This new villain is terrifying!
We start with Blood Rose's disfigured partner, Midas, berating her for being careless in her battle with Green Arrow. Apparently he's very over protective of her. Then we get a humorous scene of Ollie's secretary walking into his office to find him in his under britches after having changed out of his Green Arrow Gear. Back with our villains, a flashback gives us the cliff notes of Midas's origin. Nothing special here, just your basic "Scientist has accident during crazy experiment" nonsense, but the lack of detail adds a nice layer of mystery to it. We finally see our villain in all his glory and God Damn this guy is scary looking. He's this big strong looking dude in a black trench coat who's flesh appears to be rotting off. His face is nothing more than a skeleton at this point. In the mean time we learn that Emerson, the guy who hates the way Ollie runs the company, has filled out some paperwork that will give him more control in Q-Core, something that pisses off Ollie. But it's not long before Midas comes crashing through his window. He says something about how Ollie shouldn't die just yet and Ollie escapes in time to change into Green Arrow. Midas is pissed at Arrow for hurting Blood Rose, even insulted that he at first doesn't know who he's talking about. We also see that Midas's gruesome condition has essentially turned him into Phage the Untouchable (If you understood that reference, you are a massive nerd and I love you for it) causing everything he touches, including arrows, to rot away. Since Midas is essentially invincible, it's clear that Green Arrow is out of his league. During the fight, Ollie puts two and two together that Midas and Blood Rose are connected. This doesn't stop Midas from whooping his ass however. Through sheer dumb luck, Arrow manages to subdue Midas with a banshee arrow. And so we end with Blood Rose with a gun to Ollie's head and Ollie too weak from fighting Midas to defend himself.
What Works:
This series only seems to get better and better with each passing issue and our 5th installment is no exception. The best part here is the introduction of Midas. I love this villain and most of it has to do with just how terrifying he is. This guy is essentially a giant zombie berserker that literally can melt you just by touching you. But there's more to it. He clearly has a distinct personality and distinct goals. This character could easily have been a mindless one shot henchman type character, but for some reason I can really buy this guy as a main villain. Everything else that I've loved from the previous issues remains awesome here.
What Doesn't:
I simply can't find anything to complain about.
Overall:
5/5
I am astounded, simply astounded, that everyone else I've talked to, both on and off the interwebs, has nothing but contempt for this series. The most common complaint I've heard is that they hate the new Ollie. I of course like him, but then again I was a big fan of Smallville. I see these complaints as valid, but I think ultimately it shouldn't matter. Despite how one may or may not feel about the new Ollie, the quality of the writing is so good that it overshadows any problems brought about by the revamp to the character. I promise in future reviews of this title I will stop dwelling on this. After all, I already have a tendency to enjoy things that most others seem to hate. Things like Ghost-Rider the Movie, The second season of heroes and The Spiderman Musical come to mind. But I just fail to see what everyone else is complaining about. This is probably the best comic series I've read in a long time and only ever gets better.
