GREEN ARROW #18

By: Tony Whitt
Review Date: Monday, November 18, 2002

Mindless brutes don't seem to fare very well in the DC Universe. Over at Marvel, they end up being superheroes or occasionally interesting supervillains. At DC, though, the poor brutes are little more than annoyances that editors and writers alike know not what to do with. Granted, they're fairly deadly annoyances, but annoyances nonetheless.

Take Solomon Grundy, for instance, a villain whose glory days seem to have been in the Golden Age and in certain parts of the '70s. In the post-CRISIS world, Grundy has turned into more and more of a mindless savage, a chalk-white version of the Hulk with no redeeming alter ego and little other motivation than to smash things. Even his appearance last year in JSA as part of the ill-conceived "Joker's Last Laugh" was forgettable, notable only because he managed to get his ass kicked by the likes of Jakeem Thunder and the Star-Spangled Kid. His appearance in this month's issue of GREEN ARROW is only slightly more worthwhile, as Oliver and Roy head back to the old mansion to look for a mystery item that Oliver needs. That's where they find Grundy squatting in the ruins; mayhem ensues.

Brad Meltzer does do a bit more to show just how dangerous this guy really is. Otherwise, Grundy's inclusion does little more than provide an issue-long slugfest and pad out a six-part story arc. Granted, it's a pretty damned action-packed slugfest, and Meltzer demonstrates that he can put together the bon mots just as handily as Kevin Smith could, but it's hardly more than that. The fact that we're witnessing a fight in the ruins of the old Arrow Cave should also provide more nostalgia, but apart from Ollie's nearly being flattened by the Arrow Car being hurled at him, there's nothing to distinguish it from any other setting. Perhaps it'll all look better in context when the inevitable collected edition of this story arc comes out next week. Did I say next week? I mean next year. Still, hard to tell with how quickly Marvel and DC put those puppies out nowadays...


Actually, "looking better" is one thing this issue need not worry about. Apart from the surprisingly uninspiring Matt Wagner cover painting, the artwork is just as stunning as ever, with Hester and Parks taking every opportunity from the minimal amount of exposition and dialogue this issue gives them to create layouts that move. Even Grundy looks a bit more interesting than usual in their capable hands, and that's a tough job for anyone - even, it appears, for Wagner. But all the stunning artwork in the world and fast-paced action sequences can't expunge that sinking feeling that the squatting monster in the Arrow Cave could have been anyone. It could have been Man-Bat - actually, it should have been Man-Bat, if he's still around. It could even have been (shudder!) Booster Gold; now that would have been monstrous. But until someone can do something with him besides treat him as DC's answer to the Hulk, perhaps Grundy should be left in the Cave with all the other boring, useless villains.

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