They should rename this series Green Arrow and Black Canary Cuddle because that’s the most exciting part of this issue. It revs up a little at the end but other than that we get to follow the will they/won’t they plotline that we’ve all seen before. In this issue we get to see Green Arrow do what a smart millionaire would do and use his money to get the edge on criminals. Of course this causes friction between Ollie and his girlfriend Black Canary and she takes more than too many pages to lecture him. In the first few pages it becomes clear that this is going to be a team book. Green Arrow has always been a team player, but the fact that we’re dealing with his friends makes it harder to stay interested in the plotline. There was just a little too much Black Canary. Doesn’t she have her own series? *Or did DC cancel that with it’s Rebirth movement? Looks like she’s going to be a staple of this overstuffed story arc.
If you like Green Arrow as a character then I think there’s enough here to show him doing action things like taking down villains. My confusion comes when there’s no real time where he’s by himself and the character is reflecting on his own thoughts and actions.
The artwork is solid but tends to shift to a dreamy tone during the “family” scenes. The coloring is beautiful and the drawing creates enough detail to keep your eyes glued to each panel. I was expecting a more gritty type of artwork for this series. Everything seems kind of light and fluffy in the drawing style.
Maybe my problem is that this book is too happy. It does end with a decent cliffhanger and I give props to DC for taking such a violent route towards the final pages. The shift in tone is really jarring to me. The book starts off in one style then shifts to another. I’m just confused what I’m going to get with the next issue. Will there be half-fluff and half-violence? I hope not because that combination did not work with this issue.
*Editor's note: They did cancel the series, we know that so save a tree and skip the comment.
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