Broken Frontier

Spoilers for Justice League: Cry For Justice discussed in this review.

There is a common misconception that we place on all superheroes, especially those of the Big Two. If Batman never carries a gun, then heroes shouldn’t carry guns. If Superman always tells the truth, then heroes must always be honest. No one person created these rules or equations as to how a good guy should act, down to the types of colors they wear on their uniforms. We did. We perpetuated these preconceived notions to the point of them being set in stone. How else can you explain the hullaballoo behind a new Captain America carrying a side arm? He fought Nazis in World War II, did you think he never touched a weapon?

With that said, do I believe that a hero can never cross the line? No, of course not. They’re meant to be people, too. The more real they are, the more relatable they become, which makes their struggle even more compelling against others’ altruistic ideals. A hero is defined by what he or she overcomes, not only achieves. 

In the pages of Justice League: Rise and Fall Special, we are meant to witness this struggle through the eyes of a very flawed man, Oliver Queen, the Green Arrow. Written by J.T. Krul, with art by a team that includes Mike Mayhew, Rise and Fall takes place after Cry for Justice, most notably the final panels where Green Arrow hunts down and kills Prometheus, the one responsible for killing hundreds of thousands in Star City, including his granddaughter, Lian.

It’s easy to understand Queen’s motivation and dilemma. For all intents and purposes, Prometheus deserved the righteous arrow between his eyes. The problem in this story comes in the escalation in which Krul takes Oliver’s bloodlust. Oliver states clearly that he is not a hero, but a hunter. A hunter kills with a clear and clean purpose. Green Arrow seems to be assigning blame from Prometheus down, when a more realistic journey would be the one towards Prometheus. Before this story even starts, he has already bagged the big hunt. The rest just seems frivolous.

The real drama should be in Oliver’s guilt (or lack thereof), Dinah’s opinion of him, and how the League is willing to deal with it. None of these topics are broached until the last few pages in which Ollie runs before any kind of emotional impact can be felt. From a story standpoint, this series is filled with the right kind of character beats, moral quandaries and action that makes some of the best kinds of superhero fiction. It just seems to miss the target.

No real help comes from the all-over-the-map art by three different pencilers, three inkers, and three colorists. This was a book by committee and, unfortunately, it holds down little to no visual consistency throughout. It is barely fluent in its best transitions and outright jarring in the worst. There are even differences in how one artist will render a location, only to have that same location change when being tackled by another artist just pages later.  It’s upsetting to see on a launching title like this.

Having read last month’s Blackest Night: Green Arrow special written by Krul, I had high hopes for this launch. He gets the good and bad of Ollie, but in this instance, it feels imbalanced with no real guidance in either direction from the art.

There is more than enough here to make an exceptional and compelling miniseries and J.T Krul has proven a competent writer. Let’s hope this creative team tripped out of the gate and plans to finish strong. These fingers are crossed.