Spoilers ahead for Green Arrow #29!
Now, this review is going to contain some spoilers, so if you haven’t read it yet, put this review back in your quiver until you read the issue. Green Arrow is messing around! He knows who the Crimson Archer is, and he’s not happy about it. With the series coming to a close, and far sooner than it deserves, readers better strap in because this issue shows that Chris Condon, Montos, Adriano Lucas, and the whole team are going down swinging! In this issue, Oliver tracks down the Crimson Archer and prepares to end things – until he learns his personal connection to the man who’s ruining Star City. Meanwhile, Roy and his daughter Lian continue doing some good old fashioned super-heroics. But with all that, how does this issue shape up?
DC
This has been one of my favorite arcs in Green Arrow history, every bit of intricacy into the ripple effects of addiction, taking advantage of people in vulnerable positions, and tying it together with reminders of how the everyday person outside of comics can be impacted by acts of kindness has shown how much heart Chris Condon has put into this story. This issue is no different. While Green Arrow is one of DC’s oldest superheroes, this arc has given him less of a “Wham! Pow! Kapow!” route, having Ollie act as a detective has been a blast to see. The added intrigue of seeing him slowly uncover the layers upon layers of the Crimson Archer’s plan to terrorize the people of Star City made the story far more enthralling as it felt like we were uncovering the mystery with him. Altogether, Condon has delivered a well-crafted a final arc for the series.
Unfortunately, my singular complaint has remained the same: what the heck is up with the page count?! Giving this issue 21 pages, including the cover, is a failure to the title that has continued to reflect a trend in comics to have books have such a short amount of pages. Comparatively, Green Lantern had 23 pages, The Flash had 22, and Justice League Unlimited also had 22. Although that’s a problem to tackle in a longer essay, I’ll leave it at this: giving a monthly book less than 25 pages is an unfortunate decision that can cause books to end on an abrupt note, and that’s certainly the case here.
DC
That said, Montos and Adriano Lucas continue to put out absolutely stunning work. This issue is full of grit, warmth, and intrigue, and a huge reason is how this pair has continued to pour their all into every issue. Montos delivers another issue with brilliant paneling that maximizes the page space. As a result, every scene feels fluid and very dynamic. This helps things like Ollie’s detective scenes to be depicted in a very thorough way. Additionally, Adriano Lucas’s soft and vibrant colors help the scenes with Roy and Lian to feel like nostalgic super-heroics that comics used to have during the Bronze Age. Altogether, this is a beautiful issue full of emotion, vibrance, and creativity.
Green Arrow #29 is another great issue in the series that helps build the anticipation towards the final showdown between Green Arrow and the Crimson Archer. Although I initially thought it would be more satisfying to see Roy deliver justice against the Crimson Archer, I think the divergence between these two plots worked out very well. While Roy is rediscovering the value of being a superhero with his daughter, Ollie is fighting a ghost of the past who has attempted to hurt those he loves. This direction works very well to remain true to the core values of each character. As a result, this is another strong issue that builds the excitement towards the series finale.
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