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GREEN ARROW #10
"Quiver Chapter Ten: Father's Day"
Recommended (8/10)
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DC Comics
Writer: Kevin Smith
Pencils: Phil Hester
Inks: Ande Parks
Colors: Guy Major
Letters: Sean Konot
Editor: Bob Schreck
Price: $2.50 US/$4.25 CAN |
After all the elements that have been added into this series, and all the high points the series has had up to this point, it was almost inevitable that I would be a little disappointed in the final issue of the story arc. However, while the mystical elements were a bit of a rough fit for Green Arrow, there are still some real high points in the final chapter of "Quiver," notably the relationship between Ollie and his son. Green Arrow #10 is not
really full of surprises, as the rest of the arc has been, but it's a solid
ending to what has been an impressive first year for the revitalized title.
The heart of this issue is
the relationship between Oliver Queen and his son Connor Hawke, something that
has never been addressed with both men in person before. Smith gets to handle a
landmark moment here for both characters, and while the action distracts from
the emotional and personal characteristics of that moment a little, in general
it's a nice payoff for fans of either character.
In addition, Smith uses the
bond between father and son to bring closure to the resurrection of Oliver
Queen. I was impressed that he had found a way to have his cake and eat it too,
leaving Oliver happy in Heaven even as he was back fighting crime, but this
issue provides a reason for a change in that status quo, and it made for an
internal conflict as interesting as the external one of two archers versus
demons from Hell.
While I was impressed with
Smith's ability to range throughout the DC Universe, I thought that he was
stretching just a little bit in order to fit in Stanley and his Monster. It was
a neat twist, but it meant doing one thing I had hoped he wouldn't (revealing
Stanley to be evil) and it forced this last story into more of a slugfest
against demons, something the more street-level Green Arrow really doesn't fit
comfortably into. With that said, I was quite pleased with the finale of the
Stanley's Monster story, which was amusing and featured a terrific redesign by
Phil Hester and Ande Parks.
Hester and Parks, of course,
do a solid job throughout the last issue, just as they have throughout the rest
of the arc. The cramped quarters of the fight, the horrific appearances of the
demons and the mastery of archery that both Ollie and Connor have are shown off
very well in their artwork. Major's colors are beautiful as well, maintaining a
dark tone without making the work at all muddy or indistinct.
This creative team, from
cover artist Matt Wagner to editor Bob Schreck and at all points in between, has
served up a take on an underrated DC character that has made it DC's number one
book for much of the year. In addition to being a big moneymaker, it has been
one of the creative highlights of the DC Universe in 2001 as well.
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