apinknightmare

Based on the previews, it didn't even seem like she was going to suck that much, honestly. She jumps out of a window onto a helicopter. She saves Roy from getting his ass beat, I mean...the struggle isn't real. I think there's hope for this one.

That's why I'm trying to figure out if Malcolm was lying or if Maseo went right down to him. It was the fact that Maseo told Oliver he asked Tatsu to bring him back to life that's making me wonder. Unless he was just being dramatic.

But Oliver did fall into a ravine and for most people his body would be unattainable. That's why I can't figure out if he was telling the truth or lying because he couldn't find it and didn't know where he was.

Okay, so was Malcolm lying when he said he saw Oliver's body in the ravine? If he did see him, that means Oliver was there for 4-5ish days, so I'm guessing the "bring you back to life" thing Maseo said at the end was literal - Oliver was actually dead. If Ra's was going to come after him, why is he worried about it now? The League suspected it before Sara died, Nyssa's seen him. Is he worried that Ra's is going to figure out that he had something to do with Sara's death? Is he worried that Ra's would know he got Oliver involved?

Also, Maseo said he asked Tatsu to come so she could bring him back to life, not save him. What kind of weird shit did she do to him? Magic herbs? Special tea? Lazarus milkshake? Mirakuru pt 2?

Out of a cloudy window, no less. Dear god.

When Felicity reached out to touch the blade that killed Oliver, they transitioned to a shot of Oliver being dragged on the gurney with his hand hanging off the side - it looked like they were touching/reaching out for each other.

I didn't have a problem with Felicity turning off the lights. I also didn't have a problem with Laurel turning off the TV either, haha.

Also, Laurel's assertion that there isn't one thing Malcolm Merlyn could say that they should believe is going to make what was outlined in the 3x12 synopsis either really interesting, really confusing, really maddening, or all three at the same time. Or any combination thereof.

Well, maybe if she had a matching lip it would!

They showed him in present day in next week's preview, right? I can't remember - something about Maseo saying something about how they're getting along without him. Also, when's the time jump? And the hand thing with Oliver and Felicity was heartbreaking, gah.

Yeah, she made the wrong choice, but I get why she did it. It's good that she took a little time for herself. The Diggle/Laurel scene wasn't bad, I just was expecting something different is all. I think Malcolm actually was being genuine. And I think maybe they didn't tell Thea because none of them had any time to get together and get their story straight. Seems like they were struggling with whether to tell her the truth about him being the Arrow. Although how she doesn't know at this point I cannot figure out. And I expect them to keep it from her anyway. And yeah, Laurel did feel too soon. And even though KC talked about wanting her wig to be different, she picked Sara's up off the table? And where did she get the suit, are we supposed to believe that was Sara's too?

I'm honestly surprised that Black Canary isn't trending. I know she was only in costume for about 5 seconds, but still...surprised.

Yep. I was hoping I had already lived through 1/3rd of it.

I agree about Felicity. For once her head actually wasn't in the game and Oliver wasn't there to tell her so. Boo. Also, I wonder if Maseo is actually working under Ra's orders or if he was just repaying his debt to Oliver. He got Tatsu back to him, maybe he'll get Oliver back to Felicity and I really need to stop because tears.

Also, I love that Thea didn't know where Oliver was throughout this episode, but she showed no qualms about sword fighting with Malcolm in her loft and then throwing a letter opener because she heard a noise on the second floor. And she deduced that Roy is Arsenal, but she hasn't figured out that Oliver is the Arrow? GIRL, COME ON

Did Diggle shoot him in the head and the bullet bounced off? Or...did it just graze him? Glad to see Roy's parkour skills are alive and well and that he's taking to launching off of actual people.

1. I'm surprised they showed that Oliver's alive. 2. That wasn't as bad as I thought. 3. I can't believe Ray and Felicity had words. 4. I can't believe Felicity turned him down. 5. Next week is going to be terrible. 6. That Laurel/Diggle scene was supposed to be "epic"? 7. Never leave Laurel alone with vigilante stuff. 8. She doesn't really look like she's struggling to me.

Yeah, I think the reason people stop watching is complex. There's nothing wrong with stopping if you just hate one character. I don't care one iota about Laurel, I mentally disengage almost every time she's on my screen, but I wouldn't stop watching just because of her unless she started getting significantly more airtime out of this trilogy or (like I've written before a ton) if she and Oliver get back together. I'm frustrated with the show right now. I don't think a lot of things they've done so far make sense, I don't like the way a lot of the arcs seem to be going, but I'm not ready to quit yet. I'm not as excited to watch it and I don't recommend it to friends anymore, but I watch it myself and am still entertained by it. Once that stops being the case, I'll tune out for good (and probably be kind of sad about it for a bit). Hopefully things start turning around soon.

Yeah, and it seems like it'd be easier to fight in since it's tighter and tailored better and has 100% less buckles. In the Midnight City promo pics, Katie looks like she's got these same curls in her wig. Maybe she wasn't feeling so sexy and strong that day?

Absolutely. Good for her.

She doesn't look helpless or desperate for protection though? If anything she just looks panicked. More like she's grabbing him to move out of the way than the other way around.

I think Oliver's initial reasoning in 2x7 regarding "Because of the life that I lead, I think it's better to not be with someone I could really care about," was about Oliver thinking he was incapable of being in a proper relationship. Maybe because he wasn't ready, maybe because he thinks he's shit and has nothing to offer, maybe because he would be afraid he couldn't give that person his full time and attention because his mission had to come first. Maybe it's a combo of those reasons, or none of the above. I don't think it had anything to do with anyone's safety - even though I'm 80% sure that SA gave this reason at some point (or maybe that he was with Sara because she could handle herself to lessen the blowback? I can't remember). We've never really been given an indication of this in the show though. Now his reasons for not being with Felicity stem from thinking that giving his attention to a relationship distracts him from his Arrowing. He was excited to go on a date with Felicity, wasn't paying full attention, got a tracker planted on him, then nearly got them both killed. Of course this is BS, but I think it's a more logical reasoning that stems from residual feelings of fear (he really, really loves Felicity and knows she deserves more than he thinks he can give her, is scared he'll screw it up, etc., etc.). It makes it easier for me to explain why he says he can't be Oliver and the Arrow, even though he's Oliver in every way but being with Felicity. I know this is not intentional on the writers' part, but it works for me, so I'm going with it.

Depending on how or why she got hurt, I don't think it takes away her autonomy at all, as long as no one tells her she can't be a part of the team when she gets better. If she somehow gets hurt because of irresponsible vigilantism, I'd be behind Oliver getting angry about it. Apart from loving Felicity (which would obviously play a huge part in that anger), she is his partner. She can handle herself to a certain extent, but he's only left her completely defenseless once - any other time she's been out in the field, he lets her do her thing and stays a safe, easily crossed distance away so he can get to her if she needs him (and she has in the past - at the casino, when they were trying to catch the Dollmaker). He protected her in both instances without removing her autonomy - and he was responsible in the way he utilized her on the team. Allowed her to do what they needed while realizing that hand-to-hand combat isn't really her thing and that he should stick around in case she gets in trouble. I'd see his anger at Ray stemming from something like that. IF that even happens.

I wonder if he'd really get freaked out about her getting hurt in the field though. His issue with being with her hasn't ever been safety related (I think that's a fandom-made reason). She's gone out in the field tons of times, and he seems fairly comfortable with it now. I think if she did get hurt because of Ray it would be the issue in which he left her exposed to danger. Because there's only one time Oliver has actually left her defenseless - and that was with Slade. Every other time he's been there with her. Not that she's helpless, but there's being there to make sure she's safe while she's risking her safety (which Oliver does), and then there's being careless (even if it's not on purpose, but based on not having a lot of experience), which Ray might do. IF it's Ray related at all. Which maybe it isn't.