Being a staunch member of the Green Lantern Corps has afforded Guy Gardner with tons of power. This color isn't the only one he's worn, however, nor are alien rings the only source of his strength. Throughout the years, Guy Gardner has had a series of increasingly bizarre transformations and developments, some of which have nothing to do the Guardians of the Universe and the emotional spectrum.
From power rings, to energy discs and armor to outright alien shapeshifting powers, Guy Gardner's had far more power over the years than any Green Lantern. Here's a look at all of the strengths and weaknesses wielded by the redhead Green, Red, Blue and Pink Lantern.
Guy's most common power source is a power ring, namely of the green variety. This Green Lantern power ring allows him to create any object that his imagination could desire, be it Gatling guns or giant boxing gloves. When he temporarily left the Green Lantern Corps, he began using the discarded yellow ring of Sinestro. This had the same construct creating powers as his old ring, but it had to absorb the energy of a green power ring in order to work. He employed this ring in battle against Doomsday.
Other rings used by Guy include a Red Lantern ring. This ring was powered by rage, but unlike other Red Lanterns, he still remained in control. Even better, he was able to combine the power of his red and green rings, becoming more powerful than ever. Guy was also the first male to receive a violet Star Sapphire ring, which was powered by love. He ironically was able to combine the power of the rage and love fueled rings. In the "Futures End" storyline, he was shown to potentially become one of the hopeful Blue Lanterns, whose power is one of the only things that can overcome a Red Lantern.
When his rings failed or were otherwise taken away from him, Guy employed the use of technology. When Sinestro's former ring began to malfunction, he used an armor created by Booster Gold. This unwieldy weapon was eventually replaced by an armor created by the ring.
He was also briefly a member of The Corpse, a black ops off-shoot of the Green Lantern Corps that used ingestible discs instead of rings. These discs gave the users similar powers to a Green Lantern, but they couldn't be traced back to the Corps.
It was eventually revealed that Guy Gardner's bloodline traced back to contain long dormant alien DNA courtesy of the Vuldarian race. Once activated, this afforded him shapeshifting abilities both similar and vastly different to what he used before. It made his main appearance a hulking 7 foot tall man-of-war that could turn parts of his body into weapons, with the form causing him great pain.
It also afforded him incredibly strength and durability, which when combined with his flight put him in the same power class as Superman, Martian Manhunter and Wonder Woman. He also had the memories of the deceased members of the Vuldarian race, using them to become an incredible warrior in his own right.
Guy Gardner's only real weakness as a Green Lantern is his own willpower and imagination, which is never particularly lacking. The Green Lantern rings once had a weakness to yellow, but this has long been removed. His power ring does, however, have to be regularly charged to maintain use. The yellow ring he once used ultimately became faulty, with him relying on it less and less because of this. Likewise, the armor that he used was unwieldy to him, and he never took a liking to it despite its power. The armor he created from his ring was later destroyed in his fight with Parallax.
The Vuldarian powers were equally as unwieldy, due to their stemming from long-dormant DNA. This is why they initially caused Gardner pain and why they were difficult to control at first. These genes were overwritten by the return of Parallax.
Perhaps Guy's biggest flaw is his own temper, which is notorious even among the strong-willed Green Lanterns. He was originally a far more heroic individual but became a disgruntled, somewhat oafish brute after a traumatic injury. This new persona became what he was most known for, and caused him to go into violent, petulant outbursts. In recent years, however, he's worked to overcome this character flaw and reign himself in, even if he still remains a warrior at heart.
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