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Green Arrow (2016)
Green Arrow, Vol. 4: The Rise of Star City
DC Universe Rebirth continues with this fresh take on GREEN ARROW from horror novelist Benjamin Percy!
Oliver Queen and Roy Harper once patrolled the streets as Green Arrow and Speedy, but a massive falling-out left them estranged for years. Now, learn the truth behind the tragic dissolution--and triumphant reunion--of one of comics' most iconic super-duos as Green Arrow and Arsenal join forces once more!
Author Benjamin Percy revisits one of the great partnerships fans have been wanting to see for years in GREEN ARROW VOL. 4! Collects GREEN ARROW #18-25.
Oliver Queen and Roy Harper once patrolled the streets as Green Arrow and Speedy, but a massive falling-out left them estranged for years. Now, learn the truth behind the tragic dissolution--and triumphant reunion--of one of comics' most iconic super-duos as Green Arrow and Arsenal join forces once more!
Author Benjamin Percy revisits one of the great partnerships fans have been wanting to see for years in GREEN ARROW VOL. 4! Collects GREEN ARROW #18-25.
200 pages, Paperback
First published December 12, 2017
13 people are currently reading
209 people want to read
About the author
Benjamin Percy
797 books1,208 followersBenjamin Percy is the author of seven novels -- most recently The Sky Vault (William Morrow) -- three short fiction collections, and a book of essays, Thrill Me, that is widely taught in creative writing classrooms. He writes Wolverine, X-Force, and Ghost Rider for Marvel Comics. His fiction and nonfiction have been published in Esquire (where he is a contributing editor), GQ, Time, Men's Journal, Outside, the Wall Street Journal, Tin House, and the Paris Review. His honors include an NEA fellowship, the Whiting Writer's Award, the Plimpton Prize, two Pushcart Prizes, the iHeart Radio Award for Best Scripted Podcast, and inclusion in Best American Short Stories and Best American Comics.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 73 reviews
May 8, 2022
WHAT A VOLUME OMG!
This is like one of the greatest GA runs easily and dc stories ever!
So it has two stories like the first one The rise of arsenal which was great as we get to see how Ollie met Roy first and then his screwed up future as his sidekick and then going into native indian reservation and all that story and fighting Count vertigo and in the present returning there and saving his extended family from "wild dogs" and maybe re-connect with Ollie and omg that story is so good and hits the right sparks for the reader and makes you sympathetic with him and ahh I love the whole thing, we see Ollie has changed too and its perfect!
Then the big story with the rise of the star city and then the whole previous volumes connnect here and its epic in every sense of the word, we get the history and what not and the connections of the Queens with this city and how in its place, the Ninth circle is planning to build a new one and Ollie going against it.. and facing a cadre of villains in Eddie Fyers, Brick and Cheshire and some great reunions and epic fights and even more revelations with a drastic action by Ollie and maybe beginning of a new adventure for him and I love some other dc characters that are introduced here and maybe soon..
Its just so good, I love it. The whole thing is pretty much an epic in the making and it just shows how well Percy gets these characters as he writes the other characters well, pays off earlier volume storylines in a fun manner and shows the epicness its building to and then the tease of whats to come, I love it and the art is freaking epic!! A must, must read for every fan of GA!!
This is like one of the greatest GA runs easily and dc stories ever!
So it has two stories like the first one The rise of arsenal which was great as we get to see how Ollie met Roy first and then his screwed up future as his sidekick and then going into native indian reservation and all that story and fighting Count vertigo and in the present returning there and saving his extended family from "wild dogs" and maybe re-connect with Ollie and omg that story is so good and hits the right sparks for the reader and makes you sympathetic with him and ahh I love the whole thing, we see Ollie has changed too and its perfect!
Then the big story with the rise of the star city and then the whole previous volumes connnect here and its epic in every sense of the word, we get the history and what not and the connections of the Queens with this city and how in its place, the Ninth circle is planning to build a new one and Ollie going against it.. and facing a cadre of villains in Eddie Fyers, Brick and Cheshire and some great reunions and epic fights and even more revelations with a drastic action by Ollie and maybe beginning of a new adventure for him and I love some other dc characters that are introduced here and maybe soon..
Its just so good, I love it. The whole thing is pretty much an epic in the making and it just shows how well Percy gets these characters as he writes the other characters well, pays off earlier volume storylines in a fun manner and shows the epicness its building to and then the tease of whats to come, I love it and the art is freaking epic!! A must, must read for every fan of GA!!
January 4, 2018
The book starts off by bringing Roy Harper into the fold. Queen industries is trying to put a pipeline through the native American ancestral lands where Roy grew up. A group of right wingers have come into bust the heads of the peaceful protesters. Interspersed is Roy and Ollie's history of how they met and ended things. The art in this is iffy. It's nowhere in the class of the two regulars on the book, Juan Ferreya and Ollie Schmidt.
Next up is the burn it all to the ground story where the Ninth Circle returns. They are blowing everything up in Seattle so that Queen Industries can rebuild it. There's a bunch of hokey mystical crap involved. The story is great and the art fantastic if you can get past how dumb the Ninth Circle is. They're your typical mustache swirling villains but believe all this mystical mumbo-jumbo about Seattle having these ley lines in the shape of a star. There's even a prophecy about a Queen who will save the city. It doesn't fit in the Green Arrow world whatsoever. Percy could have left out the mystical stuff completely and the story would have worked just fine as capitalists who want to take over the city for their sheer greed. That being said Juan Ferreya's art is so good I could stare at it without word balloons or a story in the first place.
Next up is the burn it all to the ground story where the Ninth Circle returns. They are blowing everything up in Seattle so that Queen Industries can rebuild it. There's a bunch of hokey mystical crap involved. The story is great and the art fantastic if you can get past how dumb the Ninth Circle is. They're your typical mustache swirling villains but believe all this mystical mumbo-jumbo about Seattle having these ley lines in the shape of a star. There's even a prophecy about a Queen who will save the city. It doesn't fit in the Green Arrow world whatsoever. Percy could have left out the mystical stuff completely and the story would have worked just fine as capitalists who want to take over the city for their sheer greed. That being said Juan Ferreya's art is so good I could stare at it without word balloons or a story in the first place.
December 4, 2017
Wow this series is just so pure unapologetically fun.
World: The art I love so much. It's the type of art I like that's full of character and emotion. It's awesome. The world building here is fantastic. It's detailed and a great extension of what Percy built since issue 1. This truly feels like a season of television and that's a great thing. The topic of the pipeline...props. Not a lot of books would go head on to that topic but Ollie makes sense to go right into it. Good job.
Story: This is just a fun series. It's black and white it's basic in it's motivations but it's just fun. The pipeline story some writers would not touch it cause of the argument it would create but Ollie makes sense to take on something like that. Roy in the mix made it so good. Then the Star City story is insanely fun. Pacing is great, stakes are high. Just good. There are some logic leaps and character issues here but overall it's so good.
Characters: Ollie is perfect for what he is. He's a bleeding heart and the people he's with make him so much more. Roy is great, done well and layered, perfect. Dinah is solid and an anchor but her fight with Ollie was fairly contrived. The lore with the Queens is so cool and I gobble that stuff up. The villains are all great even the hokey four horsemen.
So fun!
Onward to the next book!
*read individual issues*
World: The art I love so much. It's the type of art I like that's full of character and emotion. It's awesome. The world building here is fantastic. It's detailed and a great extension of what Percy built since issue 1. This truly feels like a season of television and that's a great thing. The topic of the pipeline...props. Not a lot of books would go head on to that topic but Ollie makes sense to go right into it. Good job.
Story: This is just a fun series. It's black and white it's basic in it's motivations but it's just fun. The pipeline story some writers would not touch it cause of the argument it would create but Ollie makes sense to take on something like that. Roy in the mix made it so good. Then the Star City story is insanely fun. Pacing is great, stakes are high. Just good. There are some logic leaps and character issues here but overall it's so good.
Characters: Ollie is perfect for what he is. He's a bleeding heart and the people he's with make him so much more. Roy is great, done well and layered, perfect. Dinah is solid and an anchor but her fight with Ollie was fairly contrived. The lore with the Queens is so cool and I gobble that stuff up. The villains are all great even the hokey four horsemen.
So fun!
Onward to the next book!
*read individual issues*
December 3, 2017
[Read as single issues]
Before we get to the Rise of Star City, we open with a three parter that reintroduces Roy Harper to the Green Arrow mythos, giving some backstory as to how he relates to Oliver in continuity now and the reasons why he left in the first place. It swerves a little dangerously towards cultural appropriation/adopted white boy tropes, but it's a decent little story with the same political heart as the rest of the book, and a good way to get Roy involved in things going forward. The art's a bit more inconsistent, since Eleonara Carlini's rougher edges don't gel as well with Mirka Andolfo's more polished look, but that's all forgiven when we get to the next story.
The Rise Of Star City has Team Arrow on the backfoot from the get-go, as the Ninth Circle break out the big guns (including Cheshire, Brick, and Eddie Fyers) and destroy everything out from under him as Team Arrow scrambles to stop them; Ollie loses his city, his secret identity, and his reputation. This is the 'knock the hero down' story before we get the 'build him back up again' bit, and it's painful to watch at times. Back on the art front, Juan Ferreyra draws all four issues which is a real treat since he's a superb artist with some clever layout work, and even the connecting covers enhancing the story.
And then we also get issue 25, Broken Arrow, which serves both as epilogue and prologue as Ollie deals with the end of the Rise of Star City and sets off on his Hard Travelling Hero adventure for the next volume; this one's extra sized, and all drawn by Otto Schmidt, the other awesome artist on this series who doesn't pop up as much as Ferreyra (although more from him next arc), but is equally as good.
The end of Green Arrow's first year of Rebirth stories is a gut-punch and a half that springboards Ollie off into his next adventure with some beautiful artwork and a solid lead-in story.
Before we get to the Rise of Star City, we open with a three parter that reintroduces Roy Harper to the Green Arrow mythos, giving some backstory as to how he relates to Oliver in continuity now and the reasons why he left in the first place. It swerves a little dangerously towards cultural appropriation/adopted white boy tropes, but it's a decent little story with the same political heart as the rest of the book, and a good way to get Roy involved in things going forward. The art's a bit more inconsistent, since Eleonara Carlini's rougher edges don't gel as well with Mirka Andolfo's more polished look, but that's all forgiven when we get to the next story.
The Rise Of Star City has Team Arrow on the backfoot from the get-go, as the Ninth Circle break out the big guns (including Cheshire, Brick, and Eddie Fyers) and destroy everything out from under him as Team Arrow scrambles to stop them; Ollie loses his city, his secret identity, and his reputation. This is the 'knock the hero down' story before we get the 'build him back up again' bit, and it's painful to watch at times. Back on the art front, Juan Ferreyra draws all four issues which is a real treat since he's a superb artist with some clever layout work, and even the connecting covers enhancing the story.
And then we also get issue 25, Broken Arrow, which serves both as epilogue and prologue as Ollie deals with the end of the Rise of Star City and sets off on his Hard Travelling Hero adventure for the next volume; this one's extra sized, and all drawn by Otto Schmidt, the other awesome artist on this series who doesn't pop up as much as Ferreyra (although more from him next arc), but is equally as good.
The end of Green Arrow's first year of Rebirth stories is a gut-punch and a half that springboards Ollie off into his next adventure with some beautiful artwork and a solid lead-in story.
December 26, 2018
This was good but man oh man, did it get a little too wordy.
So first half is mostly about Arsenal and his revamped origins for Rebirth storyline with Ollie. We learn how he became Red Arrow/Speedy but also how he fell into his drug addiction, while also getting a current storyline to help bring the heroes back together. The 2nd storyline is about the four horseman coming to Star city and basically destroying everything important to green arrow. A mixture of superheroish and political warfare begins the forth volume of green arrow!
Good: I enjoyed the art as always. Light and uplifting, giving us a real fun adventure feel. I thought the Arsenal revamped history was actually pretty decent. Not the best I've ever seen but fun none the less. I also liked seeing Ollie struggle and despite the odd ending it was great to see a hero a bit full of himself fall on his ass.
Bad: The four horseman storyline gets tired quick though. Long and drawn out. Not as exciting as I once hoped it would be. I also thought the fights here weren't all that fun or entertaining and everyone became to secondary to Green Arrow.
Overall a decent volume, some good moments. I wanted more with Oliver and company working together but it kind of flat lined a bit at the end. A 3 out of 5.
So first half is mostly about Arsenal and his revamped origins for Rebirth storyline with Ollie. We learn how he became Red Arrow/Speedy but also how he fell into his drug addiction, while also getting a current storyline to help bring the heroes back together. The 2nd storyline is about the four horseman coming to Star city and basically destroying everything important to green arrow. A mixture of superheroish and political warfare begins the forth volume of green arrow!
Good: I enjoyed the art as always. Light and uplifting, giving us a real fun adventure feel. I thought the Arsenal revamped history was actually pretty decent. Not the best I've ever seen but fun none the less. I also liked seeing Ollie struggle and despite the odd ending it was great to see a hero a bit full of himself fall on his ass.
Bad: The four horseman storyline gets tired quick though. Long and drawn out. Not as exciting as I once hoped it would be. I also thought the fights here weren't all that fun or entertaining and everyone became to secondary to Green Arrow.
Overall a decent volume, some good moments. I wanted more with Oliver and company working together but it kind of flat lined a bit at the end. A 3 out of 5.
August 13, 2020
Not much storywise, but the ideas behind political takeovers by corporations is interesting.
January 7, 2019
What to do with a failing comic - get even more hyper political and alienate half your audience? Stay classy, DC.
May 29, 2019
2.5* that I don't feel like rounding up.
A tad better than the previous volumes- not an insurmountable task, mind you- the book still suffers from Benjamin Percy's absence of any writing skills.
After introducing Arsenal back in the fray in a not too bad 3-parter-though his over-agressive attitude toward Oliver quickly gets boring-the Star City plotline starts. Nothing mind-blowing but roughly decent once you've admitted the unsubtle evil bankers part. There's action, dark plots uncovered and Seattle's skylines literally blows up. That's ok. Not great but ok.
But, if I'll admit an effort was made on some parallel plotlines, Percy still tends to jump from one scene to another without any real connection or at the very least sense of ellipse.
Once again he doesn't bother to try to rationalize some scenes: at one point Green Arrow jumps up on a bad guy when there's absolutely no reason he should know the guy is there. He just pops up and stops him.
Once again he doesn't manage situations he created: Later GA finds the same villain seconded by 2 dozen zombies. He nails the guy and starts a discussion with him. Where are the zombies? Fuck if I know! Fuck if Percy knows!
As for the last issue, opening GA's travels in the next volume, Percy doesn't bother to give the reader any clue as to why Oliver has to go on a quest. And what quest to start with.
These kind of dog and pony show tends to piss me off.
The plot seems to now go somewhere. Considering Percy's lack of coherence and consistency, the fact that next volume is going to be a kind of road-trip doesn't fill me up with confidence. I fear we'll have a long journey...
A tad better than the previous volumes- not an insurmountable task, mind you- the book still suffers from Benjamin Percy's absence of any writing skills.
After introducing Arsenal back in the fray in a not too bad 3-parter-though his over-agressive attitude toward Oliver quickly gets boring-the Star City plotline starts. Nothing mind-blowing but roughly decent once you've admitted the unsubtle evil bankers part. There's action, dark plots uncovered and Seattle's skylines literally blows up. That's ok. Not great but ok.
But, if I'll admit an effort was made on some parallel plotlines, Percy still tends to jump from one scene to another without any real connection or at the very least sense of ellipse.
Once again he doesn't bother to try to rationalize some scenes: at one point Green Arrow jumps up on a bad guy when there's absolutely no reason he should know the guy is there. He just pops up and stops him.
Once again he doesn't manage situations he created: Later GA finds the same villain seconded by 2 dozen zombies. He nails the guy and starts a discussion with him. Where are the zombies? Fuck if I know! Fuck if Percy knows!
As for the last issue, opening GA's travels in the next volume, Percy doesn't bother to give the reader any clue as to why Oliver has to go on a quest. And what quest to start with.
These kind of dog and pony show tends to piss me off.
The plot seems to now go somewhere. Considering Percy's lack of coherence and consistency, the fact that next volume is going to be a kind of road-trip doesn't fill me up with confidence. I fear we'll have a long journey...
December 31, 2021
Green Arrow Vol. 4 The Rise of Star City collects issues 18-25 of the DC Comics series written by Benjamin Percy with art by Juan Ferreyra, Eleonora Carlini, and Mirka Andolfo.
The Ninth Circle is throwing Seattle into chaos and destruction with the belief that the city was built on ley lines and trying to create a new Star City.
I'm not sure what is with Benjamin Percy's fascination in trying to make Green Arrow a supernatural book. Green Arrow is best when he is the champion of the people and fighting "the man." There is just so much mumbo jumbo in this book. The book is very pretty though.
The Ninth Circle is throwing Seattle into chaos and destruction with the belief that the city was built on ley lines and trying to create a new Star City.
I'm not sure what is with Benjamin Percy's fascination in trying to make Green Arrow a supernatural book. Green Arrow is best when he is the champion of the people and fighting "the man." There is just so much mumbo jumbo in this book. The book is very pretty though.
July 28, 2022
It's a fun book. Just nothing new here.
We're in the middle of Oliver's war against the Ninth Circle, as it reaches Roy's indian reservation, where he was raised up. Nice backup story and nice team up between him and Ollie. And them, we have the arc that gave name to this book, with the Circle finally revealing their plans towards Seattle. Again, nothing new. Just a big, elder organization that are trying to make the rich more rich and the poor more miserable.
Again, fun book, with really good art and really good colors. Let's see the next one.
We're in the middle of Oliver's war against the Ninth Circle, as it reaches Roy's indian reservation, where he was raised up. Nice backup story and nice team up between him and Ollie. And them, we have the arc that gave name to this book, with the Circle finally revealing their plans towards Seattle. Again, nothing new. Just a big, elder organization that are trying to make the rich more rich and the poor more miserable.
Again, fun book, with really good art and really good colors. Let's see the next one.
May 2, 2018
It was interesting to see Arsenal introduced into the series and for the most part, It wasn't a bad volume. I just think they really flopped hard at the end. It ended in a way that didn't even leave me remotely interested in continuing the story. Volume 4 starts the race with the bang and barely crosses the finish line at the end.
October 25, 2018
Enjoyable. Some issues were a little too wordy. Hopeuflly this ninth circle arc gets a wrap up soo. The art is still some of the best going around.
April 1, 2022
Good soup
May 20, 2018
I'm tired of the Ninth Circle, but as others have pointed out, this all plays like a season of the tv series, circling back to the Big Bad and involving subplots and secondary characters with their own sidestories. I enjoyed seeing Roy Harper's past relationship as Ollie's sidekick given a modest and modern update via flashback, and his interaction with Thea, er I mean Emiko, was fun. I love that no one wants to call her Red Arrow, but I wish she'd get a hooded costume ala the television show, maybe even the Speedy codename. Canary has less to do this time around, but the back and forth between her and Oliver is still great. Love the 2 regular artists and think they compliment one another well. Good stuff. Consistently fun and well done series.
November 25, 2025
I'm kind of mixed on this volume, as on the one hand I found the beginning to be great, and the latter part of to be whatever. I think my biggest issue with this one is that the main threat is one I've seen SO MANY times in comics. The rich and powerful are actually evil!!!! And they have this secret society that funds all the villains in hopes to finally bring down the city and build it anew!!! Like..... I don't see how that is super compelling when I've seen it done before. Percy acts like Ollie's family being a part of it is a big deal, when in reality that's super obvious in these kinds of stories. I see what he's going for with how Star City is coming to be, but man it just feels overdone.
The part of this volume I really liked was Roy Harper's story. This had a lot of heart to it, and the way it was able to call out how wrong Ollie was is great. Roy is compelling in this, and the way they do his origin this time is kind of a mix of old and new things. It felt very personal story wise compared to the rest of the volume.
So overall I didn't care for this one as much as the others. I hope Percy takes this story in a more interesting direction, since it seems like the secret society technically won by the end of this volume. The inclusion of Ollie's mother by the end, and him going off to find help seems like there's some exciting stuff coming. There's a chance Percy can stick the landing, but we'll see.
The part of this volume I really liked was Roy Harper's story. This had a lot of heart to it, and the way it was able to call out how wrong Ollie was is great. Roy is compelling in this, and the way they do his origin this time is kind of a mix of old and new things. It felt very personal story wise compared to the rest of the volume.
So overall I didn't care for this one as much as the others. I hope Percy takes this story in a more interesting direction, since it seems like the secret society technically won by the end of this volume. The inclusion of Ollie's mother by the end, and him going off to find help seems like there's some exciting stuff coming. There's a chance Percy can stick the landing, but we'll see.
May 30, 2018
My bottom line with this series? I find it FUN to read, in spite of, and because of, its cheesy puns and banter. There's a self-deprecating over-the-top crunchy liberal script and comical villains, you know, the kind who wear flowing robes and demon masks. The book could be trigger-ey, since basically every type of high-profile terrorist attack we've witnessed in the past decade or two occurs in Seattle as part of the uber villains' plan.
I enjoyed learning about Roy's past, and the creators at least attempted to make the white dudes on the rez not seem stupid. It slightly irritated me that it was mentioned several times that Oliver started being 1000x less of a moron since he's been dating Dinah, not because it's not true, but maybe because Oliver should be able to take his head out of his ass(actually the phrase used in the text) on his own.
As has been the case with this title, the artist seems to alternate. One of my biggest pet peeves with big two superhero comics is when artists change frequently. While this makes sense from a time/scheduling perspective, the discontinuity is jarring to me, and I usually prefer the art style of one penciller better than the other (which is the case this time, as well).
I enjoyed learning about Roy's past, and the creators at least attempted to make the white dudes on the rez not seem stupid. It slightly irritated me that it was mentioned several times that Oliver started being 1000x less of a moron since he's been dating Dinah, not because it's not true, but maybe because Oliver should be able to take his head out of his ass(actually the phrase used in the text) on his own.
As has been the case with this title, the artist seems to alternate. One of my biggest pet peeves with big two superhero comics is when artists change frequently. While this makes sense from a time/scheduling perspective, the discontinuity is jarring to me, and I usually prefer the art style of one penciller better than the other (which is the case this time, as well).
February 1, 2018
Roy Harper is back!!! Honestly, an awesome A+ run of Green Arrow. The artwork is amazing, Arrow Fam is front and center, and that ending actually took me by surprise.
👌👀👌👀👌👀👌👀👌👀 good shit go౦ԁ sHit👌 thats ✔ some good👌👌shit right👌👌th 👌 ere👌👌👌 right✔there ✔✔if i do ƽaү so my selｆ 💯 i say so 💯 thats what im talking about right there right there (chorus: ʳᶦᵍʰᵗ ᵗʰᵉʳᵉ) mMMMMᎷМ💯 👌👌 👌НO0ОଠＯOOＯOОଠଠOoooᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒ👌 👌👌 👌 💯 👌 👀 👀 👀 👌👌Good shit
👌👀👌👀👌👀👌👀👌👀 good shit go౦ԁ sHit👌 thats ✔ some good👌👌shit right👌👌th 👌 ere👌👌👌 right✔there ✔✔if i do ƽaү so my selｆ 💯 i say so 💯 thats what im talking about right there right there (chorus: ʳᶦᵍʰᵗ ᵗʰᵉʳᵉ) mMMMMᎷМ💯 👌👌 👌НO0ОଠＯOOＯOОଠଠOoooᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒ👌 👌👌 👌 💯 👌 👀 👀 👀 👌👌Good shit
August 1, 2019
S žádnou jinou sérií nemám při hodnocení takové problémy (OK, možná s Goonem).
Je to nádherně nakreslený, je tu místy super panelování a má to správné tempo.
Scénář osciluje od fajn momentů po naprosté WTF, chování postav občas nemá logiku a celým příběhem se nese tradiční poselství "kapitalisti jsou svině" (ne tak silně jako v minulých dílech).
Je to nádherně nakreslený, je tu místy super panelování a má to správné tempo.
Scénář osciluje od fajn momentů po naprosté WTF, chování postav občas nemá logiku a celým příběhem se nese tradiční poselství "kapitalisti jsou svině" (ne tak silně jako v minulých dílech).
February 11, 2022
I liked this okay but so far the Green Arrow Rebirth series hasn't really done it for me. The Ninth Circle is still trying to take over Seattle, and we find out more about Queen Industries being in the middle of it all. Roy Harper returns and we have the usual friction between team mates. I like the art but don't love it.
Overall this is good, but falls short of being very good. I will continue with the series, though.
Overall this is good, but falls short of being very good. I will continue with the series, though.
November 26, 2019
I never thought I would like the Green Arrow, he always just looked like an annoying rich guy who had nothing better to do than party. But I love the him in these rebirth comics so much that I just can't put these down.
March 10, 2018
This huge Volume is divided into two large stories.
Story #1 - Roy Harper, now known as Arsenal, used to be Speedy, Green Arrow's sidekick. Fans are familiar with Speedy's fall from grace (involving drug addiction, particularly heroin) and the story of it, but flashbacks are mixed here. These glimpses into his past help provide feelings and motivation during the current day plot. Queen Industries is cashing in on an oil pipeline, but there have been protests due to the pipeline needing to divide and take over a portion of an Indian reservation. Roy, having grown up some there, goes to help fight back. Arrow and Canary join in, and though their team up is awkward and tense, the 3 are able to fight back and cause further delay with the pipeline.
Story #2 - Since Oliver "died", Queen Industries has taken on causes that seem to destroy the legacy of his father..... and one night, everything goes wrong all at once. The Ninth Circle, a group of terrorists that is also somewhat like a cult, steps up and causes mass chaos (destruction, death, burning) to Seattle, culminating in the destruction of the famous Space Needle. With that gone, the mayor (who is allied with the 9th Circle) proclaims that Seattle is dead and what will rise is Star City. Why that name? Seattle is a city that lies on top of some powerful occult lay lines, arranged in the form of a pentagram. The Ninth Circle is revealed to have previous members of the Queen family in it, and Oliver, seeing a chance to take them out and reclaim his company, returns to "life" and is immediately arrested for his transgressions (assumed).
Making parole, Oliver finds out that The Ninth Circle plans to take their chaos and change nationwide, and so, making both himself and his alias Green Arrow into fugitives, he takes off across the country, wanting to redeem his name and that of his family.
Overall, this Volume was really good. Great story building and very tense at times. I'm still surprised at how much I enjoy this title. Recommend.
Story #1 - Roy Harper, now known as Arsenal, used to be Speedy, Green Arrow's sidekick. Fans are familiar with Speedy's fall from grace (involving drug addiction, particularly heroin) and the story of it, but flashbacks are mixed here. These glimpses into his past help provide feelings and motivation during the current day plot. Queen Industries is cashing in on an oil pipeline, but there have been protests due to the pipeline needing to divide and take over a portion of an Indian reservation. Roy, having grown up some there, goes to help fight back. Arrow and Canary join in, and though their team up is awkward and tense, the 3 are able to fight back and cause further delay with the pipeline.
Story #2 - Since Oliver "died", Queen Industries has taken on causes that seem to destroy the legacy of his father..... and one night, everything goes wrong all at once. The Ninth Circle, a group of terrorists that is also somewhat like a cult, steps up and causes mass chaos (destruction, death, burning) to Seattle, culminating in the destruction of the famous Space Needle. With that gone, the mayor (who is allied with the 9th Circle) proclaims that Seattle is dead and what will rise is Star City. Why that name? Seattle is a city that lies on top of some powerful occult lay lines, arranged in the form of a pentagram. The Ninth Circle is revealed to have previous members of the Queen family in it, and Oliver, seeing a chance to take them out and reclaim his company, returns to "life" and is immediately arrested for his transgressions (assumed).
Making parole, Oliver finds out that The Ninth Circle plans to take their chaos and change nationwide, and so, making both himself and his alias Green Arrow into fugitives, he takes off across the country, wanting to redeem his name and that of his family.
Overall, this Volume was really good. Great story building and very tense at times. I'm still surprised at how much I enjoy this title. Recommend.
March 9, 2020
Felt a little bit of a mish-mash of shorter stories that didn't flow completely, and the rise of Star city felt slightly rushed, but still good, and we seem to be building towards something now...
June 5, 2018
Great focus on Oliver's relationship with Roy Harper.
October 22, 2017
Okay, DC, sort yourselves out. How many versions of this volume are out there?
For the purpose of this edition, I will only discuss issues 18-20 and the annual. So let's start.
Vol 4 follows Roy Harper, as he returns to the reservation he was raised on to help his brother and the people of the reservation protest peacefully against the construction of a pipeline that is supposed to go through their territory. As history has and still continues to show us, the police look the other way when a militia (albeit here its basically the Warboys from Mad Max: Fury Road) very much uses violence to disperse the protesters. Olie and Dinah get involved, and we get to see Roy and Olie's past, albeit in a cliff-notes version.
Roy Harper has always been one of my favorite Titans characters, and i daresay I even liked the much maligned Red Hood and the Outlaws series. It was nice seeing the past between Roy and Olie, and to see how much they've changed (and haven't changed). There is something so incredibly appealing to me about self-sabotaging, destructive characters who slowly grow, and while Roy has the first bit down, the growth, like everything else was rushed.
I think I said this in either my vol 1 or vol 2 review, but the character turns in this series never feel properly established. Character motivations shift and change so dramatically, it's hard to understand why or how they come to these conclusions. The series is trying to set a new continuity for the Green Arrow team, but it relies heavily on our knowledge of past events and character developments. I genuinely doubt anyone who has never read anything about Roy or Olie before this series to feel at all emotional about seeing them bicker and fight, and seeing Olie abandon Roy after he almost ODs, because it's so rushed.
As for the story proper, it's fine. The issues on the reservation were timely with the Dakota Access Pipeline being built and all the actual horrible things the police and militias did to the Native Americans there. However, the commentary quickly loses its bite once you implicate mask wearing, bike driving, gun firing lunatics.
I enjoyed Olie and Roy's back and forth, especially their puns and insults. I liked that Roy got closure on his dad's death, though personally, I think it would have been much sharper if he did actually kill him in a blackout drunk rage during the struggle. I knew that wasn't going to happen because this is still a superhero comic, but Roy is one of the few DC characters that actually is allowed to have genuine horrible past mistakes, so it wouldn't have been that jarring.
As for the annual... look I'm still really confused. I searched far and wide to find this issue, and I'm still not sure I have the right one. It seems to be set before Rebirth, and it was published in 2015? Unless they mean the annual that is about to come out on the 29th in which case... I dunno what to tell you. I can only talk about what I have, and that is this issue.
So in this annual, Olie gets caught in the crossfire between two groups; the "Patriots" who I shit you not, are a group straight out of the Purge movies; and a group of people infected by a disease called Lukos (which is like calling your dog, dog) which mutates people into wargs. Yes. Wargs.
The Patriots are after these infected believing they are no longer human, and the infected are all living in a trailer park, railed up there by the government. Percy is trying to draw a parallel between these people and AIDS victims (since the disease is transmitted sexually and via infected blood), but like everything else, it becomes hilarious to the point of insulting. There is no real commentary in this, and the resolution, while appropriately batshit, is treated with too much gravitas for what is essentially a shootout between gun crazy lunatics and werewolves.
This volume was... strange. If we don't count the annual, it's a decent, albeit short introduction to Roy and his role in the Arrowfam. With the annual (which I'm pretty sure shouldn't be here) it's a mess. Still, the series at least continues to be as high octane as it started.
For the purpose of this edition, I will only discuss issues 18-20 and the annual. So let's start.
Vol 4 follows Roy Harper, as he returns to the reservation he was raised on to help his brother and the people of the reservation protest peacefully against the construction of a pipeline that is supposed to go through their territory. As history has and still continues to show us, the police look the other way when a militia (albeit here its basically the Warboys from Mad Max: Fury Road) very much uses violence to disperse the protesters. Olie and Dinah get involved, and we get to see Roy and Olie's past, albeit in a cliff-notes version.
Roy Harper has always been one of my favorite Titans characters, and i daresay I even liked the much maligned Red Hood and the Outlaws series. It was nice seeing the past between Roy and Olie, and to see how much they've changed (and haven't changed). There is something so incredibly appealing to me about self-sabotaging, destructive characters who slowly grow, and while Roy has the first bit down, the growth, like everything else was rushed.
I think I said this in either my vol 1 or vol 2 review, but the character turns in this series never feel properly established. Character motivations shift and change so dramatically, it's hard to understand why or how they come to these conclusions. The series is trying to set a new continuity for the Green Arrow team, but it relies heavily on our knowledge of past events and character developments. I genuinely doubt anyone who has never read anything about Roy or Olie before this series to feel at all emotional about seeing them bicker and fight, and seeing Olie abandon Roy after he almost ODs, because it's so rushed.
As for the story proper, it's fine. The issues on the reservation were timely with the Dakota Access Pipeline being built and all the actual horrible things the police and militias did to the Native Americans there. However, the commentary quickly loses its bite once you implicate mask wearing, bike driving, gun firing lunatics.
I enjoyed Olie and Roy's back and forth, especially their puns and insults. I liked that Roy got closure on his dad's death, though personally, I think it would have been much sharper if he did actually kill him in a blackout drunk rage during the struggle. I knew that wasn't going to happen because this is still a superhero comic, but Roy is one of the few DC characters that actually is allowed to have genuine horrible past mistakes, so it wouldn't have been that jarring.
As for the annual... look I'm still really confused. I searched far and wide to find this issue, and I'm still not sure I have the right one. It seems to be set before Rebirth, and it was published in 2015? Unless they mean the annual that is about to come out on the 29th in which case... I dunno what to tell you. I can only talk about what I have, and that is this issue.
So in this annual, Olie gets caught in the crossfire between two groups; the "Patriots" who I shit you not, are a group straight out of the Purge movies; and a group of people infected by a disease called Lukos (which is like calling your dog, dog) which mutates people into wargs. Yes. Wargs.
The Patriots are after these infected believing they are no longer human, and the infected are all living in a trailer park, railed up there by the government. Percy is trying to draw a parallel between these people and AIDS victims (since the disease is transmitted sexually and via infected blood), but like everything else, it becomes hilarious to the point of insulting. There is no real commentary in this, and the resolution, while appropriately batshit, is treated with too much gravitas for what is essentially a shootout between gun crazy lunatics and werewolves.
This volume was... strange. If we don't count the annual, it's a decent, albeit short introduction to Roy and his role in the Arrowfam. With the annual (which I'm pretty sure shouldn't be here) it's a mess. Still, the series at least continues to be as high octane as it started.
May 30, 2021
This series feels like a guilty pleasure, and I’m a little annoyed that I like it as much as I did, but here we are. This volume is heavy with liberal politics, as the previous installments were: Green Arrow steps in to help a group of indigenous protesters trying to stop a destructive oil pipeline; a fascist mayor allows Seattle to face literal destruction so it can be completely privatized by an evil corporation. I may be left-reading here, but it felt to me like the politics got a little better: there are parts that are explicitly anti-capitalist, which was a pleasant surprise (though a pair of white men helping to save the day for an indigenous resistance movement is very squarely a problematic liberal pipe dream). I also liked the way Percy continues to skewer (lightly), Oliver Queen for all the ways he screws everything up by being an arrogant rich white guy who often doesn’t have a clue. Again I may be reading more into this than I should, but I wasn’t expecting Succession vibes in a DC comic book.
The art is very strong throughout this volume, as it has been from the beginning of the series. The way it is used in service of the storytelling is some of the best I’ve seen in a while in a mainstream title: panels are arranged and interspersed to move the reader through time (or in flashbacks) in a creative way, the level of detail rewards the reader for really paying attention to the art that displays some of the best of what I think comics as a narrative medium can do uniquely well. So, big props to the artists and the writer for collaborating to get that result. I do wish there were credits in here for which artists did which parts - I can kind of guess, but it seems unfair to the creators that they skimped on that for this collected edition.
Overall this series continues to be a fun, escapist read that occasionally has glimpses of more. Shoutout to my local library system so I can enjoy it without having to shell out money to do so.
The art is very strong throughout this volume, as it has been from the beginning of the series. The way it is used in service of the storytelling is some of the best I’ve seen in a while in a mainstream title: panels are arranged and interspersed to move the reader through time (or in flashbacks) in a creative way, the level of detail rewards the reader for really paying attention to the art that displays some of the best of what I think comics as a narrative medium can do uniquely well. So, big props to the artists and the writer for collaborating to get that result. I do wish there were credits in here for which artists did which parts - I can kind of guess, but it seems unfair to the creators that they skimped on that for this collected edition.
Overall this series continues to be a fun, escapist read that occasionally has glimpses of more. Shoutout to my local library system so I can enjoy it without having to shell out money to do so.
August 10, 2023
Kolejny dobry tom, już czwarty, który czyni serię Green Arrow jedną z najlepszych serii w ramach DC Rebirth, a który kontynuuje komplikowanie życia Oliverowi, przypominając mu też dosyć sporo z jego przeszłości i ładnie kontrastuje z aktualną zmianą charakteru. "Zielona strzała" dojrzał do bycia kompetentnym bohaterem, ale jego problemy tylko się nawarstwiają.
Początek to ukazanie trudnych relacji z Arsenalem i trzeba przyznać, że na tym etapie życia Queen zawiódł kiedyś młodzieńca, który sam stara się teraz uporać z pewnym problemem. Roy niegdyś mieszkał w rezerwacie Indian, gdzie został zaakceptowany jako "swój", jednak pewnego dnia jego przybrany opiekun został zamordowany i winą za całe zamieszanie został obarczony Harper. Teraz przeszłość powraca, a Oliver stara się odkupić dawne winy, poprzez pomoc przyjacielowi.
To pierwszy segment historii, która potem przenosi nas do Seattle, gdzie pewna organizacja planuje upadek miasta i utworzenie nowego porządku. W tym celu napuszcza na metropolię kilku meta ludzi, którzy dokonują aktów terroru. Arrow i spółka musi zareagować, co może ich kosztować stratami osobistymi. Szkopuł w tym, że odpowiedzi trzeba też szukać w przeszłości rodziny bohatera i pewne fakty zabolą go mocniej niż cokolwiek do tej pory.
Historia jest dynamiczna i angażująca, choć miejscami przewidywalna. To co zaskakuje to fakt, że komiks kłuje w pewnych miejscach w oczy słabszą kreską względem innych, jakie mamy szansę obserwować na przestrzeni serii. Niemniej historia to motor napędowy serii i w ogólnym rozrachunku wciąga dosyć mocno. Zwłaszcza, że następny tom poprzez końcowy twist zapowiada się smakowicie.
Początek to ukazanie trudnych relacji z Arsenalem i trzeba przyznać, że na tym etapie życia Queen zawiódł kiedyś młodzieńca, który sam stara się teraz uporać z pewnym problemem. Roy niegdyś mieszkał w rezerwacie Indian, gdzie został zaakceptowany jako "swój", jednak pewnego dnia jego przybrany opiekun został zamordowany i winą za całe zamieszanie został obarczony Harper. Teraz przeszłość powraca, a Oliver stara się odkupić dawne winy, poprzez pomoc przyjacielowi.
To pierwszy segment historii, która potem przenosi nas do Seattle, gdzie pewna organizacja planuje upadek miasta i utworzenie nowego porządku. W tym celu napuszcza na metropolię kilku meta ludzi, którzy dokonują aktów terroru. Arrow i spółka musi zareagować, co może ich kosztować stratami osobistymi. Szkopuł w tym, że odpowiedzi trzeba też szukać w przeszłości rodziny bohatera i pewne fakty zabolą go mocniej niż cokolwiek do tej pory.
Historia jest dynamiczna i angażująca, choć miejscami przewidywalna. To co zaskakuje to fakt, że komiks kłuje w pewnych miejscach w oczy słabszą kreską względem innych, jakie mamy szansę obserwować na przestrzeni serii. Niemniej historia to motor napędowy serii i w ogólnym rozrachunku wciąga dosyć mocno. Zwłaszcza, że następny tom poprzez końcowy twist zapowiada się smakowicie.
August 13, 2022
This was a long volume, I really struggled getting through it. Which is odd because there were so many plot elements I liked? I love seeing Arsenal back and the way they're handling it. I love
I think what really bugged me was how they handled Black Canary in this volume (and possibly in past volumes, tbh I think I mention this every time) I just don't like the way they write her. She's an amazing character and a significant portion of my gay awakening, but here she's portrayed very much like the strong girlfriend who wears the pants... and I really hate that dynamic. She barely feels like more than the girlfriend even if she's a hero in her own right. The series tries to acknowledge it but only with words, not with writing her well. She's supposed to be the voice of reason but the way she and Oliver have petty fights over valid disagreements feels... childish. They're both adults, and they could communicate so much better in a way that upholds their conflict but every time these two act like this, I can't help but roll my eyes. Not to mention that scene where Black Canary warns the reporter to stay away from her man in a way... She would normally seem like the type to not even worry about that? I dunno, maybe I just like a different version of her.
But all that's just a shame because this is easily one of the best written series in Rebirth and I really enjoy the rest of it.
I think what really bugged me was how they handled Black Canary in this volume (and possibly in past volumes, tbh I think I mention this every time) I just don't like the way they write her. She's an amazing character and a significant portion of my gay awakening, but here she's portrayed very much like the strong girlfriend who wears the pants... and I really hate that dynamic. She barely feels like more than the girlfriend even if she's a hero in her own right. The series tries to acknowledge it but only with words, not with writing her well. She's supposed to be the voice of reason but the way she and Oliver have petty fights over valid disagreements feels... childish. They're both adults, and they could communicate so much better in a way that upholds their conflict but every time these two act like this, I can't help but roll my eyes. Not to mention that scene where Black Canary warns the reporter to stay away from her man in a way... She would normally seem like the type to not even worry about that? I dunno, maybe I just like a different version of her.
But all that's just a shame because this is easily one of the best written series in Rebirth and I really enjoy the rest of it.
March 17, 2018
3.5 that rounds down. This is the best volume of the bunch so far, I had actually decided after "Emerald Outlaw" that I was done with this series, but I had this one on hold already, and it was available before I canceled the hold...so, why not?
And compared to the other volumes I as rewarded. Ollie felt less like a parody of himself here, and the rest of the cast does even better. I don't know comics Ollie very well. I just haven't read much over the years, so the constant references to how Ollie "used to be," and how much "better" he was with Black Canary in these volumes was lost on me.
The actual plot and actions of the Ninth Circle, Seattle Mayor Ramini, who they have in their pocket, and the other various elements that make up the cabal of villains Ollie and co. face in these stories are really cool. Their surface and their dialogue though are ultra-cheesy corporate villain. The villains as characters don't reach character level, it's the corporate equivalent of painting the villain black and calling him evil.
A hero's only as good as the villains he faces and Ollie faces a bunch of villains that are about 3.5 level here, which, while a step up from volumes 1-3 isn't enough to round up to four stars.
And compared to the other volumes I as rewarded. Ollie felt less like a parody of himself here, and the rest of the cast does even better. I don't know comics Ollie very well. I just haven't read much over the years, so the constant references to how Ollie "used to be," and how much "better" he was with Black Canary in these volumes was lost on me.
The actual plot and actions of the Ninth Circle, Seattle Mayor Ramini, who they have in their pocket, and the other various elements that make up the cabal of villains Ollie and co. face in these stories are really cool. Their surface and their dialogue though are ultra-cheesy corporate villain. The villains as characters don't reach character level, it's the corporate equivalent of painting the villain black and calling him evil.
A hero's only as good as the villains he faces and Ollie faces a bunch of villains that are about 3.5 level here, which, while a step up from volumes 1-3 isn't enough to round up to four stars.
February 13, 2019
The Return of Roy Harper (#18-20). One of the many (many) pieces of continuity that DC destroyed with their ill-conceived nu52 initiative was the story of Roy Harper. He was definitely still around, as Arsenal, but it was unclear how he'd interacted with a much younger Ollie. "Return" finally gives us that story. Perhaps Percy changes continuity more than was necessary, but this is still a very believable and moving story, showing how a too-young Ollie really let Roy down when he needed help most. And, there's also a perfectly fine modern-day story about a protest [4+/5].
The Rise of Star City (#21-24). After way too much water-treading, it's great to see the major plots of Percy's Green Arrow run come to some sort of culmination here (if not actually a conclusion). There's a lot of dramatic action here and some strong characters, though at times it's a bit too much sound and fury. But, I can forgive that for the equally dramatic ending that addresses some issues we readers have been wanting to see since V1 [4+/5].
Broken Arrow (#25). An OK catch-up with the lives of our major characters, but a frustrating end with Ollie going on the road rather than staying in "Star City" to fight, and with some of the major results of "The Rise of Star City" being walked back [3/5].
The Rise of Star City (#21-24). After way too much water-treading, it's great to see the major plots of Percy's Green Arrow run come to some sort of culmination here (if not actually a conclusion). There's a lot of dramatic action here and some strong characters, though at times it's a bit too much sound and fury. But, I can forgive that for the equally dramatic ending that addresses some issues we readers have been wanting to see since V1 [4+/5].
Broken Arrow (#25). An OK catch-up with the lives of our major characters, but a frustrating end with Ollie going on the road rather than staying in "Star City" to fight, and with some of the major results of "The Rise of Star City" being walked back [3/5].
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