tv echo

I'm putting this here because of the DC Comics references... Arrow: Easter Eggs and DC Comics References in "Corto Maltese" By Russ Burlingame 10/22/2014 http://comicbook.com/2014/10/23/arrow-easter-eggs-and-dc-comics-references-in-corto-maltese/

I agree - except that Thea has also been lying to Oliver.

I wonder if Malcolm is trying to set Thea up to go after the Arrow. Malcolm knows Oliver is the Arrow. He has not told Thea. Thea has not told Oliver that Malcolm is alive. I'm sure Malcolm hasn't forgotten that Oliver defeated him, so he would want revenge. That would explain why he let Thea 'win' that fight and return with Oliver to Starling City. Then would Malcolm's need for revenge be greater than his 'love' for Thea? I picture a costumed Thea and a costumed Oliver fighting on a rooftop. Oliver is about to kill Thea, but her mask comes off and he realizes she's his sister.

I hate the lack of realism. Laurel's now flashing a badge and acting like a cop.

Lantern7, I've noticed that TV Guide has been pro-Laurel in the past. I'm convinced that someone on their staff was a David Cassidy groupie back in the day...

Oliver, Diggle and Roy - I really enjoyed watching them work together on Corto Maltese. Oliver and Diggle working in the field is always fun, and Roy actually added to it. Oliver's shooting was awesome, as was his quip to Roy about how he never said he couldn't use a gun. - I loved how Oliver constructed weapons (including bows and arrows!) out of stuff in their hotel rooms. - I liked Oliver's scenes with Thea. SA does a good job of showing how much Oliver loves Thea. Sadly, I didn't get the same vibe from WH as Thea. I've had trouble believing that Thea loves Oliver. Thea - I haven't liked Thea in the past because I thought she acted like a spoiled, self-centered brat. But she's much more interesting now, and I like her journey of transition into a hero(?). WH did a great job of showing Thea's change over the past five months. - For someone who's been bitching about how others kept secrets from her and lied to her, Thea certainly has no problem keeping secrets of her own and lying to her brother now. (There's a certain hypocrisy in that, just like there's hypocrisy in the fact that Laurel is prosecuting lawbreakers as a DA, while breaking the law herself.) Oliver is still keeping his Arrow identity secret from Thea. But so what? Thea's keeping secret from him the fact that Malcolm Merlyn is alive and has been training her. Thea's turning into Moira. - I did like the interactions between Thea and Malcolm. JB was great as usual, playing the proud, fond but cruel father. Laurel - I think we're supposed to feel sympathy for her grief and admiration for the way she fearlessly went after that guy. Instead, like others here, I'm just getting a strong Single White Female vibe from her - and it's creepy. (She's even getting blonder.) Laurel tries to assume Sara's mission of taking down men who abuse women, so she attacks that guy with a bat. Like others here have said, he could justifiably argue that he was just defending himself by beating her. Police Captain Lance has only been a Laurel enabler. Last season Laurel avoid a DUI charge because of her father. Last week he didn't say anything about her lying, using his position to bully his officers, and beating that guy in the hospital bed. This week, he just consoles her when he should be arresting - or at least reprimanding - her for breaking the law. But no, he's only concerned about her injuring herself. And how did Laurel even know for sure that guy was guilty? That girl in AA could've been a psycho liar ex-girlfriend. That's why we have something called due process - that every DA should know about. Also, shouldn't Laurel's law license and DA job be in jeopardy again? She broke the law. Unless she lied about how she got injured and her police captain father covered up for her. So she gets away with doing whatever she wants - again. - Speaking of her DA job, why is Laurel acting like a cop by flashing a badge and tracking down suspects. Cops investigate and arrest; DAs prosecute. Even though prosecutors wear badges, the DAs on Law and Order never went around wearing a badge like a fashion accessory. I suspect Laurel wore it so openly in order to intimidate - I said last week that she has no compunction about using her power to get what she wants. - I think the EPs made a mistake in making Laurel a lawyer. She's a terrible lawyer - incompetent and unethical. They should've made her a cop, which would give her a more valid reason for being out on the streets investigating, and which also would've given her police training. - Laurel's default mode seems to be cold, hostile and angry. She's back to Season 1 Laurel. If Ted Grant falls for her, it certainly won't be because of her personality (unless he's a masochist). I got zero chemistry between KC and JRR. When they showed the shot of Ted shirtless and punching a bag, I thought "oh, look, they got a Stephen Amell body double." - Yay to Oliver for refusing to train Laurel. Poor Ted Grant, now he's stuck with her. Felicity - I love how she's turning into a cross between Pepper Potts and Lucius Fox. Wouldn't it be great if Ray Palmer leaves Starling City at the end of Season 3 and makes Felicity the new CEO of QC? (Of course, he's have to train her on how to run a corporation in the meantime.) - Even Laurel is now calling Felicity for IT help. I actually didn't mind so much, except for Laurel's tone of voice. Only Laurel can ask for a favor and make it sound like an order. I do like Felicity's response: "We're favor friends? We're friends?" Felicity was surprised and confused (I didn't hear any animosity or resentment). I'd be confused too, considering their limited past interactions. Incidentally, I think Laurel didn't ask for help from the DA office or the police because she didn't want them to know what she was doing. She knew it was personal vigilante, illegal stuff. - I have no problem with Diggle calling Felicity at work. When she was working at Tech Village, Oliver and Diggle called her all the time for help, so it's something Felicity would expect. I expect her to keep taking calls at work because she knows how important and necessary her role is on Team Arrow. - I am a bit nervous about the way Felicity is kinda being shunted to the side with her side story, while Laurel is being integrated into the main story. I almost quit watching Arrow in Season 1, when the show focused on Oliver, Laurel, Tommy and Thea, because I just didn't care for any of the characters and thought they were all self-centered (except maybe Tommy). I got interested again when the original Team Arrow (Oliver, Diggle, Felicity) began working together and then Sara came on board as the Black Canary. Like many of you, I lost interest again in the back half of Season 2 when it became all about the Lance family drama, before getting invested in that season finale. If Season 3 is going to focus on Oliver, Laurel and Thea again, while shunting Diggle and Felicity to the side as secondary characters, I don't know if I can stay interested to the end. I want characters I can like and root for.

This looks awesome... 'Avengers: Age of Ultron' trailer leaks, but Marvel celebrates first look at James Spader's villainous robot (VIDEO) http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/movies/avengers-age-ultron-trailer-unexpected-early-release-article-1.1984095

I liked that Coulson called Raina's bluff, even though I really like Simmons and worried about how she would save herself. But then I loved when Morse revealed herself as a SHIELD agent and rescued Simmons. Just when I started to like Skye again, I got irritated by her demanding that Coulson tell her everything from now on and keep no secrets from her - and that he agreed! He's the Director of SHIELD and he's entitled to keep secrets as needed from his agents. Why is Skye again such a special snowflake that she gets to know everything he knows, and more than the rest of the team knows? She's not even a senior agent like May.

I actually think the show is much better than mediocre (especially compared to some of the crap that's on TV), but this article does make some valid points... Gotham Will Continue To Be Mediocre Until It Fixes Itself By Paul on Oct 20, 2014 http://www.tvovermind.com/gotham/gotham-will-continue-mediocre-fixes-242791

The Walking Dead Season 5 Has Dramatically Improved by Fixing Its ‘Woman Problem’ By Paul on Oct 21, 2014 http://www.tvovermind.com/the-walking-dead/walking-dead-dramatically-improved-fixing-woman-problem-242857

http://tvline.com/2014/10/21/greys-anatomy-spoilers-amelia-addiction-season-11-ask-ausiello/

Whenever I see John Barrowman, I keep expecting him to break out in song and dance, so if Arrow were a musical... Malcolm finds out that Oliver is coming to see Thea tomorrow and wants Thea to refuse to see her brother (set to music from West Side Story) - A boy like that who'd kill your father, Forget that boy, forget your brother! I am your own kind, Stick to your own kind! A boy like that will give you sorrow, He'll tell you lies now and tomorrow! I am your own kind, Stick to your own kind! A boy who lies has no part In your new life, in your new start, He gets no part, Your new start, my Thea, your new start! A boy like that wants one thing only, He'll hide you safe but leave you lonely, I'll give you new life; he ended mine. Just stay and see, my Thea, Just stay and see!

I'm bitter now because the EPs used a great character like Sara just as a plot device for the 'journey' of a weak character like Laurel. I'll be even more bitter if they use a great character like Felicity to restore Oliver's humanity and then turn Oliver over to Laurel. I'm with those who think the EPs are going to wait and see how the 'new' Laurel resonates with fans this season, and also how the Ray-Felicity relationship resonates with fans this season, before charting the course for Seasons 4 and 5.

Major fail on the matching color outfits. How could anyone even think that was a good idea? Incidentally, I think that hairstyle is the default hairstyle for women on the CW network because it shows up on every CW show. Sara's jacket is too small on Laurel. It doesn't look like Laurel can even zip up the front of the jacket. And those pants look too big. Yeah, I also don't get it if Felicity is an EA again. I just assumed she would be put in charge of his IT group or get an executive officer position.

No spoilers (all speculation)... After Arrow & The Flash - The CW's THIRD Superhero Show Will Be...? by Jashan Boparai ⋅ Posted on October 19th, 2014 http://moviepilot.com/posts/2014/10/19/after-arrow-the-flash-the-cw-s-third-superhero-show-will-be-2360552?lt_source=external,manual

If you like the relationship between Oliver and Felicity, then you'll like this analysis; otherwise, you'll want to skip it... Why Oliver and Felicity is the epic love story ‘Arrow’ needs 23 hours ago http://fangirlish.com/why-oliver-and-felicity-is-the-epic-love-story-arrow-needs/

NEWS/ Spoiler Chat: Scoop on Glee, Revenge, The Good Wife, Parenthood, The Mindy Project and More by KRISTIN DOS SANTOS Today 6:00 AM PDT http://www.eonline.com/news/590006/spoiler-chat-scoop-on-glee-revenge-the-good-wife-parenthood-the-mindy-project-and-more?cmpid=sn-000000-twitterfeed-365-kristin&utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=twitterfeed_kristin&dlvrit=51396

This episode showed us two significant things: First, this episode marks the beginning of Ichabod's disillusionment with Katrina. Before, he was completely in love with Katrina, thought she was virtually perfect, and trusted her fully. Now, he is beginning to wonder if he can trust her or whether he even knows her. Since it is unlikely that Ichabod would ever divorce Katrina - I think he takes his marriage vows too seriously to do that, perhaps Katrina will eventually turn evil and be killed. Katrina is showing her true manipulative colors. Like others here, I also wouldn't be surprised if we later find out that Katrina bewitched Ichabod into falling in love with her so that she could control one of the witnesses. If that's the case, then Ichabod could consider his marriage vows invalid and feel free to divorce her. Second, we now know that Hawley and Jenny did indeed hook up in the past, but Hawley is now no longer interested in doing that - perhaps because he is intrigued by Abbie. Although "ick" on the sister-swapping, the show may be setting up tension between the sisters - again "ick" on a possible love triangle dividing them. Other notes: - Ichabod gets to save Abbie this time, although he needed Hawley to perform CPR. - Now we know how Katrina planned to communicate with Ichabod while trapped in the Horseman's house (little bluebird), but why waste her suppressed powers just to send a love note with no vital info? - Poor Miss Caroline. I wish she had survived. She had more chemistry with Ichabod than Katrina - or Abbie for that matter.

The best scene in this episode was the tense table scene with Maroni, Gordon and Oswald. You can tell that Gordon is on a knife's edge and that if he says the wrong thing, he's dead. It was a great scene. Oswald is intriguing in how he flips from psycho killer to vulnerable toady in the blink of an eye. Now that Maroni knows the truth, he will keep Oswald safe and hidden from Falcone so that he can milk him for information, which in turn will protect Gordon from Falcone finding out that he didn't kill Oswald. I haven't been sure if Oswald is playing Gordon or if he views Gordon as a 'friend' (in his own sick way) because Gordon didn't kill him. Now I'm leaning toward Oswald having a soft spot for Gordon (kinda like the way Hannibal Lecter had a soft spot for Clarisse). As Oswald ascends to power in Gotham - which seems likely, I think he will knock off Maroni and take over his organization. Then Oswald will protect Gordon from Falcone, while trying to corrupt him, and will be one of the reasons that Gordon survives for so many years in such a corrupt city. I also liked the scene where Gordon and Bullock are getting lunch on the street and then Bullock's exasperated reaction when Gordon races to the scene of the crime (like a Pavlovian dog when the bell rings). At some point in the series (assuming it lasts more than one season), I'd bet the two of them are going to face the dilemma of having to kill the other. Finally, I liked all of the scenes with Bruce and Alfred. Their relationship is one of the best things about this show. I was trying to convince a friend to watch Gotham, but she was not interested because she said "it's too depressing, we already know that nothing changes, the city is corrupt and stays corrupt, no one wins." But to me, even though the show is called "Gotham", it's not really a story about the city or the city's failure to change from corrupt to decent. The show is primarily about one man's journey to remain good in a corrupt environment - it's James Gordon's personal triumph that he remains a decent human being all the way up to when Bruce Wayne reaches adulthood and becomes Batman. The show is secondarily about the rise and fall of various villains, and the prequel story for Bruce Wayne. P.S. The aria is "O mio babbino caro" from the opera Gianni Schicci by Puccini. The aria is sung by a girl pleading with her father to help out her boyfriend, whose family was left out of an old man's will.

This is in response to something that was brought up in the News & Media thread (Sara and Felicity).... I never got the sense that Felicity ever expressed her jealousy of Sara when Sara was hooked up with Oliver. If she felt any jealousy in her heart because of her own feelings for Oliver, she kept it to herself and didn't show it. At one point, she felt that Sara was displacing her in the Arrowcave, but that had nothing to do with a romantic wish but her IT role on Team Arrow. She hated that Oliver had that one-night stand with Isabel because she thought that he deserved better. But I think she was okay with him being with Sara because she admired Sara and because she didn't think he would ever consider her in that way. I think Felicity spent a lot of time with Sara in the Arrowcave last season (more than we saw) and that they developed a good friendship. Even in the "Sara" episode, when she had that scene with Oliver and said to him "it's Sara - your Sara", she said it in a tone of tearful sorrow. There was no edge or jealousy in that tone. (I can imagine another person on the show saying that same line and it would come across as cold and accusatory.)

Just catching up on recent spoiler posts... Nyssa "respects" Laurel. - What? Nyssa tranqued Laurel and left her on the floor. Here's some wild speculation - maybe the EPs have Laurel somehow save Nyssa's life (suspend belief here!), and Nyssa agrees to give her a few fighting tips. Then Nyssa saves Laurel's life (which was in danger due to a Laurel screw-up!), but dies in the process (more propping of Laurel!). Then to repay the life debt, Laurel agrees to join the LOA - and leaves Starling City! Yay! There was a deleted scene of Laurel carrying Sara's body to the foundry. - What?! I don't believe it unless I see actual video of KC carrying CL, without the use of wires or stunt doubles or special effects.

https://twitter.com/mguggenheim/status/523588403548286976

How ‘Arrow’ And ‘Gotham’ Crossed Over – And Why It’ll Never Happen Again Marc Guggenheim and Danny Cannon explain how Queen Consolidated ended up on 'Gotham.' by alex zalben 10/16/2014 http://www.mtv.com/news/1965935/arrow-gotham-crossover-mystery-solved/?utm=share_twitter

Another poll (no surprise)... ‘Arrow’ Poll: Choose Your Favorite Romantic Relationship OCT 19 2014 docbrowntv http://www.docbrowntv.com/arrow-poll-choose-favorite-romantic-relationship/

Apparently, forgiveness was a huge theme of this episode - Carol forgiving Rick, Rick forgiving Tara, Maggie forgiving Tara, coupled with the introduction of Father Gabriel and the church setting. Then the episode ends with the return of Gareth, who clearly will never forgive Rick's group and is out for revenge - the show's promo slogan "Hunt or Be Hunted" now takes on real meaning. And oh, Tyrese, so you didn't kill that guy in the cabin, after all? Father Gabriel seems guilt-ridden and seeking forgiveness - but isn't likely to receive it. Speculating, he probably hoarded the collected canned foods in the church, locked the chuch, and shut out his parishioners (including that woman with glasses) out of cowardice and fear. It's strange how clean and new his clothes still look, and how well-fed he himself seems, despite claims of running out of food. I'm glad so many people in the group told Abraham they were going with whatever Rick decided. I guess Abraham's big speech was supposed to be his 'call to arms' to convince them to go with his trio to Washington, D.C. But all I could think was - will Rick or someone please press him and Eugene for more details! Stop just accepting what they say as gospel. But I like that Rick's decision - right or wrong - seemed based on Abraham's saying there would be food and shelter there, and not on the promise of some magical cure. I don't think Rick's decision is necessarily wrong. They can't just wander around in circles in the Atlanta area when there clearly are no more food sources anywhere here. Going in a direction toward Washington, D.C., at least gives them a goal and some hope - however remote. If they find a good spot on the way, I think Rick would stop there and not continue to Washington, D.C. Still, after what happened at the CDC, Woodbury and Sanctuary, they need to be extremely cautious about another promised safe haven. Please, show, kill off Rosita, Abraham and Eugene. Don't touch any more originals. The Rick-Carl conversation in the church was interesting, with Rick telling Carl that he can never be safe, while Carl insists that they can still help and trust some people. That's a complete switching of roles for them from before, when Rick wanted to help and trust people, while Carl wanted to shoot first and ask questions later. Poor Bob was a goner as soon as he and Sasha started being all lovey-dovey together. Like others have speculated, maybe Bob got bit on the leg that was cut off by Gareth, so Bob will be saved the way Herschel was saved by RIck cutting off Herschel's leg. (Maybe Bob was part of the group that attacked and raped the people at Terminus?) I'm also hoping that Gareth or one of his gang has Michonne's katana, so that she can get it back in a future episode.