In the previous issue of Arcadia, Gabriel Hardman laid the groundwork for a moody and thrilling modern noir starring three of DC’s biggest vigilantes, and with Batman/Green Arrow/The Question: Arcadia #2, the plot picks up the pace. The Black Label series (one of the few remaining at the moment) started off as a moody piece with a tech vs. environmentalist theme, but the three leads never really interacted much. Aside from The Question essentially recruiting Oliver Queen by asking leading questions about the new company buying out Queen Industries, there was very little interplay between the three DC heroes in that opening issue. That changes somewhat in Arcadia #2, as Batman and Green Arrow take a larger focus in the second act, leading to a promising finale.
SPOILERS AHEAD for Batman/Green Arrow/The Question: Arcadia #2!
As Oliver Queen takes the Arcadia project head on, Vic Sage is undercover as a builder in their interior facilities, working to create the mysterious “floating island” that can potentially change the Climate Crisis for the world (and the highest bidder). As Sage learns more from his embedded role, he quickly deduces that everyone working there isn’t being rewarded monetarily so much as working off jail time, and comes across a small band of rebels working to take down the project. Meanwhile, Oliver Queen’s more direct approach goes about as well as you would expect for a vigilante who uses trick arrows against an entire off books military that’s also teamed up with Batman. After being completely overwhelmed by the combined forces, Queen tries desperately to convince both Batman and Rotha, the head of Juno Corporation, to see the error of their ways, and of the darkness just underneath the Arcadia project. But after a massive attack on the project puts everyone on high alert, Batman, who’s been growing more and more impatient with Rotha and his men, finally gives into his hunches and joins Queen, who’s just conveniently met up with The Question and the rebel forces that have been trying to destroy Arcadia from within.
My review of the first issue of Arcadia brought up the interesting angle that these three leads bring to this type of noir story, but unfortunately a lot of that is pushed to the side with this second issue. Hardman’s characterizations and inner conflicts for Queen and especially Batman are pushed largely to the side in favor of pushing an narrative that we all can see the ending of. While Vic Sage gets to the do the down and dirty investigation that will ultimately be the Arcadia Project’s undoing, the fact that Batman, of all characters, is reduced to a glorified henchman for the Juno Corporation is pretty disappointing. While I can buy that Batman would see the value in being an “independent agent” for the Juno Corporation to get access to their information, the fact that he’s constantly being frustrated at his lack of access is, frankly, kinda annoying for someone known as the “world’s greatest detective”. Not to mention that when he’s confronted by Oliver with the extremely clear human rights violations that the Juno Corp are committing and essentially shrugs it off, it feels like Hardman is using Batman as the villainous corporate mouthpiece, or “the ends justify the means” type, which feels pretty out of step with how Batman has been treated in the past few decades. Granted, of the three heroes he makes the most sense to be the “villain turned hero” for the story, but even this feels a step too far from even the most hardened takes on Batman. By the time he comes around to Arrow and Question’s side at issue’s end, I expected him to announce that he had been playing a part all along (which, in fairness to Hardman, may still happen).
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That being said, the noir aspects of the story are still really compelling, and it’s interesting to see the different ways Oliver Queen and Vic Sage confront the Juno Corporation. While not given as much page time as Queen, Sage’s time in the bowels of the Arcadia Project are really interesting, giving us the “ground level” experience I was hoping would continue from the first issue. It’s also extremely fun to get a constant back and forth between Sage’s very underground takedown of the Juno Corp vs Queen’s in their face, but on the back foot approach. While I’m not as into Hardman’s take on Batman for this story, his dialogue and characterizations of Green Arrow and The Question are a blast to read, and makes me wish for a continuing series for this mismatched pair.
Hardman’s art is still just as dynamic here as the first issue, but with the added benefit of more diverse locations. While other artists may use the snowy wilds of Greenland to showcase endless panels of white, Hardman instead uses the locale to juxtapose the brightness of Oliver Queen’s costume as it stands out from the harsh winter conditions. Add in the imposing and interesting look of the Batwing towering above him, and it adds to the overwhelming and claustrophobic feeling of just how under prepared Oliver is against this entire project. That same claustrophobia can be felt with The Question toiling away on the building project for Arcadia. The tight panel construction and close ups of Sage and the other workers adds a layer of sadness and desperation to their part of the issue that puts you in their shoes in almost uncomfortable ways.
While Arcadia #2 is a slightly frustrating read as a longtime Batman fan, I have to admit that putting him in a slightly villainous role is interesting. However, I wish there was more time spent with Batman and his motivations to try and show just WHY he’s on this side of the conflict. That being said, the comic makes up for some of that with me by showing a really interesting and engaging dynamic between Green Arrow and The Question’s varying takes on investigating shady corporations. Now that Batman has seen the light and joined the other two, it’ll be interesting to see how this all concludes in the finale.
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