What do you think?
Rate this book
Green Arrow (2011) #4-6
Green Arrow: War of the Clans
The entire Green Arrow run of New York Times best-selling author Jeff Lemire is now collected in its entirety in this all-new Essential Edition trade paperback graphic novel!
Oliver Queen thought he had it all figured out. As the heroic archer Green Arrow, he'd finally found a sense of purpose, friends to aid him, even a place on the Justice League of America. But now he's not even sure where he came from... or whom he came from.
As Green Arrow discovers that his stranding on a desert island was more than just an accident, there seem to be more sinister forces at work behind all these sudden revelations. The Queen family is embroiled in a war generations old. A war of clans. A war of outsiders.
Acclaimed creative team Jeff Lemire (Animal Man) and Andrea Sorrentino (I, Vampire) take Green Arrow on his most challenging adventure yet. Collects Green Arrow #17-34, Green Arrow Futures End #1 and Green Arrow Secret Origins.
The DC Essential Edition series of graphic novels highlights the best standalone stories the medium has to offer featuring comics' greatest characters. These trade paperback editions focus on the easiest entry points DC has in its vast library, with seminal, groundbreaking tales that transcend the printed page. Start with the Essentials.
Oliver Queen thought he had it all figured out. As the heroic archer Green Arrow, he'd finally found a sense of purpose, friends to aid him, even a place on the Justice League of America. But now he's not even sure where he came from... or whom he came from.
As Green Arrow discovers that his stranding on a desert island was more than just an accident, there seem to be more sinister forces at work behind all these sudden revelations. The Queen family is embroiled in a war generations old. A war of clans. A war of outsiders.
Acclaimed creative team Jeff Lemire (Animal Man) and Andrea Sorrentino (I, Vampire) take Green Arrow on his most challenging adventure yet. Collects Green Arrow #17-34, Green Arrow Futures End #1 and Green Arrow Secret Origins.
The DC Essential Edition series of graphic novels highlights the best standalone stories the medium has to offer featuring comics' greatest characters. These trade paperback editions focus on the easiest entry points DC has in its vast library, with seminal, groundbreaking tales that transcend the printed page. Start with the Essentials.
450 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 5, 2016
39 people are currently reading
393 people want to read
About the author
Jeff Lemire
1,393 books3,871 followersLibrarian note:
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name
Jeff Lemire is a New York Times bestselling and award winning author, and creator of the acclaimed graphic novels Sweet Tooth, Essex County, The Underwater Welder, Trillium, Plutona, Black Hammer, Descender, Royal City, and Gideon Falls. His upcoming projects include a host of series and original graphic novels, including the fantasy series Ascender with Dustin Nguyen.
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name
Jeff Lemire is a New York Times bestselling and award winning author, and creator of the acclaimed graphic novels Sweet Tooth, Essex County, The Underwater Welder, Trillium, Plutona, Black Hammer, Descender, Royal City, and Gideon Falls. His upcoming projects include a host of series and original graphic novels, including the fantasy series Ascender with Dustin Nguyen.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 95 reviews
February 6, 2017
MYSTERY! ACTION! HUNKS!
What I love most about Jeff Lemire and Andrea Sorrentino's Green Arrow is that it's a mystery. The mystery of Robert Queen. The Island. The Outsiders. And how all these tie into the Queen Legacy and Ollie taking the reigns as Green Arrow in
This is actually the first Green Arrow comic I've ever read. And I must say I really enjoy Jeff Lemire's modernization and origin story. While this Ollie isn't as funny as I've seen elsewhere, this more crime procedural focus is plenty interesting. He isn't the deepest character ever. But he does have depth. Torn apart by his mother, father, and crucible experience on The Island. Not to mention suffering a bit from the Messiah complex.
I really like the villains here and that the adventure/mystery stories are mostly realistic and don't rely on heavy superhero fantasy. Komodo, Count Vertigo, Dragon, The Outsiders are all fascinating and formidable enemies. The artwork works really well, too, because Andrea Sorrentino's artwork is killer. Dark, gritty, and almost photorealistic. Marcelo Maiolo's tonal colors perfectly balance everything out. Some of the splash pages head into Francis Manapul territory in their creativity and color. Just an incredible book to look at.
So overall Green Arrow Deluxe is a pretty great book. Characterization is a little lacking, but Green Arrow has never been the deepest character. I haven't read any old GA, but it feels like Lemire has done something special here. And Sorrentino and Maiolo's artwork is spectacular.
A quick note on the Deluxe Edition... My biggest complaints are the glued binding and paper thickness. The binding is very tight, causing some gutter loss. The paper is sturdy and high gloss, but terribly thin. I don't know if this was done on purpose with the book's length, nearly 500 pages, but so what, I want thick paper and don't mind a thicker book. The front and rear covers and spine are sturdy and colorful, but the dust jacket design is lackluster, particularly the spine which doesn't stand out on the shelf. This is a solid edition with good design, no deal breakers, but the quality is somewhat lacking for the price compared to Image OHCs. Just a heads up for you collectors.
June 7, 2016
I'm beginning to notice that Lemire doesn't really have much of a style or voice in his superhero work, it's something that seems to come through more in his creator owned graphic novels, but that doesn't mean he can't write some good super hero comics!
Lemire and Sorrentino came onto the book around the same time the Arrow TV show was growing in popularity (I've still not watched it), so there are obvious parallels between the visual style and some of the story beats here. Most notably how his outfit looks a little bit more like the TV show than the classic comic outfit and the inclusion of Diggle in the third act of the book.
But the only other Green Arrow comic I've read up to now is Year One by Diggle and Jock, and this works as a kind-of-sequel in that 'New 52' soft rebooty way were they pick and chose bits of canon they want to keep. The island is referenced to and is even in the book, and Oliver's time on the island is a main part of the back story here.
It's a pretty good book and visually pretty, though I do think Sorrentino can get a little boring after a while if he's never given more of a variety of characters to work with.
I can't compare with other Green Arrow books, but I think this stands on its own well.
Lemire and Sorrentino came onto the book around the same time the Arrow TV show was growing in popularity (I've still not watched it), so there are obvious parallels between the visual style and some of the story beats here. Most notably how his outfit looks a little bit more like the TV show than the classic comic outfit and the inclusion of Diggle in the third act of the book.
But the only other Green Arrow comic I've read up to now is Year One by Diggle and Jock, and this works as a kind-of-sequel in that 'New 52' soft rebooty way were they pick and chose bits of canon they want to keep. The island is referenced to and is even in the book, and Oliver's time on the island is a main part of the back story here.
It's a pretty good book and visually pretty, though I do think Sorrentino can get a little boring after a while if he's never given more of a variety of characters to work with.
I can't compare with other Green Arrow books, but I think this stands on its own well.
July 20, 2017
The New 52 reboot of Green Arrow is a good place to dive into the storyline of this character. It's intense and action-packed, and shows Green arrow as the tough, incredibly skilled archer and martial artist he is. This volume assumes that the reader has never read Green Arrow before, and I liked that about it. It's also designed to draw in viewers from the Arrow show as one of the important characters created for the show makes a crucial appearance in the storylines here.
The villains in this book are very formidable and they are no paper tigers easily defeated by the Arrow. They are all seriously messed up, evil, or zealots. There are so really clever twists and turns as well. The story introduces a young character who is scary as hell. She was raised by Arrow's greatest enemy to hate him, and intends to see it done. While there is only one Batman, I think that Green arrow has many of the elements that attract me to Batman as a character. He goes in a different direction, much more focused on righting social ills in society at large than Wayne is. Also Oliver has a deeper sense of connection with others around him, although this leads to tragedy as the people he loves end up getting caught up in the crossfire.
There are some mystical elements in this story that are well-integrated into the narrative,
The artwork is very well-executed, and it transmits the intensity of the storyline.
It's violent and cinematic, and makes me super happy that my library had this huge volume, because I'm thinking it would have been really expensive to buy it.
The villains in this book are very formidable and they are no paper tigers easily defeated by the Arrow. They are all seriously messed up, evil, or zealots. There are so really clever twists and turns as well. The story introduces a young character who is scary as hell. She was raised by Arrow's greatest enemy to hate him, and intends to see it done. While there is only one Batman, I think that Green arrow has many of the elements that attract me to Batman as a character. He goes in a different direction, much more focused on righting social ills in society at large than Wayne is. Also Oliver has a deeper sense of connection with others around him, although this leads to tragedy as the people he loves end up getting caught up in the crossfire.
There are some mystical elements in this story that are well-integrated into the narrative,
The artwork is very well-executed, and it transmits the intensity of the storyline.
It's violent and cinematic, and makes me super happy that my library had this huge volume, because I'm thinking it would have been really expensive to buy it.
December 18, 2021
Every once in awhile a writer/artist comes along and defines a character. This is what Jeff Lemire and Andrea Sorrentino did.
Green Arrow was the bottom of the barrel in quality when New 52 started. Unlike Batman and Wonder Woman, Green Arrow was as bad or worse than even Superman. Giving shitty storylines, ruining major character, reverting the character back to a kid basically, and so on. So after almost 2 years of this terrible shit Lemire and Sorretino come on the scene and change the game completely.
We're thrown into a darker world than before as Oliver loses everything. His father figure, his company, his friends are kidnapped. The relentless villain Komodo goes after everything Oliver holds dear, and man does he not stop. With plenty of fun twist to the Mythos of Green Arrow this run gives Oliver some of his highest moments ever as a character, excellent art and fight scenes, and a satisfying growth of the entire cast. If only it could have been another 3-4 arcs to give it legendary status.
A 5 out of 5.
Green Arrow was the bottom of the barrel in quality when New 52 started. Unlike Batman and Wonder Woman, Green Arrow was as bad or worse than even Superman. Giving shitty storylines, ruining major character, reverting the character back to a kid basically, and so on. So after almost 2 years of this terrible shit Lemire and Sorretino come on the scene and change the game completely.
We're thrown into a darker world than before as Oliver loses everything. His father figure, his company, his friends are kidnapped. The relentless villain Komodo goes after everything Oliver holds dear, and man does he not stop. With plenty of fun twist to the Mythos of Green Arrow this run gives Oliver some of his highest moments ever as a character, excellent art and fight scenes, and a satisfying growth of the entire cast. If only it could have been another 3-4 arcs to give it legendary status.
A 5 out of 5.
February 4, 2016
In my opinion, the New 52 has generally been a creative failure. It's been filled with mediocre writers and grimdark, angry, and arrogant superheroes — all beholden to poorly conceived, overly intrusive editorial mandates and a house style that's often dull.
Jeff Lemire's Green Arrow shows what the New 52 could have been. He reinvents Green Arrow in a meaningful and interesting way and just drenches his stories with characterization. Hand-in-hand with that we've got a brave reinvention of the Arrow Mythos with the Outsiders. Finally, we've got strong art and interesting coloring that together make the book stand out on all fronts. Even better, this book stands as a cohesive whole.
Kill Machine (17-21). Lemire rather bravely starts off the volume by dismantling the Green Arrow comic of the first year and a half. It allows him to be dramatic, but this sort of thing can be overdone. Beyond that, there's great tension and great mystery. Ultimately, this is just a setup, with Ollie only learning about the Outsiders and setting out to search for the dragons as the story ends ... but it's a great setup [8/10].
Vertigo (22-24, 23.1). The reinvention of Shado and Vertigo is well done, and again shows off what the New 52 could have been. Overall, this is a nicely presented Ollie, a nicely presented Team Arrow, and an exciting story [8/10].
This seems to be when the Green Arrow comic really linked up with the Arrow TV show, which is a good thing given the strength of the TV show and the weakness of the comic before Lemire. Still, the comic continues to be its own thing, with surprises built into its history and a unique story about the Outsiders.
Zero Year (25). Most of the Zero Year crossovers were very forced, but this is instead a nice introduction for Diggle and a nicely retconned introduction of a Team Arrow — all of which clearly links to the TV show [7/10].
The Outsiders War (26-31). The Outsiders are an enjoyable new organization, and also a fun bit of connectivity to the old DC Universe (with Katana nailing the connection down, as a member of both). The return to the island is also great, for its ties to the TV show, but also for giving things its own (very twisted) twist. Finally, it's good to see the Lemire plotlines all come together. A little dense, but otherwise a good arc [7/10].
Secret Origin. Nice enough, but short and not very enlightening [6/10].
Broken (32-34). The finale to Lemire's run does a good job with the Dragon storyline that's been looming. I enjoy the continued characterization of Ollie's sidekicks and adore the return of Emiko, who feels like Arrow's own version of Damian Wayne (but unique enough to be interesting). The denouement is paced a little too quickly, with everything being neatened up in a few pages, but the main story of these issues doesn't seem impact by the sudden ending (in fact it might be paced better than some of the earlier storylines, which got a bit drawn out) [7+/10].
Futures End. A nice coda, for the attention to Emiko and Naomi, and for the return of the Outsiders. Now we'll see if the next writer actually maintains any of these ideas. [7/10]
Overall, Lemire's run is right up there with the top Green Arrow runs. It never quite hits the heights of its first arc, but it's nonetheless good all the way through.
Jeff Lemire's Green Arrow shows what the New 52 could have been. He reinvents Green Arrow in a meaningful and interesting way and just drenches his stories with characterization. Hand-in-hand with that we've got a brave reinvention of the Arrow Mythos with the Outsiders. Finally, we've got strong art and interesting coloring that together make the book stand out on all fronts. Even better, this book stands as a cohesive whole.
Kill Machine (17-21). Lemire rather bravely starts off the volume by dismantling the Green Arrow comic of the first year and a half. It allows him to be dramatic, but this sort of thing can be overdone. Beyond that, there's great tension and great mystery. Ultimately, this is just a setup, with Ollie only learning about the Outsiders and setting out to search for the dragons as the story ends ... but it's a great setup [8/10].
Vertigo (22-24, 23.1). The reinvention of Shado and Vertigo is well done, and again shows off what the New 52 could have been. Overall, this is a nicely presented Ollie, a nicely presented Team Arrow, and an exciting story [8/10].
This seems to be when the Green Arrow comic really linked up with the Arrow TV show, which is a good thing given the strength of the TV show and the weakness of the comic before Lemire. Still, the comic continues to be its own thing, with surprises built into its history and a unique story about the Outsiders.
Zero Year (25). Most of the Zero Year crossovers were very forced, but this is instead a nice introduction for Diggle and a nicely retconned introduction of a Team Arrow — all of which clearly links to the TV show [7/10].
The Outsiders War (26-31). The Outsiders are an enjoyable new organization, and also a fun bit of connectivity to the old DC Universe (with Katana nailing the connection down, as a member of both). The return to the island is also great, for its ties to the TV show, but also for giving things its own (very twisted) twist. Finally, it's good to see the Lemire plotlines all come together. A little dense, but otherwise a good arc [7/10].
Secret Origin. Nice enough, but short and not very enlightening [6/10].
Broken (32-34). The finale to Lemire's run does a good job with the Dragon storyline that's been looming. I enjoy the continued characterization of Ollie's sidekicks and adore the return of Emiko, who feels like Arrow's own version of Damian Wayne (but unique enough to be interesting). The denouement is paced a little too quickly, with everything being neatened up in a few pages, but the main story of these issues doesn't seem impact by the sudden ending (in fact it might be paced better than some of the earlier storylines, which got a bit drawn out) [7+/10].
Futures End. A nice coda, for the attention to Emiko and Naomi, and for the return of the Outsiders. Now we'll see if the next writer actually maintains any of these ideas. [7/10]
Overall, Lemire's run is right up there with the top Green Arrow runs. It never quite hits the heights of its first arc, but it's nonetheless good all the way through.
March 15, 2020
Massive green arrow fan. This was great. However I do think Lemire is better at his own stories. His superhero runs are just not as good
March 15, 2022
Jeff Lemire does a fantastic job of extending and expanding the Green Arrow's origin story as laid out by Andy Diggle in the Year One story here.
That said, the book isn't just a continuation of that story, but spins out further into a modern war between secret clans, which all cleverly tie back to Oliver Queen's time on the island that made him the Green Arrow.
The art work by Sorrentino is phenomenal here - not a word I use lightly - but this was absolutely perfect for this book. The stylised illustrations and extremely vibrant colours absolutely give this book a soul.
Overall, Green Arrow by Jeff Lemire is a fantastic read. A great addition for longtime fans yet accessable to newer readers also, this book will undoubtedly impress and intrigue. A beautiful deluxe edition!
_______________
My score: 8/10
Goodreads: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
_______________
That said, the book isn't just a continuation of that story, but spins out further into a modern war between secret clans, which all cleverly tie back to Oliver Queen's time on the island that made him the Green Arrow.
The art work by Sorrentino is phenomenal here - not a word I use lightly - but this was absolutely perfect for this book. The stylised illustrations and extremely vibrant colours absolutely give this book a soul.
Overall, Green Arrow by Jeff Lemire is a fantastic read. A great addition for longtime fans yet accessable to newer readers also, this book will undoubtedly impress and intrigue. A beautiful deluxe edition!
_______________
My score: 8/10
Goodreads: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
_______________
August 18, 2022
Definitely a solid run. Lemire is always awesome, and I haven't read much of his Big Two stuff before this, so I was excited to get into it. The War of the Clans portion of the collection is the strongest thread, but it all conceals into a really stellar overarching story.
Also, I really like Sorrentino, but occasionally he draws a panel that looks awkward as hell. Just a small observation.
Also, I really like Sorrentino, but occasionally he draws a panel that looks awkward as hell. Just a small observation.
December 20, 2021
The only Green Arrow from The New 52 era that you really need and should read.
This story has similarities with the CW Arrow tv-show. But do not let that take you away from this. Cause this is what the show could have done, but didn´t.
The artwork of Andrea Sorrentino is the perfect action-pacted artowk and phycodelic when needed. With panels that frames in details to follow so that you won´t miss any of the action steps when arrows are flown and Vertigo steps into the rink.
The story is liek a contained three part movie-trilogy with twists and turns and a awesome retelling of the origins of The Green Arrow.
This story has similarities with the CW Arrow tv-show. But do not let that take you away from this. Cause this is what the show could have done, but didn´t.
The artwork of Andrea Sorrentino is the perfect action-pacted artowk and phycodelic when needed. With panels that frames in details to follow so that you won´t miss any of the action steps when arrows are flown and Vertigo steps into the rink.
The story is liek a contained three part movie-trilogy with twists and turns and a awesome retelling of the origins of The Green Arrow.
January 7, 2019
A few years ago DC launched what was a very risky move, the thing that all of us know (and most of us hate), the New 52. It's purpose, attract new readers by rebooting all their comics until that moment, and get a close to a fresh start on all the heroes along side with new artist and writters. It did not reached it's goal, out of the 52 titles launched most of them were cancelled by the eight issue and the rest rebooted with new writers and new artist (again).
Green Arrow wasn't part of those series that you could consider good or passable. However, for a brief time Jeff Lemire was in charge of this series and oh my, oh my it was an excellent run. You see, DC made with Green Arrow what they couldn't do with their big guns, they took Oliver Queen to the very beggining of his career and character as a young masked vigilante. It wasn't well received by the fans, the idea of DC Robin Hood as a uncoordinated child that still wasn't prepared to be a hero was hated in the instant, but nobody understood back then that that was the idea.
Until this moment the series was, well, on a trash can. DC's idea was obviously not working (and I'm not only refering to Green Arrow run), but Jeff Lemire actually accepted the chalenge and man, he created something. Destroying his company, killing his allies and chased by the law Green Arrow will be once again since the island faced with a great challenge that will change him.
I'm surprised as to how this plotline actually was, the three dragons: his enemy, his ally and of course the filler (he was just that, and even worse was Count Vertigo); are what made this story as it is. Leaving a mark on Oliver and having (as his team also acknowledges) him changed, more mature, done with his past and ready to move forward.
Andrea Sorrentino is critized by almost everyone, his style is not pleasant to everyone eyes (not even to me in cases) but I admit that in this story line fits just perfectly, you can appreciate his art out of the traitional one, and admire how with his own tools creates some scenarios that only are fitted to his unique style. I don't see a better way to tell a story with this weight in any other form.
A good combination and they had success leaving their mark on Green Arrow and on creating something worth reading on his New 52 run. Even now, in Rebirth the consequences of this arc are still important.
DC essentials is a bunch of omnibuses that will come out this year and I'm really excited about it. Most of them will be centered in the stories of the heroes in the New 52, and different from what everyone thinks not all of the N52 was worthless, good stories were told and I'm glad that DC is digging all of them and compiling them for an easy take.
Green Arrow wasn't part of those series that you could consider good or passable. However, for a brief time Jeff Lemire was in charge of this series and oh my, oh my it was an excellent run. You see, DC made with Green Arrow what they couldn't do with their big guns, they took Oliver Queen to the very beggining of his career and character as a young masked vigilante. It wasn't well received by the fans, the idea of DC Robin Hood as a uncoordinated child that still wasn't prepared to be a hero was hated in the instant, but nobody understood back then that that was the idea.
Until this moment the series was, well, on a trash can. DC's idea was obviously not working (and I'm not only refering to Green Arrow run), but Jeff Lemire actually accepted the chalenge and man, he created something. Destroying his company, killing his allies and chased by the law Green Arrow will be once again since the island faced with a great challenge that will change him.
I'm surprised as to how this plotline actually was, the three dragons: his enemy, his ally and of course the filler (he was just that, and even worse was Count Vertigo); are what made this story as it is. Leaving a mark on Oliver and having (as his team also acknowledges) him changed, more mature, done with his past and ready to move forward.
Andrea Sorrentino is critized by almost everyone, his style is not pleasant to everyone eyes (not even to me in cases) but I admit that in this story line fits just perfectly, you can appreciate his art out of the traitional one, and admire how with his own tools creates some scenarios that only are fitted to his unique style. I don't see a better way to tell a story with this weight in any other form.
A good combination and they had success leaving their mark on Green Arrow and on creating something worth reading on his New 52 run. Even now, in Rebirth the consequences of this arc are still important.
DC essentials is a bunch of omnibuses that will come out this year and I'm really excited about it. Most of them will be centered in the stories of the heroes in the New 52, and different from what everyone thinks not all of the N52 was worthless, good stories were told and I'm glad that DC is digging all of them and compiling them for an easy take.
January 16, 2016
The same writer and artist is featured in this run. I love the fact the art is all the same and it's usually pretty good. There are a few times it get muddy (coloring issue?). There was at least once I was trying to figure out what happened to injure Oliver's hand but it was just funky coloring/drawing.
I love Lemire's Desender and his Sweet Tooth is pretty good so I had high hopes for this one. If you write/define an established character yourself and want shake up the status quo you bring some trauma into the character's life. Then if your characterization is a bit different you can always point to all they have suffered and blame it on that. I have not read hardly anything with Green Arrow so I can't comment on his usual self here but there is a lot of suffering and his back story is changed up as characters he thought were dead made a reappearance and redefined what he thought his history was.
Green Arrow gains an Asian step sister in the story. I would have expected a young character to be written really well by Lemire based on the other things I've read by him but her dialog tried way to hard to be cool/hard and her inclusion felt clunky. Not sure if this was someone else's idea Lemire felt he had to go with? She tells Oliver she is going to take his super-hero name (The Green Arrow) and become his apprentice (not sidekick) and he goes with it. This is a stupid idea and feels pretty contrived.
I liked Sweet Tooth and Desender better than this. Overall it was ok.
I love Lemire's Desender and his Sweet Tooth is pretty good so I had high hopes for this one. If you write/define an established character yourself and want shake up the status quo you bring some trauma into the character's life. Then if your characterization is a bit different you can always point to all they have suffered and blame it on that. I have not read hardly anything with Green Arrow so I can't comment on his usual self here but there is a lot of suffering and his back story is changed up as characters he thought were dead made a reappearance and redefined what he thought his history was.
Green Arrow gains an Asian step sister in the story. I would have expected a young character to be written really well by Lemire based on the other things I've read by him but her dialog tried way to hard to be cool/hard and her inclusion felt clunky. Not sure if this was someone else's idea Lemire felt he had to go with? She tells Oliver she is going to take his super-hero name (The Green Arrow) and become his apprentice (not sidekick) and he goes with it. This is a stupid idea and feels pretty contrived.
I liked Sweet Tooth and Desender better than this. Overall it was ok.
December 19, 2020
Finally a good, great even, Green Arrow comic! I'll admit that at the time of this review I have not read many Green Arrow comics (mostly limited to the first issues of the his New 52 re-boot), so my consumption is a little lacking, but this story was what I needed from Green Arrow. The art was excellent. It included characters that I was familiar with (I enjoy CW's television adaptation of the character and it was interesting to see the differences in how they are related to Oliver's story). And lastly, the story was great- full of ups and downs, sacrifices and victories, and twists and turns. It was enjoyable enough to make me interested in seeing where the rest of the series goes.
June 15, 2018
Big fun, Green Arrow, the New 52 generation, done with high craft. I am nuts for this artist, and Lemire always interests me. Look at the layouts, rendering, and color in this storytelling; I think you'll like it.
September 19, 2018
I can't believe I put this off for so long! What was I thinking? I greatly enjoyed this deluxe edition and I would even say it's some of the best comics I've ever read! This is certainly going to be remembered many years from now as one of the great character runs in comics and it was brilliant of DC to collect it in a deluxe edition. Sorrentino's art is unique and absolutely wonderful. I would say it's also innovative as I've never seen comic art where sometimes part of the image is black and white. It really helps to accentuate the surrounding color and draw one's eye to the appropriate places. The covers are amazing and have a theme throughout the book, and the splash pages and double page spreads are fantastic! This is definitely required reading if you're a Green Arrow fan! This book deserves more attention than Hawkeye by Fraction and Aja!
March 2, 2016
This is a beautifully produced hardback book that collects a number of issues/storylines from the recent New 52 incarnation of Green Arrow. The gritty, cinematic artwork didn't win me over - a bit too dark for me. I was mostly curious to see how the comics compare to the Arrow tv series. The comics are very different, but I think fans of the show will still enjoy this collection. I loved seeing Diggle! But sadly, no Canaries are in this book.
March 25, 2016
Jeff Lemire really writes something excellent here. I had to get used to Sorrentino's art though, that I didn't like at all at the start of the book, but I really saw him evolve as I got further into the book. I still think some of his 'things' don't really work, but the vast majority of his pages have some beautiful layouts and great looking art! Lemire wrote some characters with a heart and the whole story just works. Highly recommended!
March 29, 2022
Fantastic
This is an absolute page turner. The story flows, the art is beautiful and Jeff Lemire has never met me down
This is an absolute page turner. The story flows, the art is beautiful and Jeff Lemire has never met me down
June 9, 2019
I don't know what else Jeff Lemire needs to do to prove he's one of the truly great, elite creators in comic books, not only working today, but we're talking all-time at this point. Green Arrow: War of the Clans is a tour-de-force, brought forth by DC in its recent Essential Edition initiative, from the "New 52" era to bring greater attention to an achievement that begins to feel bigger and bigger as the years advance. They have a word for that: classic.
Lemire's run on Green Arrow was also his first collaboration with Andrea Sorrentino, an artist of startling vision. Sorrentino had cut his teeth on I, Vampire with Joshua Hale Fialkov. When that series ended he immediately segued to Green Arrow with Lemire. The entire run is collected in War of the Clans. Sorrentino provides art for nearly the whole collection, including special issues from Villains Month and Futures End month, which in other titles featured other artists and even other writers. That Lemire and Sorrentino stuck around for these, and knew exactly how to incorporate what might've easily been considered editorially-mandated gimmick digressions into their overall narrative, is one sign of how committed they were, and how completely they understood what they wanted to accomplish. They even seamlessly weave the "Zero Year" concept from Scott Snyder's Batman! If nothing else, the results can be interpreted as textbook professionalism (which was sometimes sorely lacking during the "New 52").
Perhaps what Lemire and Sorrentino accomplish most brilliantly is arguably the most successful interpretation of the "New 52" mandate itself. The "New 52" was an attempt at a line-wide reboot that would make every element of DC lore as vivid as possible, using Geoff Johns' Green Lantern as a template. Johns had expanded Green Lantern lore greatly, going far beyond the ring, the corps, the blue benefactors, building on things other creators had contributed over the years and adding his own ideas until Green Lantern had grown into a true headlining event (Blackest Night). Now, not every character could be expanded that much. A lot of creators would have to be satisfied with merely presenting bold new takes on established characters. Several creators preceded Lemire on Green Arrow, and none of them knew quite what to do. The first time I knew he had come up with something special was when I sampled an issue from the "Outsiders War" arc, the signature, penultimate story in this collection.
On its surface, Lemire's clan concept might seem like a fairly naked attempt to duplicate Johns' approach to Green Lantern. Johns famously expanded the one green ring concept to include a whole spectrum of rings. Lemire decided that the idea of Green Arrow had its own mythological origin and community. Oliver Queen didn't end up becoming a superhero by mere chance. In a lot of ways, War of the Clans is an extended origin story. You follow him as he discovers more and more of what led him to become Green Arrow. There's a father who pushed him for reasons he couldn't explain at the time. There's the marooning on an island where Oliver was forced to put aside his privileged youth (which is itself something Lemire didn't come up with). And there's the revelation that his father's past and the time on the island were actually connected.
And that both were part of a massive clan war. Each clan is centered around a totem weapon or fight approach. Green Arrow's arrow, then literally becomes a potential totem. What Lemire decides, branching off from Johns' approach, is that Green Arrow ultimately rejects the clan saga, and chooses to remain apart, to keep his arrow as his own, as it were.
Some might call the whole idea needlessly complicating what started out as a Robin Hood wannabe who was actually a Batman figure with a bow. Or you can accept it, embrace it, for what it is, which is comic book, superhero storytelling at peak form. This is a creator who seizes on a concept and helps realize its full potential. Lemire takes in every available element and makes it all work. He even borrows from the Arrow TV show, in the character of Diggle, which itself was inspired by the previous modern Green Arrow origin touchstone, Andy Diggle's Year One.
Peter Tomasi and Patrick Gleason's longer Batman and Robin run is the only other "New 52" comic that reached such heights. What impressed me beyond DC lore was how Lemire evoked the massive achievement that was Mike Costa's G.I. Joe saga, published under various volumes of Cobra by IDW. Costa's stories were a startling reimagining of G.I. Joe lore, a grounded take on an established concept that could feature any character and always make them credible. Lemire's versions of characters like Clock King, Richard Dragon, and Count Vertigo all read like Costa's Cobra, where Tomax and Xamot Paoli were transformed from generic villains to integral, integrity-filled figures.
And I've long tried to sell other readers on Costa's accomplishments. And now Lemire's. Perhaps in Lemire's shorter work, collected in this handy single, manageable volume, it might be easier. And once Lemire's can be appreciated, Costa's might be tackled.
Comic book fans love to follow their favorite characters for years. Sometimes a creator comes along who sets a signal mark. Johns is one example. Frank Miller, with Batman and Daredevil, is another. Lemire has done that here. That's what this is. He and Sorrentino later worked together in the pages of Old Man Logan and Gideon Falls. By the latter, fans had begun noticing how special their collaboration really is. This is where it started, and it was brilliant right from the beginning.
If you never cared for Green Arrow before, if you've never read a comic or watched the TV show, you can read this, and it explains everything. It's an origin story, and it makes a career statement. You end up feeling as if you've read Batman: Year One and The Dark Knight Returns rolled into one. Yeah. That's what I'm talking about.
This is the target creators will be aiming for years to come. And, hopefully, readers, too.
Lemire's run on Green Arrow was also his first collaboration with Andrea Sorrentino, an artist of startling vision. Sorrentino had cut his teeth on I, Vampire with Joshua Hale Fialkov. When that series ended he immediately segued to Green Arrow with Lemire. The entire run is collected in War of the Clans. Sorrentino provides art for nearly the whole collection, including special issues from Villains Month and Futures End month, which in other titles featured other artists and even other writers. That Lemire and Sorrentino stuck around for these, and knew exactly how to incorporate what might've easily been considered editorially-mandated gimmick digressions into their overall narrative, is one sign of how committed they were, and how completely they understood what they wanted to accomplish. They even seamlessly weave the "Zero Year" concept from Scott Snyder's Batman! If nothing else, the results can be interpreted as textbook professionalism (which was sometimes sorely lacking during the "New 52").
Perhaps what Lemire and Sorrentino accomplish most brilliantly is arguably the most successful interpretation of the "New 52" mandate itself. The "New 52" was an attempt at a line-wide reboot that would make every element of DC lore as vivid as possible, using Geoff Johns' Green Lantern as a template. Johns had expanded Green Lantern lore greatly, going far beyond the ring, the corps, the blue benefactors, building on things other creators had contributed over the years and adding his own ideas until Green Lantern had grown into a true headlining event (Blackest Night). Now, not every character could be expanded that much. A lot of creators would have to be satisfied with merely presenting bold new takes on established characters. Several creators preceded Lemire on Green Arrow, and none of them knew quite what to do. The first time I knew he had come up with something special was when I sampled an issue from the "Outsiders War" arc, the signature, penultimate story in this collection.
On its surface, Lemire's clan concept might seem like a fairly naked attempt to duplicate Johns' approach to Green Lantern. Johns famously expanded the one green ring concept to include a whole spectrum of rings. Lemire decided that the idea of Green Arrow had its own mythological origin and community. Oliver Queen didn't end up becoming a superhero by mere chance. In a lot of ways, War of the Clans is an extended origin story. You follow him as he discovers more and more of what led him to become Green Arrow. There's a father who pushed him for reasons he couldn't explain at the time. There's the marooning on an island where Oliver was forced to put aside his privileged youth (which is itself something Lemire didn't come up with). And there's the revelation that his father's past and the time on the island were actually connected.
And that both were part of a massive clan war. Each clan is centered around a totem weapon or fight approach. Green Arrow's arrow, then literally becomes a potential totem. What Lemire decides, branching off from Johns' approach, is that Green Arrow ultimately rejects the clan saga, and chooses to remain apart, to keep his arrow as his own, as it were.
Some might call the whole idea needlessly complicating what started out as a Robin Hood wannabe who was actually a Batman figure with a bow. Or you can accept it, embrace it, for what it is, which is comic book, superhero storytelling at peak form. This is a creator who seizes on a concept and helps realize its full potential. Lemire takes in every available element and makes it all work. He even borrows from the Arrow TV show, in the character of Diggle, which itself was inspired by the previous modern Green Arrow origin touchstone, Andy Diggle's Year One.
Peter Tomasi and Patrick Gleason's longer Batman and Robin run is the only other "New 52" comic that reached such heights. What impressed me beyond DC lore was how Lemire evoked the massive achievement that was Mike Costa's G.I. Joe saga, published under various volumes of Cobra by IDW. Costa's stories were a startling reimagining of G.I. Joe lore, a grounded take on an established concept that could feature any character and always make them credible. Lemire's versions of characters like Clock King, Richard Dragon, and Count Vertigo all read like Costa's Cobra, where Tomax and Xamot Paoli were transformed from generic villains to integral, integrity-filled figures.
And I've long tried to sell other readers on Costa's accomplishments. And now Lemire's. Perhaps in Lemire's shorter work, collected in this handy single, manageable volume, it might be easier. And once Lemire's can be appreciated, Costa's might be tackled.
Comic book fans love to follow their favorite characters for years. Sometimes a creator comes along who sets a signal mark. Johns is one example. Frank Miller, with Batman and Daredevil, is another. Lemire has done that here. That's what this is. He and Sorrentino later worked together in the pages of Old Man Logan and Gideon Falls. By the latter, fans had begun noticing how special their collaboration really is. This is where it started, and it was brilliant right from the beginning.
If you never cared for Green Arrow before, if you've never read a comic or watched the TV show, you can read this, and it explains everything. It's an origin story, and it makes a career statement. You end up feeling as if you've read Batman: Year One and The Dark Knight Returns rolled into one. Yeah. That's what I'm talking about.
This is the target creators will be aiming for years to come. And, hopefully, readers, too.
May 13, 2020
Me gusta Green Arrow, me gusta Lemire, me gusta el estilo de dibujo de Sorrentino, pero el caso es que algo me falla con esta etapa.
Yo creo que el problema está en el dibujo... no por el dibujo en sí que está genial... sino precisamente por ser un estilo muy especial, que impacta mucho las primeras veces que lo ves, pero ese impacto se diluye bastante con la repetición de recursos gráficos y narrativos.
El caso es que me leí la etapa del old man Logan de Lemire y Sorrentino antes que esto, no estoy comparando etapas, pero la cuestión es que es el mismo equipo, los mismos tics argumentales, el mismo estilo de dibujo... Yo leí el viejo Logan primero y me flipó, este green arrow no me ha flipado tanto porque parece que he desarrollado cierta tolerancia a los trucos visuales de Sorrentino.
En todo caso es un cómic muy recomendable y es un buen sitio para empezar si quieres conocer al personaje.
Yo creo que el problema está en el dibujo... no por el dibujo en sí que está genial... sino precisamente por ser un estilo muy especial, que impacta mucho las primeras veces que lo ves, pero ese impacto se diluye bastante con la repetición de recursos gráficos y narrativos.
El caso es que me leí la etapa del old man Logan de Lemire y Sorrentino antes que esto, no estoy comparando etapas, pero la cuestión es que es el mismo equipo, los mismos tics argumentales, el mismo estilo de dibujo... Yo leí el viejo Logan primero y me flipó, este green arrow no me ha flipado tanto porque parece que he desarrollado cierta tolerancia a los trucos visuales de Sorrentino.
En todo caso es un cómic muy recomendable y es un buen sitio para empezar si quieres conocer al personaje.
July 5, 2019
This is the reason why I hate trying to get involved in superhero comic books that have been around for decades... even though people say “it’s a great jumping-on point for new readers”... there truly is no such thing. As much as I love Jeff Lemire, I just could not get into this. There is so much build up and the payoff was not enough to make up for it. A solid editor could’ve pared this down by 50% and I don’t think it would’ve affected the story one iota.
April 24, 2022
Quite underwhelming for a run that's considered to be one of Green Arrow's best.
February 1, 2025
Uffffff. Pues decepción. Visualmente está bien (lo esperado del autor) pero el guion… mira que me gustan los personajes, la combinación de grupos raros, leyendas, delincuentes, magia… había material para algo que me enganchara pero la sucesión de saltos en el tiempo, de historias en paralelo, de peleas absurdas y demás hacen que me haya resultado verdaderamente aburrido. Un ir y venir infinito que al final termina sin pena ni gloria. Decepción
December 20, 2016
Brilliant.
Ive never read any green arrow before, all my knowledge of the character is from the Tv show.
I loved this, Jeff lemire has been one of my favourite writers for a while now which is why i picked this up ultimatly. Id never heard of the artist before reading this but his work fit the book great and i loved how he panneled this book.
The story i thought was a great overarching story that lasted all 17 issues.
The art worked really well with the story and i enjoyed it.
My only gripe is that the binding wasnt amazing, it was glued so expect some gutter loss and well as a lot of cracking.
Ive never read any green arrow before, all my knowledge of the character is from the Tv show.
I loved this, Jeff lemire has been one of my favourite writers for a while now which is why i picked this up ultimatly. Id never heard of the artist before reading this but his work fit the book great and i loved how he panneled this book.
The story i thought was a great overarching story that lasted all 17 issues.
The art worked really well with the story and i enjoyed it.
My only gripe is that the binding wasnt amazing, it was glued so expect some gutter loss and well as a lot of cracking.
July 30, 2016
Not bad, but not near as good as it should be. Making Green Arrow part of some weapon-based secret society going back generations is a pretty lazy retread of Alan Moore's take on Swamp Thing and Geoff Johns' later regurgitation in Green Lantern. I've been reading DC superheroes for way too long apparently...
March 3, 2019
Edición de lujo en tapa dura, con sobrecubiertas y formato gigante que recopila integralmente la etapa de Lemire y Sorrentino en Green Arrow, originalmente publicado en 3 tomos (y en castellano, en más).
March 25, 2020
Miłe zaskoczenie. Nie dość, że nie jest to aż tak głupie, jak mogłoby być, to jeszcze wygrywa od strony graficznej. Co kilka stron trafia się plansza, która rozbija mózg na kawałeczki. Solidna rozrywka
September 19, 2018
Really really really good. More like the new tv show than I’d expected. 5 stars.
November 17, 2019
This team does great work together, I’m excited to check out their Joker book.
August 12, 2023
This is a large Omnibus collection of Jeff Lemire‘s complete run of the new 52 green arrow which he took over in the third volume. Because this book is so large I’m going to split it up by the trade. The one thing that’s fantastic about this book throughout is Sarentino‘s art. It’s amazing that he stayed on the book through the entire run with very few filling artist. That’s very rare in a modern comic book, and his style is quite a highlight for this run.
Vol 3 the kill machine: basically, what if we do Frank Miller Daredevil with green arrow, where we bring green arrow to his lowest point, taking away his wealth, taking away his gadgets, and him having to start at the bottom of the barrel and we see the beginning of the clan storyline. Oliver queens sidekicks who I guess are from previous stories for me felt like an afterthought because they don’t really get enough screen time for me to get a sense of who they are. The female is in love with Oliver Queen, and that’s it. The new guy was a Stalker of her but because he’s smart we’re just going to forgive him what?!? They are very forgettable and don’t really have a lot. I did enjoy the villain with the electric implant, and his origin story issue, which I thought was really well done. This was a great back to basics book with some problems, but for the most part was pretty good. 3 1/2
Vol 5 the outsiders war: at first I was interested We have an interesting villain, with a good wrinkle with his daughter, and the idea of the clans, each representing an arrow a shield and sword I roll with it. The crux of the story is green arrow has to get the arrow McGuffin before the bad guys do, and he learns some secret aspects of his family history. The last part, I hated bringing back his dad showing he was not dead, and that he planned for his son to be shipwrecked on the island, torturing him in order to see if he could become green arrow. This was very much a soap opera plot point I thought done horribly because the fathers argument never had any solid ground to stand on one because what he did was awful, and the chance of his son surviving is a roll of the dice you don’t know if that’s actually how it’s going to turn out. granted while I didn’t like this if he was kept alive and continued forward with the story that could’ve been an interesting dynamic to deal with because you have a conflicting feelings of your past feelings about your father and what you just learned about him, but no, they killed him off wasting a potential interesting story to explore. Also, they just destroy the McGuffin at the end basically making this entire quest feel pointless to me. I thought this volume had a interestin Premise and just really poor execution the dad should’ve stayed dead.
Vol 3
A rush story that wasn’t able to be completed due to editorial or an event you decide, but it’s basically gang wars with a character from the arrow TV show I didn’t know in three issues or less service. It feels very rushed and just wasted potential.
Conclusion: I understand why people love this run it has fantastic art and some interesting character explorations, but I think the execution, especially in the second volume, and the rushing to end it in third volume really sours what could’ve been a fantastic run
Vol 3 the kill machine: basically, what if we do Frank Miller Daredevil with green arrow, where we bring green arrow to his lowest point, taking away his wealth, taking away his gadgets, and him having to start at the bottom of the barrel and we see the beginning of the clan storyline. Oliver queens sidekicks who I guess are from previous stories for me felt like an afterthought because they don’t really get enough screen time for me to get a sense of who they are. The female is in love with Oliver Queen, and that’s it. The new guy was a Stalker of her but because he’s smart we’re just going to forgive him what?!? They are very forgettable and don’t really have a lot. I did enjoy the villain with the electric implant, and his origin story issue, which I thought was really well done. This was a great back to basics book with some problems, but for the most part was pretty good. 3 1/2
Vol 5 the outsiders war: at first I was interested We have an interesting villain, with a good wrinkle with his daughter, and the idea of the clans, each representing an arrow a shield and sword I roll with it. The crux of the story is green arrow has to get the arrow McGuffin before the bad guys do, and he learns some secret aspects of his family history. The last part, I hated bringing back his dad showing he was not dead, and that he planned for his son to be shipwrecked on the island, torturing him in order to see if he could become green arrow. This was very much a soap opera plot point I thought done horribly because the fathers argument never had any solid ground to stand on one because what he did was awful, and the chance of his son surviving is a roll of the dice you don’t know if that’s actually how it’s going to turn out. granted while I didn’t like this if he was kept alive and continued forward with the story that could’ve been an interesting dynamic to deal with because you have a conflicting feelings of your past feelings about your father and what you just learned about him, but no, they killed him off wasting a potential interesting story to explore. Also, they just destroy the McGuffin at the end basically making this entire quest feel pointless to me. I thought this volume had a interestin Premise and just really poor execution the dad should’ve stayed dead.
Vol 3
A rush story that wasn’t able to be completed due to editorial or an event you decide, but it’s basically gang wars with a character from the arrow TV show I didn’t know in three issues or less service. It feels very rushed and just wasted potential.
Conclusion: I understand why people love this run it has fantastic art and some interesting character explorations, but I think the execution, especially in the second volume, and the rushing to end it in third volume really sours what could’ve been a fantastic run
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 6, 2017
Green Arrow by Jeff Lemire!!! There are only a few titles that are actually good from DC’s New52, and truthfully, Green Arrow wasn’t one of those titles. After several issues, even the good titles started dropping, but then Jeff Lemire came into rescue through Ollie. Now, I honestly didn’t bother reading the first few issues of Green Arrow since the reviews are that bad, but I waited for this collection. I first encountered Jeff Lemire before on The Nobody. It’s a relatively unknown story published under Vertigo, but I liked the grittiness of it, I even tried out Eternity (too bad it didn’t took off, good concept though), but it’s enough to pique my interest. With Green Arrow, he kept it as grounded as any superhero comics could go. You see an archer who misses sometimes (certainly not Legolas level). You see Green Arrow get hit. You see Ollie lose what he had going for him. And his reaction from all of these is quite realistic. He snaps, and sometimes even pushes those that could help him away.
The story itself formed an epic with 3 acts, and great transitions. The first part is about the emergence of Komodo showing how much Green Arrow lacks in skill and passion. The second arc relates the past to the present, with Robert Queen’s quest for an artifact, which would allow him to join an ancient group (The Outsiders) whose skills are based on different weapons, with Komodo himself. The final act then relates the present to the eventual future filled with the consequence of Green Arrow leaving his city vulnerable to thee underground players, to go handle The Outsiders. These story lines meld beautifully into each other. Now, to encapsulate this great epic is Andrea Sorrentino’s gorgeous art. It’s not the cutesy type of art you’ll see in other books, and aptly so, to match the roughness, and grittiness (I keep using that word, don’t I?) of this story. Sorrentino’s art really does grow in you, and you’ll end up looking for it after the last page is turned. This book really is a great masterpiece by a greater team. Too bad there isn’t more of it. Wait… What did you say? Lemire’s writing Hawkeye for Marvel? Hmmm….
The story itself formed an epic with 3 acts, and great transitions. The first part is about the emergence of Komodo showing how much Green Arrow lacks in skill and passion. The second arc relates the past to the present, with Robert Queen’s quest for an artifact, which would allow him to join an ancient group (The Outsiders) whose skills are based on different weapons, with Komodo himself. The final act then relates the present to the eventual future filled with the consequence of Green Arrow leaving his city vulnerable to thee underground players, to go handle The Outsiders. These story lines meld beautifully into each other. Now, to encapsulate this great epic is Andrea Sorrentino’s gorgeous art. It’s not the cutesy type of art you’ll see in other books, and aptly so, to match the roughness, and grittiness (I keep using that word, don’t I?) of this story. Sorrentino’s art really does grow in you, and you’ll end up looking for it after the last page is turned. This book really is a great masterpiece by a greater team. Too bad there isn’t more of it. Wait… What did you say? Lemire’s writing Hawkeye for Marvel? Hmmm….
Displaying 1 - 30 of 95 reviews