Jessie Robertson reviews the twelfth episode of Arrow season 3…
Oliver Queen returns to Starling City, in dramatic fashion….
Well, so much for Brick being the (fill-in) season baddie; he’s dispatched after taking a beating from Wildcat, an arrow from Arsenal, and another ass-whupping from Merlyn. Honestly, good riddance. This storyline is as nonsensical as you can get. What was the plan with the Glades? So, he’s got goons out collecting rent from local businesses, but how the hell are these businesses getting customers? The Glades are shut off from the rest of the city. How were these businesses getting product? To what end was Brick’s plan moving towards? At least in Hamsterdam there was one goal, and only one source of commerce required. This was an awful plotline. The big rumble at the end looked like the anemic version of the one from Dark Knight Rises. And Brick was the only person shooting his gun! They clearly showed half his men holding assault rifles yet they all went hand to hand like it was the Greasers and the Socs all over again.
Oliver’s return was done in the most slapdash way, granted, the speech to the Glades was inspiring, but he shows up with the solution to Merlyn’s issues, fights with Felicity, etc. I wanted to see his journey back be something memorable, while the team settles into being better heroes, having to had bitten off more than they can chew while he’s been gone. That sort of happened but it almost seemed like the writers said 3 weeks is enough, it’s time for him to come back home. I was liking the dynamics of them with Oliver lingering in the background. On his way home, Tatsu lays the groundwork by giving Oliver the philosophy he needs to adopt to defeat Ra’s. I sincerely hope she’s not just a background character, filling in roles to advance the story, as her and Maseo’s tale could be a tragically hopeful one, like for instance, where is their son?
Malcolm’s past filled in the flashbacks this week and the plot felt very superfluous, like you have to see the origin of this character but it only just colored in a few white spots, things you could have (or maybe already did) deduce with no real insight added into his character. John Barrowman loves his exposition scenes though, as he was chewing up the scenery inside the Arrow cave like it was a $2 steak. Roy really stepped into a leadership role while Oliver was gone and started seeing things in more than just black and white, which is one of Ollie’s great strengths as a leader. This week’s episode was pretty poor compared to what else we’ve gotten this season so let’s see where it takes us next week.
Other Notes:
– “I’ve seen you wear a red hood and shoot arrows, of course I know it’s you.” Great line from Lance. Looks like we’ll be seeing more of him now that Sin spilled the beans about new Canary. Good thing, he’s one of my favorite characters on the show.
– Anyone catch a shot of Diggle’s guns while they were having a team meeting? That dude must be using Oliver’s chin up bar while he’s been gone.
– Oh, Felicity; only she could explain the twisted knot of Oliver’s love life and make it make sense? But, why make her a flip-flop decision maker that some women characters are filed into? She’s pining for Oliver, but as soon as he gets back, the first decision he makes, instead of supporting him, as you do with someone you love, she spurns him. Ray Palmer is probably looking might good to her. Thoughts on his upcoming super suit?
Jessie Robertson