Arrow is trying to bring all of its season’s elements together and begin to build towards the finale in May. I know that seems far off, but think about it – this episode had, for the first time in one episode, Curtis Holt, Malcolm Merlyn, Ollie running for mayor, Quentin Lance’s love life, and Diggle’s family dynamic (mentioned, not seen, but still). Keep reading for more.
1. Some dodgy expository dialogue
This week had two instances of exceptionally poor exposition, in the form of explaining a few things. First of all, Diggle just announces that Lyla is the head of A.R.G.U.S. now. And not even in a “Guys, guess what? Lyla’s head of A.R.G.U.S. now!” This is literally what he said when he was required to do something: “I’m on dad duty – Lyla’s the head of A.R.G.U.S.” That is some David Wain exposition hilarity – he doesn’t even say “now that she’s…” – just outright states it. Hilarious.
Then, if you were wondering why Thea was now running Ollie’s campaign in a much more micromanaging style, Ollie dropped this backstage at the debate: “Alex’s mom picked the wrong week to go into surgery, didn’t she?” This is hilarious for a totally other reason: who the fuck remembered that guy’s name is Alex? This is just lazy writing, and it really did detract from the episode.
2. Demolition Team
This D-list DC villains collective was brought into the show as Darhk’s muscle for trying to take down buildings that our heroes were in. At first, when Detective Lance said it seemed like the building was attacking him, I was really hoping that the building was on Danny the Street (if you don’t know what I’m talking about, Google it). Instead, it was the Demolition Team being predictable Arrow villains.
I know that in the comics they used things like rivet guns as weapons, but that looks pretty tacky in this world. The team members were given no character development at all, and were, more or less, mindless goons. Not that this is taking Shakespeare and giving it to a kindergarten class, but it still seemed a bit wasteful and silly.
3. The one-liners keep coming!
Felicity and her mom see Detective Lance handcuffing one of the lowly Demolition Team members, and she leans in and says “Detective Lance never lets his man get away. Neither should you.”
And then, when Ollie and Mrs. Not-Darhk meet on the debate stage, Ollie pulls out this gem: “Did you hear that applause? It was enough to bring down the building. Almost”
4. The Terrific Mr. Holt
Seeing Curtis Holt do something really incredible, both from a place of science and a place of friendship, was great this week. He is a character that has been sparingly used, but is amazingly well developed already. It is quite impressive, and something that I hope the show takes note of. I hope to see him as part of the team for Legends of Tomorrow season 2.
5. Hey, everyone! Let’s all make Oliver feel like shit!
This week, just about anyone with a voicebox was telling Oliver and/or Felicity how lucky they are that there are no lies between them. This was the opposite of subtle, and anyone who knows Ollie should be well aware of how dumb this statement is. That said, having Darhk kidnap William is some (wait for it) dark shit.
That said, Darhk has certainly started to grow on me as a character, and I look forward to where this season ultimately takes him, vis a vis Merlyn, Ollie, Lance, and everyone else. Arrow has been strong the last few weeks – let’s hope they can build up some momentum and keep this train going.
Let me know what you guys thought in the comments!
