The Arrow Series focuses on fighting crime in Starling City, where you can go from mansions to glades just by walking through the city. The main character is Oliver Queen, also known as Arrow. His job only begins by eliminating people on his late father's hit list. However, as the series continues, he begins to help his city become a better place by stopping bank robbers and other crimes. Oliver has the help of his two sidekicks Diggle and Felicity. They help him observe the city, learn about crimes, and plan what to do. In Aeon Skoble's article "Superhero Revisionism" the main focus is on the philosophical complexity within superheroes, "it leads us to rethink our fundamental moral ideas and our attitude towards the concept of the superhero". (34) Oliver wants justice by stopping criminals in his city, while Helena wants personal revenge on her father. Oliver tries to prove that Helena will be happy with the outcome without hurting innocent people. Oliver is the human form of Skoble's goal of achieving justice for all: "he has always been cautious and measured in his use of violence, has refused to cross certain lines, and has consistently interfered only with criminals." (33) While Helena is exactly what Skoble tries to prove is the wrong way to live. Overall Skoble does a great job of casting showing the difference between justice and revenge. Skoble is “entrusting all of us with the responsibility for meaning and justice.” (39) Revenge is shown by someone who goes out and "looks for trouble and then defends themselves", (30) Skoble explains that this would not be an act of justice because it is not a true act of heroism if they go out looking for the bad guys and not engage in self-defense against threats. In Arrow there are some... pieces of paper... elaborated in utilitarian terms, directed towards the common good; I gave them my obedience and my invisibility,” (32) and if superheroes should be able to do harm to create greater good for the city. Even though Oliver doesn't work with the government, he leaves the crime scene before they get there so as not to be caught. He doesn't kill the people he stops, he allows the government to take over and give people the punishment they deserve. Oliver and Helena are representations of Skoble's article because Skoble is conveying that superheroes' actions are always justified if they work with the law and take criminals off the streets, which is exactly what Oliver does. While Helena on the other is the complete opposite of Skoble's focus as she is seeking her personal revenge, she is killing innocent people along the way, which Skoble shows would be unjustified..
tags