After many years of adoring the Green Arrow and Black Canary relationship, a thought struck my like lightning. As much as I enjoy the sentimental glow I feel when picturing old comic book issues, their time as a couple is done.
Now I know I will probably be proven wrong this coming year with rumors swirling about a Ollie and Dinah union (as told by the mad genius Rich Johnston over at Lying in the Gutters at Comic Book Resources). I just can't help feeling like I do.
After collecting Justice League of America and Green Lantern/Green Arrow, I knew that GA and the Canary were my favorite couple. It solidified during the first part of Mike Grell's run on Green Arrow, but everything fell to crap by the end when Ollie could not be faithful.
In more current times, Kevin Smith put Dinah and Ollie back together after his return from the dead. Unfortunately, this didn't last long, and the two are swinging singles yet again.
What set this feeling at the forefront of my mind was Scipio's post at The Absorbascon. He made a post about wanting Dinah to date Doctor Midnite again, and I heartily agree. In honor of this thought, I would like to present to you my list of reasons why Ollie and Dinah shouldn't be together anymore.
1. Ollie can't keep it in his pants. This is the obvious one. We all watched him hurt Dinah time after time, and as much as I appreciate Ollie's charm, enough is enough.
2. Dinah has pretty much adopted a daughter, so she needs stability. With Ollie being mayor now and his continuing attentions being divided between politics and his bonds with Connor and Mia, he wouldn't be able to devote the time to helping Dinah raise a young one.
3. Ollie is hanging out with Hal Jordan again. I think that these two swinging singles should go out and tomcat, leaving Dinah free to date other guys. There's nothing I would like to see more then Hal and Oliver getting shot down for being old farts at some hot club. Heh.
4. Doctor Midnite is not only hot; he is sensitive as well. He really fell for Dinah and treated her well. Though he is a busy member of the JSA, I think he would be more emotionally available.
5. Ollie has unfinished business with Shado. In my opinion, the mother of his young son is unfinished business. Shado and Ollie need to meet again and have a dangerous affair. Since she is being seen in Connor's mini-series it could be seen as a logical progression.
6. Oh yeah, the cheating again.
I would love to see Dinah date Doctor Midnite again, or find someone new. Let Ollie sow his wild oats and leave Dinah be. I have wonderful memories of their past relationship and can happily revisit my favorite moments as long as I want to. They don't need to come back together and make a radical Marvel-esque character change. Let them be.
What do you think?
BTW, I want to give a shout out to Bob McLeod for the gorgeous art.
6 comments:
Okay, this is weird. I checked out "Moving Targets" out of the library and just read it like gangbusters when I picked it up (I was reading another book when I checked it out). Ssssooooooo, the book was so good (Green Arrow sadly was one of the books that I had to drop even before The Great Hiatus of 2006) I grabbed up "Going Into The Light" and plan on getting caught up in the next week or so. And I had been thinking of a lot of these points while reading the two collected tpbs the last few days. Truthfully, I see the current Ollie/Dinah relationship as a remander of what I call "the bad candy" abusive relationship. I love this person, drink, food, drug or whatever item and it always hurts me, no matter what. So, instead of learning that this is the thing that does it, they ignore it, come back and play it out all over again. Yep, when you love someone, you might see it, but deny it or believe you can fix it. Butttttttt this has been going on since at least since the '80s with the Shado affair and it's what, 2007 now? And if I was Dinah, I don't even know how I could stomach the living reminder of Ollie's infidelity Connor even being in the same room. Not that it's his fault, but man, I couldn't handle the man I hoped to marry's illegitimate son reminding me of why I didn't marry him.
I love Green Arrow and his new life after death and his "Arrow Family" but Dinah's outgrown Ollie, years ago and that ship has sailed and it should keep on going...
I really liked the budding romance between Black Canary and Dr. Mid-Nite quite a few years back in JSA, and I resented her getting snatched away following Kevin Smith's revival of Ollie.
I'm usually the last guy in the room to cry "male chauvanism", but in this case, I think it's really got some traction. There's a really insidious kind of chauvanism at work when it's conveyed that a strong character like Dinah, who's obviously grown a great deal since her original time with Ollie, should just dutifully return to his side now that he's "back".
Despite all the growth, all the strength, all of the personal evolution...she's back with Ollie because, what....a thirty year old series of Denny O'Neil stories says she has to? That's like saying we should all go back to our high school or college sweethearts because we, too, have "history" with those people.
Stupid, childish and territorial.....which just so happen to be some of my gender's worst traits.
LOL on #3 - that could make a fun story!
Maybe she'll give someone else a try now that she's changed her life so much after her training, taking in that girl and leaving the Birds for the JLA. It just wouldn't make sense to force her into an old and unsuccessful relationship when everything else in her life has changed.
Carl, I completely agree that this ship has sailed. Dinah and Ollie had their moment in the sun. Back in the day they were a wonderful couple, and I enjoyed their discourse. Dinah was so tender but tough and Ollie so loud and full of braggadocio.
I am crossing my fingers that the marriage is a rumor, but you never can tell.
"Stupid, childish and territorial.....which just so happen to be some of my gender's worst traits. "
Mark, that impressed me. You nailed it with regards to Ollie. He hasn't had the personal growth that Dinah has. Of course, being dead tends to screw things up... but that being said, he is older and set in his ways. Dinah has progressed beyond the woman she was and has a new ideal.
I hope that they don't marry the two of them for sentimental reasons. God knows that has been done to death!
Let's cross our fingers for some Doctor Midnite action!
Lisa, I keep waiting for number 3 to happen, actually... maybe someday?
Dinah has definitely moved past the old days. Taking up her old spot in the JLA and having a little girl at home relying on her, she just doesn't have the time for Ollie's nonsense.
Take care!
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