Grabbing the Joke Before It's Gone

My inspiration Mike Sterling did a thigh-slapping job yesterday of pointing out some of the sillier sides of Green Arrow, so I thought I'd better toss this little gem into the spotlight before he sees it. Competition makes us all better, don't you think?

I'm one of those goofs that has always been in favor of GA's trick arrows. I never found the idea of just shooting an arrow at someone that interesting, so I appreciated the creativity that went into making arrows do things that arrows normally have no business doing.

But, as usual, someone went too far. It's always fun until someone gets hurt.

My willing suspension of disbelief has allowed Oliver to do all kinds of weird things with the arrows. I put up with handcuff arrows, paralysis arrows, and never once did I question how he fit the boxing glove arrow into his quiver. Not once! I was a good audience, dang it!

But this was too much. Check out the two-stage rocket arrow.




Now, even if we can get past the huge logistical problem of a small rocket having enough propulsion to carry two full-grown adults without burning them to a crisp, there's no steering mechanism on it. This, people, is why we hide certain comics in mylar bags and never allow anyone to read them. It's not because they're valuable, it's because they're embarassing.

Thank you, Mike, for giving me the courage to share this (thankfully) one-time gimmick that we haven't seen before or since. That one has been bugging me for more than 20 years.