It was the first comic from a major publisher to be published without the Comics Code Authority's seal of approval since 1954, when the Comics Code Authority was founded. Then, Amazing Spider-Man #96–98 (May–July 1971) was published by rival comic publishing house Marvel Comics, which showed major supporting character Harry Osborn struggling with drug addiction. ![]() (The Comics Code prohibited the depiction of drug abuse, even in a totally condemning context.) O'Neil said that Schwartz "was very supportive" during his run on Green Lantern, and that he found the Comics Code to be his biggest restriction when confronting social issues. ![]() with the shakes." When Adams first drew the cover showing Speedy with heroin paraphernalia, editor Julius Schwartz rejected it, since it would not have been approved by the Comics Code Authority. I had friends with drug problems, people coming over at 3 a.m. O'Neil recounted, "I saw people nodding out from heroin every day on the street. ![]() He responded by pushing for a story dealing with drug addiction, an issue both he and O'Neill had been wanting to tackle, and had encountered firsthand: Adams was chairman of his neighborhood drug rehabilitation center, and O'Neil lived in a neighborhood with a large number of addicts. The O'Neil/Adams run met with a high level of media attention and critical acclaim including five Shazam Awards at the May 1971 ceremony, but by the time of "Snowbirds Don't Fly", Adams felt that they had run out of steam and were producing stories which lacked true relevance. Also, it gave me real problems to solve in terms of craft which I hadn't faced before." The first of these "socially motivated" Green Lantern/Green Arrow stories was written with Gil Kane slated to be the artist, but Kane dropped out and was replaced by Neal Adams. And I think that writing about things that really concerned me pulled out of me a higher level of craft. It was a situation where nobody had anything to lose. So this was my chance to see if this idea I had would work. O'Neil recounted that "my journalism background and laid-back social activism had led me to wonder if I couldn't combine those things with what I did for a living. Queen and Lantern tackle the kingpin of the drug ring, a pharmaceutics CEO who outwardly condemns drug abuse, and attend the funeral of the addict who passed.ĭuring the 1960s, Green Lantern was on the verge of cancellation, which gave writer Denny O'Neil a great deal of creative freedom when he was assigned the series. In shame, Harper withdraws cold turkey, and one of the other addicts dies of a drug overdose. In the second part ( Green Lantern/Green Arrow #86), an enraged Green Arrow lashes out at his ward. It becomes evident that the stolen arrows are indeed Queen's, which he shares with Harper when they fight crime together. They think he is working undercover to bust them, but Queen catches him red-handed when he tries to shoot heroin. Tracking down the attackers, Green Arrow and his best friend, Green Lantern Hal Jordan, find out that the muggers are addicts who need money, and are surprised to find Queen's ward Speedy (Roy Harper) among them. Strangely, the weapon is loaded with his own arrows. In the first part ( Green Lantern/Green Arrow #85), Green Arrow (Oliver Queen) runs into muggers who shoot him with a crossbow. Considered a watershed moment in the depiction of mature themes in DC Comics, the tone of this story is set in the tagline on the cover: "DC attacks youth's greatest problem. It tells the story of Green Lantern and Green Arrow, who fight drug dealers, witnessing that Green Arrow's ward Roy "Speedy" Harper is a drug addict and dealing with the fallout of his revelation. ![]() The story was written by Dennis O'Neil and Neal Adams, with the latter also providing the art with Dick Giordano. " Snowbirds Don't Fly" is a two-part anti-drug comic book story arc which appeared in Green Lantern/Green Arrow issues 85 and 86, published by DC Comics in 1971. Hal Jordan Green Arrow Speedy Black Canary
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