Green Arrow #1

by Ian B on June 15, 2016

Written by: Benjamin Percy

Art and Colour by: Otto Schmidt

Lettered by: Nate Piekos

 

 

What originally drew me to Green Arrow was just how human he seemed compared to other heroes, he would be more personal with those he saved, and would generally stay closer to the streets. These traits led to him being more of a “hero of the people” than many other heroes, being more engaged with societal issues and taking hard stances against prejudice and discrimination that most other heroes never really dealt with. Upon reading the New-52 run, I noticed a distinct lack of that activism, the stories were still solid, but the character was still growing. Following Green Arrow Rebirth, we finally see this character come back around, and get back to what we enjoy, and this issue continues on from that set-up.

 

 

The story follows Green Arrow and Black Canary, along with Emi, Ollie's half-sister introduced in the New 52 series, as they try to take down a human trafficking ring introduced in the rebirth issue. This issue shows Ollie making use of his wealth to an extent that was absent in the New 52 series. Rather than arresting the dock worker that is complacent in the human trafficking (he needs the money for a sick child) he pays him to tip him off to any odd goings on that may happen in the future. Ollie also shows Black Canary the extent of his charity work, all in an attempt to show her that he is not just the arrogant playboy that she thinks he is. The issue goes a little far in trying to prove that Green Arrow is more than just a vigilante, but it succeeds in showing Oliver as a character that truly cares about the people that he is trying to help, and truly believes that he has a responsibility to help those in need.

 

 

The art is a step up from some of the New 52 stuff, but I personally was a fan of some of the more stylized art of Sorrentino. That's not to say that the art is bad by any stretch, I actually quite enjoyed it. The characters were expressive, and the colours were appropriately dark when necessary and light when necessary, which is more than I can say for many other books. A more angular style leads the series to have a bit of a different look than many of the other books coming out around Rebirth, while also being easily recognizable as a main DC comic.

 

 

Ultimately, I enjoyed this issue, although not quite as much as the Rebirth special. It is a great return to form for the character, and it easily sets up for an ongoing story that could potentially last for quite a while. The only real negative that I felt with this issue was the ending cliffhanger that seems to want to eliminate some of what happened during the New 52 series, things that I actually quite liked, but as with any cliffhanger in a comic, we will have to wait and see what comes out of it.

Our Score:

7/10

A Look Inside