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Green Arrow, Year One is DC's latest
attempt at revisiting the origin story of a major character.
At first glance, this seems a little redundant. But
then, a good origin story is more like a myth than a normal
superhero story. The good ones can stand up to
retelling.
The core idea of Green Arrow's origin is
actually pretty strong, as second-tier heroes go. He's
a pampered playboy who gets marooned on an island and whose
true virtues emerge when his wealth is stripped away from
him. That's a good, enduring theme. You can make
it work. It also has the advantage of setting up the
social-crusader role that Green Arrow plays in the DC
universe, even though that wasn't the original focus of the
character.
So you've got a story everyone basically
knows, and it's just a matter of telling it properly.
For this, DC have turned to Andy Diggle and Jock, the
creative team from Vertigo's Losers. It's a
good choice. A character like Green Arrow lets them do
the sort of set pieces that worked in their previous
collaboration. Jock's art isn't a great fit for
superheroes in spandex, but in an origin story, that's not a
major problem.
Issue #1 is a surprisingly minimal
affair. Diggle and Jock are both very efficient
creators, and this really is pared to the bone. That's
not to say nothing happens. On the contrary - it sets
up Oliver's relationship with his bodyguard, Hackett, and
then hurls itself into the story by the end of the issue.
Plenty happens. What's missing is virtually anything
that might have been superfluous. If you discount
random crowd members and generic speaking parts such as the
auctioneer, Oliver and Hackett are basically the only two
characters in most of the issue. But it works.
These are the only characters we're meant to invest in;
everything else is backdrop, and the story makes sure we're
not distracted.
Jock's art is every bit as striking.
The opening scene, with Oliver and Hackett trying to reach
the North Pole, is a completely gratuitous action sequence.
But it's a great one, as Jock makes brilliant use of empty
space on his wilderness pages.
All told, this is a very promising
version of the old story - and, unusually for today's DC, it
stands alone. Unexpectedly good reading.
Rating: A-
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