Green Arrow #44 Review

Murder Was The Case

Writer: Julie Benson and Shawna Benson
Artist: Javi Fernandez, John Kalisz, and Deron Bennett
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: September 5, 2018

It's time for Green Arrow and I'm hoping this is the issue where we see the Benson Sisters get their groove on a bit with this book.  The start of the run showed that there is potential for a good story here with the Citizen, but it felt a little stiff overall.  So, do they loosen up here in a good way?  Let's find out...

The issue starts with a pretty cool car chase scene even if I'm not sure why people are after Oliver.  Sure, the Citizen called him out at the end of the last issue after beheading Jubal Slade, but now it seems like Seattle has lost its collective minds and are out for blood.  I mean, the Citizen just beheaded a guy and yet Oliver seems to be the most wanted man in town.

Ollie does meet up with Black Canary and they head out on a Citizen hunt...but come up empty-handed.  Then Citizen goes live and this time, it's a contest of who is the bigger piece of shit...A guy who helped fund Jubel Slade, a woman who fixed horse races, or Oliver Queen who got away with murder!!!  What What?!?!  It all actually seems true, something that has Ollie visibly shaken.

Canary and Arrow separate then to go save the other two "contestants" and while Canary grabs the guy, Green Arrow walks right into the Citizen's telecast with Alison Kim ready to be quartered.  After arguing about what is true justice, Ollie prevents another murder, but the Citizen got away again.  It's a cool action scene, though, with Oliver on horseback shooting arrows all over the place!

Afterward, Oliver and Dinah have a little private time and while the Citizen is certainly after Ollie, they have some chili.  Yea, the Benson's are going hard with the chile, but that is quickly overshadowed by the cliffhanger and the surprise guest star that arrives.

I like a lot of what the Benson's do here.  There are some exciting action scenes and the idea that Ollie is a murderer (whether he knew it or not) actually feels bigger here than it ever did in Ben Percy's run.  Maybe it's because it was covered up and not set up here.  The only real issue I have is the overall story doesn't move that much ahead.  We still have the Citizen after Oliver, which was the reveal of the last issue.  Still, the cliffhanger here was pretty cool.

As far as the art, this may be my favorite issue of Javi Fernandez's ever.  Yea, I am not a huge fan so that may sound like a backhanded compliment, but it's not.  His art is really good here and fits the story well.  I would like the colors to be a bit more vibrant at times, but hey, you can't have everything, right?

Bits and Pieces:

This issue is action-packed and while the overall story stalls a bit, I had fun with what we got.  There is a shocking reveal, an interesting cliffhanger and some good art throughout.  I am beginning to like Green Arrow again.

7.0/10