“But Arrow already has ripped off Batman enough”
Let me stop you and your stupidity (maybe it’s lack of familiarity with the content) right there and allow me to direct you here, where I explain why all of those “Arrow=Batman-Lite” claims are not only bogus, but laughable for true, yes, true comic fans.
Below I’ll be deconstructing some of the things we know about upcoming episodes of Legends of Tomorrow, and why they may suggest a tweaked futuristic version of Connor Hawke.
Why Connor Hawke
Since the confirmation that Oliver’s son on the show would NOT be Connor Hawke (the son he fathered with the still un-named woman in the Season 2 flashbacks), many fans have been left confused as to why the shows writers would exclude Connor Hawke from Arrow’s continuity in such a way. These fans’ minds were slightly put at ease when it was reported that Legends of Tomorroww's casting:
An African-American or biracial male who “decides to put on the uniform of a missing hero who once stood for justice and hope.”
It’s worth noting that, while this casting call doesn’t confirm Connor Hawke’s appearance, it does certainly allude to him being the character. For those who aren’t aware Connor is of mixed heritage as he is 1/4 Korean, 1/4 African American, 1/2 Caucasian.
The Potential Storyline
Harrison Wells/Eobard Thawne told Oliver in 1×22, Rogue Air, “The history books say you live to be 86 years old Mr. Queen, I guess the history books were wrong“. Assuming Eobard was correct and Oliver does live to be 86 years old without interference in his life, who is to say that it isn’t he is the hero who “goes missing”, much Oliver does in the comics when he retreats to his Ashram; leaving the Green Arrow mantle, open.
In the comics Oliver retreats to the [Green Arrow] Ashram, because he feels as though he is no longer adequate enough to be The Green Arrow. He, Oliver, feels as if he needs time – at the Ashram – to reinvent himself and, to quote Ollie himself, become someone else, become something else.
So again, lets assume that it is Connor Hawke some time in the future, who picks up the mantle of “Green Arrow”, who has quietly retired due to old age/inability to be the “Green Arrow”. Connor then arrives on the scene, discovers who Oliver is (and possibly even finds out that Oliver is his father), and then adopts the mantle of The Green Arrow.
The Older Oliver
A few months ago Stephen Amell told fans there was no chance he’d be sporting the van-dyke beard/goatee even if Arrow went for “14 seasons”. As fans, this shouldn’t have been too hard to except for a few reasons such as:
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It really isn’t that big of a staple to the character as people claim (his first 27 years of publication, his last 4 years of publication, and various stories between those two times have featured him with no facial hair or scruff)
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The public (on Arrow) would need to be portrayed as BEYOND stupid (surpassing any suspension of belief) to not realize their Mayor [Queen] and the Green Arrow have the exact same unique facial hair
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Assuming they did figure of that Mr. Queen and the Green Arrow were one and the same, they would then [likely] connect the dots and realize that Oliver Queen was indeed the Arrow, and he had yet to serve his sentence for the murders “he” had committed
That being said, Amell then took to Twitter more recently and said the following in three separate tweets:
“Went on a tongue and cheek tirade earlier this year about Green Arrow iconography/how it fit into our show.”
“Proud to say it only took 3-ish months for me [Amell] to make myself look like a total idiot.”
“The point being… You want to avoid the term ‘that will NEVER happen’ under any and all circumstances.”
Amell then tweeted the following later:
“Can’t take a photo today without dropping an insane spoiler. Might be the coolest day ever as Oliver Queen”.
Similarly Amell’s co-star Caity Lotz tweeted the following:
“On set filming on of the coolest scene’s we’ve shot thus far @TheCW_Legends #timetravel #gueststar”
Given the context of every other tweet, it wouldn’t be too out of the ordinary to assume that Amell was the “#gueststar” she was referring to in her tweets. And given some of the things she said in a previous tweet:
“Still shooting…what is episode 6 about? 🔥🕸🕸 🌎⌛👴🏼↖️😵💞💔 #spoileralert #LegendsofTomorrow”
Despite being somewhat of a stretch her emoji’s following her tweet could mean the following:
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“🔥🕸🕸 🌎⌛” – At some time in the future, the world is on fire
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“👴🏼↖️” – The old Arrow
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“😵” – This may indicate shock, or death
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“😵💞💔” – These may indicate some sort of love lost and love found.
Speaking of love, let’s just hope that, alternate future or not, this future does Arrow some justice and shows us that either Felicity left long ago and Oliver is alone, or Felicity left long ago and Oliver is with Dinah/Laurel.
Why This Is NOT ‘Ripping off Batman’
As I mentioned at the beginning the whole “Arrow is Batman-Lite” claim makes me chuckle and, in my opinion, comes from people who are neither familiar with Green Arrow’s full backstory, nor Batman’s backstory.
While I explain each argument ([Green] Arrow v. Batman) here, the Batman Beyond argument is quite unique because, Batman Beyond actually ‘ripped off’ Green Arrow.
Just to clarify beforehand the Batman Beyond cartoon is what spawned the use of Terry McGinnis in the current comics, but the TV shows story is NOT canon, and the storyline of the TV show is vastly different than the one retold more recently in the comics.
All that being said, here is a breakdown of Batman Beyond according to the show:
Terry McGinnis (First Appearance: January 1999):Bruce Wayne “has a son” who he [potentially] knows about, but for reasons unknown he allows that son to live his life. His son, Terry, has a volatile temper and is bullied for most of his life into young adulthood. The only man Terry looked up to was his adopted (he didn’t know) father, and that was his only idol. At some point in Terry’s young-adult life, Bruce Wayne ‘retires’ as Batman due to his inability to be the best Batman he can be anymore. After “secretly” retiring, Terry discovers Bruce, and adopts the mantle of Batman.
Now, for the story of Green Arrow II:
Connor Hawke (First Appearance: October 1994): Oliver Queen has a son who he [potentially] knows about, but for reasons unknown he allows that son to live his life. His son, Connor, has a volatile temper and is bullied for most of his life into young adulthood. The only man Connor looked up to was the idea of his father, and that was his only idol. At some point in Connor’s young-adult life, Oliver Queen ‘retires’ as Green Arrow due to his inability to be the best Green Arrow he can be anymore. After “secretly” retiring, Connor discovers Oliver, and adopts the mantle of Green Arrow.
Funnily enough, Batman Beyond portrays Bruce Wayne in his 60’s, and upon Connor’s introduction Oliver was too, in his late 50’s/early 60’s. Parallels aside, it’s actually worth noting that Batman Beyond also took a lot from other heroes, such as Peter Parker aka Spider-Man ,although most comics do rip each-other off, but here are some parallels between B.B. and Spidey:
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Both Terry and Peter are high-schoolers whose high-school life is highlighted and incorporated into his career as a hero
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Both Terry and Peter make jokes whilst combating their enemies
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Both Terry and Peter lost somebody close to them, Peter (his uncle) and Terry (his father)
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Both Terry and Peter feel beyond guilty over the loss. . Peter, because he hadn’t stopped the burglar who then proceed to kill his uncle, and Terry ’cause he left his father alone.
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They both have a rich person who they can’t quite fight with, as they have money and resource. Derek Powers a.k.a “Blight” and Wilson Fisk a.k.a “Kingpin”.
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Inque, Batman’s villain has a striking resemblance to Spider-Man’s foe – Venom. Both of them are made of Goo, both of them are black-blue coloured and can transform into other shapes (Venom when he’s not having a host).
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These similarities expand for pages and pages here, if you’re interested
Casting Connor Hawke
Assuming they want a fairly faithful (in terms of racial inheritance) version of Connor Hawke, there is no doubt in my mind that actor Roshon Fegan is the man for the job. Fegan’s acting credit’s may only include Disney-based roles such as Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam, Mostly Ghostly: Have You Met My Ghoulfriend?, A.N.T. Farm, etc but he is one of few actors who has proven that his talents certainly exceed those of most Disney actors (up there with the likes of Spencer Boldman, Billy Unger, and David Henrie). Fegan has not only proven the fact that he has acting talent, but he also has proven his ability to play someone who is broken, but also witty and fun, the perfect blend for Connor Hawke.
Conceptual Design for “Green Arrow Beyond”
Here are some designs – with actor Roshon Fegan in mind – of a futuristic Green Arrow costume (placed in front of Oliver’s display case in the new Arrow Bunker).
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