Jessie Robertson reviews the eighteenth episode of Arrow season 4…
It’s a given here, but just so we’re clear:
************************MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD******************************************
Ok, there are things going on here, but the major, major (again, spoilers) event this week is:
The death of Laurel Lance. And I have to say they got me. When Dahrk told her he would make good on his promise to Quentin and take revenge on his daughter, he meant it; by shoving an arrow through her stomach!
I sighed relief when the doctors said she was recovering; that she was a fighter; but when she made that speech to Oliver, and gave him back the photo that got him through his hellish five (mostly) years on Lian Yu, even he questioned “Why are you saying this now?” And then….
Shots of the group weeping; Diggle blaming himself for trusting Andy. Oliver leaving, stunned. Felicity loudly sobbing. Quentin coming around the corner and seeing Oliver’s face, then losing control of himself, collapsing. Very powerful stuff.
Let’s talk about the character of Laurel Lance: she wasn’t most people’s favorite. In fact, her whole alcoholic storyline from season two was pretty pitiful. But, once becoming Black Canary, she’s had a much better arc; and in fact, her moment with Dahrk tonight in his cell was a good scene. I think she was most effective while being ADA, and it’s ironic that Oliver tries to set her back on that path. They put the work into making her a believable hero, and the Canary Cry is much more associated with her than Sara, but I think some never saw that total transition; tonight, she took out two League of Assassins members herself. Overall, she’s a character who seemed to be Oliver’s natural love interest, and sort of was, before the show even started (they did have a quick fling right before Tommy’s death but that ended quickly) but I think not having that part always left her character a little floundering. But the actress (Katie Cassidy) really believed in her character and seemed to try and put her best foot forward. We saw her in Chicago after season two and she was very passionate about her part and wanted some more meat and not just lots of scenes of her crying. Arrow is not afraid to kill off characters we’ve grown with and while I was hedging my bets on Thea, it seems Laurel is the one to go.
We know now this leads to Oliver and Felicity at her grave site (when Barry visits) and it looks like Team Arrow is about to go full on Ollie; also, ironic is the trust storyline between Oliver and Diggle regarding Andy; Oliver obviously mistrusts him, as he’s inclined to do with most people. Diggle draws a line (and a gun) on Oliver over this mistrust; Oliver questions if this guy ever recovered and Diggle counters with just because you can’t change doesn’t mean anyone else can. Oliver re-counters with the notion that he never did; he’s tried, sure, but he’s still the same cold-blooded man he became on that island. That may be the driving force Team Arrow adopts for the rest of the season and embraces. It’s about to get real good.
9.5/10- huge episode with major character biting it and an emotional scene that made me tear up; plus, great banter between Merlyn and Dahrk is always a plus.
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