Batman vs Green Arrow: 8 Reasons DC’s Archer Never Overtook the Dark Knight

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Two of the most iconic members of the Justice League are Green Arrow and Batman. The latter is one of its founding members, whereas the former is one of the League’s most consistent supporting players, having earned his membership through amazing feats, like defeating DC’s version of the Hulk. However, the weight that each member holds on the team, and in the DC Universe overall, is far from equal.

It’s no secret that Green Arrow and Batman aren’t viewed on equal footing – in-universe, by other characters, or even by DC Comics fans. Both characters sport similar characteristics, yet Bruce Wayne still eclipses Oliver Queen in popularity. Not even Green Arrow’s more recent television show – Arrow, which spawned more than a decade’s worth of a CW universe – was enough to overtake Batman in popularity. There are key reasons why, no matter how much Green he brings in, Green Arrow as a character continues to be overshadowed by the Caped Crusader.

8

Green Arrow Has a Less Dramatic Love Life

One Consistent Love Interest Isn’t as Interesting as Batman’s Chaotic Romances

While Batman and Green Arrow share a playboy reputation, only one of their reputations is accurate. Dating back to their first on-panel kiss in 1970’s Green Lantern #78 (stylized as Green Lantern / Green Arrow) by Dennis O’Neil, Neal Adams, Frank Giacoia, and John Costanza, Oliver Queen and Dinah Lance have been consistently romantically involved with each other for decades. They’ve certainly had their rough patches, but Green Arrow and Black Canary have pretty much exclusively dated each other for more than 50 years, especially after getting married.

Batman’s romantic life is a little more, for lack of a better word, promiscuous. Even though Catwoman has gotten close to be Batman’s endgame relationship, the list of suitors – past and present – for Bruce Wayne is a long one, and it includes iconic DC figures like Talia al Ghul. While a dedicated relationship with one partner is something to be admired, it isn’t as tantalizing or interesting in a superhero story as the chaos that comes from Batman hopping from one bed to another.

7

Unlike Batman and Gotham, Green Arrow Has a Forgettable Rogues Gallery

Heroes Are Only as Popular as Their Villains

The average DC fan would be hard-pressed to remember a single member of Green Arrow’s rogue’s gallery, while the same fan could list their own top ten characters from Batman’s rogue’s gallery off the top of their head with ease. Maybe that’s false equivalency, since Batman boasts the best superhero rogues gallery, but that in itself reiterates exactly why Batman is DC’s most popular hero. From the Joker to the Penguin, Batman has some of the most memorable villains of all time. Meanwhile, Green Arrow has… Merlyn, at a stretch.

A hero’s villains are one of the main reasons for their success. Professional wrestler “Rowdy” Roddy Piper said it best at a World Championship Wrestling event when he told on-screen enemy “Hollywood” Hulk Hogan: “If they didn’t hate me so much, do you think they would have been cheering you so much?” The same applies to all forms of storytelling, as a protagonist is only as beloved and interesting as their antagonist. By that logic, Green Arrow’s antagonists just aren’t up to stuff.

6

Green Arrow Only Makes Sense as a Street Hero

He’s Less Versatile Than Batman

One of the reasons why Batman has maintained so much longevity is because of his versatility as a character who can fit right in within any setting. He doesn’t just have to be restricted to the streets of Gotham City. He can be put in space, in a Hell dimension, in another universe, and more – whatever the imagination can manage. Batman has enough tools in his gadget arsenal to still make him entertaining, and he has the wits of a super-genius where his personality never feels out of place.

Green Arrow lacks that same sort of versatility. There’s not much that a wisecracking, bow-wielding thief can do outside street justice and still make sense. There’s no reason why Oliver Queen needs to be in space (unless he’s at Justice League’s Unlimited Watchtower base) because he doesn’t have any skills or characteristics that would allow him to make sense, on paper, for a space mission. He was truly stretched to his limits during his recent multi-dimensional adventure in Green Arrow by Joshua Williamson and Sean Izaakse.

5

Green Arrow’s Weapons Aren’t as Cool as Batman’s

His Weapon of Choice Just Isn’t Interesting

It’s rare for any character with a bow and arrow to truly succeed in a world of gods and monsters. This problem isn’t exclusive to Green Arrow or even DC Comics, as one of Marvel’s most disrespected heroes is Hawkeye. If it’s not a character-specific issue, it has to do with the common thread of using the bow and arrow as a weapon. Using a bow and arrow, from the outside looking in, is just a dated weapon. It seems out of place to see someone use a bow and arrow in modern-day settings. The only way to modernize this tool would be to use a gun, and unless a hero’s name is Red Hood, guns are a big no-no in superhero culture.

Between his classic batarangs and Batmobile, his standard weapons are just plain iconic – and that’s to say nothing of his more updated weapons, like mechs, specialized gas pellets, and so much more. One could even argue that Batman’s detective skills are a more interesting “weapon” than Green Arrow’s plain old bow and arrow. Using an old school weapon just makes Oliver look like old-news.

4

From His Earliest Appearances, Green Arrow Is Not an Interesting Concept for a Character

He’s Robin Hood as a Superhero

At his core, when he first debuted, Green Arrow was just Robin Hood stylized as a superhero. DC didn’t even try to hide that fact, as his character and persona from his first appearance was the spitting image of Robin of Loxley, right down to his costume. In terms of character, Oliver Queen has evolved immensely since his initial debut, but the concept of a thieving, bow-and-arrow-wielding hero just isn’t easy to get behind on paper. Juxtaposed with modern sensibilities, the Green Arrow concept just isn’t all that interesting. Honestly, it’s debatable if many people found it interesting even in 1941.

Meanwhile, the idea of a man dressing up as a scary bat to fight crime – while silly on paper – remains immensely captivating, especially with his tragic backstory in mind. It’s a concept that has gripped audiences of all ages, while the Arrow concept is mostly adored by children and – counting the CW show – teenagers. Batman has been reimagined time and time again for different stories in different media, and the popularity of the core character concept endures, no matter how many decades pass.

3

Green Arrow Is Already a Batman Copycat

The Characters Share Too Many Similarities

It’s no secret that Green Arrow was originally a Batman ripoff. That statement isn’t to knock the character, as there’s still a lot to love about the Oliver Queen character, but it was always painfully evident that Green Arrow was created to cash in on the success of Batman. In the ’40s, Green Arrow was conceived as a billionaire by day and a superhero by night- with his own quippy sidekick, Arrowcave, and Arrow car. Green Arrow’s similarity to Batman is an open secret, one that’s become a running joke in DC canon.

To this day, Oliver Queen struggles to wipe the stench of Bruce Wayne off of him, a character who had a couple of years’ worth of a headstart on Green Arrow in every department. It’s like a case of picking McDonald’s vs. WacArnold’s. No matter how good or mean WacArnold’s burgers are, people are going to choose the original every time. The rivalry between Green Arrow and Batman – spawned from their similarities – continues to this day, even in the competive friendship between their former sidekicks.

2

Green Arrow Is a More Politically-Charged Character

And He Is Thus More Divisive

Ever since at least the Green Lantern / Green Arrow series of the 1970s by O’Neil and Adams, Oliver Queen has been portrayed as an unapologetic leftist. By modern standards, he’d probably be called “woke” by some readers. It certainly fits with the whole “give to the poor, take from the rich” mentality at the root of Robin Hood. The empathy he holds for marginalized communities and his direct verbal attack against anyone and anything resembling a rich Republican has been admired by some readers, while others who lean right wing may have been turned off.

Traditionally, even when he carries a similar empathy for marginalized communities, Batman has been portrayed as politically neutral, not alienating readers of any group. That neutrality helped give that universal quality to Batman. It’s why he’s won over so many different demographics, while Queen is more divisive.

1

Green Arrow Is More Morally Gray Than Batman

Making Oliver Queen Harder to Like as a Hero

In more recent times, Green Arrow has been something of an anti-hero at best and an outright villain at worst. In betraying the Justice League, he joined forces with Amanda Waller during the Absolute Power event by Mark Waid and Dan More, although he’s since been redeemed. Batman isn’t exactly a saint himself. He’s made mistakes; he’s not a squeaky clean boy scout; and he’s even worked with Waller before, but not in a way that makes his allegiances ambiguous. Certainly not to the extent Oliver has, even for a long con.

DC tends to allow Green Arrow to be more of an imperfect character than Batman, butan imperfect character who works in shades of gray can be difficult to warm up to. Batman has done a better job at playing such a character without putting his allegiances in question, all while fans continue to struggle to justify their own allegiances to Green Arrow.

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