The Green Arrow of time is sharp and true:
I finally finished reading Green Arrow volume 1 which concluded in 1998 (about 17 years ago). And onto the reprints of classic O'neil/Adams GL/GA issues; published in 1983 (about 32 years ago). These stories were originally printed around 1970 (the year I was born and about 45 years ago). Today I started to read through the Futures End comic which began last year and which features Ollie in a significant roll from the start.
On the inside of the front cover of the GL/GA reprints, Roger Slifer (sometime comic book writer and creator of Lobo among other things) wrote a heartfelt nostalgic piece regarding his first experience with Green Lantern #76, the first of the O'neil/Adams run. He begins the piece saying he was about to quit comics in 1969. O'neil and Adams arguably reinvented comics for the modern age during their short-lived run. In the editorial, Slifer was quite adept at setting the scene and reminding readers of how important this series was, and still is. Again, this was written in 1983.
Flash forward 12 years from 1983 to 1995 and Oliver Queen is dead. In another 3 years the title is canceled. The comic industry was in rapid decline during this time. It seemed the dreams of relevance and importance of comic books in society was lost. Flash forward 17 years and we come to present day: Futures End. Comic book characters have never been so popular, and poor Ollie (Spoiler alert!) is dead again. I find it amusing to read these tales of Green Arrow from four different eras and note how the comic book industry has changed between each incarnation. From one of the most important series of the modern age, to moderate obscurity and on to the small screen. Ollie has done it all.
For the past 45 years, Green Arrow has always been a secondary character; never managing to hold up next to the heavy hitters for long. He's a lone wolf at heart. An activist and, like the legend of Robin Hood, holds up as a symbol of justice the common man can relate to. He has also been the pulse of the comic industry for decades. Although GA will probably never be the world's favorite comic book character, my recent readings have shown me that he is actually a very important character and the industry would surely not be the same without him.
(note: while researching for this post, I discovered that Roger Slifer was a victim of a hit-and-run in 2012 and has yet to fully recover. Please acknowledge and support his cause as you are able.)
https://es-la.facebook.com/SLIFER.Needs.You