The large, troll-like monsters who are Green Arrow's primary adversaries in Straight Shooter are, in a way, completely extraneous to the story. In fact, I tend to think they're the weakest link in a collection otherwise packed with good, juicy material.

There's the quandary of dealing with poor immigrants who are breaking the law, but who have fair grievances against the corporation that brought them to America with a promise of work and prosperity. There's the crusading attorney who tackles injustice in her own, non-heroic but very diligent and effective way.

Of even more interest is Green Arrow's heavy-handed brand of street-level justice -- which isn't always the same thing as law -- as well as his own growing awareness of his personal relationship failings. Oliver Queen is one of those unmitigated lotharios who doesn't always make the right choices but, unlike the old days, he is developing a bit more self-awareness and, yes, even guilt for his romantic misdeeds. The reactions of his supporting cast are likewise very revealing; only folks who truly love him would get so very, very angry with him.

Oh yeah, there's also a diminutive but excessively gifted, sandal-wearing assassin whose abilities quite clearly exceed Oliver's own. How ever will our hero get out of this mess?

Tune in to find out. Green Arrow is unquestionably heroic, but his flaws make him one of the most human A-list figures in the DC Universe. Writer Judd Winick, who takes over the reins from Brad Meltzer (who in turn took over from GA rebooter Kevin Smith), has a good handle on the character.

It's probably important to note that, although this is listed as volume 3 in the series, it collects issues that come after the books in volume 4. Go figure.