After the fall at the end of ”The Climb,” Team Arrow was forced to try and save the city last week without the eponymous hero and there were more than a few missteps. Like letting the big-bad get away, for one. Good news though, Oliver Queen isn't actually dead. What a shock! Right? Right?!
To be fair, the way he was 'brought back' was a little surprising, because fans of the DCU were definitely expecting his resurrection would involve a Lazarus Pit. And that's the bad thing about expectations; they can sometimes lead to disappointment. I wanted that Lazarus Pit! Oh well, maybe next year. Even though the crime-fighter’s been ‘resurrected,’ he’s still not back in time for the fight in “Midnight City”...
Brick House
As I said in the intro, the B-Team let Vinnie Jones' Danny 'Brick' Brickwell get away last week, so he and his henchmen from Iron Heights are still causing trouble in Starling City. Laurel is doing her best to fill Sara's suit, but let's face it, she's no Black Canary. And while we're at it, Arsenal is no Arrow. Or should I say Red Arrow is no Green Arrow, even with his quiver of tricks. Did you catch the shout-out to the young crime-fighter's full-on superhero moniker? That was pretty rad.
Dig is doing his best to keep it all together, even breaking out the vodka for the deflated sidekick trying to be a superhero, but he's not just out an Oliver; Felicity decided to stop doing her whole Oracle thing after hearing, well, seeing the results of the duel. Once she sees Bethany Snow’s broadcast of Arsenal and Canary's blunders on Channel 52, Felicity visits Laurel and ends up being so inspired that she reforms the B-Team to prevent Brick from completely taking over the Glades. And Laurel's coming along. I liked the trick she pulled in the interrogation room, threatening to send the henchman to Belle Reve. The chirp-chirp of her explosive was also a nice touch.
Up And ATOM!
While Felicity is on crime-fighting sabbatical, she's busy doing her best to discourage Ray from his 'suicide mission,' going as far as refusing to work on the A.T.O.M. project (formerly known as O.M.A.C. when Palmer Technologies was still Queen Consolidated and Star City was Starling), which you think would get her fired. But Arrow has established that she can do pretty much whatever she likes at work, even drop by and borrow the boss' helicopter. Good thing she changes her mind about working on the technosuit - the one powered by a dwarf star alloy and equipped with a hard lightbeam - otherwise Brandon Routh might not get that rumored spin-off. I wonder if the suit will be operational by the time Ray and Felicity visit The Flash? Oh, and I loved naming one of the intersections 16th and Kent. You know, cause Routh was... never mind.
Broken Arrow
As we saw in the previous episode, a mysterious substance called the alpha is needed for Ray's suit, and its origin is what's currently driving the Hong Kong flashbacks. When Oliver and Maseo were sent by A.R.G.U.S. Agent Amanda Waller to recover the alpha last week, Ollie managed to plant a tracker on one of China White's men in hopes that he would lead them to where the Triad was keeping Tatsu. And the plan worked, except that Maseo was willing to actually trade the alpha for his wife's safety, something he didn't bother to share with our hero before going on the unsanctioned mission. Wait till Mockingbird hears about this one. What do you think was the wedge that drove the Yamashiros apart? I think the kid dies. And then Maseo leaves for Nanda Parbat for a life as Sarab. Still can't believe there was no Lazarus Pit.
Merlyn’s Apprentice
Just because Maseo is willing to risk his life to save Oliver, that doesn't mean he can be trusted as we see him making a call to fellow League of Assassins member Douchey DJ to keep tabs on Merlyn's travelling plans for Ra's al Ghul. I can see the fight between Thea and Roy now; him telling her to stay away from LoA DJ and her accusing him of being jealous. Boring. However, I am excited about what seems to be an upcoming showdown of the Demon's Head versus Malcolm and Thea. The Queen formerly known as Speedy is my favourite character on the show. After her badass father spills his guts about how he's afraid of Ra's - and namedrops his dead wife, dead son and The Undertaking - she basically tells him to stop being such a bitch. I hope she skewers that DJ.
Arrow continues with Episode 12, “Uprising,” on Wednesday, February 4 at 8:00 p.m. ET on The CW. Created by Marc Guggenheim, Andrew Kreisberg and Greg Berlanti, the DC Comics inspired series stars Stephen Amell, Katie Cassidy, David Ramsey, Emily Bett Rickards, Willa Holland, Colton Haynes, Paul Blackthorne and John Barrowman.
