this post was submitted on 09 Jun 2025
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[–] ideonek@piefed.social 32 points 21 hours ago (2 children)

Because of his views.

https://i0.wp.com/50yearoldcomics.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/gl89-recruit.jpg?ssl=1

https://i0.wp.com/50yearoldcomics.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/gl89-vapor.jpg?ssl=1

From: https://50yearoldcomics.com/2022/02/19/green-lantern-89-april-1972/

He's consistently an "old lefty" sometimes more "sustainable-first capitalist" sometimes more "anarchist", but his views on things like pollution are well established.

[–] Semjaza@lemmynsfw.com 18 points 20 hours ago (1 children)

Turns out he has a superpower, and it is the ability to be environmentalist, anarchist-leaning, and billionaire at the same time.

[–] ideonek@piefed.social 15 points 19 hours ago* (last edited 19 hours ago) (2 children)

Fair. And I believe this absurd was addressed in universe multiple time. Often with him losing the money in a process. But yes, it's one of the unfortunate consequence of our shift in how we see billionaires. Batman is the richest and smartest person in the world who care only about one city... with it's underfunded mental asylum looking like a hose of horror.

The irony is clear. They have a better way of fixing the system than fists and arrow. They are the system.

The lean batman and lean GA are the only one that make sense. But they need to be part of the Justice League with immortal gods. So they need the 9th metal mech and killer ray space stations... which cost money.

But saying GL is not an environmentalist is like saying that Batman don't care about Gotham. (Even if they have a stupid way of organizing their priorities.)

[–] Viking_Hippie@lemmy.dbzer0.com 7 points 19 hours ago (1 children)

You're absolutely right on all counts, but I absolutely adore this typo/autoerect error:

looking like a hose of horror

[–] ideonek@piefed.social 6 points 19 hours ago

So I'll leave it unedited out of respect for your adoration :)

[–] Semjaza@lemmynsfw.com 3 points 18 hours ago* (last edited 18 hours ago) (1 children)

I think so and agree with you.

I'll add that I think Ollie gets a better treatment with it than Bruce, and Marvel's Tony who is a bit of a dick, do. (Pym and Incredible both manage to keep inventing game-changing things that never change the order or structure of society or economics, which is relayed to where I'm gonna go but also different in some ways).

I haven't read a lot of Green Arrow, but have enjoyed what I have.

I do remember reading one story that began with Ollie volunteering in Africa working on water infrastructure (not sure if he was also funding things). He takes actions allowed within the confines of the editorial line to fit the views his character espouses.

But to keep relatablity any never ending story, i.e. the soap opera for boys of serialised comics, will tend towards the status quo of our real world. They can't show us a better way to live, as how we live needs to be the normal and mostly ideal. So Genosha must fall, Metropolis must be a normalish city, and Gotham remains close to a platonic ideal of the upper-middle class's view of crime infested 80s New York. (Not the original, but seems to have shifted to it from the gangstery 1950s it once was in pre-modern Batman).

Edit: I think this is also actually in part what has led me to become more a fan of Superman as I get older.

[–] ideonek@piefed.social 3 points 17 hours ago* (last edited 28 minutes ago) (1 children)

I couldn't agree more. But I could live with the status quo of the environment, I think it could be done well... IF you are willing to let your characters change. But they insist on Batman that needs to stay broken even when he overcomes all his obstacles. He's a fantasy of a perfect man, right? He should be self-aware and smart enough to start therapy by now. He already raised a family of heros, and which one of them surpass him in some way... the only reasonable place for him to be is retirement. But as long as batman toys and movies are selling better than Nigtwing's no one will pull the trigger. At least not permanently.

I also moved to Superman - unfortunately I'm taking a brake on US culture until the president is in the office. But I can't wait to pick up where I left. Superman resonates so much more with me now.

I'm in a small minority that loved Superman revealing that he's Clark Kent to the word. It's consistent with his "truth" value, it opens to discussions ethics of having "all hearing" reporter who reports on things he's part of... it created fresh type of conflicts. And I loved his son, as a Superman who ask himself "should I be doing more and what more even mean"... I loved the House of El and the Superman's legacy...

You can disagree and it's fine. The point is, we deserve stories that are more than retelling the same one over and over again.

We could have the metropolis that is normalized with heros who address modern problems that became "norm" to readers. I want to know

But they will not play the long game, when the short term profits are on the line. Status Quo strikes again.

[–] Semjaza@lemmynsfw.com 3 points 7 hours ago
[–] skisnow@lemmy.ca 5 points 20 hours ago (2 children)

Sure, but we're really in "exception proving the rule" territory where you have to reach back to 1972 for an environmental plotline.

[–] ideonek@piefed.social 12 points 20 hours ago (1 children)

Come on, man. You are portraying a scenario when I opened all comics starting now and stopped when I reached a first one with environmental theme? Is this arguing in good faith? The image is old because it's an important part of his worldview for a long time. One of his enemy from this year is named "Fresh Water Killer".

[–] skisnow@lemmy.ca 0 points 14 hours ago (1 children)

I’m not doubting he’s pro-environment, but my original comment referred to characters defined by their environmentalism, and the fact that you’re pushing him so hard as a candidate off something that’s very much a secondary characteristic proves how thin the field is overall.

[–] ideonek@piefed.social 2 points 14 hours ago (1 children)

What his primary characteristic in your mind?

I agree how the filed is overall. He's a very small represnetiarion. But I stand by that he's a valid one.

[–] skisnow@lemmy.ca 3 points 13 hours ago (1 children)

Put it this way, none of the writers of the Wikipedia article on him have included mentions of environmentalism anywhere close to the opening paragraphs.

Though ironically enough, given what the thread was originally about, the only reference to a environmental activism I can see in there is one where he infiltrates a gang of eco-terrorists to take them down…

[–] ideonek@piefed.social 2 points 10 hours ago* (last edited 10 hours ago) (1 children)

I ment Swamp Thing! Swamp Thing!

Albo, I think Poison Ivey is anti-hero now. So... progress?

Also, Also super heros are by defintion rectionary - it's a whole thing, there is a book about it. So you may hava a point.

[–] skisnow@lemmy.ca 1 points 4 hours ago (1 children)

super heros are by defintion rectionary

The other thing that occurs to me is that in most "environmentalist" storylines, the villain's polluting is done illegally, so the hero already represents the status quo.

[–] ideonek@piefed.social 1 points 20 minutes ago

That is... a very good point. Not only in the environmental niche, we desperately crave more "it may be legal, but it needs to be stopped" stories. It would actually make more sense narratively. Gave them the actual reason to vigilante.

[–] PlexSheep@infosec.pub 1 points 17 hours ago

Green arrow has a decent and relatively new series.