GREEN ARROW #72

Seeing Red, Part Four:  Back To School Night

May 2007

Written by Judd Winick

Pencils by Scott McDaniel

Inks by Andy Owens

Cover by Scott McDaniel & Andy Owens

Synopsis

At the Smith O’Neil High School, Jason Todd (aka Red Hood) has Mia Dearden (aka Speedy) bound and gagged.  However, he frees her so that he can teach her lesson, that sometimes they have to do bad things to get by.  Meanwhile, Green Arrow and Batman follow clues left behind by the Red Hood to locate Mia.  They arrive just as the high school explodes, although Mia was able to get out safely.  The Red Hood is nowhere to be seen.  Later, Ollie watches a tv newscast that reports Ollie has been funding the vigilante group the Outsiders.

Review by Binkley (e-mail)

We can divide this issue into two parts:  the sidekicks’ discussion and the mentors’ discussion.  I really liked the latter, but was bored with the former.  We know that Mia will be released unharmed, just as we know that Red Hood won’t actually do anything to her, other than try to “talk” to her.  The argument from Red Hood (about killing and doing what is necessary) has become tired and bored for anyone who has followed Winick’s take on the character.  We know the heroes of the DCU don’t subscribe to his opinion, so we know he won’t the argument.  So, those scenes are the weak point.  However, this is more than made up by the conversation between Ollie and Bruce in the car.  The attacks by both on their ability to be effective surrogate dads were brutal, but truthful.  It was a small moment, but the best in the issue. 

I liked the scoreboard in the gym.  At first I thought it was just a little goof for the title page, but it can be seen again a few pages later.  The Smith O’Neil High School was probably named  after Denny O’Neill, the writer for some of the politically charged Green Arrow stories in the 70s and Kevin Smith, the writer who helped to return Green Arrow to the DCU after he “died.” 

The “screen shot” of the Outsiders on the final page looks like it would have been taken from the first storyline when the team fought back a gorilla attack on Manhattan.

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