Throughout much of his pre-Bronze Age career, Green Arrow came across as something of a Batman wannabe.
The surface similarities were pretty obvious--a billionaire in civilian life, with a youthful ward who becomes his colorfully garbed sidekick. And GA's early writers, perhaps lacking sufficient creativity, loaded up on the Dark Knight-lite affectations: Oliver Queen had an Arrow Car, and Arrow Plane, operated from the Arrow Cave, and the police summoned him with the Arrow Signal.
And when it came to villains? Well, there's this guy:
Tu-wubba who?
Let's see...a crook who was robbing a playing card factory dye plant has his face permanently turned white green and becomes a "master criminal"...not familiar in the least, eh?
Aside from the obvious question--who robs a dye plant?--there's nothing particularly interesting about Greenface. As far as my (admittedly hasty) research can tell, this was the character's only appearance. We never get his real name, no real origin, and he no real shtick or gimmick...he's just a crook who wants to get into the Criminals Hall Of Fame (seriously) by killing Green Arrow. Aim high, Greenface, aim high.
But there was absolutely no reason for the whole "strange complexion" business, none at all, except to be a pale echo of the Caped Crusader's main nemesis.
And for the longest time, that's what Green Arrow was--a vague shadow of Batman who used trick arrows, and his villains even vaguer.
No wonder Denny & Neal went nuts with the character--really, there was nothing else you could do without the audience falling asleep.
Oh, all right, there is a second obvious question about Greenface--is he supposed to look like Humphrey Bogart??
The character most in need of a modern revival appeared in World's Finest #39 (1949).
The surface similarities were pretty obvious--a billionaire in civilian life, with a youthful ward who becomes his colorfully garbed sidekick. And GA's early writers, perhaps lacking sufficient creativity, loaded up on the Dark Knight-lite affectations: Oliver Queen had an Arrow Car, and Arrow Plane, operated from the Arrow Cave, and the police summoned him with the Arrow Signal.
And when it came to villains? Well, there's this guy:
Tu-wubba who?
Let's see...a crook who was robbing a Aside from the obvious question--who robs a dye plant?--there's nothing particularly interesting about Greenface. As far as my (admittedly hasty) research can tell, this was the character's only appearance. We never get his real name, no real origin, and he no real shtick or gimmick...he's just a crook who wants to get into the Criminals Hall Of Fame (seriously) by killing Green Arrow. Aim high, Greenface, aim high.
But there was absolutely no reason for the whole "strange complexion" business, none at all, except to be a pale echo of the Caped Crusader's main nemesis.
And for the longest time, that's what Green Arrow was--a vague shadow of Batman who used trick arrows, and his villains even vaguer.
No wonder Denny & Neal went nuts with the character--really, there was nothing else you could do without the audience falling asleep.
Oh, all right, there is a second obvious question about Greenface--is he supposed to look like Humphrey Bogart??
The character most in need of a modern revival appeared in World's Finest #39 (1949).
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