The Mount - Beginnings And Endings

Another year has come upon us and the times... they is a'changing.

The start of a new year is a good time to reflect upon beginnings and endings and changes. Changes like those which Fanzing is about to undergo. We'll be showing off more of these changes in the coming months. There will be a lot of new things... and I think most of them will be good. But don't worry, Mount-ies... "The Mount" isn't going to change... much. It'll still be the place you can be guaranteed to get some of my unique perspective on life, the universe and various comic stories.

The most notable change will be how I'm going to go about writing The Mount. One of the biggest problems I have had is that I would often set out to review something but then forget about the story in the rush to work on something else. Or worse yet, have the review drag out over the course of months in the case of multi-part stories that were delayed for weeks... sometimes months.

To that end, I have decided to do this: In the case of all miniseries and multiseries, I will state my opinion of the first issue when it comes out and ramble about where I think the story is going, how it will end and so on. When the series is over, I will review the story as a whole and compare my feelings at the end to my projected feelings at the beginning.

With that in mind, let's start off with a little series close to my heart that recently came to the end of its' first major story arc. You know what I'm talking about... I'm talking about Kevin Smith's Quiver (Green Arrow #1-10). There's some potential vague story spoilers, so skip down to the big line of capital letters to avoid it. If you can't find the issues, the whole story will be released in a hardcover TPB in a few months which will probably cost less than trying to track down the first 3-4 individual issues.

STOP READING HERE IF YOU DON'T WANT SPOILERS

I have to admit, no spoilers given, that I was a little disappointed in the ending of the story. Granted, we've got back the good ol' Ollie Queen we've always known and loved but I question how well the ends justified the means. Bringing Ollie back was undoubtedly going to require some kind of mystical link and I think that the story turned out about as well as any story involving Oliver Queen and mystic stuff could. Still, the story seemed needless dark at points, even for a Green Arrow story. And while I appreciate a good obscure comic reference like anyone else, I really have to wonder about tying "Stanley and His Monsters" into the Green Arrow mythos.

I did enjoy the story though. Smith has a great grasp of character, dialogue and humor and he's able to write story that is funny and thrilling at the same time. Still, I can't help but feel that it could have been better... especially since there are some plot ends that are left unfinished. Perhaps these will be addressed in the later issues of Smith's run, but I have the feeling that with the crunching of the Quiver storyline into 10 issues from the full dozen planned may have forced Smith to change some parts of the story's pacing that would have been covered better. Still... it's well worth picking up the forthcoming trade paperback if you haven't had the fortune to read it yet.

YOU MAY CONTINUE READING NOW

That was the best story of the last year I had read. Lots of the old coming back and appearing in a new form. Lots of old things are coming back... like the story, which is (so far) the best story I have read this year.

Perhaps the most anticipated story of the last year, Frank Miller's "The Dark Knight Strikes Back" has proven to be worthy of interest, if not acclaim. With the story only 1/3 told, I don't think I can review the whole thing here... but so far, I think it will be a worthy successor to Miller's Legacy.

And speaking of Batman and ongoing stories, the Batbooks will be doing a multi-part crossover for the next few months called "Bruce Wayne: Murderer?"

When I first heard of this story, I anticipated the typical Batman crossover: a story stretched over too-many books as an attempt to get people to buy some of the lesser-selling titles in the Bat-Family.

I think said books are going to be made up mostly of tangents into the main plot of the individual book, with little emphasis upon the connecting crossover story. There will however be just enough happening in each book that I'll have to buy the entire series to have some idea of what is going on.

There's not going to be any long last change and likely there will be some big Deus Ex Machina that solves everything at the last minute. Also, I'm betting that Ra's Al Ghul is involved somehow.

I wrote the above words some two days before I got the first four issues of the story the other day (after a month-long absence from my regular comic store). Here now, with some minor spoilers, are my thoughts upon the story so far...

Prologue: Batman: The Ten Cent Adventure.

This issue was created with two purposes in mind; introduce the modern Batman to new readers and set up the "Bruce Wayne: Murdered" storyline.

It succeeds on both counts. And despite the fears of many a fanboy explains who Sasha is, what she does (bodyguard and new vigilantee) and the significance of the person who is killed. That's about all it does though, so there's really no reason to bother if you've been a regular reader of Detective Comics for the past few months. Then again, the price is right... and ten cents is a pretty good deal to tell you something you already know.

Part One: Detective Comics #766

Bruce and Sasha are arrested and detectives start combing over Wayne Manor, discussing theories and interrogating the suspects. It's all about the police here and, like as per usual, it's good to see the cops of Gotham being pushed to the forefront here. It's like NYPD Blue: The Comics.

My one complaint is that after the easy-expository feeling of the Ten Cent adventure, there's way too much assumption in this issue. It is just assumed that the reader will know who Detective Montoya is and why she wouldn't want to see Bruce Wayne arrested after some vaguely described incident involving flowers. Still, the story is building interest.

Part Two: Batgirl #24

Two words: This Stinks. After such a good intro, things go downhill fast in this issue. I have to admit a little bit of bias here. I've never liked the new Batgirl. I suspect I never will and that Barbara Gordon will always be the one true Batgirl in my heart.

This issue gives us a lot of Barbara and we see her reaction as she hears the call that summons the police to Wayne Manor. This is a great moment that is totally dashed as she starts to think about whom in the vigilante community she can send to investigate a Wayne Manner disturbance. She is about to send Robin, but she recoils, thinking it unwise to send a 15 year old boy into a situation with an armed intruder. Instead, she sends a 17 year old girl with less training as a vigilante than the 15 year old boy.

I'm still scratching my head about that too... especially since Tim has handled most of the Major members of the Rogues Gallery unaided. Perhaps Babs remembered whose book she was in?

There's also some unintentional humor in Batgirl's sneaking into Wayne Manor as half the GCPD is wandering around the place. I know this is meant to make Cassandra look extremely stealthy and professional... but all it really does is make the detectives look like total idiots. And since they are going to be a major focus of the story (and were, in fact, the main focus one part back), this is a bad thing.

Aside from one very minor point, this issue doesn't really touch directly upon the murder and is more about some personal issues Cassandra has with Batman. This one can easily be skipped.

Part Three: Nightwing #65

They literally have to contrive a reason to get Dick involved in the crossover, with Dick bribing a police dispatcher to change his schedule so he can go Gotham and talk to Bruce for a few panels. Aside from this and he and Babs agreeing to investigate the murders on their own, not much happens crossoverwise... although it does give Dick an excuse to be out of town when something Wingnuts everywhere have been waiting for a year to happen happens.

Like Batgirl, the writer ignores the crossover as much as possible while continuing to develop the past plotlines. On the one hand, this is a plus for the regular fan who doesn't want to see their favorite book sidelined for a crossover. On the other hand, this makes things confusing as all get out for the people who are new to the book and aren't familiar with the many cops and criminals of Bludhaven. This totally defeats the point of having a crossover in the first place.

All in all, this is shaping up about how I thought it would. So far, there hasn't been much in the way of evidence to allow the readers to figure out who really dun' it, but it is just week one of the crossover. Hopefully things will pick up.

And hopefully you'll be here to pick up where we left off next month, when I review the latest series of "The Sandman Presents" miniseries. Until then... may your clerks be helpful and your new comics unbent.

The Mount - TV Time

Never before have so many superhero-related TV shows been on prime-time television than in this time in history. Never before have I written an article about all these TV shows. Never before have I had so much gushing praise to write about something. So without further ado, let's talk about Smallville, The Tick and Justice League.

Smallville: WB : Tuesday Nights at 9:00 EST (8:00 CST)

The breakout hit of the three shows so far, Smallville has been described as "Dawson's Creek with superpowers". It's all about life, friendship and love in a small town. The fact that the small town is Smallsville, Kansas and that a teenage Clark Kent, Lana Lang, Pete Ross and Lex Luthor are among the friends and that there are weird green rocks that seem to be bestowing odd powers on people at random is just a coincidence.

There seems to be a pattern to the episodes I've seen so far, with a "monster of the week" theme driving the plot. Hopefully the show can move beyond this, as having one person a week besides Clark developing a superpower and abusing it is going to get really old, really fast.

The acting is good, for the most part. None of the younger actors really stand out, except for Michael Rosenbaum (Lex Luthor). Also worth noting is John Glover, who plays Lex's father.

A quick fun fact: this is the third time John Glover has been involved in a DC Comics related project. He was the voice of The Riddler in "Batman: The Animated Series" and played Jason Wodrue in "Batman and Robin".

Overall, this isn't the kind of thing I'd watch every week, but I think I'm a little out of the target audience. Regardless, it's pretty good if you don't mind angsty teen melodrama.

Assessment: Okay. Will likely have a long life if the ratings stay constant.

The Tick: Fox : Thursday Nights at 8:30 EST (7:30 CST)

The cult indie hit comes to the small screen again: This Time, Alive! A big blue superhero known only as "The Tick" comes to "The City", looking for adventure and an archenemy to call his own. He teams up with Arthur (an accountant who bought a moth suit at an auction), Bat-Manuel (Half Bat-Man, Half Rico-Suave) and Captain Liberty (Wonder Woman, with a streak of strumpet) to fight the forces of evil.

With only two episodes aired so far, it's a bit hard to gage the direction of the show so far. Overall, the humor and characterization from the comics seems transported very well into the show. Patrick Warburton cuts a fine figure as The Tick, giving the role the right mix of obliviousness and innocence, with just a bit of pomposity as he says dramatic lines that would make Adam West wince. David Burke finds the right mix of wannabee hero and bunny rabbit in his portrayal of Arthur.

That said, I really have to question some of the writing so far. For instance, in an early scene The Tick "rescues" some people from a broken coffee machine. As he beats the machine into submission, he says proudly "Java Devil: you are now my bitch!" While the line is funny, it really doesn't fit with Tick's innocent image for him to be saying the B-word. It also makes it seem kind of odd later when he doesn't get any of Bat-Manuel's sexual innuendoes. It's a running gag in fact, with two variations on the line...

Bat-Manuel: (winking) .... if you know what I mean?

Tick: No.

There seems to be a lot of sexual humor for a superhero show. Not that there hasn't always been a link between superheroes and sex jokes. I mean, how long have we had men say, while looking at Wonder Woman, "I wouldn't mind HER tying me up with that Lasso Of Truth". Still, we come about one level below Larry Nevin's "Man of Steel, Woman of Kleenex" essay at some points, with jokes about Bat-Manuel and Captain Liberty's escapades on the rooftops while Arthur and Tick are trying to save Jimmy Carter from being assassinated.

In fact, the second episode centers around the team having to hide the body of legendary "Superman-esque" hero "The Immortal" after he dies while making love to Captain Liberty in order to preserve his image. Very little is said about the image of the other heroes, Captain Liberty's virtue or Arthur's reaction to his childhood hero dying in such a manner. I'm not saying that such humor is bad, but that it seems to be a big part of the humor of the show... and the comic was funny enough without having to stoop to such humor.

Assessment: I really did enjoy the show and think it may easily be the best of the three new superhero shows. Sadly, most of the humor and concept is a little off the wall for most of America. That and a lousy time-slot on Thursday nights will probably mean a quick death for this bug.

Justice League: Cartoon Network : Monday Nights at 9:30 EST (8:30 CST)

Probably the most eagerly anticipated of the three, Justice League is an animated series based on the DC Comics superhero team of the same name.

Produced by the same team that created Batman: The Animated Series and Superman: The Animated Series, this show matches the animation style of the show well. It also brings back most of the voice cast from before. Kevin Conroy and Michael Rosenbaum return as Batman and The Flash but Tim Daly isn't on hand to continue voicing Superman. He is replaced by George Newbern.

Five episodes have aired so far- the three-part pilot "Secret Origins" and a two parter entitled "In Darkest Night".

"Secret Origins" details the formation of the League after an alien invasion nearly destroys the Earth. Superman and Batman investigate a series of odd break-ins at aerospace-related businesses, leading them to a captured J'onn J'onzz. J'onn informs them of a race of parasitic aliens that killed the Martian race which is now on Earth. Joining them are established heroes The Flash, Green Lantern John Stewart, the Thangarian Hawkgirl... and a newcomer; Princess Diana of Themyscria, who is summoned away from the Island of the Amazons by a telepathic message by J'onn.

"In Darkest Night" details the trial of John Stewart, who supposedly blew up a planet while trying to stop a pirate. Abandoned his fellow Corps members, his only hope lies in the rest of the Justice League being able to prove his innocence.

Justice League is a real treat for old time DC Comics fans and anybody who likes to play "spot the reference". Between numerous references to "The Martian Chronicles" and "War of the Worlds" and cameos by Snapper Carr, Kanjar Ro and a host of other obscure characters, one might think that Dennis Miller had a hand in writing the scripts.

There is also an outstanding use of humor; both personality based (Batman's subtle grimace as he has to swing in through an opening as the rest of the team flies) and wise-cracking. I'm especially fond of Ajuris 5's solution to dealing with mercenary lawyers. (You have to see it to get it).

Sadly, the show does have some significant problems. While the show is a treat for comic fans, the writers assume that the audience is already familiar with most of the characters and concepts involved. I watched the show with some friends who didn't know much about superheroes past Batman and Superman. I found myself quickly trying to answer...

1) How many powers does Martian Manhunter have anyway? There were a lot of cries of "How?" whenever J'onn got a pensive look trying to make telepathic contact and said "I can sense it." J'onn "senses" things a lot.

2) There's more than one Green Lantern? (There's a lot of them... they're space cops)

3) Who are the little blue guys watching everything?

4) Why can't Superman just use his heat vision here?

5) I thought Green Lantern was a white guy?

6) Where is Hawkgirl from?

Of course most of these questions are answered by the end of "In Darkest Night", but it leaves everyone confused until the near the end of Part Two, when the Guardians and their relation to the Manhunters and GL Corps is explained in detail. We never get much explanation of Hawkgirl's powers (are the wings natural or what?) although we do find out she's from "Thangar" (this brought out a course of "huhs"?) or what exactly a Martian can do. It's hard to tell whether J'onn is becoming intangible or invisible. No background has been given for The Flash or Hawkgirl yet, and very little has been given to John Stewart.

There's also some characterization that is bound to irritate, if not offend the classic DC fans. For example, Superman, ever the staunch moralist, seems to have no qualms about taking the lives of alien invaders in "Secret Origins". The Flash is played more as comic relief than as a merely wisecracking hero. Batman here is too close to the Grant Morrison "I can do anything" characterization. John Stewart's characterization here is different than in any other written incarnation; not necessarily bad... just different.

Assessment: Sure to be a hit with comic fans and cartoon lovers alike, but it may be too inaccessible and "insider" for most people.

The Mount - The Lost Archer Column

I had planned to talk a bit about various things relating to Green Arrow, archery and the world at large back when we were doing the Archers issue. That plan changed with current events, which are still draining me of the urge to write. Still, I'm out of ideas for anything else to write about and returning to routine is a part of the healing process. So reader, please forgive me if this month's column seems a bit fragmented.

Hutch (the editor) and I had a talk before the attacks and discussed the reality of an archer vigilante. He said that he was pondering writing about the impossibility of everything relating to Green Arrow, which sounds funny coming from a man whose favorite superhero had an obsession with Indian Rubber Men and isolated a chemical that gave him stretching powers in his garage. But who am I to judge? (Just kidding, Michael.)

Well, I just recently started taking archery lessons, so I offered to write a counter-point article on how it MIGHT be possible to do it from the prospective of one who knows. Of course if you read last month, you know we didn't wind up doing that.

Archery is a great sport. It builds up your arms and shoulders without making you sweat too much and it's a great way to relax. It is also insanely difficult. I've only had one practice session so far where I didn't have at least one shot go wild and miss the target completely. Still, I manage to hit where I am aiming seven times out of ten. The trick is all in learning how to aim properly.

So I have to admit that while it is extremely unlikely that anyone could seriously make it as an archer superhero, it isn't quite as impossible as you might think. No more so than a man suffering a great personal loss and then devoting his entire life to a crusade to prevent others from suffering as he has and capturing criminals, to the point that he forms a network of others to aid him. Batman? No, I'm talking about a man named John Walsh.

The amazing thing is that all the stuff about archery technique I've read in the Green Arrow comics is accurate and helpful. For example, one of the Grell comics talks about how you have to relax and not worry about where the arrow will go; just trust that it will find it's own way. It's not just zen; it's good advice, because if you worry about seeing where the arrow is going, you throw your sight off and can't shoot straight. Even Green Arrow #1 by Kevin Smith was helpful, with Roy's speech about how Ollie taught him to just wait for the right moment before shooting. I'll take two minutes to line a shot up sometimes, just waiting for my hand to steady itself and my eye to line up the bullseye before shooting.

Speaking of Smith's Green Arrow, I doubt anything I say at this point will make you pick up the book if you haven't started reading it already. If you haven't picked it up my now, either low-tech heroes aren't your thing or you're just not a fan of Smith's work. Well, Different Strokes for Different Folks and all that.

But for what my opinion is worth, it's one of the best books DC is putting out right now and it is well worthy of all the praise and accolade it can receive. By now it's no secret that Oliver Queen is back from the dead, but I shall not give the how and why away here. It's way too complex to explain. Let's just say that the book is a crash course in DC History 101, has a lot of cameos you'd never expect and that it has that most astonishing of all things; a Spectre Hal Jordan that actually seems like Hal Jordan. I'm also fond of Smith's take on Black Canary; just the right mix of tomboy and beauty queen.

Speaking of the Pretty Bird, kudos to Chuck Dixon for restoring the Canary cry. If you haven't read the story in the pages of Birds of Prey yet, go rush out and grab #31-35 now before all the collectors start hoarding them.

And speaking of Chuck Dixon and comics hoarding (oh, am I smooth with the transitions or what?), you might also want to check out Dixon's swan song crossover with DC: The Last Laugh. I'm really enjoying this crossover despite a few problems with the scripting. For one thing, there's a lot of needless repetition, with the same scene being shown from different viewpoints across two books. For example, the new Birds of Prey covers a scene from Dinah's perspective that Oracle watched in Last Laugh #2. This makes a lot of the tie-ins seem like filler. Also, it's hard to keep track of some of the characters... especially the new ones Dixon created especially for this story. There's also a lot of obscure characters who are given major roles here, and it's kind of hard for us to care about them since we don't know who the are. I think I may be one of a dozen people who can identify Dina the US Marshal and hands up all of you who remember the black Mister Miracle. It's not quite Our Worlds at War, but then again that's a bit too high a mark to hit right now. You may as well ask to write the next Watchmen.

And speaking of Watchmen (last time: I promise!), I just started rereading it and it's really freaking me out reading about a pending war in Afghanistan and Pakistan what with everything that is going on in the news. All the conspiracy theories of Rorschach have a certain eerie resonance, when one considers the reports of the anthrax letters coming from Christian Terrorist groups in the US or the Bush family's financial ties to the Bin Ladens. All in all, I wouldn't recommend reading it right now. Dark Knight Returns either.

And if you think I'm going to use that as an opportunity to talk about the new Dark Knight Returns sequel... you'd be wrong. Hey, I keep my promises. And I need something to write about for next time.

So happy trails to you, 'til we meet again!

The Mount - I Believe In Heroes

There was a T-shirt I saw a few weekends ago. I was in Barnes and Noble, getting some coffee and browsing some trade paperbacks, as I often do. And that's when I saw it, worn by a big, muscular guy. Plain blue cotton, with a stylized five-pointed shield shape on the front, red letter on a yellow background. Sounds a bit familiar, doesn't it? Well, except for the letter it was. Instead of the familiar "S", there was a stylized "F". And then as the man wearing that shirt walked past me, I saw the back. It said in red print... "Firemen: The Real Supermen".

I don't think there is anyone who could argue against that statement after the events of September the 11^th.

I believe in heroes. It may sound silly, but despite all the evidence I see on a daily basis to the contrary, I still think that most of the people on this planet are good and decent. And that they will do good when push comes to shove.

Thinking about it, I suppose that's a part of why I read comics. It's nice to see a place where it is easy to see the heroes. And to see the heroes get the recognition they deserve. Of course, heroes don't care if they get recognized or not. But I like to see people who try to do the good things be recognized for it, if only as an example to the rest of us of what we should be.

It's no secret that in real-life it's the villains who get the most focus in the media. Everyone knows who Charles Manson is, but can you name the police who risked their lives trying to capture him? Didn't think so.

One good thing has come of the last few weeks though. It's shown me that I'm right. The heroes really do outnumber the villains! And I don't mean just the ones who planned and orchestrated the attacks. I'm also talking about every person who selfishly tried to take advantage of this sad state of affairs to further their own agendas.

For every con artist who collected money for an emergency fund and then kept it, there were ten policemen working to clear the area around the Towers.

For every person looting bodies in the rubble, there were ten volunteers moving it off of the wounded.

For every vapid political pundit who said we should deport anyone of Arabic descent from the United States, invade the Middle-East, kill all the leaders and convert all the people to Christianity, there were a thousand people hugging someone in tears because they knew someone in New York who might have been in the WTC.

For every mindless bigot who went out and hurt someone over the color of their skin or their religious beliefs, there were about a million people who told a joke to get a depressed friend to smile.

For every evangelist with a microphone who tried to blame the crisis on some group or groups who angered God, there were a few million people who donated blood.

The villains are there. They're loud and they're grabbing for all the attention they can get right now. But the heroes... we all outnumber them.

My heart-felt thanks goes out to every fireman, police officer, medic, doctor, nurse and volunteer in New York who risked life and limb to help get people out of the wreckage of the World Trade Center and everyone who helped to heal them afterwards. Thank you to everyone who hugged someone, tried to get people around them to smile when things looked their worst. Thanks to everyone who gave blood, especially all the people at the donations centers I went to who had the place so overflowing with people wanting to help, that we had to be turned away and told to come back later in the week. You all were a shining example of heroism in a time when most people think that heroes are a thing of the past.

I still believe in heroes. And I like to think a few more of you do too.

The Green Arrow Reading Guide

This guide is also a reference tool for Green Arrow fans who need a quick way to find a certain story amongst their back issues or the fans of the new Green Arrow series by Kevin Smith, who are having trouble finding back-issues of the first series. It is published in the chronological order of the events in the comics and not by publishing date, with the exception of the Annuals. These stories, which take place outside the regular events of the book, can be safely put aside and discussed separately.

This guide is not, it should be emphasized, a substitute for the comics, most of which are worth hunting down in my opinion. This guide covers the 137 regular monthly issues, the DC One Million special, 7 annuals, the 4 issues of the Green Arrow: The Wonder Year miniseries and the three issues of Green Arrow: Longbow Hunters. This last one was once released in a Trade Paperback form, and it will be released once more in the coming months.

Special thanks should be given to:

• Scott Challman, who helped me in completing my Green Arrow collection).
• The good people of Lone Star Comics / and All About Comics who also helped with completing my collection
• Scott McCullar, for the inspiration in writing this thing
• And David R. Black (who isn't named Scott, but is a good guy nonetheless) for the Warlord Reading Guide ), which gave me a good form to work with in developing this guide.

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Year One :
Green Arrow: The Wonder Year #1-4

Set in the closing days of the Vietnam War, this series was notable for several reasons. It was the first in-depth telling of Oliver Queen's origin and introduced several key running jokes of the series, like "Ollie" being paired up with men named "Stan" and Ollie's efforts to get a superhero name OTHER than Green Arrow. The creative team consists of Mike Grell (writer and layouts) Gray Morrow (finished art) and Mike Gold (editor)

The Wonder Year #1- Newly returned to civilization, Oliver Queen finds himself bored in his everyday life. As Green Arrow, he thwarts the assassination of a prominent congressman named Reynolds. Reynolds announces that he will run for President and Ollie, still in his costume, gets reacquainted with an old lover, who is now working for the congressman.

We see Howard Hill, a stunt archer who Oliver admired, for the first time. Flashbacks show how Ollie survived on the island and how he escaped, echoing the story told in Longbow Hunters.

The Wonder Year #2- Ollie and his former lover Brianna Stone (who is going by the alias Kelli Harris) catch up and discuss old times. The story of how Ollie becomes Green Arrow is told in flashback and we see how Oliver and Brianna met in college and became friends and lovers, despite a rocky start (She was a poli-sci major and a Marxist; he was a business major and Jeffersonian liberal) Ollie discovers that the assassination attempt on Reynolds was faked, as an attempt to give Reynold's campaign more attention and fuel his campaign. He then leaves, hinting at the reason why Brianna had to adopt an alias; a murder somewhere in their past.

The Wonder Year #3- Reynolds is killed by a car bomb and Brianna goes into hiding, fearing for her life. Ollie tracks her, and they discuss the incident that drove her into hiding: the accidental death of a janitor when she blew up a campus research lab. This issue shows the origin of the Silver Age Green Arrow costume and shows us the name Ollie wanted as a superhero: Shaft.

The Wonder Year #4- Saving Brianna from an assassination attempt, Oliver quickly finds himself trying to find out who killed Renyolds and is now trying to kill Brianna. It end badly though, with Brianna committing suicide after all the truth comes out. It is in this issue that Ollie first uses some of his trick arrows, including a gas arrow, explosive arrow, flare arrow and blunt-tipped arrows capable of knocking a man out.

Recommended Reading: More of an Elseworlds tale now due to Ollie's being in college in the late 60's and starting his hero career around 1974 not fitting the current timeline, this story holds up well despite a weak premise. The main plot isn't that engaging, the romance between Ollie and Brianna seems tacked on and the cuts between the flashbacks and "now" are somewhat disorienting at times. The flashback scenes are well worth reading though. Overall, this story is only for the most devout of Arrowheads and DC history buffs.

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Starting Over :
The Longbow Hunters #1-3
& Green Arrow #1-8

art by Yusuf Madhiya after Mike Grell

The Longbow Hunters was revolutionary in more ways than one. It gave new life to a hero who had never had a solo book of his own in fifty years of continuity as well as paving the way for the regular series. It also helped pushed the envelope of what could be done in the comics medium and perhaps lead to the creation of the Vertigo Comics adult line as much the more famous Sandman series, by Neil Gaiman.

The Longbow Hunters #1 - Oliver Queen and Dinah Lance move into their new digs in Seattle- an apartment with a downstairs shop called "Sherwood Florist" and Oliver sets to work tracking "The Seattle Slasher" as another serious of mysterious murders begin, the killings being made by an archer. This issue is notable for being the first issue where Ollie abandons his old trick arrows, the first appearance of the new hooded Green Arrow costume and the first appearances of Shado and Lt. Jim Cameron.

The Longbow Hunters #2 -With the Seattle Slasher dead, Ollie turns his efforts toward tracking the "Robin Hood" killer as Dinah goes undercover to bust a drug ring, with unexpected turns linking them both... as Oliver makes a difficult decision when faced with the sight of a tortured Dinah.

The Longbow Hunters #3 - Ollie continues his search for a link between Shado's victims and stumbles upon a plot going up to the highest branches of the federal government; one that will leave Ollie with a substantial windfall. This issue marks the first appearances of Greg Osborne and Eddie Fyers, the later of which will have a major role in the series later on.

Green Arrow #1 -Dinah and Ollie start to see a therapist, Ann Green, to deal with the aftermath of Dinah's ordeal. But Ann's the one who needs help, as a child molester, Al Muncy, who hurt her is released pending a retrial. The case is also a trial for Lt. Cameron, who was the arresting officer on the case.

Green Arrow #2 -With a round-the-clock watch on Muncy, it falls to Oliver and Lt. Cameron to find out who is threatening Ann Green... and if it is Muncy, how?

Green Arrow #3 - Dinah fights muggers while Christmas shopping as Oliver is recruited to find a lost bio-chemical weapon in the middle of San Juan Island, off the Washington Coast. Unfortunately, Eddie Fyers is searching for it too.

Green Arrow #4 - Things heat up on San Juan Island as Ollie, Eddie and a host of other mercenaries and intelligence officers hunt for the missing weapon.

Green Arrow #5 - Someone is killing off gay men in Seattle and signs point to the gangs beginning to expand into the city. Oliver investigates the killings as Dinah discovers her newest employee has been "drafted".

Green Arrow #6 - Oliver goes into the lion's den and runs a gauntlet to stop the gang responsible for the hate crimes. He also puts some of the money he got in Longbow Hunters to good use.

Green Arrow #7 - Ollie goes to Anchorage on a business/pleasure trip. The Business is a number of Tong-run gambling businesses used for drug trafficking and the pleasure is seeing the Iditarod Dogsled race.

Green Arrow #8 - A stolen car leads Ollie along a convoluted path involving a very odd smuggled good into the heart of the Alaskan wilderness.

Recommended Reading: With the exception of #7-8 which depend upon a contrived and rather unlikely chain of events to work, these issues of the regular series are among the best of Mike Grell's work. #1 and #2 add well to the end of Longbow Hunters. #3 and #4 are fun in a spy-thriller kind of way. The subjects addressed in #5 and #6 (drugs, gangs, violence provoked by homophobia) are just as relevant today, if not more so.

The Longbow Hunters is a classic which easily belongs on the shelf of every comic fan. If you don't have it already or can't find the issues at your comic, I highly recommend waiting for the Trade Paperback due out soon.

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The Return of Shado and Dark Days :
Green Arrow #9-24

Green Arrow #9 - A year after they moved to Seattle, and Ollie is still dealing with his guilt over the aftermath of Longbow Hunters . Meanwhile, Shado has problems of her own with the Yakuza.

Green Arrow #10 - Ambushed by Greg Osborne and Eddie Fyers, Ollie is blackmailed into searching for Shado and a fortune in gold.

Green Arrow #11 - Wounded and weakened, Ollie learns of Shado's past and more about how much trouble he is in this time.

Green Arrow #12 - Arrows fly and heads roll in this conclusion to the latest Green Arrow/Shado team-up.

Green Arrow #13 - Ollie narrowly avoids death after a day of helping people in and out of costume.

Green Arrow #14 - No good deed goes unpunished, as Oliver hunts for his attempted assassin among all the people he helped the day before.

Green Arrow #15 - An encounter in a nightclub sends Oliver on a search for a mysterious man, who goes by "Archie Leach".

Green Arrow #16 - Oliver reluctantly aids two ASIO agents in tracking down "Archie Leach"; now known to be responsible for a bombing in Australia.

Green Arrow #17 - The brutal murder of a stripper sends Oliver on a quest to track down a man dressed in all black leather, known only as "The Horseman".

Green Arrow #18 - With the Horseman found and leaving town, it falls to Oliver to insure that a young woman's sacrifice isn't in vain.

Green Arrow #19 - The near-death of a young man sends Oliver into a guilt-induced downward spiral and a drinking binge.

Green Arrow #20 - Hal Jordan guest stars, as he takes Ollie camping to get away from it all for a few days.

Green Arrow #21 - Intrigue is in the air, as Shado's newborn sun is kidnapped and used as blackmail to force her to perform an assassination.

Green Arrow #22 - With a four day deadline hovering over their heads, Ollie and Shado begin the search for Shado's son.

Green Arrow #23 - The hunt continues and things heat up as Ollie discovers Shado's intended target.

Green Arrow #24 - Everything comes together, as Ollie is set up to play the patsy and finish off Shado before she hits her target.

Recommended Reading: Some of the darkest issues of the entire Grell run lay within this series of 16 comics. Issue 17, in particular, drew rapid criticism for its' frank look at the sex industry and the exploitation of the women in it, to say nothing of the brutal murder of the woman "The Horseman" was searching for. A man's brains spilling on the floor is graphically illustrated (not so graphic as some comics today, though) in #15 Still, the stories all hold up well... even "Blood of the Dragon" (GA #21-24), which is a bit anachronistic now, considering the real world figures targeted by Shado.

The only issues that really miss are #15-16, since they are really an excuse to do an unofficial team-up between Green Arrow and writer Mike Grell's famous Sable character, whom "Archie Leach" is an obvious descendant of. The issues run a bit flat if you don't realize that. Oddly, some of the funniest moments in the series also come in this run, with Ollie's attempts to get Richard Nixon named as a suspect in a nightclub shooting and the entirety of issues #13 and #14 standing out in particular.

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Crossovers & Bad to Worse :
Green Arrow #25-34

Green Arrow #25 - Oliver travels to Nottingham, England on the trail of a witch, who allegedly killed her grandfather.

Green Arrow #26 - Searching in Sherwood, Ollie has odd visions as he continues his hunt.

Green Arrow #27 - A mysterious man from way out of town is harassed over his resemblance to Green Arrow. Guest stars Travis Morgan: The Warlord

Green Arrow #28 - Oliver and his double fight for their lives, as the mobs swarm upon "Sherwood Florist" en masse.

Green Arrow #29 - Ollie joins the manhunt for an oil tanker captain, who caused a major environmental disaster.

Green Arrow #30 - Things in Alaska get worse, as Oliver finds the captain... but gets caught in a fierce storm.

Green Arrow #31 - When a gang leader Ollie confronted before steps in and takes over the drug operation run by Shado's final victim from Longbow Hunters, Green Arrow goes into action to clean up Seattle.

Green Arrow #32 - With Ollie captured, a neighborhood held in siege and the police unwilling to help, Dinah fights a one woman battle to save the man she loves.

Green Arrow #33 - His body is healed but his mind and heart are still hurting, as Ann Green begins to patch together Oliver Queen's bruised psyche and Dinah changes her mind regarding having children.

Green Arrow #34 - Eddie Fyers recruits Oliver Queen to plant a tracking device on a ship as part of an alleged DEA sting. Things aren't quite that simple, and Oliver is dragged away in chains shortly after Dinah announces that she's infertile.

Recommended Reading: Not a single one of these five, two part, story arcs misses their mark. The only real weak link in the bunch is the "Coyote Tears" storyline (GA #29-30) which is a good, accurate portrait of how big business acts during environmental disasters but suffers from the fact that Ollie doesn't really do anything and the oddity of the narration device employed.

The cameos are fun, with John Constantine popping up in GA #25 and Warlord in Issues 27-28. This introduces the now famous running gag about Oliver Queen and Travis Morgan being practically twins, except for their hair color.

The whole series comes together in issue #31-32, where Reggie (the gang leader who makes Ollie run a gauntlet from GA #6) shows up running the drug smuggling ring originally operated by one of Shado's targets in Longbow Hunters. The issues also parallel Dinah's rescue of Ollie with a similar scene from LH.

The prize, and my pick for the best issue of the entire Grell run is easily GA #34. The issue turns the life of Oliver Queen into a true tragedy, where the hero is brought down by his own faults and past misdeeds. The arrest coming so soon after Dinah's tragic news is insult to injury, making things even worse just when you think Ollie's hit his lowest ebb.

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On The Road Again :
Green Arrow #35-50

Green Arrow #35 - Ollie goes up a certain creek without a paddle, as it's revealed that he accidentally aided Eddie Fyers in sinking a US Warship. All hope is lost and prison seems imminent, until Fyers himself arranges Oliver's escape.

Green Arrow #36 - Going underground (in more ways than one), Ollie is aided by a homeless teenager named Marriane. With a shaved head and beard, Oliver begins his search for Eddie Fyers as Shado arrives in Seattle, summoned by Dinah to help find Oliver.

Green Arrow #37 - Fyers is shot at with arrows and begins to hunt for Ollie as the FBI hunts them both and Dinah confronts Shado over the father of her child.

Green Arrow #38 - Fyers and Ollie confront each other, and form a loose alliance as they realize they've both been set up as part of a government plot.

Green Arrow #39 - With a meeting with the President going nowhere and public opinion swelling against him, Oliver leaves Seattle for parts unknown.

Green Arrow #40 - Oliver goes into the woods of Washington, making a new friend and taking a very strange journey... in spirit.

Green Arrow #41- Wandering into Canada by accident, Ollie stumbles into a film shoot and a mystery.

Green Arrow #42 - Ollie is caught in the middle again, between the Mounties, the IRA and a new friend.

Green Arrow #43 - More conflicted than ever, Oliver travels to Ireland to stop an assassination.

Green Arrow #44 - Moving into Wales, Ollie helps a man named Tom Jones to defend his land and repair a set of standing stones. Back in Seattle, a cop named Kazcinski asks Dinah out. Despite encouragement from Marianne, who now works at Sherwood Florist, she turns him down.

Green Arrow #45 - Kaz continues his advances on Dinah as the fight in Wales heats up and Tom's son is taken hostage.

Green Arrow #46 - Tracked down in London, Ollie is recruited to track down rhino poachers in Africa with a team of various specialists.

Green Arrow #47 - The hunt continues, as Ollie learns about racial strife in Africa and the ecological concerns inherit in dealing with nature verses domestic livestock.

Green Arrow #48 - Oliver and his team of specialists track a new group of elephant poachers into Mozambique.

Green Arrow #49 - Oliver joins in a traditional lion hunt while Dinah finally agrees to a date with Officer Kaz, who it seems has some kind of secret in his past.

Green Arrow #50 - Kaz is revealed to be a dirty cop, but he tries to achieve some measure of redemption for himself when he kills his corrupt ex-partner and his rapist nephew. He and Dinah are later taken hostage by terrorists at the Space Needle. This prompts a quick return home for Ollie, who shows up at the last possible second to save the day.

Recommended Reading: The low point of the Grell run, most of these stories try and tackle too much as Ollie is moved out of his natural element: the urban jungle.

The Africa stories give a lot of great details about the social environment and ecology of Africa, but very little attention is give to these issues other than a few speeches to Ollie about "this is the way things are". The effect is like that of a hyper-preachy version of a Denny O'Neil Green Lantern/Green Arrow comic, with the story and action being given secondary attention to "the lesson". A good, but funny, example of this occurs when Oliver kills the horse of a fat Christian missionary who lectures his charges upon how man does not live on his daily bread alone. The issue of Missionaries who are clueless to the fact that all the talk of the next world doesn't do much to help the poor shlubs starving to death in this world is an important one. But this and other issues (poaching, the urbanization off Africa, racism toward black-white relationships) are not given nearly as much focus as they might have.

Issue #50 does very little, with Oliver's homecoming being accepted far too quickly and easily. Ignoring the fact that he didn't contact Dinah once in over a year, it is hard to believe that none of the police or military force on the site didn't comment on Green Arrow's presence in the middle of a terrorist attack. Especially when you consider Ollie was branded a traitor and a terrorist in the media months earlier. Moreover, it defeats the point of Oliver having embarked on this quest to find peace inside. He doesn't fulfill his quest at all; he just comes back because Dinah needs to be saved... like Popeye chasing Olive Oyl.

Except for the Black Arrow Saga (GA #35-38) these stories can be skipped.

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Back in the Saddle :
Green Arrow #51-62

Green Arrow #51 - Ollie and Dinah are getting reacquainted, when Lt. Cameron arrives with news of another death... and how it might tie to a certain vigilantee.

Green Arrow #52 - Ollie searches to prove his innocence as Dinah and Kaz come to a final understanding...

Green Arrow #53 - Someone is out to kill Eddie Fyers and the only person he can turn to for help is Oliver Queen.

Green Arrow #54 - The fight goes into the Seattle underground, as Ollie and Eddie duke it out with Eddie's employers.

Green Arrow #55 - Lt. Cameron makes a startling discovery regarding the Seattle slasher and a possible copycat killer. He turns to Ollie for advice on how to proceed.

Green Arrow #56 - Oliver begins a hunt for the copycat killer, with Lt. Cameron's support for once.

Green Arrow #57 - An attempt to stop a mugging drags Oliver into the middle of the hunt for a case full of radioactive isotopes.

Green Arrow #58 - The plot thickens as a terrorist plot to poison Seattle's water supply is revealed.

Green Arrow #59 - A child molester is released and Ollie, Dinah and the police are on guard against angry parents. But how can you try to save the life of a man society at large wants dead?

Green Arrow #60 - Ollie stops an assassination attempt, but now a child molester is roaming the streets of Seattle unattended. Can Dinah and the police find him in time?

Green Arrow #61 - Dinah and Ollie go camping while an old argument regarding the draft erupts in a small town.

Green Arrow #62 - Green Arrow and Black Canary find themselves in the middle of a riot as crowds try to get the opinion of one man.

Recommended Reading: Grell repeats himself in many of these stories. The search for the isotopes in #57-58 is very much like the search for a biochemical weapon way back in GA #3-4. In issue #60, after a build up about the difficult choices in dealing with a child rapist everyone wants to see dead but nobody wants to really dirty their hands with, everything is solved in a deus ex machina just like in GA #14.

Still, there are many great character moments here. Particularly in GA #53-54 where Eddie Fyers gets some much needed fleshing out and #55-56, when Lt. Cameron has to swallow his pride and ask Ollie for help.

Even with some repeated plot elements, the only truly awful issues here are GA #61-62, which barely involved Dinah and Ollie in the action at all and tell a story that is rather contrived and hard to swallow. I'm pretty sure that a town cannot declare itself a sanctuary to federal draft dodgers, but I could be wrong.

You must read #53-56. Avoid #61-62 unless you are a completist, who must have every issue of a series.

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With His Merry Band :
Green Arrow #63-74

Green Arrow #63 - Ollie is hired by a millionaire to track down Shado and offer her the fortune once lost by her father.

Green Arrow #64 - Ollie goes to Japan to begin his hunt for Shado.

Green Arrow #65 - Shado and Ollie are captured, and the true motives of the mysterious millionaire are revealed.

Green Arrow #66 - In this takeoff on The Most Dangerous Game, Ollie and Shado are put on an island with no weapons and only one way out as they are hunted for sport by an eccentric millionaire

Green Arrow #67 - Marriane leads Ollie into the world of Seattle's homeless to track down a serial killer called "The Smasher"

Green Arrow #68 - With bodies popping up right and left, Ollie and Marriane and a "band" of Merry Men search for a link between the Smasher's victims.

Green Arrow #69 - Someone is bumping off the members of an old 60's rock band called The Electric Unicorns and Ollie is making is his business to find out who.

Green Arrow #70 - Appointed head of security for the latest concert of the last performing member of the Electric Unicorns, Ollie desperately hopes to prevent another killing.

Green Arrow #71 - Ollie goes after a drug shipment only to find a totally different merchandise: imported rare animals and a dangerous panther.

Green Arrow #72 - Aided by a woman who tells him of the legends of the shamanus , Ollie works to protect the missing panther from the collector who wants its' head.

Green Arrow #73 - Ollie and his band help one of their own, Jefferson TwoDogs, with his Vietnam flashbacks. Meanwhile, Lt. Cameron is put in charge of protecting a big witness in a Mafia case.

Green Arrow #74 - When a police sniper goes mad, it's up to Lt. Cameron to determine the how and why.

Recommended Reading: Grell introduces an interesting idea here, giving Ollie a band of merry men made up of the city's homeless. Especially interesting is Jackhammer, a former boxer with a child psychology degree, who cuts a fine figure as Ollie's Little John. Such a shame that the idea was only used for 8 issues.

The latest Shado story falls a bit flat, being nothing more than a tribute (re: rip-off) of The Most Dangerous Game. It is well written if you can get past the unoriginal premise and slow pacing, though.

Issues #71-72 introduce a mystic element to the book that doesn't quite work and issues #73-74 are more about Lt. Cameron finally managing to solve a case without Ollie helping. It's a nice change from the usual DC Comics Police, whom can barely manage to tie their shoelaces without instructions.

Take a look at #67-71 & #73-74. Maybe #63-66 if you don't mind uninspired tales.

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Crossroads :
Green Arrow #75-89

Green Arrow #75 - Ollie and Dinah's relationship is on the rocks after a New Years Eve party goes wrong. This is quickly forgotten as a mystery man with a bow tries to bump Ollie off. Shado arrives and explains that Ollie has been targeted by the Yakuza. It's non-stop action that will change Ollie's life forever, assuming he survives.

Green Arrow #76 - Domestic terrorists blow up a blimp at the Rose Bowl. Fyers recruits Ollie to help him infiltrate a militia camp to find the man who might be training the terrorists.

Green Arrow #77 - Ollie and Eddie make it to the camp. Now they need to get out alive.

Green Arrow #78 - With a small army of mercenaries chasing after them, Ollie and Eddie flee into the woods with their captive in tow.

Green Arrow #79 - Ollie is blamed for another murder and things go from bad to worse with the CIA chasing after him and Dinah still not speaking to him. Sounds like Eddie Fyers at work...

Green Arrow #80 - Ollie confronts Eddie as they both confront the CIA. Oliver also has one last goodbye with Marriane.

Green Arrow #81 - A confrontation between Shrapnel and Nuklon in the streets of Seattle sends Ollie out of town, looking for something to fill the void in his life.

Green Arrow #82 - In San Francisco Asked by an old friend to protect her sister from her abusive ex-husband, a Yakuza-trained vigilante called Rival, Oliver has to retrain himself in the compound bow to face this new opponent.

Green Arrow #83 - Checking up on an old model friend in Los Angeles as he hunts for the Yakuza, Oliver teams up with the Huntress as they both look into a connection between several models starving to death and a diet food company.

Green Arrow #84 - Wearing an eye-patch after hurting his eye in a fight with a hijacker, Ollie goes to Las Vegas hoping to relax. A group of assassins have other ideas though.

Green Arrow #85 - A case of mistaken identity forces Ollie to team up with Slade Wilson, AKA Deathstroke The Terminator.

Green Arrow #86 - A trip to Dallas leads to a hot time in Texas for Ollie, as he works with Catwoman to recover a stolen artifact and return it to the rightful owners.

Green Arrow #87 - A trip to New Orleans sends Ollie into the shanty towns of the Bayou.

Green Arrow #88 - Suffering from a case of under-confidence, Oliver goes to New York to look up some old friends in the JLA.

Green Arrow #89 - Moving on to Gotham City, Oliver has a run in with Anarky, who asks for his help in blowing up an arms factory.

Recommended Reading: GA #75 proves to be everything a special issue should be, filled with a family reunion of sorts and enough twists for three comics. The rest of Grell's run isn't anything special, but it is quite good and ends on a poignant note.

After Issue 81 though things get worse, with the writers changing each month and Oliver being written badly out of character, along with most of the other guest stars.

#83 and #86 are is good examples of this. The reasons for Huntress' presence in L.A. seems more than just a bit contrived. And don't get me started on how out of character it is for Catwoman and Oliver to do what is suggested in GA #86.

#84-85 is one of the stupider stories in comics history, being entirely based on the idea that Slade Wilson (big, weight-lifter build, goatee and white hair) can be confused with Ollie Queen (slightly shorter, not so muscular and blond with a mustache). #87 isn't much better, with Ollie abandoning his usual principals about taking a life for no good reason, where he shoots an unarmed man.

Basically, avoid everything from 80-90 unless you want to burn the issues as a political statement.

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The End is Near :
Green Arrow GA #90, 0, 91-101

Green Arrow #90 - A Zero Hour special, this story shows multiple timelines showing the different results as Ollie chases a mugger.

Green Arrow #0 -World weary and sick of his life as a vigilante, Oliver goes back to the Ashram where he stayed many years ago, even as the CIA plots his death. Oliver befriends a young man named Connor and starts to teach him about archery. The two eventually leave together, seeking whatever adventure awaits them.

Green Arrow #91 - Oliver and Connor go to San Francisco, splitting up later. Oliver moves on to Seattle to find Eddie Fyers. Connor puts on a new costume and sets about faking a Green Arrow appearance.

Green Arrow #92 - Ollie and Eddie meet up in Seattle as Connor is captured by the mercenaries.

Green Arrow #93 - The search for the assassins leads to a house in suburbia and an abandoned shopping mall.

Green Arrow #94 - After a fire fight that leaves Eddie wounded, Ollie and Connor discover that Ollie's head is wanted by a sect of the NSA called "Tencount". Meanwhile, an mercenary with a camouflage suit called Camorouge is sent after Ollie as an assassin called the Borozi moves in.

Green Arrow #95 - Camorogue saves Eddie and Connor from the Borozi as Ollie escapes from a dental torture chamber.

Green Arrow #96 - Hal Jordan appears, wanting to make peace with his best friend. Connor and Eddie continue searching for Ollie as the NSA sends out the Force of July to shut down Tencount. Hal also lets slip by accident what Eddie had guessed: Connor is Ollie's son.

Green Arrow #97 - Breaking away from Connor and Eddie after a brief and bitter reunion, Ollie tracks down the head of the NSA. Finding the death order on his head has been removed, Ollie accepts a job working for the NSA as a secret agent. Not giving up, Eddie and Connor contact Roy Harper, hoping he will help them track down Ollie.

Green Arrow #98 - Sent to infiltrate an eco-terrorist group called The Eden Corps, Oliver is quickly invited into the inner circle of the group. The rest of the gang catch up with him, but Ollie sends them away, admitting he is not sure if he is going to side with this group or go ahead with his mission.

Green Arrow #99 - Arsenal abandons the quest, as Ollie gets in deeper and deeper. He discovers that the Eden Corps have a plastics-eating virus and that they plan to bomb Metropolis with it.

Green Arrow #100 - Oliver winds up holding a bomb in his hands, literally... and even Superman is powerless to save him... unless he makes the unkindest cut of all...

Green Arrow #101 - Oliver detonates the bomb before it reaches Metropolis and dies a hero's death, leaving some of the other heroes who knew him to morn and Connor to arrange a memorial.

Recommended Reading : Everything here is worth grabbing, just for the sake of having the year long arc where Oliver Queen is killed... but a lot of these stories are confusing as heck, with lots of subplots within concurrent plots and a lot of elements that seem totally unneeded. The presence of Camarouge (who has not appeared since, as far as I know) and Arsenal come to mind.

The way Ollie dies screams of fake (as if he had the ability to trigger the bomb to self-destruct before Superman could stop him...)and the options Superman gives to save him are obviously thrown in as a gratuitous reference to Dark Knight Returns. Speaking of the Big Blue Boy-Scout, what's the deal with him calling Ollie "Old Friend". Last time I checked, they barely knew each other in the Post-Crisis universe and that the relationship was a hostile one. Mostly on Ollie's side, of course.

Issue #90 is excellent though and was one of the best tie-ins to come out of Zero Hour.

---

Getting Established :
Green Arrow GA #102-111

Green Arrow #102 - Seeking a meeting with the developer who plans to turn the Ashram into an amusement park, Connor is recruited to investigate a gang of martial artists in Jaguar skins from Mexico.

Green Arrow #103 -Investigating an Aztec temple, Connor finds himself face to face with a half-man, half-Jaguar beast. Meanwhile, Eddie thwarts an assassin that was sent to get Connor.

Green Arrow #104 - Traveling to New York to find Connor's mother, Connor and Eddie are quickly targeted by mercenaries working for Milo Armitage, an arms dealer and Connor's new stepdad. Luckily Green Lantern shows up to lend a hand.

Green Arrow #105 - Tracking Armitage and Moonday Hawke to Gotham, Connor works along side Robin to capture Armitage.

Green Arrow #106 - Desperate to raise the money to buy back the Ashram, Connor takes a job as bodyguard to the boy ruler of a small country.

Green Arrow #107 - Connor moves in with his new boss and his other two, oddly familiar, bodyguards.

Green Arrow #108 - Connor goes and visits his grandfather on his ranch in Idaho. Meanwhile, Eddie goes to Metropolis to help an old 'Nam buddy named Alexander Sterling with a vigilante called the Thorn.

Green Arrow #109 - Connor goes to Metropolis, hoping to find Superman. Instead, he finds trouble as he starts to investigate a certain key figure in the Metropolis organized crime field: a man named Alexander Sterling.

Green Arrow #110 - Connor and Kyle Rayner go on the road, searching for Kyle's father. They wind up in Desolation: the torting capital of the country and a town saved from trouble a generation earlier by Hal Jordan and Oliver Queen.

Green Arrow #111 - Tricked into putting a weapon into space, the new Green Team, Eddie and a woman called Crackshot have to act fast before several major cities are vaporized.

Recommended Reading : All the best stories here can be found collected in the Green Lantern/Green Arrow Emerald Allies Trade Paperback. The rest of the stories are rather hit and miss, though the joke about the other two bodyguards in GA #106-107 is pretty funny.

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Globetrotting Heroes :
Green Arrow GA #112-126

Green Arrow #112 - After a strange encounter with a robbed man on the streets of Frisco, Connor and Eddie go to China in search of a lost city.

Green Arrow #113 - Things get curious and curious, as an ancient princess seduces Connor while Eddie fights an undead warrior.

Green Arrow #114 - Forced to land on a frozen laken in Manchuria en route to Japan, it is up to Connor to delay an army in order to save a group of stranded villagers.

Green Arrow #115 - As they arrive in Japan, Eddie is kidnapped by the Korean Mafia in order to execute a familiar face: Shado.

Green Arrow #116 - Black Canary and Oracle get into the mix, as Shado reveals that the Korean Mafia is going to try and start a new war between Japan and the USA.

Green Arrow #117 - With the threat of war imminent, it falls to Fyers, Canary and Connor to find a missing nuclear weapon.

Green Arrow #118 - Connor and Eddie move into the Golden Triangle of Southeast Asia, after finding a picture of a man who looks a lot like Ollie.

Green Arrow #119 - Connor think she's found Ollie, but it's a moot point as they've both been captured by a corrupt general and wild dinosaurs stalk the jungles.

Green Arrow #120 - "Ollie" turns out to be Travis Morgan, so Connor and Eddie return home to the States. After a brief altercation on a bus, Ollie returns to San Francisco to find Master Jansen has been kicked out of the Ashram.

Green Arrow #121 - Connor challenges Fritz Mueller, the new owner and master of the Ashram, to a duel for control. But Mueller is allowed to pick his own champion... and his champion, The Silver Monkey, proves too much for Connor to handle.

Green Arrow #122 - Connor and Master Jansen go to Connor's Grandfather's ranch in Idaho. But Connor doesn't get much chance to nurse his wounds, as a number of people die from drowning... in the middle of a drought...

Green Arrow #123 - A hunt begins for a Native American rainmaker and the extortionist using him as a weapon.

Green Arrow #124 - Connor and Jansen return to New York, and begin investigating Milo Armitage again. Elsewhere, a killer named Nicholas Kotero is about to be transferred to another prison.

Green Arrow #125 - Kotero escapes from prison, as a race war errupts in New York. Part One of "Hate Crimes" along with Green Lantern #92

Green Arrow #126 - With Green Lantern in tow, Connor hunts for Kotero; the mastermind behind the race riots. Part Three of "Hate Crimes".

Recommended Reading : Eddie leaves the series in #120, and it's a good thing too. Something odd I've noticed is that Eddie tends to grab the camera and the focus of the stories when he and Connor are paired up, to the point that the book should be titled "Eddie Fyers: Freelance Gunsel". Maybe this is because Chuck Dixon has an easier timer relating to Fyers as a character (Dixon and Eddie are in the same age range and both are outspoken gun lovers) than to the younger Connor. Or maybe it just seems that way because Connor, despite my wanting to like the character, just never really grabbed my attention that much during this span of the comic's run.

Either way, most of the plots here are similar to ones Grell did with faster pacing and better results. The "Ollie in the jungle with Dinosaurs" story seems slow and sluggish, because we can see the ending of the punchline coming for two whole issues. The "Stormbringer" story just doesn't seem to fit well, with a rainmaking Indian traveling with an extortionist for no readily apparent reason.

With the exception of the Green Arrow/Green Lantern team up issues and #120, #121 and #124, most of these comics can be avoided except by the hard core masochist.

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A New Home:
Green Arrow GA #127-1,000,000

Green Arrow #127 -With his mother going into hiding in Europe with Armitage, Connor is put in charge of his mother's house in San Francisco. He makes plans to start renting rooms out but the Silver Monkey returns with different plans for Green Arrow.

Green Arrow #128 - Connor gets a date with one of his tenants, Mia. Jansen gets a job in "insurance", not knowing he is working for the Mafia.

Green Arrow #129 - Connor rescues Jansen and finds out the problems of being a superhero, a homeowner and trying to be both at once.

Green Arrow #130 - A peaceful vacation in Alaska with Kyle Rayner and Wally West is spoiled by the sudden appearance of Hatchet, Heatwave, Sonar and Dr. Polaris. Part 2 of "Three of a Kind" Crossover with Flash #135 and GL #96.

Green Arrow #131 - Crackshot shows up to help Connor with his the superhero business.

Green Arrow #132 - Eddie shows up, hooked on an alien drug that gives the taker superpowers while warping their mind. And then the JLA shows up.

Green Arrow #133 - Eddie, Zauriel, Green Lantern and Connor go into orbit to take out the Alien's base as the rest of the JLA fights an army of super-powered junkies.

Green Arrow #134 - The Brotherhood of the Monkey Fist, the martial arts cult that trained the Silver Monkey, need to cleanse their honor after the Silver Monkey's defeat at Connor hands. This leads to a massive war on every martial artist in the DCU. Part One of a crossover with Detective #723, Robin #55, Nightwing #23 and GA #135.

Green Arrow #135 - Connor faces the Paper Monkey, AKA Lady Shiva in a one on one battle that must end in death. The Final Chapter of the "Brotherhood of the Fist" storyline.

Green Arrow #136 - Connor teams up with a time-lost Hal Jordan to stop the Eden Corps latest attack. Part One of a crossover with GL #104.

Green Arrow #137 - Connor meets with Superman to talk about Ollie and decides to take back the Ashram for Jansen.

Green Arrow #1,000,000 - While meditating, Connor has visions of a future where the descendants sons and daughters of Oliver Queen, biological and in spirit, are protectors of the Earth. He takes this as a sign that Oliver Queen is still alive somehow.

Recommended Reading: Chuck Dixon has written a lot of great books. These are not among them. For the most part, this is because most of the last year of Green Arrow comics were either tie ins to a crossover (DC One Million) or a mere part of another story. This was probably due to dipping sales, so Green Arrow began doing stories that would pair up Connor with better selling characters (Robin, Nightwing, JLA, Green Lantern).

Most of these Crossover stories are enjoyable if you have the whole crossover handy but are a bit pointless otherwise. That cannot be said of the JLA crossover "Like A God" (GA #132-133), which should be used as the textbook example for how not to write a story around a low-powered heroes. The Brotherhood of the Monkeyfist storyline is fun, but nothing we haven't seen before: martial arts cult tries to take on superheroes and gets butts kicked.

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Annuals :
Green Arrow Annual #1-7

Green Arrow Annual #1 - A champion archer called Kalesque puts forth a challenge to Green Arrow. When Ollie ignores it, Kalesque starts killing innocents. It will take the wisdom of O. Sensi to get Ollie get over his guilt and fight Kalesque.

Green Arrow Annual #2 - When it looks like The Question has been hurting people in Seattle, Ollie travels to Hub City.

Green Arrow Annual #3 - Ollie, Dinah and Vic Savage (AKA The Question) travel into the Amazon jungle on a hunt for a rare flower.

Green Arrow Annual #4 - A trip to Sherwood Forest while Ollie does some genealogy research gives Dinah an odd dream of a past life when she knew Ollie... as Robin Hood.

Green Arrow Annual #5 - Eclipso possesses Dinah and she turns violent... especially towards Ollie.

Green Arrow Annual #6 - Part of the Bloodlines Crossover, Ollie has a run in with a new hero dubbed "The Hook".

Green Arrow Annual #7 - A retelling of Oliver's origin and how he met up with a serial killer named Nicholas Kotero.

Recommended Reading: Totally avoidable. Annual #1 is okay, but Denny O'Neil has done better. Annual #2 is decent but more enjoyable if you also read The Question. Annual #3 is outright horrible with Ollie and Dinah walking into an obvious trap and The Question along for the ride doing nothing much.

Annual #4 is enjoyable, but really has nothing to do with anything. There is also a lot of debate over whether it adds or detracts from Oliver's character to have him be the actual reincarnation of Robin Hood instead of a spiritual heir. Of course it's all a moot point as Robin Hood was most likely a folk hero himself.

Annual #5 is good only for the character scenes, with Dinah venting her repressed anger over Ollie's apparent cheating on her.

Annual #6 is typical of all the Bloodlines tie-ins. It is bad. Very bad. Super Quasi-Radioactive bad. Buy it to burn it, it is so bad.

Annual #7, aside from establishing the character of Nicolas Kotero as a major threat, is totally pointless and in fact, rather insulting. This retconned retelling of the Ollie Queen story removes one of the greatest elements of Ollie's past. That is, he made the decision to become a hero totally on his own. He wasn't gifted with special powers and just decide to put on a costume and help people. He didn't lose a loved one. He just decided to become hero because the world needed someone to help it. This story takes that away, giving Ollie the motivation of trying to fight back after being confronted with one particularly nasty baddy.