Nevermind, Absolute Green Arrow #4 is a Bullseye

Well, I’ve fallen a bit behind on my reviews for the ongoing DC Absolute series that I’ve been doing lately, so it’s time for some catch-up. This week I’ll be looking at Absolute Green Arrow #4. It was good. It was really, really good.

SPOILERS FOLLOW

This issue picks up immediately where the last one left off. Dinah Lance quickly dispatches Solomon Grundy, then continues on in the underground laboratory. However, Roy Harper is nowhere to be seen. Dinah finds Hector Hammond and a Dr. Iker interrogating and experimenting on Oliver Queen’s former bodyguard. Dinah intervenes and captures Hammond. He begins telling her about how Ollie was “one of them,” and we get a flashback of Ollie talking with Edvin, prince of Vlatava, about using their wealth to help the world. Ollie feels discouraged because nothing he does seems to make a difference. Edvin reassures him that he can help, referencing how his country holds a substantial share in American news media. Back in the present, Hammond reveals Ollie’s disfigured and contorted body that they had been experimenting on. Hammond uses Dinah’s shock to order Solomon Grundy to revive, and he attacks Dinah. The Longbow Killer intervenes, helping her, but Grundy proves to be a capable foe. The issue ends with Hammond commanding Grundy to take the Longbow Killer’s hand in retaliation for losing his own.

The pacing slows down considerably in this issue, but that’s more than ok. This feels like the beginning of the final climax, and I know that two issues remain in this arc, and I’m now sitting on the next one. The cliffhanger is brutal, so I know that waiting for the next release would have been rough. There’s a big focus on action here, and the action looks good. I am a little surprised that the Longbow Killer seems to be struggling in this fight as much as he is, but I suppose up until now, he has only been fighting regular humans, not regenerative abominations. Regardless, I think that this issue accomplishes what it needs to. My complaint with #3 is that not a lot happened in the allotted time, and everything that did felt more like set-up than real progression. Even though not a whole lot happens in #4, it brings central characters together into a location and escalates the stakes. Things may be slowing down on the grand scale, but I assume that it’s only because we’re nearing the conclusion. It’s far better for the story to slow down and really stick the landing than it is to keep pushing fall apart because the scope and action just balloons up too much.

On that note, I was really nervous about Solomon Grundy after the first three pages. Dinah initially dispatches him very quickly. If that was the end of him, I was going to be very disappointed. But no, he comes back, and he seems to be a genuine threat. He definitely makes for a good zombie-type enemy, and I enjoy his inclusion as an obstacle. Part of the appeal for these comics is seeing the crazy villains and new takes on familiar characters. Grundy is no exception. Sure, he’s a mindless brute with no depth, but he doesn’t need any. He fulfills his role as an enforcer perfectly.

One element that I really want to mention is Hector Hammond. He is awful. As a character, he’s petty and arrogant, and he has no qualms hurting and destroying others in pursuit of his goals. He thinks that he’s above the consequences of his actions, and it’s absolutely infuriating. The comic is doing a fantastic job of making the reader absolutely loathe him. I genuinely cannot wait for his downfall. His writing as a villain has been excellent.

I think it’s also worth taking a moment to address the elephant in the room: Oliver Queen’s corpse. There has been a lot of ambiguity over the Longbow Killer’s identity and the whereabouts of Ollie’s body. Now we have one of those answers, and it’s going to make the Killer’s identity all the more interesting once it finally comes. I, for one, cannot wait to see who it is and what that means for the narrative.

Lastly, the art is great. It always is. These comics have been absolutely knocking it out of the park in terms of art direction and prowess. These books consistently have some of the best comic art, in my humble opinion (though my exposure may be a smidge limited…).

Thematically, I still think it’s very strong. I love how the series has been grappling with the problem of wealth and the elite using it to help or hurt others, and the consequences of both. It’s a very real, timely subject that I find perfectly well-suited for today. I genuinely cannot wait to see how this series wraps up.

SPOILERS END

Last week, I was a tad disappointed with Absolute Green Arrow #3. I thought that the issue had advanced the plot very little and felt more like filler. I do not feel that way about #4. Sure, the pacing is still on the slower side, but that’s because it needs to be. This issue does advance the narrative in meaningful ways, and also has some great action that makes the set-up worth it, even if I find set-up inherently frustrating. Check it out. The DC Absolute Universe is incredible, and Absolute Green Arrow is genuinely shaping up to be one of my favorites, if not my favorite. It was absolutely worth the $5.99 I spent for it (had to buy a variant cover). I cannot recommend this series highly enough.