DC’s Most Underrated Green Lantern Is So Unique He Needed His Own Oath

The Green Lantern Corps is made up if roughly 7,200 members who patrol 3,600 space sectors. Each one wears a power ring designed by Meadlux, one of the Guardians of the Universe, to keep the space ways safe. The rings, powered by the Central Power Battery on Oa, connect to the user mentally, creating energy constructs made of light based on what they think of. All Lanterns use their indomitable will to control their rings and many, like Hal Jordan, make basic constructs while others — John Stewart and Kyle Rayner — can build elaborate constructs thanks to their imagination and natural drafting skills. Every Green Lantern, from the virus Leezle Pon to the sentient planet Mogo wears a ring — or something close to it — with the unmistakable Green Lantern insignia.

Well, every Green Lantern but one. In the vastness of space lies the Obsidian Deeps, a region where no light has ever touched. In that region lives a race of silicone-based beings who have no concept of light or color, making the whole idea of the Green Lantern something they can not understand. These beings, existing in pure darkness, have no eyes, so even bringing them to a sector of the galaxy that has light and color would be meaningless to them. But just because they live in darkness doesn't mean they don't have what it takes to be a member of the Green Lantern Corps, as one member of the species has proven.

Rot Lop Fan Is The Most Unique Member Of The Green Lanterns

Rot Lop Fan was created by Alan Moore and Bill WIllingham

There's no shortage of weird Green Lanterns. The previously mentioned Leezle Pon and Mogo barely scratch the surface of the types of aliens the many talented creators DC Comics has hired to tell tales of the Green Lantern Corps have come up with. There's Dkrtzy RRR, the mathematical equation that proves willpower. And, then there's Flodo Span, a gas that, as is common for gasses, has no physical form and uses its ring to create one. But each of these members has the basic pieces of being a Green Lantern; they can see light and color, they use a Green Lantern ring, and, most importantly, they recite the Green Lantern oath...

"In brightest day, in blackest night,

No evil shall escape my sight.

Let those who worship evil's might,

Beware my power... Green Lantern's light!"

But for the sightless Rot Lop Fan, the words "green" and "light" are things they will never understand. When they were first given a power ring, Rot Lop Fan was unable to create any constructs and could not explain the universe to them. But the Green Lantern Corps, being both inventive and open to different species, found a way to work around this. Katma Tui, who was the first member to come across Rot Lop Fan, reformed a power ring to better connect to the new member, replacing the iconic insignia — a lantern — with something that Rot Lop Fan would better understand: a bell. Their uniform also replaced the Green Lantern logo with a bell. And, unlike the other Lanterns, who use light to create their constructs, Rot Lop Fan uses sound waves. So it was that Rot Lop Fan became the first and, thus far, only member of the F-Sharp Bell Corps. As for the oath that needs to be said to power the ring, Rot Lop Fan got one of their own as well...

""n loudest din or hush profound,

My ears catch evil's slightest sound.

Let those who toll out evil's knell,

Beware my power... the F-Sharp Bell!"

Admittedly not as catchy as the usual oath, it still has a good ring to it.

Rot Lop Fan Was Saved By Guy Gardner

In one of the darkest times in the history of the Green Lanterns, Hal Jordan became infected by Parallax after the destruction of Coast City and essentially wiped out the Corps when he absorbed the Central Power Battery. Because of his actions, every ring lost its light, leaving the members stranded and powerless, including Rot Lop Fan.

Along with other members of the Corps, Rot Lop Fan was soon taken prisoner by slave traders and faced a life of unbelievable pain and sadness. Thankfully, he was found by none other than Guy Gardner, who had previously been kicked out of the GLC and discovered to have inherent abilities associated with his Vuldarian heritage. The two became fast friends, despite Gardner's arrogant attitude seeming to be in direct contrast to Rot Lop Fan's more peaceful nature.

Rot Lop Fan is also one of the few Lanterns to show up in live-action, appearing in the not good Green Lantern movie. Whether or not he will make an appearance in Lanterns or any other DC Studios projects remains to be seen.