After the events that transpired in Absolute Evil #1, everyone expected that the entry of Green Arrow in the developing Absolute Universe would be cut before it even fully began. Thankfully, DC cleared the air during ComicsPro 2026 (via Popverse) with the announcement that Absolute Green Arrow will be an upcoming miniseries, with a mid-2026 release.

And by the official description, the title is set to be a modern-day urban horror, where a new hooded archer resembling Absolute Green Arrow, named The Longbow Hunter, is introduced as a serial-killing phantom. Since it’s confirmed that Oliver Queen is deceased, it means the serial killer isn’t the original Emerald Archer, but a vengeful imposter.

But when we look back, we can see a bit of inspiration for this series in DC’s Green Arrow: The Longbow Hunters, which brought us one of Oliver Queen’s darkest and most brutal versions.

The Longbow Hunters Brought Out DC’s Darkest Green Arrow

Credits: DC Comics

Credits: DC Comics

Credits: DC Comics

Green Arrow: The Longbow Hunters is a three-part graphic novel miniseries, written and illustrated by Mike Grell in 1987, which also marked the start of his decade-long creative journey with the character for DC Comics. This particular version of the Emerald Archer was a dark, gritty, and extremely brutal reinvention of the superhero into a street-level character.

The story focused on an older Oliver Queen, who recently settled down in Seattle with Dinah Lance after leaving his vigilante life behind in Star City. But after a series of serial killings start happening across the city, he is given a new, more practical cape by Dinah, leading him to dust off his gear for one more rodeo as Green Arrow.

The three volumes focus on a dual investigation by Queen on the serial killings, and Dinah as a police officer on a drug trafficking case involving a notable personality. And as the story unfolds, it becomes clear that both of these investigations lead to a single affluent businessman named Kyle Magnor, associated with international crime and political corruption.

And this is when Oliver meets the masked serial killer, whose real name is Shado, a young woman hell-bent on taking revenge on every single person responsible for her father’s death, the main culprit being Magnor. This is most evidently the biggest inspiration the Absolute Green Arrow creative team has taken from the narrative, altering the revenge plot to fit Queen’s death.

Throughout the series, Oliver fights powerful and corrupt individuals, while he struggles with his own life and age. At the same time, it shows him snapping multiple times over, abandoning self-control and resistance in the face of insurmountable odds, even going so far as killing people, something that wasn’t part of his core values as the Green Arrow.

The narrative sees themes of real-world grittiness from the realm of the criminal underworld to the justification of morality in the actions of the characters in focus, bringing the grandness of the superhero to the streets.

From psychological deconstruction to brutal awakenings and visceral representations of those aspects, The Longbow Hunters gave us a Green Arrow we never thought was possible.

Absolute Green Arrow Is Already an Absolute Universe Home Run

Variant cover page of Absolute Green Arrow #1 by Tula Lotay | Credits: DC Comics

As stated earlier, Absolute Green Arrow is positioned to be an urban horror masterpiece, the kind of character redesign that was being asked for from the character for a long while.

In terms of design, creators Pornsak Pichetshote and Rafael Albuquerque managed to put the classic Absolute Universe spin on the character while keeping his classic silhouette recognizable. And with the addition of a skull mask, he has an aura of almost supernatural, ghostly danger that accompanies his serial killer motif in Absolute Green Arrow.

The Absolute Universe will finally also be getting a full-fledged horror narrative that fans have been asking for ever since the release of Absolute Batman and its showcase of body and creature horror became popular. Thus, despite the release being more than three months away, fans are already hyped beyond measure.

Here’s an overview of Absolute Green Arrow.

Release DateAbsolute Green Arrow #1 (May 20, 2026)Creative TeamWriter: Pornsak PichetshoteArtist: Rafael AlbuquerqueColorist: Marcelo MaioloScheduled Issues6PublisherDC Comics

What are your first impressions of the upcoming miniseries? Tell us in the comments below.

Green Arrow: The Longbow Hunters is available on DC Universe Infinite.
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