After 61 Years, Green Lantern Calls Out 1 of His Weirdest Villains - & His Copycat

Summary Harley Quinn liberates King Shark from his incarceration in a chaotic birthday celebration, with hilarious consequences involving Green Lantern's confusion.

Green Lantern confuses King Shark for his own rogue, The Shark, in DC's Spring Breakout! #1, leading to a comical case of mistaken identity.

King Shark (Nanaue) is the son of "The King of all Sharks," while The Shark is the result of a freak radioactive explosion that transformed a regular tiger shark into a super-humanoid.

WARNING: Potential Spoilers for DC's Spring Breakout! #1!Green Lantern lands himself in hot water with King Shark and Harley Quinn when he mistakes Nanaue for one of his own rogues. This case of mistaken identity is not only humorous but also serves as a reminder that there was a shark-themed villain decades before the now-famous Suicide Squad member made his debut in comics.

'Wait, you're not my big human shark bad guy.' - Hal Jordan in DC's Spring Breakout! #1

In Field Trip by Joey Esposito and Vasco Georgiev–a Harley Quinn-centric story within DC’s 80-page Spring Breakout special–Harley takes it upon herself to liberate her fellow Suicide Squad teammate, King Shark, from Belle Reve Penitentiary to celebrate his birthday.

However, Harley's plans take an unexpected turn when an accidental encounter with Zatanna sends them hurtling into space. Green Lantern Hal Jordan swoops in to both rescue and apprehend the duo but hilariously mistakes King Shark for his own rogue, THE SHARK.

The Shark made his debut in Green Lantern #24 (1963) by John Broome and Gil Kane, while King Shark made his debut in Superboy #0 (1994) by Karl Kesel.

Green Lantern Mistakes King Shark For Another Bizarre Anthropomorphic Bipedal Shark Man

Upon encasing Harley and Nanaue in his signature green light construct, Hal refers to the duo as “super-villains,” which Harley immediately refutes, pointing out that she has saved Earth at least once. Hal counters by mentioning his less than amicable encounters with her "friend"–referring to King Shark–on multiple occasions before realizing his mistake, "Wait, you're not my big human shark bad guy." In this comical case of mistaken identity, Hal had assumed that King Shark was The Shark (Karshon), an infamous Green Lantern villain.

King Shark immediately reprimands Hal, saying, “So all anthropomorphic bipedal sharks look the same to you, that it?” Before Hal can respond, he gets hit by an incoming projectile, putting an end to this hilarious exchange and perhaps serving up some cosmic karma. However, it's understandable that Hal would mix up the two villains, given how similar they look to one another. Yet, they are two distinct characters. The Shark made his debut in Green Lantern #24 (1963) by John Broome and Gil Kane, while King Shark made his debut in Superboy #0 (1994) by Karl Kesel.

Related Constantshark Fans Rejoice - DC Strongly Implies King Shark Is Queer in Arkhamverse/Kill the Justice League Canon The Constantshark ship gets another boon in canon as the Arkhamverse confirms that King Shark is queer in the comic prequel for Suicide Squad: KtJL.

ORIGINS: What Is the Difference Between King Shark (Nanaue) and The Shark (Karshon)?

Along with the thirty-year gap in their first comic appearances, King Shark and The Shark also have distinct origin stories. Karshon is the result of a freak radioactive explosion that transformed a regular tiger shark into a super-humanoid. This accident endowed Karshon with a highly developed brain while retaining his ruthless predatory instincts. Conversely, King Shark, initially a Superboy villain, was born the way he is and is the son of "The King of all Sharks." Hence, Green Lantern could benefit from learning these differences to avoid mixing up King Shark and The Shark again.

DC's Spring Breakout! #1 is available now from DC Comics!

DC'S SPRING BREAKOUT! #1 (2024) Story: Field Trip

Writer: Joey Esposito

Artist: Vasco Georgiev

Letterer: Jame

Cover Artist: John Timms