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That makes a lot more sense, really. Even in the “Just Say No” era, busting evil pot dealers really didn’t gibe with Ollie’s personality.

Why are the giving opium a bad rep, man? What about the opium enthusiasts? Freakin’ propaganda piece!

Diggle appears to have made the change more or less so that he can make the villain an evil asian albiness named
…
(wait for it)
…
China White.

That makes a lot more sense, really. Even in the “Just Say No” era, busting evil pot dealers really didn’t gibe with Ollie’s personality.

Well, it gibed with his pre-beard, Batman-lite personality, no?

But hemp growers are different from pot dealers. Hemp is used for clothing, rope, shampoo, and tons of other things.

Darn! I was so looking forward to the face-off against GA’s newest nemesis: Woody Harrelson.

I love how chill those two dudes are in the art. What an exciting battle must have ensued!

“Diggle appears to have made the change more or less so that he can make the villain an evil asian albiness named China White”

What a missed opportunity. Given the history of opium, she could have been an Englishwoman gone native, and then there’d be no real need for her to be albino.

She could have even been, somehow, an original British opium merchant going back to the Opium Wars, kept alive through some unknown means.

I think Marc was making a joke, Jon.

I was looking at the Showcase: Green Arrow book recently. Was there anything about drugs in the Kirby version at all? I thought he prevented a mutiny or somesuch.

Decriminalize it, man.

Jack, I think (or hope) Jon was going along with the joke himself.

I was looking at the Showcase: Green Arrow book recently. Was there anything about drugs in the Kirby version at all? I thought he prevented a mutiny or somesuch.

You may be right, Stephane.

While I don’t believe Kirby actually said “marijuana” or “hemp,” I thought he had them be drug guys, but now that you bring it up, that might have been totally Grell’s invention.

“Jack, I think (or hope) Jon was going along with the joke himself.”

Um, no, it went right over my head. Also, it was 4:15 in the morning.

Still, though, wouldn’t it be kick-ass to have the hero fighting a Victorian British opium warlord in the 21st century, camped out in a fortified redout in the Golden Triangle of Burma.

AHa, I think I’ve got it.
Kirby had no drugs in his story, simply a mutiny. If you look at the Grell panel above, he even mentions that there’s a “legend” that he got his start taking down “pirates”. Obviously Grell was playing it fast and loose (very loose) with Kirby’s story.

I think the pirates came from the O’Neil / Grell retelling of the Kirby story from DC SUPER-STARS in 1977. I don’t recall who Ollie shot at in the Kirby version, as the most memorable visuals from that story were the close-ups on the home-made drill arrow and net arrow.