The Good
While this issue does indeed follow a pretty safe formula and have moments we've seen countless times before in other action stories, it still managed to be a total thrill ride and that just goes to show how talented the creative team is. There are moments where you clearly know what's going to happen (a bomb with a countdown! Oh, no!), but that don't stop me from cheering like a goofball in key scenes because they totally deliver. 'm by no means embarrassed to admit I even did a slow clap once I put the issue down -- that's how much I loved this one.
No amount of praise from me is going to justify how tremendous Andrea Sorrentino and Marcelo Maiolo visuals are. My only small gripe is facial features occasionally feel flat (sometimes it seems like there's only half a nose), but everything else is phenomenal. A graveyard fight in the rain is cliche, but man oh man, it looks so good. I couldn't help but gaze at quite a few of the panels and they're definitely wallpaper-worthy. Sorrentino's exceptionally unique style seems like a match made in heavy for Maiolo's striking and bold use of colors. Trust me, your eyes will thank you for this experience.
The greater narrative is still taking baby steps -- teasing us with the first act and finally leading into the juicy stuff with the conclusion -- but the lack of significant plot progress is outweighed by the exhilarating fight and character interactions. It isn't a particularly lengthy brawl, but it's certainly a great time with some standout moments. At the same rate, I'm glad it wasn't an extended fight because having Ollie endure yet another insane fight after suffering so many injuries would be tough to swallow.
The Bad
Like I said above, a big chunk of this issue's pretty formulaic, but that hardly matters since it's so exciting.
The Verdict
The new take on GREEN ARROW is consistently fantastic. Writer Jeff Lemire provides solid script and pacing and, as I've already said a gazillion times before, the art team creates some truly incredibly pages. The desert story has been teased long enough and now it looks like we're moving full speed ahead. We've had plenty of fun with Komodo (and I'm sure we'll see him and his daughter reappear... or at least I hope so), but now it's time to dive face first into the bigger mystery. Based on what we've seen so far, I'm sure the team will continue to deliver. This is quickly becoming one of DC's most engrossing books for me.