For tonight’s episode of Arrow, I wrote my headlines for these bullet points in real time while watching, so you’ll get a first hand look at the crazy roller coaster of emotions I was on.
1. Thea is as badass as we thought
I speculated last week that, perhaps, she didn’t actually shoot her father last week. Well, I was wrong – of course, he was wearing Kevlar, but she still pulled the trigger. Thea’s arc all season has been towards establishing herself as her own person, outside of the influence of her family. Here, she both shows how much of a Queen she really is in her boldness, but also how much of a Merlyn she is, in terms of her ice cold demeanor as well.
2. The kick-ass ladies return
Lyla coming to Starling to help Diggle was a nice gesture on the part of the writers to give Diggle some emotional payoff from this episode, but seeing Nyssa with the League of Assassins was far more badass than I expected it to be, even if it was totally expected. There was something really important that the show did tonight – it made everyone have a little skin in the game. This was important enough to all the characters to make them ante up, in ways they maybe never thought they could or would.
3. Black Canary, “Five Years Later?”
In a case of what has to be DC taking their notes from Arrow, and not vice versa, DC’s September “Five Years Later” event features a “Birds of Prey” storyline that is ripped from the pages of Arrow:
BIRDS OF PREY: FUTURES END #1
Free of Ra’s al Ghul’s control at last, Black Canary claims her rightful place as the head of the League of Assassins!
Sara making the jump over to the League makes her character more interesting, the League more interesting, and the show more interesting. I really enjoy Caity Lotz on the show, and will be sad if she isn’t featured as much next year, but this is the best thing for the long-term health of the show.
Also, seeing her pulled from the ship the same way she was pulled from the Queen’s Gambit was a nice callback, too.
4. Red Arrow Emerges
I know there is a lot to not love about Brad Meltzer’s run on “Justice League of America,” but his run contains one of my absolute favorite moments in all of comics: Roy getting his Red Arrow costume from Dinah and Hal.
The scene of Ollie giving him the mask was reminiscent of that, and was a powerful statement about Roy’s role on this show.
5. ‘Shippers Everywhere Just Got a One Way Ticket to the Bone Zone
Whole. E. Crap. Ollie telling Felicity that he loves her was one of those moments that you know is totally cheesy but still hits you in exactly the way the writers intended. Guys, wouldn’t they have the most beautiful babies in the history of the world?
6. The Suicide Squad too!
This episode really pulled out all the stops, bringing in just about everyone you’d want to see in a season finale. Having the Suicide Squad show up was total fan service, but also reminds the viewer just how much happened this season. This episode is basically a greatest hits package for the last twenty episodes, and I love it.
7. OH SNAP SLADE HAS FELICITY!
Slade Wilson, you monster! I’ll kill you for this! I’ll do it, too – I don’t have to honor my friend and be a new kind of hero!
8. Oh wait – this is all part of Ollie’s plan
I have to say, this was a perfectly executed twist that, again, used knowledge from earlier in the season that viewers probably forgot about (the Queen mansion being bugged), used the fan’s emotions (wanting beautiful half WASP half Jewish MIT-smart ab-crunching archers to burst forth from their loins), and used some incredible action set pieces to put together a real shock. Plus, this gave Felicity something to do with all the technology down.
9. This was an amazingly edited hour of television
The dual duels (see what I did there?) between Oliver and Slade were perfectly edited together, and showcased just how well this hour was put together. There was not a wasted second in the entire episode.
10. NOT MY SWEET QUENTIN
Y’all know my love for Quentin Lance, the gravel-voiced scene thief. Seeing him collapse like that gave me such a case of the bummers you guys have no idea. I’m sure he’ll be fine, but this was a nice bit of drama to carry over to next season. Until then, please light a candle in your respective houses of worship for the quick recovering of our beloved Detective.
11. Thea Merlyn
Thea, as a character, started out obnoxious, then grew to something out of place (basically a teenager running a bar), and now is finding a truly interesting place – as the show’s big bad. Everyone else has been dealt with – Thea and Merlyn are going to be the driving villains for the next season at least and, hopefully, the emotional payoff when Thea and Ollie reconcile will be as powerful as it can be.
12. From the Vigilante to the Arrow to Green Arrow
Ollie’s speech to Slade about how he wasn’t really a hero until Slade pushed him was a pretty awesome moment. It also, in my eyes, gave birth to the third iteration of Ollie on the show. From “the vigilante” to “the Arrow” to, now, “Green Arrow.” He’s truly a superhero at this point, and one that reflects a comic book character far more than anyone on Smallville ever did.
13. Super Max!
A really nice nod to the comics, with a way to make the island relevant, as well as give Ollie a solution to his not killing manifesto – put them someplace they can’t hurt others.
14. Hong Kong?!?!?
It is almost as if they read my piece from Tuesday. This is a perfect solution – we know he gets back to the island, but taking a season long break to hang out in Hong Kong with A.R.G.U.S.? That is a much better proposition than looking at dirty Ollie for another year. Maybe he can get a haircut, too?
15. Now that is how you end a season [drops mic]
That episode ranks among the best the show has ever done, and wraps up a truly excellent season, while getting the viewers excited for next year. Add in the quick (har) peak at The Flash, which showed a clearly heroic Ollie training/working with Barry Allen, and September can’t get here soon enough.
See you all in the fall!
