Felicity and Curtis learn that Prometheus’ victims have a mysterious link to Oliver’s past that could upend his new team.

Arrow goes back to the beginning in some ways as the clues are put together as to why Prometheus is killing individuals and it goes back to something from the first season that the series has gotten away from. That’s a good thing as the series has definitely slipped a bit in its focus and what this episode does is get back to basics in some ways.

But, what I think is really solid about this episode is the reaction of Team Arrow’s new recruits when they learn what the possible truth is. There’s a mix of horror and some real solid debate as to the truth of it all.

Lets face it, Oliver is a killer, and though the kills were righteous, he also has never really stood up for those acts, just by Diggle, Felicity, and Speedy. Here we get an outside jury in a way now stands up to him and puts him on trial. It’s a solid twist it detail that adds a lot to the episode which feels like it’s the real beginning of the season. That restart within a restart is good as the season has been rather iffy so far.

There’s some decent action as members of Team Arrow come into contact with Prometheus. There’s some odd choices since I don’t remember their saying the train was clear. It might be a detail I missed, but it felt like they possibly let a bunch of people die.

The episode is a focus on Oliver and how he has changed over the seasons. He’s grown as a character and person and gone further than just being a vigilante killer. He feels closer to the actual comic character he’s based off of due to that.

Overall, a much better episode for the season and heading in a good direction. How things come together and what the big reveal to come is will hopefully pay off. That teaser at the end though…. that’s where things get really interesting and I want to know where it’s all going.

Overall rating: 7.85

Oliver must turn to an old friend when Tobias Church captures one of his new recruits; Felicity’s worlds collide when Detective Malone joins the anti-crime unit.

Arrow improves with this latest episode that has Oliver having to fake his own death to take on Church. It’s a plot twist that we’ve seen numerous times before and there’s nothing new when it comes to that.

To pull off that twist Oliver brings in the Human Target, another DC Comic character who actually had his own show at one point. There’s actually a good twist when it comes to that part that’s not revealed until the end of the episode.

But this episode is that false ending. They deal with Church but that only leads to something even bigger looming, which is a good thing because Church as a villain felt a bit too low level to sustain a season. The name Prometheus is mentioned which is a pretty big character in the DC Universe, so here’s hoping it’s a reference to that.

The bigger part of the episode is Diggle getting back into the groove of things but personal lives is a focus as Felicity’s relationship moves forward and Oliver has to deal with it. There’s a lot of will they, won’t they, but it’s cute and I’m not sure we’ve seen the last of them as a couple.

The end of the episode is where it’s at though. There’s an actual decent tie-in to Oliver’s five missing years and the mysterious archer that’s not the Green Arrow shows up with a pretty big act. We’ll see where it all goes as this is a big improvement from last week.

Overall rating: 7.65

Oliver joins Lyla on a secret mission for Diggle while Felicity opts to stay behind; Tobias Church launches a deadly assault against the city.

Arrow falls flat in this episode which sees Church making his move and Oliver and Lyla doing something about Diggle, which was hinted at in the last episode.

There’s just a lot of bad in this episode with Oliver not trusting his team and pushing them away. That’s after last episode which was all supposed to be about trusting his team and their working together. So, the lesson seems to be a short one and already out the other ear of Oliver.

There’s also the plan of breaking out Diggle. Hasn’t Lyla taken over for the deceased Waller? Can’t she use her power there to just get Diggle out of prison and conscript him? Instead there’s this convoluted plan to free him that seems like it just opens more doors than anything else.

There’s also the fact this story is likely going to connect with the Church plotline and by stopping Church they’ll wind up exonerating Diggle. Though, he has now broken out of jail, so there’s that charge lingering over him. Again, not a good plan!

Then there’s Church’s assault which just seems to come out of nowhere. We haven’t seen him much for a few episodes and then there’s this attack. It’s a bit out of place and it’s still not clear how this all fits into the bigger picture of the season. It’s another plot that we’ll find out down the road and due to that, I just don’t care. Plus Church is actually a bit too much of a lower rung villain right now compared to what Ollie has dealt with in the past.

It’s a weak episode for a season that’s trying to redefine itself from previous ones. Maybe as part of the bigger story it’ll be better, but right now it falls short.

Overall rating: 6.95

The Green Arrow is forced to face a powerful new drug dealer when Wild Dog goes off on his own.

Arrow as the title of the episode suggests is all about trust. The entire episode is about Oliver trusting other individuals whether it’s as Green Arrow or his job as the Mayor. Even the flashbacks that we get in the episode is about trust and Oliver learning that when it comes to his new crew.

The episode takes off when Wild Dog goes off on his own resulting in an individual being enhanced and also screwing up an investigation that police were going to do concerning the influx of drugs into the city. But, even though Wild Dog made a mistake if Oliver had listened to him there wouldn’t even have been an issue to start. So, trust goes two ways it shows.

But that episode theme is throughout the episode. Felicity has to decide if she’ll tell the truth about the death of his family and city to Rory and there’s also Thea basically running the city for Oliver and Thea learning about trusting the media. Lessons are learned and it’s pretty obvious what the point of the episode was. That’s not a bad thing and brings various aspects of the core of the season together.

There’s also Diggle dealing with the fallout of what we last saw and how Lyla reacts. The less said about that, the better as I have no idea where it’s going.

I think the coolest aspect of the show has to do with Curtis Holt who not only gives us our first Mr. Terrific moment but sports the iconic face paint.

The series is doing a good job of balancing the various aspects of Oliver’s roles and it’s entertaining to watch. The series has been improving this season in that way and here’s to seeing where it all goes.

Overall rating: 7.45

The Green Arrow’s training methods prove to be too much for some of the new recruits to handle; flashbacks reveal Oliver’s initiation into the Bratva.

Arrow really gets things going as far as what we can expect this season here as Oliver/Green Arrow must figure out how to properly onboard and train a new team to help him fight crime. The problem is, Ollie is feeling guilty over the death of Black Canary, and folks getting hurt, and generally everyone abandoning him. He’s got some trust issues and since he was trained in a brutal fashion, he thinks that’s the way to go too.

It’s interesting as it really dives into Oliver the person and that he’s not ok from everything that’s happened to him and around him.

What’s also solid is we’re starting to see some bigger issues surrounding the rise of meta humans and a nuclear explosion. People aren’t trusting and it’s escalation to arm themselves more to take on this new “threat.” While things are more “street level” this season, there’s a bigger picture going on, which is really nice.

The episode also introduces Ragman. It’ll be interesting to see what the series does with him as the character is one of the more high-profile Jewish characters in comics and the character is derived from the Golem of Prague of Jewish folklore. How much the show will use in that is a big question, but there’s a statement about how old the rags are that hint they may go pretty far. The fact Felicity is Jewish makes things more interesting.

The episode is an improvement over the series debut which seemed like it had issues with pacing and throwing too much in there to start. The episode takes a few steps back and slows things down while still covering a lot. It’s a bit more character focused instead of action and due to that, it’s improved. Hopefully we get more of this for the rest of the season.

Overall rating: 7.45

Season 5 begins with a deadly new criminal, Tobias Church, threatening Star City, which forces Oliver to consider forming a new team of superheroes to help him do battle. In flashbacks, Oliver faces off against the Bratva in Russia.

Arrow kicks off the fifth season with an episode that I can only describe as choppy and a bit frenetic. I loathed the fourth season (as it seems many did) and the creators feel like they got the message and have decided to get Ollie and his team closer to their street roots.

A new group of vigilantes have risen having taken the example of Arrow as their inspiration. Of course Ollie isn’t the biggest fan of that and would rather they didn’t. But, there’s lots of crime as a new crop of crooks have rose as well. With Black Canary’s death still on his mind Ollie isn’t sure if he should get a new team. The concept is good but the episode is just a cacophany of events, one after another.

The episode feels like you came half-way into something. It’s an improvement over last season, but there’s so much the feels choppy and like a missed arrow.

The production value is upped but that also brings a lot of bad with explosions that look like they’re from low grade magic tricks and stunts that are just… bad. Really bad. There’s one scene that involves sensors and explosions that looks comically bad.

There’s some good. There’s some bad. There’s a break neck speed in the episode that doesn’t feel like it works. This could be a bumpy season.

Overall rating: 6.95

Season 4 ends with Oliver teaming up with a surprising force in an attempt to stop Damien Darhk and his magic once and for all.

Arrow ends its over the top fourth season attempting to stop nuclear bombs and Darhk. The episode defies logic so many times it actually pulled me out of it.

Exhibit one: Oliver shoots an arrow at Darhk with a crowd behind Darhk. The arrow would have hit someone in the crowd.

Exhibit two: Darhk’s magic is destroyed, but he can still feel Rubicon failing and control a bullet, after he loses his magic.

Things like this is just bad and uneven writing that has plagued the season. This finale is just a microcosm of the issue. A big battle ensues, and that battle looked like it could have been out of The Dark Knight Rises in its ridiculousness.

The episode does end with at least one thing that’s interesting, the revisiting of Oliver’s run for Mayor. Where this takes the fifth season could provide a lot of ground, and the episode as a whole leaves the team in a very different place than where they’ve been most of this season, also setting up what will hopefully be a very different fifth season.

The fourth season was far from excellent, or even good, but in its end its shaken Oliver and the Green Arrow up enough that things should at least be somewhat entertaining to see where it goes.

Overall rating: 6.85

Oliver and Diggle race to rescue Thea, while Felicity, Curtis and Noah join together to stop Darhk.

Arrow has just one episode left with team Arrow going full assault on Darhk and his cult world. I think one of the best things about the episode is the new locale for Arrow and Diggle to run around. Seeing them running in what amounts to generic suburbia is actually interesting, especially seeing how they use their surroundings.

But for me, the highlight of the episode is Felicity working with Noah and her father as her mother watches on. Felicity finally reveals to her mother what she’s been up to and seeing the family dynamic adds a hell of a lot to Felicity’s character, especially with a twist towards the end. But, the best part is watching Noah make comments about the three individuals. There’s tons in this bit of the show alone to entertain and discuss and how things progress for Felicity going forward will be interesting.

But, with that good comes some bad, and that’s during the lest ten minutes where the show gets all Star Trek in the quality of its explosions and acting. Apparently shaky cam and jumping = explosions and things falling apart.

But, with that plan stopped Darhk is out of options, and pissed. It’ll lead to a showdown next episode to wrap things up, and who knows how team Arrow will stop him.

Overall rating: 6.95

Felicity realizes she needs to ask her father, Noah Kuttler, for help when Team Arrow learns what Damien Darhk’s next move is going to be. Meanwhile, Noah and Oliver have a heart-to-heart talk that leaves Oliver rattled.

Arrow has a hell of an interesting episode that isn’t quite as exciting as it should be, but at the same time there’s a hell of a lot at play.

Darhk’s plan involves nuclear missiles and it’s up to Team Arrow to stop them. And really, that rests on Felicity and Noah’s shoulders. The flaws of the episode, and the season, are emphasized by this episode that seems to ignore the reality of nuclear war and what happens when a nuclear weapon is launched.

But, I guess there’s actual death, so I can’t complain that much?

There’s also the issue of Thea and her being kidnapped. This plot is all over the place too, and what Malcom’s involvement too is a bit head scratching. In fact, so many people are ok with nuclear annihilation to restart mankind is even more dumbfounding.

The entire plot just feels bizarre and over the top and asks the viewers to remove any sense of reality or thought and ignore the issues that seem to crop up over and over.

Sigh….

Overall rating: 6.85

Oliver and Felicity look for a magical solution to defeat Darhk; vengeance-driven Diggle gets a lead on Andy’s whereabouts and heads off to confront his brother; Alex takes Thea on a vacation that quickly turns into a nightmare.

Arrow is an interesting one with this episode that feels like a hell of a lot packed into one episode. We finally get a better idea of Darhk’s plan. Oliver and Felicia go on a quest. Diggle confronts his brother. Finally Thea gets kidnapped.

All of that is packed in an hour as the season begins to wrap up for the show.

It’s a decent episode in that even with everything going on, it still feels like all of that was all given enough time to develop and play out. And there’s actual development and the decisions aren’t idiotic!

I will say though, isn’t Andy wearing a bullet proof vest? Where did he get shot!?

Darhk’s plan feels a bit too reminiscent to the first season, but this episode moves a hell of a lot of plot points along.

 

Overall rating: 7.1