Having obtained the Sword of Second and Third, the Renegade sets a trap for Klarion, aiming to remove a serious threat from the world and join the Light as a member or a mole. Since he also wants to make a political/moral point about the limitations of current laws and Justice League rules of engagement with high-end supervillains, he also arranges for press coverage. His bait, looking like a Lord of Order ascension ritual, is successful; Klarion appears, and the Renegade uses a burst of Super-Speed to behead him. He then hands himself in to the police.

Wonder Woman visits him in jail, disappointed in his behavior, and takes most of his equipment, including the Sword and his ring (which the police were unqualified to handle). However, she leaves Father Box with him, as it is sentient.

The Renegade is then visited in jail by an alternate universe Batman, who orders him to come and opens a portal to Earth 50. Batman explains that the Thanagarians have come to Earth, pretending to build a shield to protect the planet from their war with the Gordanians, but they are actually building a device that will destroy Earth to build a warp tunnel for their forces to reach the Gordanian capital. The Justice Lords were depowered some time ago and drifted apart, so he chose the Renegade for his combination of power, morality, and ruthlessness. However, the Renegade is now largely unarmed. Batman informs him of the location of Sinestro's yellow ring, in a government facility, as Sinestro has been killed in this parallel.

With the help of Father Box's boom tubes, the Renegade breaks into the facility and takes the ring from novice Yellow Lantern Guy Gardner; the ring recognises him as a "superior potential bearer." Now armed, the Renegade looks at re-establishing an organisation like the Justice League. He is able to re-empower Hawkgirl and Lantern Stewart (gaining access to the yellow ring's personal lantern in the process), but is dissatisfied with the attitudes of Superman and Wonder Woman, while the Flash is dead. However, he then discovers that the president has been replaced with an Apokoliptian infiltrator robot, and in exasperation, he goes full Renegade, attacking the Thanagarian flagship single-handedly. He is seriously injured during the fight, but ultimately succeeds in defeating their commander and forcing them to retreat.

The title is a reference to crossing between parallel universes, and also to the DCAU episode "Starcrossed". The next episode is a continuation of this story arc.

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• Alternate Universe: The Renegade visits Earth 50, home of the Justice Lords.
• Anti-Climax: The entire "fight" against Klarion is over in seconds. Justified because the Renegade has extensively planned how to kill the Lord of Chaos and killed him in a staged ambush.
• Backstory: Mr Zoat gives one for the Justice Lords.
• Beard of Evil: Lampshaded when the Renegade sees the John Stewart of Universe 50.
• Curb Stomp Cushion: Guy Gardner 50 realizes nothing they have is stopping the Renegade, so he decides to get the power ring in the safe to fight him. He gets a few hits in but is swiftly defeated because it's his first time ever wielding a yellow power ring, with no idea of what exactly it can do.
• De-power: The Renegade does this to Lord!Superman permanently after his ring confirms the original depowering is only temporary.
• Disappointed in You: Wonder Woman feels this way towards the Renegade.
• Engineered Public Confession: The Renegade gets Hro Talak to admit the Thanagarians are trying to destroy the Earth. He sends a recording of the confession to the Justice Lords, who release the clip.
• Exact Words: The Renegade had actually asked his ring for whatever information it could give him about radon, but it turns out that the weapons that can badly harm New Gods are radion based.
• The Gloves Come Off: When the Renegade realizes the president is actually a robot being controlled by SHADE, he decides that helping the heroes of Earth 50 is a waste of time and goes off to fight the Thanagarians on his own.
• I Know What You Fear: Guy Gardner is able to use a yellow ring to see the Renegade's fears. However, it doesn't help him much, because the Renegade just doesn't find him very scary, and takes the ring away from him.
• Immunity Disability: The Renegade's divinely empowered body is bulletproof, immune to poisons, resistant to spells, and can regenerate - but when he actually does get seriously injured, his ring can't just reset him to full health like Paragon can, and he can't use painkillers. Furthermore, the Garrick formula, which grants Super-Speed, only works on him for a few seconds before his body resets itself.
• Instant Expert: Subverted. Guy Gardner 50 can use the yellow power ring he has, but he isn't an expert, which is how the Renegade was able to take it from him.
• Kayfabe: This is the other reason the Renegade has for immediately attacking the Thanagarians.
• Leeroy Jenkins: The Renegade goes off to fight the Thanagarians with no plan whatsoever.
• Motivational Lie: This is the reason the Renegade mentioned the Massacre of Sector 666, even though he isn't sure it happened in Universe 50.
• Mythology Gag: When visiting the Scott and Barda Free of Earth 50, the Renegade reenacts the memorable scene where Darkseid greets Scott Free in the latter's own living room while reading a newspaper.
• No Nudity Taboo: This applies on Apokolips, as the Renegade points out to Hawkgirl after he performs lifesaving surgery on her. She still wants him to leave before she gets changed.
• Noodle Incident: The Thanagarians actually tried to assassinate Grayven 50 in the past.
• Normal Fish in a Tiny Pond: The Renegade is usually this when on Earth, which means that even if he messes up, he can just power through with no problem. This is not the case against the Thanagarians.
• Only the Chosen May Wield: Sinestro's ring has its own opinions about what functions are permitted to its wearer.
• Play-Along Prisoner: The Renegade deliberately hands himself in and gives up his weapons to Wonder Woman after killing Klarion, so that he can make a point about the legal situation surrounding Person of Mass Destruction villains. He still retains Father Box, who could portal him out at any time, and he is more than strong enough to smash his way out, but has no desire to.
• Pyrrhic Victory: This is the best the Thanagarians can hope to achieve. Even if they blew up the Earth and attacked the gordanian homeworld, that wouldn't save their empire.
• Self-Surgery: The Renegade has to cut out the piece of him that is affected by radion.
• Shout-Out:
  • The Renegade's inner thoughts about meeting the Justice Lords references Batman (1966).
    Holy flashback, Batman! The Justice Lords, like in Justice League Animated?! But their chins look so normal! And… And their shoulders aren't as wide as they are tall! Okay, keep it together Grayven.
  • One of Sinestro Ring's lines is taken from Discworld.
    Endeavour to be the master.
• Smite Me, O Mighty Smiter: The Renegade taunts Ares, daring the god to appear and strike him down for desecrating the god's temple.
• Super-Empowering: The Renegade grants John Stewart the ability to directly channel the Green Light of Will.
• Word of God: The Light's reaction to Paul uplifting humanity varies.
  • Paul giving Ted Kord so much to work with means the latter won't become Blue Beetle II.
  • It is implied that Paul will know what the scarab in Ted's possession is and will confiscate it. Right now, he has no idea Ted even has it.
  • Paul subconsciously disdains fat people.
  • More info on the results of the Renegade's anti-Vertigo ads is given.
  • Paul prefers using power armor over modifying his body.
  • Mr Zoat answers what Paul could have done to power his ring if it was a different color.
  • Earth 50 doesn't have a version of the Team.
  • Argo is a Kryptonian colony in this fic.
  • How yellow power rings work is explained a bit.
  • When Mr Zoat originally wrote this episode, the Renegade didn't have Sinestro's ring.
  • Mr Zoat answers what would happen if Paul ended up in the world of Watchmen.
  • Mr Zoat confirms a reader's guess about what happened to Hawkgirl.
  • Static 50 isn't active thanks to SHADE.
  • Hawkgirl accidentally flashes the Renegade due to the fact that she's flying while only wearing a hospital gown.
  • Why the League is fine with calling Renegade!OL Grayven is explained.
  • This episode shows the Renegade how to improperly execute his plans.
  • The Renegade thought Diana was redeemable because she realized she was wrong, unlike Kal-El.
  • The Renegade's reasoning for not restoring J'onn's powers is given.
  • If the Renegade won, he would have made a feudal government.
  • China's superhero policy is explained.
  • If the Linear Men became a problem, Paul would assimilate them.
  • Mr Zoat clarifies which Lantern Corps are currently active in the Paragon and Renegade timeline.
  • The Lights Out story isn't canon to this fic.
  • Mr Zoat elaborates what Paul would have done if he showed up around WW II.

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