1). The premise is fantastic.
Arrow is trying really hard to set itself apart from the super hero crowd, a point that will be elaborated on later. One way they’re hoping to accomplish this is by making Ollie Queen, not necessarily a hero, but a morally and mentally questionable vigilante. Sure, he may be looking to right wrongs; but, he also kills about 7 people in this episode and threatens to kill his friend over revealing his secret identity. Granted, the creators probably didn’t intend for Ollie to look like a sociopathic douche; yet it’s always nice to see morally questionable main characters. The origin comes off as fairly interesting, considering that I always forget that Green Arrow’s origin was being stuck on an island. Also, Arrow’s main plot seems to focus on Ollie seeking vengeance on those in control of Starling (ugh) City who caused his father’s death, rather than Ollie seeking to do good. For this darker, more serious interpretation of the character, that setup certainly works. Too bad nothing else really does.
2). Wait… how… what?
That’s the thought I had going through my head for most of the show. Ollie is established as having been stranded on an island for five years. This somehow made him Batman. I can understand why he learned archery if he was stuck with a bow for five years to survive, but there’s no way Ollie could’ve learned all the other skills he demonstrated in this episode that he wouldn’t have had prior to his island experience like Close-Quarters combat, hacking, and big muscles. Hacking is completely out of the question in terms of logic, but Ollie’s experience with combat may lead to an interesting plot point I’ll discuss later. Maybe it’s foreshadowing to events on the island, maybe the writers figured they could just write “he got badass” as an excuse and called it a day. All in all, it feels like The CW really wanted a Batman show and was only willing to change the names of anything starting with “Bat” to “Arrow”.
3). Well, at least some things never change.
Green Arrow is known in the comics and other TV adaptations (Read Boomb Tube for more on the TV part!) for having horrible relationships with his supporting characters. It’s good to see that trait carry over into the show. In the comics, Green Arrow cheated on Black Canary with a girl in a dumpster and on their wedding night he was replaced with a clone and almost killed Dinah. In the show, Ollie slept with Dinah’s sister and got her killed in the shipwreck and, when asked by Ms. Lance about whether her drowned sister suffered or not, replied “No. By the way I’m going to go have sex with everything.” Also, Speedy is in this show as Ollie’s teen sister who is called Speedy because he used to chase her around. Oh and about 20 seconds before she’s introduced as Speedy, Ollie’s sister starts to snort coke. Hope there aren’t any cats on this show.
4). BEST BRONEMIES!
So, Ollie’s best friend on this show is named Tommy. He’s your typical city-life boy: loves the ladies, cars, and his bros! He just seemed to be the normal comic relief/sidekick to Ollie’s “I WILL KILL EVERYTHING” persona, until a police officer addressed him by his real name: Tommy Merlyn.
Like that bad guy who’s an anti-Green Arrow. That League of Shadows assassin. He’s now a bro. Good for you, CW.
5). The Final (Death)Stroke
The opening of the episode starts out right as Ollie’s getting picked up from the island by a passing ship. He signals the ship by causing an explosion (as we are all wont to do) and heads over without too much fuss, looking like a man who has been alone for the past five years.
Then why the hell is this here?
Honestly? I’m kind of excited for what this implies. Did Deathstroke crash on the island too and train Ollie? If so that could explain how Ollie became so good at being Batman Green Arrow. A season-long sub-plot comprised of flashbacks to the island concerning Deathstroke has the potential to be fantastic. On the other hand, why does Deathstroke have his full mask and Ollie has to wear a hoodie: a disguise thwarted when someone looks up from kind of below you. Either way, that mask alone has me convinced to keep watching this show, as awkwardly CW as it feels.
Arrow isn’t breaking new ground, but if you’re not doing anything on a Wednesday night and enjoy some pretty ridiculous television, you could do far worse.
Arrow “Pilot” – 7/10. You’re not going to miss anything out by not watching it; but it’s pretty fun, if not unintentionally goofy.
