Green Arrow and Black Canary: A Rocky Love Affair

[CBR News]

With Oliver Queen and Black Canary finally getting together in Rebirth, CBR looks back at their storied relationship.


Full article here.

[colonyofcells]

I prefer Black Canary break up with Oliver so Black Canary can fly solo again.

[kalorama]

I've never been a fan of the Canary/Arrow pairing. It always felt like a relic of the 70's era when in which it started, and it never really grew beyond that. As Ollie and Dinah developed as individual characters, they seemed to become people who had less and less in common to the point where keeping them together just felt forced, culminating in one of the worst executed comic book marriages ever, a huge stain on an otherwise outstanding G.A. run by Judd Winick. (Although I'm 100% certain that the marriage was by editorial decree and not his idea.)

Dinah has really grown beyond Ollie and she should be smart enough at this point to realize it.

[Wiccan]

Dinah has really grown beyond Ollie and she should be smart enough at this point to realize it.

Well, the current Dinah and Ollie just met each other.

[kalorama]

Well, the current Dinah and Ollie just met each other.

That doesn't really matter. The personality dynamic of Dinah's character, individually, is still much closer to she ws nearer the end of her pre-52 existence as opposed to the beginning of their relationship back in the 70s. All it really means is that instead of being smart enough to leave Ollie (which she was, pre-52), Dinah should be smart enough not to get involved with him in the first place.

[Nite-Wing]

I wonder why DC keeps going back to the well with this romance
You would think 40+ years of supposed breakups and infidelity would let a sleeping dog lie but nope it just can't not end apparently
Time to roll black canary back to the ship of green arrow instead of doing something worthwhile with her

[kalorama]

I wonder why DC keeps going back to the well with this romance
You would think 40+ years of supposed breakups and infidelity would let a sleeping dog lie but nope it just can't not end apparently
Time to roll black canary back to the ship of green arrow instead of doing something worthwhile with her

As illustrated in the page scans in the article, every time they've been together--in any era or decade,regardless of who the creators are--the relationship inevitably ends with Dinah dumping Ollie for lying to her or hiding something from her. So either all those creators really lacked imagination, or there's something in the characters' matrix that doesn't really work when you put them together.

[Doctor Bifrost]

I just do not see what makes Dinah and Ollie a compelling couple. And I would prefer to see Black Canary in her own comic, not playing second fiddle in someone else's.

[Frontier]

I think Percy's done a solid job of re-establishing the relationship and giving them sufficient chemistry without making one or the other look bad or too OOC, so for now I'm pretty happy to have the GA/BC romance back .

Hoping they're together in Justice League Action or when they eventually appear in the DCNAU movies, or at least we get to see the relationship possibly develop again as we are in Rebirth.

[Austin316]

I wonder why DC keeps going back to the well with this romance
You would think 40+ years of supposed breakups and infidelity would let a sleeping dog lie but nope it just can't not end apparently
Time to roll black canary back to the ship of green arrow instead of doing something worthwhile with her

Because, unfortunately, DC comic fans (yes, I'm generalising and yes, I include myself in this) are a bunch of fickle whiners. We want creativity and something different but we piss and moan if the slightest thing is changed from what know. We wrap writers and artists up in hundreds upon hundreds of issues of history and complain because an issue of Batman (to choose a random example) contradicts something written 3 decades ago.

They are putting them back together because all people went on about (outside of the general quality of his book) were that 1) Ollie didn't have his beard and 2) they weren't together.

[Dr. Cheesesteak]

I prefer Black Canary break up with Oliver so Black Canary can fly solo again.

I just do not see what makes Dinah and Ollie a compelling couple. And I would prefer to see Black Canary in her own comic, not playing second fiddle in someone else's.

Agreed.

Though I did like the dynamic of their relationship more in the JL cartoons.

Either way, I think the fact there is just so much history to the couple is what makes it appealing. I also personally like Dinah to not be w/ Ollie. Not necessarily b/c I prefer her to be solo/single (though she is usually more interesting that way), but b/c I just don't like Ollie lol.

[Nomidian]

I've tried Green Arrow in the past and was never a huge fan especially the last few years felt too dark, but so far I've really enjoyed the first couple issues. I think they've got it right not being too dark and having his character more likable to the reader (me anyway), and the art is perfect don't ever change it.

[kalorama]

I just do not see what makes Dinah and Ollie a compelling couple. And I would prefer to see Black Canary in her own comic, not playing second fiddle in someone else's.

I actually like Dinah better in group settings as opposed to sole. I think her personality (when properly written) really excels in group situations. As much as I wasn't a fan of the actual romance with Ollie, I liked having her be a part of Team Arrow with Connor and Speedy (Mia) in Winick's G.A. run. If DC wants to re-kindle/reinstate old relationships, how about re-affirming Dinah's friendship with Zatanna and putting them both on in a Justice League book.

[JLange]

I love Ollie & Dinah together. Always have. Glad they are back together. Pretty sure he'll cheat on her again ( hoping he won't), and if he does, I will welcome them finding each other again.

[Robotman]

They're actually one of my favorite couples but once they get together it kind of limits what can be done with them. They'd have to go through yet another break up if they want to change the characters direction. While I think they were too strict with the rule I can kind of understand where DC was coming from when they wanted to limit romances and said no superhero marriages.

But Ollie screwing things up is fitting for his character. I think the reason why he never needed a huge rogues gallery is because he's his own worst enemy. But I hope we never see another story where Ollie straight up cheats on Dinah.