Arrow Do die hard Green Arrow fans like Arrow?

[daveswb]

I've enjoyed Arrow a lot. There can be definitely a lot of comparisons drawn between the Nolan verse of Batman and Arrow.

But I am a Marvel guy and never really read Green Arrow. I know they are taking a lot of liberties with the character and have changed so much. One thing I noticed is a large amount of the villains are Teen Titans villains. Where are more from his rouges gallery? And why doesn't he have a mask? He's been almost caught a bunch of times. A mask would really help. And did they really need to change as much as they have to make it work for a modern tv show?

What do you guys think?

I host a podcast and want to hear what people think so I can talk about it on my show.

Super Hero Speak: http://superherospeak.com/wp/

 

[HighFivingMF]

He never had many villains. Merlyn and Count Vertigo are the big ones. He kiled Drakon in the pilot. Brick, Onomatopoeia, and Clock King haven't been used yet. I can't see Brick staying under wraps forever. Onomatopoeia was a character the writers admitted they had a difficult time adapting to live action, agreeing with creator Kevin Smith. And Clock King needs some reworking, and is currently being redone in Jeff Lemire's Green Arrow comics. They could perhaps be waiting for that version to inform theirs. But I suppose they'd rather find villains from the wider DCU to suit their story than focus on building their story around the 5 or so recurring villains Green Arrow has.

 

[daveswb]

HighFivingMF, Thanks for the reply. What do you think off the show over all as a Green Arrow fan? I know alot of Superman fans didn't care fr Smallville. Curious what you think about Arrow.

 

[Rorschach2012]

Before I knew the show was coming out, I had read Green Arrow Year One and The Longbow Hunters, and had seen GA in JLU. So i wouldn't call myself a diehard fan. But, I am a fan, and I love the show, and i love the tweaks that they've made to fit their universe. The only thing I haven't liked is their treatment of Count Vertigo. There's still hope that they can introduce a new version of the character, but I don't like that they reduced him to a drug dealer

 

[Loki882]

Most of the GA fans that I've talk to either like or love the show. It's not perfect, but it's MUCH better than either they or I expected it to be.

 

[LongbowHunter]

the answer is yes

Although I've got to admit that I caught up with most of the comic book archs after the show started, GA has always been one of my favourite characters (mostly because of his attitude, etc). I loved him as a supporting character and in the few stand-alones I had read back then.
Now I've read most of the GA stuff (starting from the Hard Travelling Heroes all the way to the New 52 (with some "voids" I still need to fill)) and I must say that although the series changes a lot of things it is a very good reinterpretation of the character. I also see that they set up many possibilities for Ollie to become more like his comic book counterpart. They won't explore all of them probably, but it's nice to see that if they ever feel the need to go "back to the roots" they could build in certain changes very smoothly.

 

[mbfloyd]

Just stared watching the show.

It's pretty good

 

[chamber-music]

Green Arrow will have a mask soon (they already have pics of him wearing one in a upcoming episode).

Most Green Arrow fans like the show. Arrow is closer to the Green Arrow of the comics in many ways than the Smallville Arrow was.

I like the fact that even minor comic characters from the Green Arrow comics are used in the show. Characters who have not even appeared in comics in 20 or 30 years.

Green Arrow doesn't have the a whole lot of strength in depth in regards to his rogues so it makes sense to have him go up against a wide range of DC villains who aren't just his own.

I don't mind the changes with Merlyn although the scarecrow/joker inspired Count Vertigo is a little off.

Stuff like his mother still being alive, Walter being his step-dad and Thea being Olivers sister don't really bother me that much. It makes sense to give him a family supporting cast on a weekly serial television show.

The first season of Arrow felt like it was heavily influenced by Mike Grell's Green Arrow from the late 80s to early 90s who killed villains, didn't interact with other superheroes much and thought drug dealers, street gangs serial killes, mobsters and yakuza.

 

[MadVillainy]

As a pretty big fan of Green Arrow, no i dont like the show. It's not even the changes to the comic I just think it's boring, mediocrely acted, and not interesting

 

[ArcherFan]

Huge fan of Ollie. Have been for...years. Can't say I've read as many issues as some out there (some are just hard to find), but yeah...one of my all time favorites. It's the reason I have the name I have (and no, not because of the cartoon Archer...)

So, when I give this answer, it may be through rose colored glasses, but...

I love it.

There are differences, sure. Family still alive, Shado is Chinese and not Japanese, Merlyn being an old family friend, a heavy willingness to kill - something the comic Oliver never had, despite having a few death-dealings in the ol' quiver. The change in Edward Fyers is another (and a supporting cast member I always liked), the change of Constantine Draken, etc.

All that aside...I'm not a traditionalist in the sense that it HAS to be this way or that way, so-and-so HAS to do this. They've managed to maintain the flavor of the character, the flavor and feel of the street-level hero, inspired by Robin Hood, who somehow managed to hide his identity with only a domino mask while sporting facial hair in a classic Errol Flynn look - all while modernizing it and making changes needed to keep it alive and vital in a long-term TV show.

And it's got Slade Wilson!

 

[the last son]

Not a fan of Green Arrow. About to watch Arrow though and see if it's any good. See it's on Netflix.

 

[S. Grundy]

I'm not a huge GA fan, but I do think it gets to be a tad too po-faced. And then of course there was the whole *****-footing around with the name.

 

[Herolee10]

I have to admit, I didn’t care much for this show when I first heard that they were trying to create it. I already had my exposure to the character from the SV take, which I wasn’t that impressed with but considered it good enough.

I only just checked out the pilot out of sheer boredom, and I was so surprised on how great it was that I just got hooked afterwards. Amell and the show’s creators have definitely made a larger impact on the character than Hartley and SV did for Green Arrow.

 

[daveswb]

Thanks everyone for the feed back. I will be talking about all this on the podcast. I'll reply to this thread when that episode is recorded and goes up. Keep it coming.

 

[Justin]

I wouldn't say hardcore but he's always been my favourite and he's the only comic books I've ever bought, so here's my take on it. Some of my friends do not watch it. They don't want anything to do with it, they have their books and they'll go see a justice league movie but they don't want to see GA spoilt, so they don't bother. I checked it out and I really liked it. Love the show actually. But they are two seperate things.

Really, this is like live action Batman with Ollie instead of Batman. But that doesn't make it a bad show. Ollie always did borrow a lot of Batman villains anyway. Killing Drakon right off the bat was a little silly, because really he should have been recurring much like China White and Deadshot are, if not bigger. Also Vertigo, they got him so wrong.. should have waited, he should have been big bad number 2 after Merlyn.

The introduction of Diggle and Felicity, it works for the show. As does the expansion to the island backstory and the Slade Wilson twist. John Barrowman's casting as Merlyn was inspired. They changed Merlyn sure, but I'd say they improved him actually. They gave him 5 years of backstory and had him be Oliver's superior, so fair play. I enjoyed it.

The only things really that were missing from S1 were the trick arrows, BC, wisecracks and superpowers. All of that seems to be addressed in a roundabout way this season. Ollie was always more liberal though, at least in what I read. They are touching on that a little with Sebastian Blood. Basically I see S1 of Arrow as their origins. S2 we seem to be getting more towards GA from the books. We have to be aware that different media works differently though, I actually don't want to see Amell singing the Arrow theme song like he'd do on the cartoons

On another note, Amell has grown into an awesome Oliver Queen, most of the recurring characters that they added have really added to the show.

It's a good show essentially. The melodrama, Laurel etc.. thats part of the trade off for getting the show in the first place. The question is, is it better to have a show that is really good but occasionally gets characters wrong due to the network and catering to mainstream or have no show at all?

I'd rather have Arrow than nothing to be honest, they do a great job for the most part and the only way they could do it better would likely get far less ratings, mainstream following and attention. If they made a 100% true to the comics GA, it would likely get cancelled.

 

[combocaz]

I didnt care for this show when it first came out but its grown on me now and i like it. Atleast it isnt cheesy like SHIELD.

 

[DrRocket]

Well the only comic books I've ever read we're green arrow and this show is freaking amazing!

 

[Mr. Dent]

It's getting way better as they're transitioning into developing him into the Green Arrow we know from the comics.

 

[Arachnid]

I'm a huge fan of the show. But I've never read any Green Arrow comics. I'd love to. Which ones would you guys recommend?

 

[HighFivingMF]

I'm a huge fan of the show. But I've never read any Green Arrow comics. I'd love to. Which ones would you guys recommend?

Year One, Longbow Hunters, Quiver, Sounds of Violence, Jeff Lemire's current run (Green Arrow 17-23, 23.1, 24-)

 

[ProjectPat2280]

Iv never cared for Green Arrow UNTIL this show. I was never planning on watching it either but caught the tail end of an episode last year then decided to watch em all and was floored. Comic fans HATE to admit it, but sometimes film or tv just does a better job of interpreting the character than the books do. This is clearly one of those times.

 

[regnak]

Comic fans HATE to admit it, but sometimes film or tv just does a better job of interpreting the character than the books do. This is clearly one of those times.

ITA I haven't read Green Arrow since the 1990s but this show is excellent and this Oliver far better than any comic version I have seen.

 

[ArcherFan]

Year One, Longbow Hunters, Quiver, Sounds of Violence, Jeff Lemire's current run (Green Arrow 17-23, 23.1, 24-)

This.

My suggestion: Start with Longbow Hunters. Sure, there's a bit of a history involved with it, but it was the first step on their 'darker, grittier, street-level Green Arrow'.

It has a de-powered Dinah, introduces Shado and Eddie Fyers into the DC universe (don't expect it to match the show, but still good). Great story and art. Arguably one of my favorite GA stories.

Lemire's current work in Green Arrow has been AWESOME. While I myself am not much of a fan of the New 52, and I HATED the first 17 issues (0 through 16) or so issues...once Lemire took over, I fell in love with the book again. It re-introduces Shado into the new 52, introduces Diggle into the comic, brings Richard Dragon (one of the premier DC martial artists) into the book...

 

[Bathead]

I go back really far as a Green Arrow fan, pretty much from the beginning iin the 60's when he wore a green outfit with red gloves and boots, and no goatee, when he was pretty much just a re-skin of Batman. I'm enjoying the show so far, the only problem I have with it is the eye makeup. A mask (or even the glasses he had in Smallville) would be vastly more practical.

 

[mightiest_mortal]

I'm enjoying the show so far, the only problem I have with it is the eye makeup. A mask (or even the glasses he had in Smallville) would be vastly more practical.

Yea in my house we joke about when he has time to put it on.
Current theory is he just has loads of make up painted on the inside of his hood, so that he can rub it on to his eyes (or off) with his hood really quickly.