#3 - Top 12 Comic Book Characters

3. Green Arrow

I have always rooted for the underdog. I probably liked Ollie at an early age because he always seemed so out of place within the JLA, but he never let anyone push him around. I always enjoy his role within the JLA, especially because he always seemed to be quitting every other issue. He serve as the annoying conscience of the League, much like he had with Hal circa 1970.

The Longbow Hunters was published at a time when I was pretty much out of comics altogether. It sucked me back in. I loved it. I really don't think that it was until the Mike Grell ongoing series that Ollie was fully realized as a character (interesting since it was nearly a half century since his creation). He was now more of a detective and was much more vulnerable as he seemed isolated from the rest of the DCU. I loved everything about the Mike Grell ongoing series. I was in high school at the time and could not wait for each issue to hit the stands.I just really dug Ollie - he was pompous, hot headed and didn’t really know how to treat his superhot girlfriend. After a crisis, he’d hit the road to straighten out things in his head. I really related to that approach to life.

Ollie is an extremely flawed man, and that’s why I admired him so much. His relationship with Dinah is about as real a relationship as I’ve seen in superhero comics. It was a good idea to have him settle in Seattle - as it was a blank slate and he could work his charms (or lack thereof) on the local people and police.I lapped up every single issue. I was absolutely shocked when they killed him off. Shocked! I actually ended up really enjoying the Connor & Eddie years, but this is a post about Ollie, so let’s stick with him.

Much like I felt with Daredevil, I was really concerned when I heard that Kevin Smith would be bringing Ollie back. To me, it sort of devalued his death as well as Connor’s growing role in the DCU. I was wrong - it was pretty well done and the stories following the initial Quiver arc were strong too. I have 5 or 6 of the TPBs now and I am pretty darned impressed - the whole Arrow Family works well as a concept and Ollie rocks as the father figure. I really like the Phil Hester drawn stuff - he has helped to breathe new life into the character.I am certain that Oliver Queen has a polarizing effect on readers - I just happed to be waaaaay over on the ‘Love Him’ side.