Green Arrow #2 Review

Better Off Dead

Written By: Ben Percy
Art by: Otto Schmidt and Nate Piekos
Cover Price: $2.99
Release Date: July 6, 2016

Green Arrow has been one of my favorite Rebirth books because of the team dynamic, the humor
and...Okay, I can't hold off anymore!  Ben Percy ended last issue by killing off Green Arrow!!!  How fucked up is that?!?  The worst (or best) thing about it is it really looked like he was dead.  Not mostly dead, but D-E-A-D Dead!  So, where do you go from there?  I guess you can twist it all around and show us that what we saw was a farce or you bury your lead character and move on.  I think I know what will happen, but does it make sense and is it good?  Let's find out...


After last issue's cliffhanger I was spouting off more conspiracy theories than Randy Quaid and while I still think I'm on the right track, it doesn't look good.  Kind of like Randy Quaid these days.  The issue opens with Shado and Emiko dumping Oliver's body into the ocean and from here, he looks pretty damn dead.  We then get a glimpse of the big bads in charge and they are an ugly lot who go by the name of the "Burned".  They may be Eric Shea's worst nightmare.

The issue then shifts to Abu Dhabi where we see Diggle!  He's protecting a piece of shit when he gets the news that Oliver Queen is dead.  Whether it's because of that distraction, or these bad guys are just that good, but the piece of shit ends up burnt to a crisp, but Diggle does get a clue on how to find Oliver's killers.  Any guess who is sending the messages?

We then get the media reaction to Oliver's disappearance (his body is yet to be found) and it seems that Broderick is jumping on this even if it's earlier than he planned as he pretty much tells the world that Oliver was an addict, a thief and a whole lot worse. We then see Black Canary getting mad at the reports, but she wasn't nearly as mad as I was.  He thought of you as a cool uncle, Broderick!  On a side note, we get a brief mention of Wild Dog and after last issue's cover, it has to be only a matter of time before we see him, right?

The gang's all here vibe continues as Henry gets a very interesting signal and while he thinks that Emiko is in big trouble, he ends up finding Oliver's body.  It looks like Emiko might have saved her brother after all!

That's because...SPOILER ALERT...Oliver isn't dead!  He's been nursed back to health by Henry's Nainai with bandages, acupuncture and a little kiss that reminded me a bit of Whoopie and Demi in Ghost.  YUCK!  That's the good news.  The bad news, well...it's pretty damn bad.  Oliver's name has been ruined and now it looks like Queen Industries (and Broderick) is doing everything it can to wipe him clean out of existence.

The issue ends with Black Canary looking into things and getting a glimpse at Hell and Oliver finding that mo Money may mean mo Problems, but no money means no friends.  I'm sure it kills him to admit it, but maybe Dinah was right all along.  I'm sure we will get to that, but for now, Oliver only needs the help from one person...Green Arrow!

I said this was one of my favorite Rebirth books and this issue does not change that.  While this was a lot of setup, it's pretty awesome setup that gets Diggle involved and really knocks Ollie down about twenty pegs.  I want to know more about the Burned, the Nine Circles of Hell, Shado and Emiko...but what I'm most excited about is seeing how Oliver faces this challenge and hopefully builds himself back up as a bigger and better superhero and man.  Sure, I didn't like the way Oliver was saved from death's door and I wish that Percy didn't sacrifice a character I like to prove a point, but almost everything else was really good and I am so looking forward to continuing on with this book.

One of the biggest reasons for that is the art by Otto Schmidt.  While reviewing the Green Arrow Rebirth book, I mentioned I had to get used to his art style and I've not only gotten used to it, but I love it!  If I'm not mistaken, Juan Ferreyra is jumping on the book next issue and while OI love Juan's art, I will miss Schmidt's work on this book.

Bits and Pieces:

Ben Percy continues kicking ass on this book and while I was afraid he was going to strip Oliver of everything, now that it's done and the way he did it has eased my mind a bit.  There is a ton of darkness surrounding Green Arrow nowadays and while we see the promise of old friends, it looks like Oliver is going to have to fend for himself...at least for a bit.  Otto Schmidt's art is stellar as usual and if you aren't reading this series, you should jump on now and enjoy the ride with me.  It may not be a nice story, but it's a damn good one!

8.5/10