Green Arrow: 5 Ways Smallville's Version Was Superior To Arrow (& 5 Ways Arrow's Version Was The Best)
The CW has been the home to not one, but two different versions of the Green Arrow who has become a bigger DC hero thanks to the network. While Stephen Amell portrayed Oliver Queen for 8 seasons on Arrow in the Arrowverse, he wasn't The CW's first actor to ever play him. Over a year prior to the show's premiere, Smallville was the first DC property to ever bring Green Arrow into the world of live-action as Justin Hartley played him for 4 seasons starting in the sixth year.
For years, it's been debated who portrayed Green Arrow out of the two actors. Despite being open for it, Hartley sadly never got a chance to come on to Amell's show and have the two share the screen. Regardless of how long they played their respective Oliver Queen, there are elements where Smallville did Green Arrow better than the Arrowverse and vice versa.
10 Arrow: The Better Adaptation Of Villains
Despite not being a series about Oliver, Smallville managed to make him a very big character in the later seasons and adapted a number of things from the comics. But when it came to the villains, only the Dark Archer made it into the series and it was a weird reimagination.
On Arrow, however, the Green Arrow villains were given better treatment as they resembled their respective comic book counterparts better. Even if there were certain liberties taken, the show tackled some of Oliver's baddies better, including Merlyn, far better than Smallville did.
9 Smallville: The Better Treatment Of Black Canary
To say that Arrow had a very confusing journey with the Black Canary is the Arrowverse's biggest understatement. For starters, the decision to kill off Dinah Laurel Lance in a Green Arrow series is still the most bizarre decision any DC property has ever done. While a version of Laurel as Black Canary was there by the end, it was still a weird trip.
In Smallville's case, while their Black Canary never really got into a big romance with Oliver, they at least never had him treat his Dinah the way Arrow's version did. From cheating on Laurel with her little sister to the way, he treated her for most of her time before dying in season 4 put Oliver in a very bad light.
8 Arrow: The Better Reveal Of Green Arrow's Secret Identity
One element that both Hartley and Amell's Green Arrows shared was that both of them revealed to the world that Oliver Queen was the Emerald Archer. However, who had the better coming-out moment? That's where Arrow takes the cake as Oliver, after making a tough deal with the FBI, agrees to go to jail in exchange for their help and getting his team immunity.
But in one of the final moments of that episode, Oliver reveals at a conference that he is in fact the Green Arrow after delivering a powerful speech.
7 Smallville: The Better Adaptation of Green Arrow Year One
Green Arrow: Year One is, by far, one of the most important stories in Oliver's mythology as his origin story is depicted. Both DC dramas tackled that storyline, but not entirely accurate. However, despite having seen the island more on Arrow, this is where Smallville is superior.
Hartley's Oliver, despite having his origin story slightly changed from the graphic novel, still went through a more accurate version of Year One, even if it was just shown through one single episode. With Amell's version, the fact that it went from him having been Lian Yu to suddenly that he was stuck from one place to another, made that element less enjoyable in the long-run.
6 Arrow: The Better Usage Of Trick Arrows
Anyone who loves Green Arrow knows that his infamous trick arrows are a huge deal in his quiver. For this round, that is where Arrow outshines Smallville as viewers got to see Oliver, through clever ways, use various trick arrows.
Despite having been on the series for 4 seasons, Hartley's Green Arrow, surprisingly, didn't have nearly as many trick arrows as one would think.
5 Smallville: The More Accurate Representation Of Speedy
While Arrow's version of Roy Harper/Arsenal was very accurate to the comics, both shows had their versions of Speedy, one of the female members of Team Green Arrow. However, while Thea Queen was loosely based on Mia Dearden, it's Smallville's version that did the character more accurately.
Despite only being in a handful of episodes, the Superman prequel had Mia for a few episodes and her background was more in line with the comics. In the Smallville Season 11 comic, Mia has officially become Speedy which was less of a headache compared to Thea's evolution.
4 Arrow: The Better Beard
It's a fact that any version of Green Arrow, no matter if it's in the comics, animation, or other media, always has a goatee. It has and always will be a big part of Oliver and for unknown reasons, Hartley's incarnation was constantly clean-shaven.
Even if Amell's Oliver didn't have a full-on goatee, he at least tried. Why Hartley never had one or didn't least try to have Oliver get a bit of a beard may never be answered.
3 Smallville: The Better Costume
When it comes to portraying Green Arrow, the costume has to be right. Despite Amell's version having gone through multiple costume changes, Hartley's suit is the superior design.
The problem with Arrow was that no matter how many times they changed it, the green was always too dark. His name is Green Arrow, not Dark-and-Barely-Green Arrow. Even if the Smallville interpretation can look a bit silly, especially with the choice to have Oliver wear shades instead of a domino mask, their design was closer to the comics than the Arrowverse was.
2 Arrow: The Best Oliver Queen Ending
While both versions of the Green Arrow had some major endings respectively, Amell's Oliver will always have the better one. While Hartley's Green Arrow helped his Superman stop Darkseid's invasion, the Arrowverse incarnation literally gave his life to reboot the entire Multiverse.
He even brought all of the current Arrowverse heroes together on one shared Earth. That kind of legacy was something Hartley's depiction of the DC archer never accomplished.
1 Smallville: The Better Charm
For the longest time, Oliver has been one of comics' most wisecracking superheroes of all time and that is where Smallville beats Arrow. As much good as Amell's Oliver did, the creators never included his iconic charm and instead gave the fans a darker depiction.
Hartley's Green Arrow may have never gotten his own spinoff, but at least his Oliver felt like the hero you would read in the comics. His wit and charm are essential to the Green Arrow character, which is why he isn't just a Batman clone with a bow and arrow.
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