Arrow (Season 3) (1 Viewer)

[Matt Hough]

Well, we got our answer tonight about Arrow's alleged death. This is going to be a three-episode arc with Vinnie Jones as the major bad guy, and we're off to a promising start tonight with the first third of his arc.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Very strong return episode, that really showcased the depth of the show's supporting cast.


First things first: I'm really glad they didn't drag out the question of whether Oliver is alive or dead. While the midseason cliffhanger was a bold and successful move, the suspense would have felt artificial, especially since Stephen Amell is still gets top billing and still appears in all of those flashbacks. The final scene was brilliantly executed because, while it answered the major question, it raised a whole host of other questions, including some that make the Hong Kong flashbacks (which have seemed rather disconnected from everything else) a lot more relevant.


Emily Bett Rickards really knocked it out of the park this episode. The juxtaposition between her coming to accept Oliver's death and watching Ray Palmer take his first steps down the same path that led to Oliver getting a scimitar through his chest was brilliantly executed. Those scenes gave her a lot to work with, and she nailed every single beat. Sometimes the writing for Felicity is a little too on the nose and obvious, but the writing for her tonight was so internal and deeply felt.


I loved watching Diggle step up as the new leader of the team tonight. David Ramsey has always brought a lot of gravitas to this role, and it great to see him as the sort of father figure for the whole group. I particularly liked the contrast between with others are around and when it's just Diggle and Felicity. There's a sense that it's time for the adults to talk frankly, even when they're putting on a braver face for Roy. Diggle's admission toward the end that he still saw himself as Oliver's bodyguard, and that at the end of the day he couldn't protect him, was absolutely heartbreaking.


I also thought John Barrowman was very good as Malcolm Merlyn tonight. After all his scheming, all of his Machiavellian planning, Malcolm's no better off than he was before and he's got the stain of turning his daughter into a murderer on his already blood-soaked soul. I really liked that he showed the team the respect of being honest with them, and when he could have let Felicity think that it was all a delicious bit of fun, he allowed her the satisfaction of knowing that he's a dead man. And then we contrast that level of respect for Oliver's team with his complete lack of respect for Thea, shown by his refusal to show her the basic courtesy of telling her that her brother is dead.


I really like that they've made Thea into someone who is physically dangerous now, and I think Willa Holland sells it far more successfully than Katie Cassidy does, but she continues to be a frustrating character to follow because the show continues to keep her in the dark about everything and make her the victim of manipulation. "Arrow" is a show that has always liked to hold onto its secrets, but I think that there is far more that can be done with this character by laying all of the cards on the table than there is by continuing to keep her in the dark.


Speaking of Laurel: She irritated me far less than she usually does tonight, until the final reveal of her in the full Black Canary getup. I know the show has been headed here since the pilot, but I still don't feel like Laurel's earned it yet.


On a lighter note, I love that no matter what rank Quentin Lance has at the SCPD, he always seems to be the copy the bad guys are shooting at.


I always enjoy Vinnie Jones, and he's a lot of fun here as the new Big bad. I love that he's sort of a scaled down Big Bad; you kind of get the impression that he's the sort of villain that would have been a one and done if Oliver were still in the picture, but he's sort of calibrated at just the right pitch for the team that's left. I also thought his plan for leveraging Starling City's criminal talent was far better thought out and executed than most of the villain's on this show. Unlike Malcolm or Slade, chaos and mass destruction isn't his goal. He's a businessman, and he's trying to accomplish his objectives. That's a refreshing change from pathos and insanity.

 

[Matt Hough]

I've always thought David Ramsey/Diggle was a pretty much underused character on the show, so with Oliver's absence, it's great he gets to step up and take center stage for awhile.


I've made no secret of my disdain for Laurel, so she'll have to do something majorly impressive over these next months to get me in her corner. Never been much of a Thea fan either, but as Adam said, she's much more believable as a lethal force at this point in the series.


I'm eager to see Ray in action.

 

[Sam Favate]

Very good episode, although I don't understand the logic of Merlyn sending Oliver to fight Ras, when he surely knew Oliver wouldn't succeed.

 

[NeilO]

Very good episode, although I don't understand the logic of Merlyn sending Oliver to fight Ras, when he surely knew Oliver wouldn't succeed.

Merlyn had to know that Oliver's only chance to win would have been if he had been allowed to use a bow and arrows and that wasn't going to happen. I think that whole setup and duel was a case of bad writing.


Now, though, it does bring us Oliver being brought back to life to repay the debt his friend from Hong Kong had. Even before the reveal at the end, most of us had to suspect that he was the one collecting Oliver's body.


The way events went by it seemed that Malcolm took his trip out and returned in hardly any time. The one tell-tale sign of time advancing was Felicity's dresses changing. I didn't notice any other signs of change, but I did notice her going from red to blue to red different design and so forth.

 

[Jason_V]

I can't helo but be disappointed in this episode. Maybe it's me having high expectations after the Ras fight, maybe not.


Yes, we all knew Oliver wasn't dead. You're not killing the lead character in your show. Not until a series finale, if ever. But the emotion was sapped from the episode anytime we cut back to Oliver on the mountain ledge. We didn't need to see that. Spend the time to Diggle, Felicity and Roy on their feelings, their emotions, their coming to terms with being leader-less. That has been the most effective thing the series has done this year, between this episode and the afterath of Sara dying. The way they care for one another and get wrapped up in each other is a great strength of the show.


It is kinda funny to watch Vinnie Jones on Galavant on Sunday night and then see him be the Big Bad in Arrow on Wednesday.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Very good episode, although I don't understand the logic of Merlyn sending Oliver to fight Ras, when he surely knew Oliver wouldn't succeed.

It was a Hail Mary. If he didn't send Oliver to fight Ra's, he was definitely dead. And Oliver had defeated him, so he figured that if anybody had a chance to beat Ra's, it was Oliver. A two percent chance is better than a no percent chance.

 

[todd s]

With regards to Merlyn sending Oliver to fight. He wins either way. I believe they said that either way (olly dies or not) the death warrent against Merlyn is satisfied. Also, he figured if Oliver knows his sisters life is on the line. He might...just might beat Ras. But, we all know the only one who has is Batman.

 

[NeilO]

I haven't finished watching tonight's episode, but Brick comes to meet with the Mayor. Why doesn't she just arrest him and his men right there? Yes, he has two hostages, but just letting him walk around (and not planting some tracking device there) doesn't seem the best idea. (Or maybe Ray did plant a device.)


-------------------


No tracking device planted.


One other thing that puzzled me is why Roy didn't even ask Merlyn for help. Sure, he would probably refuse, but I'd think that putting away Brick would help keep Thea safer as well.


I was surprised by the twist at the end. I am also glad that it appears Oliver will be returning to Starling City next episode.

 

[Matt Hough]

Ok episode with a couple of neat twists. PLEASE let no one else on the team declare emphatically, "I'm DONE!" for the rest of the season because when they change their minds an episode or two later, it's SO irritating.


Looks like Laurel's expertise is going to ebb and flow like the tides. We should see her continuing in train since she so obviously needs it, and there are plenty of people who could help her.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

With regards to Merlyn sending Oliver to fight. He wins either way. I believe they said that either way (olly dies or not) the death warrent against Merlyn is satisfied.

I went back and checked. It was a trial by combat, so Oliver only would have gotten the pardon if he'd won the fight. Nobody, including Ra's al Ghul, seriously believed that Oliver had killed Sara.

John Barrowman has said in interviews that when Merlyn put all of these terrible events into motion, he thought Oliver would win.

I haven't finished watching tonight's episode, but Brick comes to meet with the Mayor. Why doesn't she just arrest him and his men right there?

Because he had a bunch of goons with him and AFAIK Captain Lance was the only cop there. Remember, this was supposed to be a business meeting. Brick caught them completely unaware.

Ok episode with a couple of neat twists. PLEASE let no one else on the team declare emphatically, "I'm DONE!" for the rest of the season because when they change their minds an episode or two later, it's SO irritating.

To be fair, it seems more abrupt than it is. The episodes didn't really convey it well, but weeks have likely passed since Ra's gutted Oliver at the top of the mountain.

Looks like Laurel's expertise is going to ebb and flow like the tides. We should see her continuing in train since she so obviously needs it, and there are plenty of people who could help her.

This did bug me, but not as much as I thought it would. I still don't think it's believable that she could take out armed thugs, but I liked that her missteps had consequences. And her confrontation with Brick was pretty well-written; it was about buying time until she could go through that window, not about actually fighting Brick.

I do wonder what Brick's deal is, though, since bullets bounce off him and Roy's arrow didn't make him bleed.

The Hong Kong flashbacks have an increasingly foreboding quality to them, given what we know about the Yamashiros in the present; I wonder what terrible thing happened to Maseo and Tatsu's son.

I thought Merlyn's confession to Thea was very clever. Everything he said to her was true, but what he chose to reveal and what he chose to omit had the result of not telling her anything of true importance. And his failure to explain the full nature of what Ra's is capable of to her at the end was inexplicable. Apparently he'd rather die in Starling City than own up to what he has done.

 

[DaveHof2]

Laurel took down two men in her apartment in the show's first season, so she's always known how to take care of herself. She should have had no problem taking out the street thug with a knife at the start of the show. But obviously she's still a long way from Sara's level - it's just nice that more viewers are liking her character now.


Thought it was a terrific episode - really looking forward to next week!

 

[Sam Favate]

I thought last night's show was very good - that sequence in city hall where Brick and his team took hostages was as intense as the show has been.


If the show runs 5 years, we're at the halfway point.

 

[NeilO]

Because he had a bunch of goons with him and AFAIK Captain Lance was the only cop there. Remember, this was supposed to be a business meeting. Brick caught them completely unaware.

I'm not talking about the business meeting when the Aldermen were kidnapped, but later when Brick wants to dictate his "terms" for their return. It looked like the police outnumbered Brick's men by far then. At that time, she should have at least tried to arrest him. He could have said that if he didn't return or call in a certain amount of time then Aldermen would be killed, but the Mayor should have at least made some effort.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

I'm not talking about the business meeting when the Aldermen were kidnapped, but later when Brick wants to dictate his "terms" for their return. It looked like the police outnumbered Brick's men by far then. At that time, she should have at least tried to arrest him. He could have said that if he didn't return or call in a certain amount of time then Aldermen would be killed, but the Mayor should have at least made some effort.

Gotcha. I think that the leverage of the two kidnapped aldermen was enough to stay the police's hand. It's also probable that, given Brick picked the meeting spot, he had other means of securing his position.

 

[Walter Kittel]

Still not crazy about Laurel taking on the Canary role, but at least the show has enough sense to depict her getting knocked around some which at least partly addresses my concerns about her lacking the requisite level of training to take on the mask. I guess it wouldn't be Arrow if she didn't mislead Lance about Sara; a show where seemingly every (or nearly every) familial relationship is predicated on lies and half truths.


Speaking of half truths, that Merlyn is an evil, and clever bastard and hopefully his half truths to Thea will eventually catch up with him.


I haven't been a fan of the Hong Kong sequences which (at least for me) feel so much less effective than the segments on 'the island' in seasons one and two; so I am happy to see those elements finally beginning to intersect with the current timeline on the show, which hopefully will lend them more relevance.


- Walter.

 

[todd s]

Next weeks preview makes it look like Arrow makes a grand entrance during the big fight.

 

[todd s]

Just watched the pilot episode again. So strange to see how things have progressed since then.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Warner Bros. has released the first photo of Brandon Routh in the Atom suit:

Spoiler

The helmet's a little goofy, but otherwise I really dig it.

 

[Matt Hough]

Thanks for the pic. Enjoyed getting this advanced look.


I know nothing about the character, so I'll be interested to see how the suit actually works