Warning: contains spoilers for Infinite Frontier #0!
DC's Infinite Frontier #0 is here, introducing fans to a brand new status quo full of possibility - specifically, the possibility of beloved characters returning to life. The ending of Dark Nights: Death Metal saw the Totality - a new team of heroes and villains working together on the dark side of the moon - declare that their instruments had picked up several dead characters returning to life, though they didn't yet know who. Mass resurrections were already necessary following Death Metal's barnstormer final battle, but DC made it very clear that they'd be resurrecting some characters who fell before that event. Infinite Frontier #0 reveals the first of these resurrections is Roy Harper, aka Arsenal - former sidekick to Green Arrow, former Titan and Outlaw, and now formerly deceased.
Beginning life as "Speedy" - created by Mort Weisinger and George Papp - Roy Harper later became the hardline vigilante Arsenal and eventually followed in mentor Oliver Queen's footsteps as Red Arrow, even holding a spot on the Justice League. Roy's contentious relationship with Queen ultimately made him the go-to example for former kid sidekicks gone wrong, helped along by the famous cover of Green Lantern vol. 2 #85, which depicted Queen and Hal Jordan discovering Roy's addiction to heroin. Roy's death occurred in the tragic Heroes in Crisis, caused by Wally West in a Speed Force explosion at Sanctuary - a secret rehabilitation facility intended as a safe haven for DC's heroes.
Roy's resurrection is depicted in a short but stirring scene from Joshua Williamson, Alex Maleev, and Jordie Bellaire. Touring the world to say goodbye to her friends, an unseen Wonder Woman - who is in the process of ascending to a new position in DC's godlike Quintessence - stops in on Oliver Queen and Dinah Lance. Ollie's phone rings, but the caller hangs up before he can answer. Green Arrow deduces the call came from a Q-Phone - an outdated product from Ollie's own Queen Industries that few people would have - and the scene shifts to Roy Harper at a desert gas station, wondering who to call. Deciding against contacting any of his former allies, Roy tosses away the phone and his trademark cap, only to stumble on a red bow and several arrows. Chuckling at whoever his mysterious benefactor may be, Roy raises his thumb to catch a ride, ready for a new era of adventure.
It's a brief scene - which also touches on Green Arrow and Black Canary joining the new Justice League - but a hugely welcome one to fans. A bad-boy hero who has suffered from many false starts, Roy's death was tragic, his life snuffed out in the service of someone else's story, and few DC heroes are more in need of a fresh start. The idea of Roy as a wandering hero - someone who even his allies don't know is out there fighting the good fight - is one which gels perfectly with his character, especially with the suggestion that he'll be taking the low-tech route of a bow, a quiver full of arrows, and the will to do good. Another interesting thing to note is that Roy seems entirely aware that he's been returned to life, rather than his death being explained away by new or twisted events, opening up some interesting possibilities for those who likewise return to the mortal plane.
While many fans hoped Infinite Frontier #0 would see the resurrection of Alfred Pennyworth, Batman's tragically murdered butler, Roy's return is one which better suits the event. Just like Roy, DC are preparing to take a big leap into the unknown, and the romance of the wandering hero who could go anywhere and do anything is a perfect note for this anthology, which holds fresh possibility as its cardinal virtue. Infinite Frontier #0 promised to delight fans, and in choosing Roy Harper as its first resurrected hero, it did just that.