I can’t look at Roy Harper ◊ Arsenal, Sharpshooter without automatically thinking of Steve Martin in The Jerk. I just can’t. From the scene where someone unsuccessfully snipes at Navin, exploding cans of motor oil (“He hates these cans. Stay away from the cans . . . ”), to the intro line, “I was born a poor black child,” Roy Harper and that movie are irreversibly linked in my mind.

For anyone who hasn’t put two and two together, the reason for my irreconcilable pattern of thought is that Roy Harper started off white.

Roy Harper began his superhero career as Speedy, sidekick to the Green Arrow. He Idolized Oliver Queen and managed to impress the emerald archer with his incredible archery skills. Though Oliver was a better, more practiced shot, Roy could actually draw and fire faster than his hero. That talent earned him the role of sidekick, his own quiver of specialty arrows, and the nickname “Speedy.”

Speedy eventually joined the Teen Titans and was given the title of “founding member,” though the title’s a bit suspect. Like most of the Titans, he left and rejoined at least once. Along the way, he took up a war on drugs, swapped his bow for guns, traded the Speedy moniker for Arsenal, and . . . somehow turned black.

So, yeah, if you were wondering why Roy’s black in his Arsenal version but white in his Speedy version, all I can say is, “join the club.”

Oh, right. You haven’t seen the Speedy version. Hmm. I guess that deserves some explaining!

Roy Harper ◊ Speedy, Mercurial Marksman is a 1-drop, 1 ATK/1 DEF Titans character with range. He has two effects. The first allows you to put him on top of your deck to KO a character with a cost of 1 or less. The second shows shades of his future as Arsenal—you can exhaust a Teen Titans character you control to give Roy +1 ATK this turn. Pretty cool, huh?

Speedy is in good company amongst the Titans 1-drops. Pantha is a fuzzy wrecking ball, and Dawn Granger ◊ Dove is an important part of the Teen Titans board advantage concept. Despite this, a correctly used Speedy is worth playing.

The fact that he KO’s instead of stunning is invaluable. There are a number of 1-drops that can be problematic if they hit the table on turn 1, including Boris, Alfred Pennyworth, Josef Witschi, Longshot, Vulture, Rocket Racer, Mary Jane Watson, and Tombstone, all of whom make for a serious advantage if they aren’t removed from the field as early as possible. Speedy can take care of them all before they really get off the ground.

Speedy might not be as good on offense as Pantha, but he can be a lot better on defense. His Arsenal-esque effect makes him difficult to attack, whereas Pantha is not. Plus, if he does get attacked, you can invalidate the attack by sending him to the top of your deck (provided your opponent has a target for his effect). That, combined with the fact that he can pump Roy Harper ◊ Arsenal, Sharpshooter gives him a lot more utility than one might first think. The Titans 1-drop pantheon is pretty full, and