Green Arrow: Vol. 1, The Death & Life of Oliver Queen

This is a better-than-average story arc for Green Arrow, a B-level character whose success on TV has revitalized his comics career as a disguised social justice warrior. Super-rich playboy Oliver Queen supports worthy causes with his money every day, then dons Green Arrow’s costume of cape and bow to fight crime at night. When sexy crime fighter Black Canary isn’t falling into bed with Oliver, she needles him for being willfully oblivious to society’s more serious problems. She’s right, as it turns out: Oliver’s blithe neglect of his responsibilities has let Queen Industries become a front for monstrously depraved and truly evil forces. When Oliver tries to intervene, he’s assaulted, discredited, and stripped of all his resources—except his closest allies, who rally around when he starts fighting back. The story feels like a remix of familiar superhero plot elements, but novelist Percy’s (Red Moon) script and Schmidt and Ferreyra’s art still work together expertly to get the job done. (Jan.)