|
Dave Scrimgeour & Kevin McCluskey    Writer- Elliot Maggin Artists- Neal Adams & Dick Giordano Editor- Julie Schwartz SynopsisIn the offices of power, a plan is devised to have Ollie run for mayor of Star City, something he struggles to reconcile with his peers, and himself, until he is caught in the centre of a riot which results in the death of a young boy. This tragedy confirms his instinct that he may be able to do more good for his city as an elected official rather than a costumed vigilante. Dave 'What Can One Man Do?' is Green Arrow's turn and, actually, this is one not written by Denny O'Neil. Kev Nope, here we have Elliot Maggin, following in O’Neil’s footsteps, and also having a pop at corporate America. Again, why does this run continuously feel so timely and relevant? Dave Yep. Corporations, they never change.  "Looking, over a city, that's gritty, and rather pretty, a pity, it's hard to find,...." Kev Nope. Apparently not. Dave I do like the first panel. It’s really good. Just great colours in it. Kev Yeh, the colours on that first panel, looking out of the window of Ollie’s corporate office, at the setting sun over the skyline of Star City are fantastic. Dave And that splash page is another excellent page. Wall art! Not said that before, have I?  "Right on the target but wide of the mark." Kev Not so far tonight, you haven't. You're right though, that splash page is a thing of beauty. Compositionally, draughtsmanship, colour, the whole shebang. Kudos to Adams and Giordano once again. Dave There are similarities I’m noticing between Oliver Queen and Matt Murdock. They’re both fighting against inner city injustices, and using the costume as a weapon to combat this in their own way. Kev There are definitely similarities, yeh. Ollie, despite being broke, still thinks he should send good causes a dollar, if nothing else. What a guy! Dave Even though Ollie might seem like a hot-headed guy, it's his way of dealing with how the corruption and poverty that he sees in front of him affects him. In contrast to Hal/Green Lantern, who can be a self-righteous twat at times. That stark contrast makes these two play off each other so well. Kev They make a good buddy cop combo, alright. Dave I like the panels on page 3 that describe this figure becoming more than a man, a legend. Elliot Maggin’s writing is in-keeping with the tone of this character, so far. He's encapsulating the arrogance that Ollie does project at times as well. Even heroes are flawed in ways. Kev Yeh, like you said; Ollie has been portrayed as being quite impulsive and hot-headed throughout this run. He's much more overtly flawed than Hal is. Certainly in that particular way. Although, I think you're also spot on with your observation that Hal can be a self-righteous twat at times. Both of them are flawed heroes indeed. “Jack Mayor!” That’s a name for a character that sits squarely on their nose. Dave I thought it was Jack Major. Kev Ha, ha! You're right. I totally misread that. I need new glasses apparently. Time for the old man bifocals. Dave Well it's definitely not Jack Reacher. Imagine him in office. Kev Ha, ha! I couldn't see Jack Reacher being particularly diplomatic in a political scenario. Ollie’s having a crisis of confidence. “Sometimes I think we costumed characters aren’t good for much other than outer space invasions and bug-eyed monsters!” Good for saving the planet, not so good for solving the social issues ON the planet. Dave I do like that bit. It's an address to the readers as well, to show that comic books are delving deeper into more real world affairs, rather than the misconceptions imposed upon them at the time. Kev True. That's a good point. Perhaps Maggin was making a comment on how good, and socially relevant, the work of O'Neil and Adams had been. Particularly when contrasted against the more cosmic elements of the Justice League. Dave Page 6 is another well composed page, with a cameo by Bruce Wayne also. Christ, we can't escape him can we. Kev Apparently not, no. Yep, that's a nice little cameo from the former mayor of Gotham City, one Mr. Bruce Wayne. The composition of page 6 is stunning. The use of the telephone cord (that was a thing that attached one part of your phone to the other at one point in time, kids) to split the conversation is a technique we’ve seen Adam’s use before, but never more effectively than he does here. You can see how this was perhaps an influence on Todd McFarlane, and how he liked to use Spidey’s webbing to split panels on Amazing Spider-Man when he was the artist on that. I’m assuming that is one Mr. Clark Kent in the last panel also. Dave That's what I was thinking as well. Clark Kent in the bottom panel, yeah. Kev The hair certainly makes it look like him. Dave There is a lot of internalisation with Ollie here, and the story moves on nicely. In fact, very little has happened. He's been asked to run for mayor, made a few phone calls and went out for a fly, but Maggin’s writing has still been really good. Page 7 is another good example of composition of panels and great colours. It's been really standing out, the artwork in this story. Kev I agree. Neal Adams and Dick Giordano are on fine form here. But then again, when are they not? Yeh, this may very well have been a bit of a filler story, but Maggin has made the most of it. It continues the themes of Denny O'Neil's more socially conscious stories, sets-up Ollie running for mayor, and that ending is just absolutely profound. Skilfully done stuff. Dave "Profound" would be a good word to use. Pages 8 and 9 have some "profound" internal monologues from Ollie. He's realising how much change has he actually made. Which is something the modern genre of superhero films and shows often tackle, but this was ahead of it's time for sure.  "All around, people looking half-dead, walkin' on the sidewalk, hotter than a match head." Kev “Whose fault is this, Oliver (Green Arrow) Queen? And at whom do you direct your justice… your anger? Who’s fault? The black, the red, the yellow… the poor, the meek, the peaceful, herded into a small speck of earth……where movement at all cannot be outward……but only upward…in an eruption!” Yep, what truly IS the point of superheroes? Dave Dealing with the mob is indeed a hard prospect for him to comprehend. It's really the first time we have got all this internal thought process occurring. He has the time to think now, as he has no Green Lantern to bicker with. Kev Ha, ha! That's a really good point, Sir. This is probably the longest amount of time we've spent with Ollie internally, in his head, as opposed to him having Hal to bounce off of. Dave Did the kid get whacked or shot? Could be a shot  "Lost in a riddle that Saturday night, far away on the other side. He was caught in the middle of a desperate fight." Kev I think he got shot in the back. There is a "Blamm!" sound effect off to the right in the panel.  Dave "Any man would be stunned facing something horribly unexpected." Speaks for itself, really. And Ernest Hemingway being quoted here in the ambulance ride really ramps-up the feeling of foreboding doom coming over Ollie. Those pages with no dialogue are always great, effective storytelling methods. It's used a lot, but in the right context it always makes for a great page. And the bottom panel, of the surgeon removing his mask, is top notch. Again, Adams on top form.  Kev Absolutely, man. Pages 11 and 12 are incredible pieces of visual storytelling. Just sublime. Comics, man! You can’t beat ‘em.  Dave Yeah, the last panel on page 12 is superb, and actually, the other 3 panels beforehand are excellent as well. You can see the anger in Ollie as he cries. The realisation, hitting him like a ton of bricks.  Kev Definitely. I'm a huge fan of the visual storytelling of comics anyway, but this, combined with that Hemingway quote is just absolutely fantastic.  Dave The epilogue definitely shows a broken Ollie here, as he makes his decision, and tells Dinah he will run for Mayor.  Kev Yeh, that epilogue is a nice little wrap-up of this story, whilst also setting the table for the immediately following issues, as Ollie makes his intentions known to run for mayor. And that is one pink couch. Dave Shit yeah! Maybe Ollie is planning a name change to Pink Arrow? Kev Maybe. That costume would be quite fetching in pink, actually. That or Dinah is planning on changing her gimmick to 'The Pink Canary.' Dave "Sleep well Oliver Queen...you may not do so for a long, long time." He knows his decision will come with another heavy burden to bear. This issue has really tackled some hard hitting truths head-on, and done it so well. I’m surprised by how good the writing is. Kudos to Elliot Maggin. Kev Absolutely. O'Neil's are some tough shoes to step into, but Maggin, seemingly pretty effortlessly, pulls it off. And Adams is on some of the best form he's been on throughout this run too. Which is saying something. Dave I just noticed, on the epilogue page, the calligraphy of 'What Can One Man Do?' (and now we know why it was titled this) is reminiscent of the old style Earl Flynn 'Robin Hood' films. Which is fitting for Green Arrow, as he looks like those dashing figures, but he's battling in the modern, urban world. Kev Ah! So it is. That's another good spot, Sir. Dave This is definitely another solid effort from the Lantern series, even if this issue was just intended as a filler for a month, this series has been nothing short of great, and I’m always surprised by how good the quality of the stories is. Kev No doubt. As you rightly pointed out, this particular story is light on plot (it is only 13 pages long after all), but it's got a lot of heart, delivers a powerful message, and still manages to lay some groundwork for future issues. Not bad for a baker's dozen pages. Maggin's done good. Dave Indeed. (D) & (K)  "I never sleep, 'cause sleep is the cousin of death."
0 Comments
|
Back issues
June 2025
|
RSS Feed