If you were reading along with my Arrow reviews last year, you know how great I thought the second season turned out to be. Just about everything about it improved from the first season, and nearly every episode felt stuffed to the gills with story, action, and fun. And yet, I think we can all agree that the show can, and possibly will, get better. Here is my prescription/hope for the new season:
1. Expand With Caution
Look, no one is happier to see both famous and obscure DC characters pop up on Arrow – I am enough of a continuity nerd to squee with joy when Deadshot pops up, so I am really excited to see Ray Palmer, Katana, and the crew from Central City pop up this season. That said, I am hoping that the producers take their time, and don’t overload the show with new characters too quickly. As cool as those characters are, the show is already pretty well-stuffed with really good characters – and while I’m not pining for a spinoff, Detective Lance shouldn’t be pushed off the show to make room for more one and done characters.
2. Make Hong Kong More Interesting Than The Island
I understand why Arrow, as a series, needed the Island in its first season. Last year, it held significantly less value to me, and was almost always a bit of a buzzkill after the exciting events in Starling. This season, the flashback device takes the viewer to Hong Kong, and I am hopeful that this will be a setting more conducive to quality stories than the Island was. First of all, there is an infinitely larger cast, so it won’t just be Ollie and Sara avoiding setting off Slade. This also allows us to learn much more about who Ollie was – not the survivalist Ollie, but the Ollie who was a little closer to his pre-crash self. Or, we could see a whole new side of him. I honestly don’t know how they will use Hong Kong, but it as to be better, especially for Stephen Amell, than having to get fake dirty all the time. Plus, his hair will hopefully be better.
3. Give Roy, Diggle, and Felicity More
The core “team Arrow” of Ollie, Roy, Diggle, and Felicity is the best. Each one represents a different approach to crime fighting, and their interactions have been nothing short of great. But each of those characters at points last season were, to borrow a phrase from Orange is the New Black, the moon – they were just reflecting Ollie’s light. I know he’s the star of the show, but that doesn’t mean that he can’t share the spotlight a little more. Diggle is becoming a father, Roy is doubling down on being a hero, and Felicity is simply the cutest/most brilliant female character on the show. Let them do more, and let them bring something to the team that feels invaluable – this is especially true of Diggle, who seems expendable in light of Roy’s ascent. Give that poor guy something to do other than eat burgers.
4. Let Laurel Shine
Laurel has been the least developed “main” character on the show thus far, and if she is eventually doing to be Black Canary (which seems pretty inevitable, and a little silly, at this point), they need to give her more depth. It appears like she will be trained by Ted Grant (aka Wildcat) this season, so that should help, but they also need to make her more than just the stern, Marge Simpson noise-making voice of disapproval and the woman who dates the jerks. In fact, pairing her with Felicity may be a fun way to get her in the good graces of the fans. CAN YOU SAY MAKEOVER!
Continued below5. Trick Arrows
This is a simple request – trick arrows are awesome. They are such an essential part of Ollie’s comic history, and they can bring some much needed levity (and deus-ex-machina-ess) to the show if used properly. In a perfect world, Ollie would have a well coifed Van Dyke, but that’s never going to happen (unless he moves to Burnsisde and goes hipster in season 4), so give us the trick arrows and we’ll call it a day.
