Green Arrow #6 - A Review

I was not looking forward to Green Arrow #6. Indeed, I was prepared to outright loathe this issue. And the reason for that can be summed up in two words: Emiko Queen. I've made no secret of my antipathy for Emiko Queen since her first appearance during Jeff Lemire's run on Green Arrow. I don't like her for who she is as a character, being a cliche brat sidekick. More, I don't appreciate what she represents.

Emiko Queen is a living "Exhibit A" to everyone who has ever argued that Green Arrow is nothing more than a half-hearted Batman rip-off without an ounce of originality. For as Batman suddenly acquired a sidekick who was raised by a secretive order of assassins and trained from birth to destroy him, so too did Oliver Queen suddenly acquire a sidekick who was raised by a secretive order of assassins and trained from birth to destroy him. The only effective difference between Damian Wayne and Emiko Queen is their genders and the exact blood relationship between themselves and their mentors.

As such, after the cliffhanger ending of last month's issue of Green Arrow, I was ill-pleased that the fate of Green Arrow and Black Canary was going to be ignored in favor of a story focusing om Emiko. I couldn't think of anything I'd rather read less than a comic focused on Emiko Queen, with the possible exception of a sequel to Red Sonja: The Dark Tower. Imagine my surprise then, to find that Green Arrow #6 is not that bad.

In fact, it's pretty good.

In fact, it's almost as if Benjamin Percy had been reading my complaints about the character and said, "The dude has a point. I should do something to fix that." Because not only does Green Arrow #6 take steps to give Emiko an actual personality beyond "bratty assassin princess" - it also rectifies the various missteps Jeff Lemire made in handling both Shado and The Clock King!


I won't spoil the steps Percy takes with Shado and The Clock King in this issue beyond saying this. Those Mike Grell fans who complained about Shado's seemingly out-of-character behavior in the series so far will be gratified at some of the revelations contained in this issue. And Percy transforms Lemire's new take on The Clock King into a truly menacing criminal mastermind.

This is accomplished through two separate flashback tales, as Emiko tells her own story and of her desire to become her own person and quit being a tool of the various forces that have manipulated her since birth. The first tale shows Emiko's actions following the end of the events of last issue.  The second tale, set one year in the past, focuses on Emiko's attempt to investigate a series of strange robberies on her own, shortly after moving in with Oliver and officially becoming his sidekick. It's a credit to Percy's skills as a writer that both these stories are suspenseful, despite our logically knowing that Emiko must emerge from these stories unharmed.


The artwork by Steven Byrne is astonishing. Byrne has a tremendous sense of visual storytelling and the action of the issue flows easily from panel to panel. There are a variety of colors at play in the various palettes Byrne utilizes and the variety keeps the reader guessing as well as focused on the interplay and contrast between pages. My only quibble with the art is a minor continuity point - that the Oliver Queen of One Year Ago is depicted with his famous goatee, when he was shown to have only recently started styling his beard in that fashion.

That minor wrong, however, I am willing to forgive given how much has been done right. If you haven't given Green Arrow a chance yet, this is a fine time to start. I don't think you'll regret it.

The Flash Episode Guide: Season 1, Episode 7 - Power Outage

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.



Plot

A battle with an electricity-siphoning metahuman leaves Barry feeling drained.  Literally.  And while this shocking new villain launches an attack on STAR Labs, The Clock King takes hostages at police headquarters... including Joe and Iris West.  The Flash may not be able to save this day, but Central City is not without heroes...


Influences

Flashpoint (the character of Blackout) and every classic Flash comic where Barry Allen lost his powers temporarily.


Goofs

How is Barry able to fix drinks for an entire line of people at the coffee shop?  Assuming Barry had some training as a barista or that there was an employee guidebook he could read through and that his super-speed would allow him to manually replicate the actions of most of the appliances present (grinding the beans, etc) that still doesn't explain how he'd  know everything the people in-line wanted, as there wasn't any indication that they had already ordered!

The raccoon-eyes make-up on Blackout just looks weird.

The Clock King misquotes Thoreau, saying "As if you could kill Time without wounding Eternity." The original Thoreau quote said "injuring Eternity".  This seems a bit odd given how meticulous he is about everything else.  Nearly as odd as Joe West - who has never shown any inclination towards scholarly reading - recognizing Tockman's quotes.  (Perhaps this was a bit of subtle humor on the part of the writers, showing hidden depths to Joe's character and showing that Tockman is not as smart as he thinks?)


Performances

Robert Knepper is as delightfully unbalanced as ever as William Tockman. He was one of the best villains in the second season of Arrow and it's nice to see him again, though I had hoped we might see him as part of the new Suicide Squad.


Artistry

The music throughout the episode is wonderful, particularly the subtle use of clock sounds around William Tockman.


Flash Facts

Farooq aka Blackout was created for the Elseworlds story Flashpoint, which was set in an alternate universe created by Barry Allen's going back in time and changing the past.  As in the comics, he has electricity manipulation powers.

Barry using his super-speed to get ready for work in seconds and stripping a criminal at super-speed, leaving them unarmed and in their underwear are both running gags from The Flash comics.

William Tockman - aka The Clock King - is a combination of several comic book and cartoon villains who used the name of The Clock King.  I wrote an article about the history of The Clock King, which can be read here.

The Arrow/The Flash version of Clock King seems to be a combination of the original William Tockman version of The Clock King from the comics (same name and the motivation of needing money to take care of a sick sister) as well as Temple Fugate - the Clock King created for the Batman: The Animated Series, with whom he shares an amazing gift for precision and efficiency. He also borrows a number of Temple Fugate's time-related catch-phrases and puns.  (i.e. he comments on the "striking resemblance" between Joe and Iris.  Striking!  Like a clock!)

There are some names among the list of people killed by the particle accelerator accident that Dr. Wells lists off that may be familiar to DC Comics fans.  Ralph Dibny (The Elongated Man), Grant Emerson (Damage), Al Rothstein (Nuklon aka Atom Smasher), Ronnie Raymond (Firestorm), Will Everett (Amazing-Man) and Bea DeCosta (Fire aka Green Flame) . The one common link between all of these heroes is that they all had powers that involved their bodies being changed on the molecular level.

Another reference to the number 52. We clearly see two signs in The Pipeline that label it as Intake 52.

Iris notes that her best friend is always swearing he'll never run late after The Flash apologizes for not being there to save her from The Clock King.  Barry running late is a frequent running gag in The Flash comics.


Technobabble

The homicide victim Barry examines was burned to death by heat in access of 2,400 degrees.

The soot pattern around his body is consistence with that of an arc-blast.  An arc-blast is when high-amperage currents travel in an arc through the air.

Cisco uses the same facial reconstruction software used by archaeologists to identify the homicide victim.  Thanks to Felicity's reprogramming, he can use the same program to match the face he created to a DMV record.

Barry's DNA was changed by the particle accelerator blast.

Blackout does not electrocute people.  He siphons electricity from other sources. His attempt to siphon the electricity from Barry Allen's body results in Barry losing his powers.

By Cisco's estimate, it will take 20,000 kiloamps to jump-start Barry's system.  This is more electricity than is run through an electric chair.

According to Blackout, the average human body generates 342 watts of electricity.  The numbers here seem a bit off, as what limited research I've done on the subject suggests that the average human at rest, generates 110 watts/hr.  However, that increases to 550 watts/hr during vigorous amounts of activity.  Averaging the two numbers comes close to 342 watts but not exactly.


Dialogue Triumphs

(After winding up late for an appointment at STAR Labs after thwarted a mugger who tried robbing him)
Barry: Sorry guys.  I got a little held-up. (beat) You had to be there.

Barry: I love being The Flash.  I love everything about it. The feeling of running hundreds of miles per hour. Wind and power just rushing past my face. Being able to help people. I'm not sure I can live without it, Caitlin.

Clock King: It should take you less than three seconds to discard any thought of rebellion and comply. I take it I don't need to count out-loud?

Capt. Singh: You've got demands. I want to hear them. But first let the civilians go.
Clock King: Would you prefer I sent them out alive or dead? Please be more specific!

Dr. Wells: You were right. I don't care much for people, Barry. I find them misinformed and short-sighted.
Barry: So why do you do what you do? Why get up in the morning?
Dr. Wells: Because I believe in a better future.


Continuity

As the episode opens, it has been 311 days since Barry was struck by lightning.

The computer in Dr. Wells' secret room is named Gideon.  Gideon is capable of scanning future news media for specific references in a matter of seconds.

Joe West briefly flashes back to the attack by The Yellow Man in F106.

Cisco makes reference to Felicity enhancing the STAR Labs computers in F104.

The Clock King is seen for the first time since A214.

Barry's power loss results in the future being changed, according to the newspaper headline Wells examined.

After the future is changed, the major news story on the day Barry was supposed to disappear was about the United States Postal Service permanently closing down.  Curiously, the other articles have also changed, with the Wayne Tech/ Queen Inc. merger falling through and red skies continuing to threaten the world. (F101)

The Clock King makes reference to his dying sister - his whole reason for turning to crime. She died sometime between A214 and this episode.  His request for a furlough to see her one last time in person before her death was denied by the district attorney of Central City.

Barry makes reference to what Oliver Queen said about him getting his powers for a reason. (F101)

Girder, last seen in F106, is killed by Blackout.

Joe West is surprisingly well read.  He recognizes The Clock King's quotes from Ben Franklin ("You may delay, but time will not.") and Henry David Thoreau ("As if you could kill Time without injuring Eternity.")  Curiously, The Clock King misquotes this last line as "wounding Eternity".

Wells memorized the names of every person killed by the particle accelerator accident.

Blackout's body is put in a body bag and locked in a cell in The Pipeline.

As the episode closes, it is 312 days since Barry was struck by lightning.

Wells takes a blood sample from Blackout's dead body, saying he must learn how it was possible for him to steal The Flash's speed.  The Mist (last seen in F103) can be seen in his cell in the background while this occurs.


The Fridge Factor

Averted, as Iris takes down The Clock King by herself, after palming Eddie's gun while pretending to give him a final kiss.


The Bottom Line

A decent episode but not a great one.  While it's good to see The Clock King again, he seems woefully underused and one wishes for an episode in which The Flash must literally race against time to outmaneuver his plans within plans.  Likewise, Blackout suffers from a ludicrous make-up design and an uninspired power set.  Still, Caitlin Snow gets a few nice character moments with Barry, Dr. Wells gets some more definition and the opening with Barry having fun while using his powers to make his morning easier is as fun as the classic comics.  And even though it is a little forced, it's nice to see Iris saving the day without The Flash having to step in.

Arrow Episode Guide: Season 2, Episode 14 - Time Of Death

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.




Plot

With Sara Lance now a part of Team Arrow and officially Ollie's girlfriend, Felicity has come down with a bad case of envy.  A new villain - dubbed The Clock King by the press - isn't helping her inferiority complex, proving to be a technical genius capable of matching Felicity note for note.  Will Felicity save the day?  Or has her time come and gone?

At the same time, Laurel continues to stew as Quentin attempts to rekindle his relationship with ex-wife Dinah and restore the broken bonds between all the members of his family. 

In the flashbacks, our heroes' plans to assault Ivo's boat are interrupted when a plane is shot down over the island.  With the pilot dying and their sudden hope of rescue lost, Sara will face a difficult request.


Influences

Green Arrow: Year One (The Island sequences), Birds of Prey: Perfect Pitch (possible inspiration for fight between Felicity and Clock King as well as Sara's relationship with Sin) and the film Batman and Robin (reference to MacGregor's Syndrome).


Goofs

Dinah Lance says she never expected her daughter to come home.  This despite having been convinced (rightly, it turned out) that her daughter was alive and well somewhere back in Season One.


Performances

Once again, the entire ensemble rises to the occasion.  Even the characters who barely have cameos get their good moments.  Of particular note is Stephen Amell, who shatters any and all accusations that he is incapable of emoting strongly as he gives Laurel the dressing down she's needed all season.  Caity Lotz is also noteworthy for the sheer amount of variety and levels she displays throughout the episode in dealing with all of her relationships.  Finally, Emily Bett Rickards manages to play off what could have been an incredibly annoying plot turn (i.e. Felicity as jealous girl) with surprising subtlety.  


Artistry

As usual, all the fight sequences are amazing.  But the sequence in which Ollie must flag down a bus to prevent it from running into a train is probably the best.


Trivia

The first business The Clock King robs (and his former place of employment) is Kord Industries - a business familiar to long-time DC Comics fans as the company run by techie-superhero Blue Beetle (a..k.a. Ted Kord)

There are a number of villains who have used the name Clock King, but William Tockman was the first.  I recently wrote an article on the history of all the characters who have used the name Clock King that can be read here. 

The Arrow version of Clock King seems to be a combination of the original Clock King from the comics (same name and the motivation of needing money to take care of a sick sister before his own untimely death) as well as Temple Fugate - the Clock King created for the Batman: The Animated Series, with whom he shares an amazing gift for precision and efficiency.  He also borrows a number of Temple Fugate's time-related catch-phrases.

Unlike the comics, William Tockman's sickly sister is given a specific disease - Cystic Fibrosis. 

Clock King's adversarial relationship with Felicity resembles that between Oracle and The Calculator in Birds of Prey, particularly in the Perfect Pitch arc.

The bus Ollie flags down has a poster for a Blue Devil movie.  In the comics, The Blue Devil was a superhero.  Stunt-man/special effects expert named Daniel Patrick Cassidy built an full-body costume and super-strong exoskeleton to play the title role in a movie about a creature called "The Blue Devil".  One of his co-workers summoned a real demon (like you do) and the resulting magical backlash caused Daniel to become trapped in his suit.  His new look transforming him into something of a weirdness magnet, Daniel became a superhero.

Another reference to Gail Simone's Birds of Prey and the Perfect Pitch trade-paperback can be found in the relationship between Sin and Sara Lance.  In the comics, Dinah Lance adopted a young girl named Sin, who was being trained by the League of Assassins as their next great killer.  As in the show, Black Canary and Sin referred to each other as Little Sister/Big Sister.

The disease William Tockman is said to suffer from - MacGregor's Disease - is very close in name to MacGregor's Syndrome.  In the movie Batman and Robin, MacGregor's Syndrome is the fictional disease which Nora Fries suffered from, which inspired her husband Dr. Victor Fries to use experimental cryogenic technology to freeze her until he could find a cure.

More 52 references - William Tockman's address is 52 Nelson Way and he hides the tech that lets him destroy Team Arrow's computers in a Channel 52 news truck.

Sara says she used to tend bar at a placed called Oblivion.  This may be a reference to The Oblivion Bar from the comic Shadowpact.  However, it is unlikely to be the same bar as THAT Oblivion Bar existed in a pocket dimension and catered exclusively to magic users.

In the now infamous All-Star Batman and Robin comic, Black Canary was a bartender. 


Technobabble

The Clock King's medication is a fictional drug called Asmobarbitol.  This seems to be a common fake-drug name, as the same drug was apparently prescribed to Laura Roslin on Battlestar Galactica.  This is also close to Amobarbital - a real medication used for treating insomnia and anxiety disorders.

William Tockman suffers from MacGregor's Disease - a non-existent but real sounding fatal disease that causes a build-up of fluid in the lungs, oxygen deprivation and eventual multi-system organ failure.

Dialogue Triumphs

Not really dialogue, but you can catch a quick glimpse of Felicity clutching a bo-staff as if she's about to swing for Sara's head when Sara and Ollie kiss after working out together.

Clock King: The strongest of all warriors are these two - time and patience.
Thug: What?
Clock King: It's from War and Peace.  1440 pages.  It takes a while but it's worth the read.  Tolstoy knew that patience was the epitome of strength.  It takes fortitude to stand still.  Just as it is a sign of weakness or cowardice to move when you SHOULD NOT!

(At Sara's 'welcome back' party, Sin runs forward to hug Sara)
Thea: Uh... Sara, this is Sin.
Roy: (confused) Wait... do you two know each other?
Sara: Ahhhh... No.. we don't.
Sin: (catching on) Right.  Uh...I just love it when people come back from the dead, you know?  It juices my zombie fetish.
(There is a long pause)
Roy: (offers his hand to Sara) Roy.
Sara: (taking it) Sara.

Again, not really dialogue, but the awkward physical business between Ollie and Quentin after Quentin apologizes to Oliver for having treated him badly in the past is hilarious.

Ollie: I didn't think you'd be here.
Moira:  This is my house.  And if you don't want to pretend to be mother and son then don't throw parties in my home.

(As his minions break into a bank vault)
Clock King: Extract as much money as you can in 90 seconds.
(the two henchmen start filling their bags)
Clock King: Stop!  Get out.
Thug: But we still have 20 seconds!
Clock King: (tensely) No you don't.
(We see the monitor The Clock King is staring at intently - which shows The Arrow storming down the hallway toward the vault.)

Thea: (to Ollie) You're lucky your life does not revolve around lying.

Ollie: Hey!
Laurel: You are unbelievable!  You lectured me - on how I need to repair my relationship with Sara - when you're the one who messed it up in the first place.   By screwing her!  And now you're doing it again!
Ollie:  You're right.  This is all my fault.
Laurel: Yeah!  Yeah!  Yes, it is!
Ollie: And is you losing your job... doing drugs... being a drunk.  Is that my fault?  Is that your family's fault?  Or are you going to blame Tommy for dying?
Laurel: Screw you, Oliver!
Ollie:  I stood by you through everything!  The DUI?  Losing your job?  I was concerned about your well-being when you were trying to get my mother the death penatlty! 
Laurel: (sarcastic) Yeah, and you've been a real stand-up kind of guy...
Ollie:  Look, do you think you're the only one who is having a hard time?!  You think you're the only one with family issues?!  You have no idea what is going on with my family right now! (pause)  But I am still standing here!  And you are are still blaming everybody but yourself!
Laurel: (pause) Are you done?
Ollie: Yeah.  Yeah, I'm done.  I'm done taking the blame.  And I'm done caring.  You want a drink?  Get wasted.  Go.  Go to Verdant.  I'll pay for it.  (pause) I have loved you for half my life. But I am done running after you.


Continuity

Despite having a number of other colorful injuries, Oliver has never taken damage from a grenade. 

William Tockman is an encryption engineer by trade and an ex-employee of Kord Industries.

Sara knows how to do blood analysis.

Sara now has her own bike to ride around town with as Canary.  We see her and Ollie using separate bikes throughout the episode. 

Quentin Lance's specialty in the kitchen is Chicken Cacciatore.  He is, however, somewhat out of practice at cooking and admits to not having had a proper kitchen in six years.

Dinah Lance is a professor of Greek and Medieval History at Central City University.  She has apparently entered into a relationship with someone else and has no interest in rekindling her relationship with Quentin.

By episode's end, Sara is now employed at Verdant as a bartender.

Sara used to tend bar back in college at a sleazy place called Oblivion. 

Laurel attends her first group therapy meeting with Quentin.

Sin is revealed to be the pilot's daughter, whom he asked Sara to seek out and look after. 


The Fridge Factor

Too much of this episode is dependent on Felicity becoming uncharacteristically territorial and catty regarding another woman being in The Arrow Cave.  It's a cliche that shouldn't work as well as it does and it is a credit to both Emily Bett Rickards and Caity Lotz that they manage to make it work at all, much less as well as they do.


The Winick Factor

Ollie goes from being smart enough to realize he and Sara should hide their relationship in public at the start of the episode to attending a family-only dinner with her for no apparent reason.  Even a drunken, strung-out Laurel is able to put two and two together.  A bigger problem is just how long Ollie can expect to keep his identity hidden from Quentin Lance, if Arrow and Canary keep showing up at the same time Ollie and Sara disappear together.


The Bottom Line

An excellent episode in most regards.  The cast does a great job with what material they have to work with and there's a lot of good character moments in the script.  That being said, a lot of the drama is built around the cliches of women not being as territorial as cats, which really doesn't ring true when one of the women involved is Felicity Smoak  Still, it looks like Laurel is finally getting her act together and The Clock King is a worthy addition to the show's gallery of rogues.  Hopefully we'll see more of him in the future, assuming the character isn't really living on borrowed time.  . 

The Many Faces Of The Contemptible Clock King!

Tonight's episode of Arrow brings with it the premier of their take on the classic Green Arrow villain The Clock King.  As such, I thought this might be a good time (no pun intended) to look at the long history of the many men to use the name.  Surprisingly, there IS a long history of time-themed villains in the DC Universe and various tie-in media.


The first Clock King was a man named William Tockman, who first appeared in World's Finest Comics #111 (August 1960).  Originally, Tockman was a decent man who doted on his sickly sister.  Until one day when, after a routine physical, Tockman's doctor informed him that he had a rare disease and that he had only six months to live.

Worried about what would happen to his sister once he was gone, Tockman planned a bank heist to secure enough money to see his sister taken care of for the rest of her life.  Since he was living on borrowed time and his plans hinged upon his knowledge of the unique timing mechanism installed in the bank's vault, Tockman dubbed himself The Clock King and donned an incredibly tacky clock-themed costume.


Tockman was captured by Green Arrow and imprisoned, where he found out that his doctor had accidentally switched his test results with those of another patient and that he wasn't going to do die after all.  Tockman's sister died shortly thereafter and Tockman swore revenge on Green Arrow.

Unsurprisingly, given his complete lack of training, Tockman was a complete wash-out as a super-villain.  He eventually joined up with the version of villainous Injustice League that reformed into Justice League Antarctica.  When that didn't work out, he formed his own villain team with a group of even more pathetic villains.  Eventually he was enlisted into The Suicide Squad, where he was finally (some would say mercifully) killed in the line of duty.



There was also a Clock King on the classic 1960s Batman TV Show.  Played by Walter Slezak, this Clock King was named Morris Tetch and made used of time-piece based weaponry and death-traps while trying to steal items relating to time and clocks.  Recently, the Batman '66 comic confirmed a long-held fan theory that Morris Tetch was the brother of Jervis Tetch, a.k.a. The Mad Hatter.   



Most superhero fans today are most familiar with the Clock King from Batman: The Animated Series.  This Clock King -  a lawyer and efficiency expert named Temple Fugate (a play on the Latin phrase tempus fugit - "time flies") - blamed Gotham City Mayor Hamilton Hill for having ruined his career.  Fugate had no super-powers but was a brilliant analyst who was able to match Batman in a fight after studying footage of Batman fighting and calculating how far in advance he would have to move to dodge Batman's attacks.  Fugate was later recruited for Amanda Waller's Suicide Squad in Justice League Unlimited and plotted the team's heist on the Justice League Watchtower.



Curiously, Temple Fuget's skill-set resembles that of a Golden Age villain called The Clock, who first appeared in Star Spangled Comics #70 (July 1947) fighting Robin. 


Like Temple Fugate, The Clock was also a master-planner and strategist. He even fought Robin on top of a giant clock!

   

The Batman: The Brave And The Bold cartoon introduced another Clock King.  This Clock King had a German accent and dressed in a kingly take on the original William Tockman costume, with a crown and ermine cape along with the traditional clock face mask.

There was yet another Clock King, who was never given a proper name or secret identity.  He was introduced during Sean McKeever's run on Teen Titans.  This Clock King was a master strategist but also possessed a weak form of precognition that allowed him to see four seconds into the future and react accordingly.



Recently, the New 52 Green Arrow comic has introduced a crime boss named Billy Tockman.  Tockman rules the underworld of Seattle along with two other crime bosses, personally overseeing Seattle's waterfront.  He has yet to be addressed as The Clock King in the series but the lineage is clear enough.



Played by actor Robert Knepper, the Arrow version of Clock King appears to be a mix of the two most famous incarnations of the character.  He is named William Tockman but appears to be a master strategist and planner akin to Temple Fugate.  With the previews suggesting this Clock King was created as a foil for Team Arrow tech-expert Felicity Smoak, there is also a faint resemblance between the rivalry between the hacker heroine Oracle and the super-villain The Calculator, who filled a similar role offering strategy for a price to other criminals.

What will tonight's Arrow episode and the future hold in store for the Clock King?  Time will tell

Green Arrow #23 - A Review

The plot thickens in Green Arrow #23 as we discover more about the mysterious group known as The Outsiders who have apparently been manipulating Ollie since birth and his family for generations.  We also learn the full story of the mysterious assassin Shado and her relationship with Ollie's father.  We even get another check-in on the crime bosses of Seattle, where it seems another classic figure from the martial arts world of the old DC Comics universe has finally made an appearance in The New 52.


It's odd how Jeff Lemire has taken a number of the trappings of classic Green Arrow and used them to forge something that is entirely new yet feels like the the classic Mike Grell comics of old.  This version of Oliver Queen may not a perpetually pissed-off aging hippie and his relationship with Shado may be complicated in an entirely different way, yet the complication is still there.  Shado is much the same as she was under Grell's pen, even if the son she would risk all for is now a daughter. 


Andrea Sorrentino's artwork also reminds me of Mike Grell's work, yet Sorrentino has an aesthetic all his own.  Like Grell, Sorrentino is a master at fitting the maximum amount of detail into some surprisingly small panels.  Both artists are also skilled anatomists.  Yet Sorrentino separates himself from Grell through some clever coloring choices that throw the realism of his character designs into sharp relief one panel at a time. 

Green Arrow #22 - A Review

The cover of Green Arrow #22 boasts the premiere of "The All New Count Vertigo" and it does deliver on that promise.  Yet there is much more here that will please classic Green Arrow fans.  Things like brand new trick arrows - like the Mapping Arrow that allows Ollie to scan an entire area and give his tech support team another eye as they watch his back from afar.


The new Count Vertigo isn't the only somewhat familiar figure that Jeff Lemire has brought back from comic book limbo to torment Oliver Queen.  This issue also brings about the return of a familiar female assassin, whose approach had already been heavily hinted at.  Though her relationship to Oliver this time around proves quite different, it is just as complicated as before.  More surprising is the first appearance of a Seattle crime boss named Billy Tockman - a name Arrowheads will recognize as that of the original Clock King. 


As always, Andrea Sorrentino's artwork is excellent.  Indeed, it would be reason enough to buy this book even if Jeff Lemire's scripts weren't equally amazing.  This is one of the best books on the market today and a must-read for all fans of low-powered superheroics as well as The Emerald Archer himself.  Green Arrow hasn't been this good in years!

Dallas Comic Con 2013 - Friday, Part One

The day didn't start off the best.  Nathan Fillion called in sick to the convention, which eliminated much of my plans for the day.  It also ruined a special day I had planned for a good friend who once waited in line a long time to get me the autograph of my favorite Firefly character's actor at a Con I couldn't attend and I planned to return the favor.  Still, once I took off my Dresden Duster (I lasted about five minutes wearing it in the line outside. Texas heat is worse when it's humid.) and got into the building, things improved.


My name is Harry Dresden. Conjure at your own risk.
I got through half my autograph list for the day - all the comics I wanted to sign. I had planned to get both Kevin Conroy and Adam Baldwin (the voices of Batman and Green Lantern: Hal Jordan respectively) to sign my copy of Injustice: Gods Among Us.  But when I tried going to both their tables, I managed to catch them while they were away doing a panel or a photo op or taking a break.  Oh well - something to do on Sunday.

Naturally, in between all the wandering around I too quite a few cosplay pictures...



A pair of Samuses. Samusi? Whatever you call the plural of Samus, there's two of them!  

The Atom and Atom Smasher.  

The Clock King. I was reportedly the 7th person all day to recognize him.  

Codex from The Guild. She was with The Clock King. Reportedly, I was the 3rd person to recognize her.  

Batgirl and a Little Sister from Bioshock. I thought she was American McGee's Alice. She was quite understanding about the confusion, thankfully.  

Wonder Woman.  

Princess Zelda from Glitzy Geek Girl.  

Catwoman.  

Wonder Girl - Cassandra Sandsmark.  

Who is he? That's The Question!  

The Question and Rorschach. Classic Coca Cola and New Coke.