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Arrow Season 5 Episode 7 Review – ‘Vigilante’ NOVEMBER 17, 2016 BY JESSIE ROBERTSON http://www.flickeringmyth.com/2016/11/arrow-season-5-episode-7-review-vigilante/

Arrow 5×07 Review: Countless Steps Back November 17, 2016 ALYSSA BARBIERI http://fangirlish.com/arrow-5x07-review-countless-steps-back/

Arrow takes on Vigilante, and his former self, in the latest episode of Arrow Trent Moore Thu, Nov 17, 2016 12:08am http://www.blastr.com/2016-11-16/arrow-takes-vigilante-and-his-former-self-latest-episode-arrow

Arrow Review: Vigilante (Season 5 Episode 7) November 17, 2016 Lissete Lanuza Sáenz http://telltaletv.com/2016/11/arrow-review-vigilante-season-5-episode-7/

Arrow Review: Ollie Is Surrounded by Betrayal BY CRAIG WACK · NOVEMBER 17, 2016 http://oohlo.com/2016/11/17/arrow-review-ollie-is-surrounded-by-betrayal/

Maybe Prometheus is like a foster parent or godparent to Evelyn, who took her in after her parents died.

Arrow 5.7 Review – “Vigilante” November 17, 2016 | Posted by Michael Haigis http://411mania.com/movies/arrow-5-7-review-vigilante/

Rick Gonzalez was on Everything Geek Podcast (with Ruari Williamson) today - you can listen to the recorded podcast here (19:28)... http://mixlr.com/channel-1138/showreel/ -- RG is a native of NYC. He knew he wanted to be an actor since he was a little boy. He studied at LaGuardia High School of Performing Arts in NYC. He later moved to CA and has been acting for 16 years. -- RG had no knowledge of Wild Dog when he auditioned for Arrow and read for a character who had a different name. That character had a military background. He did not know the character was a DC Comics hero. After he got the job, he was put in touch with Arrow's costume designer, Maya, and told he had to get fitted for a costume. He was surprised. She told him that he was playing a DC superhero and that's how he found out about Wild Dog. -- RG read comics as a kid and said that kids want to play heroes who save the day. The 10-year-old in him is always excited to save the day. -- RG talked to James Bamford about the physicality of the part. Bamford felt that, because of Wild Dog's military training, he should be in some kind of shape. He also had to match his stunt double and the amazing stunt team, and had to overlap with what they're doing. He added that SA is one of the most in-shape actors that he's ever met and set the bar high, so it was important for him to match that bar that SA set. His physicality is needed to deliver on the believability of his character. -- RG said that the biggest challenge for him was learning new martial arts forms and incorporating them naturally and as real looking as possible within a short amount of time. -- RG said that he feels like he, JD, EK and MMcL have joined together to create a new energy on the show. He said that it's been a lot of fun to be around those guys. -- RG said that to be included in Arrow's 100th episode was amazing and agreed with MG that the episode is a love letter to the fans. -- RG said that he and the other newbies felt welcomed to the show. He also said that SA is a great person and super funny and welcoming and a really amazing actor who puts in a lot of hard work. -- RG voted for Arrow in the People's Choice Awards nominations and agreed that winning that award would cap off 100 episodes perfectly. -- RG also did a crime drama produced by Queen Latifah called Deuces, to be released sometime next year.

I think the ones in the alien pods are the characters in that TV Guide pic (Oliver, Sara, Ray, Diggle and Thea) and I think that Diggle is the one who is shot in 508. Maybe it's the lack of focus on his character, or lack of pr, or lack of media interviews, or the fact that he really outpowers the rest of the team, but I have this bad feeling that Rory - the best new newbie - is going to be the casualty this season, the death that inspires the rest of the team when they're down. I really, really hope that I'm wrong.

'Arrow’ Recap: “Vigilante” – A Matter of Perspective BY KAYTI BURT November 16, 2016 http://collider.com/arrow-recap-vigilante-a-matter-of-perspective/

Also from the above A.V. Club review: So the bolded language above is considered "fine operatic superhero storytelling." But an equally ludicrous romantic storyline would be considered negatively as soap opera melodrama.

Another positive review from A.V. Club (and reviewer apologizes for his dumb Felicity comment from a few weeks back!)... Arrow’s ensemble is driving its creative comeback, so let’s break them all down By Alasdair Wilkins Nov 17, 2016 12:40 AM http://www.avclub.com/tvclub/arrows-ensemble-driving-its-creative-comeback-so-l-246059

EW review of 507 - grades it a "B"... Arrow recap: 'Vigilante' A murderous new vigilante makes Oliver wonder if his methods are getting the job done BY SARA NETZLEY Posted November 16 2016 — 11:14 PM EST http://www.ew.com/recap/arrow-season-5-episode-7

Despite many action sequences, this episode was... boring. Watching this hour of Arrow was just tedious. It was such a yawner - until the very end when we get - gasp - the game-changing shocker that Evelyn is a mole and has been working with Prometheus all along. Team Arrow tries and fails to capture the Vigilante despite multiple attempts. The team also briefly debates who decides who can be a vigilante and who must be stopped (answer = Oliver). We learn that the Vigilante suffered a loss and doesn't think the Green Arrow has suffered any loss - so apparently he is at least one person in Star City who doesn't know that Oliver is the GA. (We also learn that Felicity doesn't really need glasses to work the computer, unless she was wearing contacts in the field.) The Vigilante's real identity is not revealed in this episode and he remains free to continue killing criminals, so that storyline went nowhere. However, there is a scene where Adrian Chase tells a suspect in the police interrogation room that he's been to Hell and that he's no one this suspect wants to mess with. Oh, and the way to distinguish between the Vigilante and Prometheus is that the Vigilante wears these big red goggles over his eyes. Quentin confides in Thea about waking up with a wound and throwing star. However, he says that, even in a drunken blackout, he wouldn't become a psychopath. He recognizes that Prometheus is targeting him. He resigns his job at the mayor's office, and Thea persuades him to enter rehab (Laurel's name is invoked again - honestly, I wanted to mute the sound on my TV at this point. Both WH and PB are good actors, but they're just annoying at this point.) Later Thea tells Oliver about Quentin, and they both realize that Prometheus must know that Oliver is the Green Arrow. Oliver has two dates with Susan, both instigated by her. The first time, she offers to meet him at a bar and treat him to a drink as a "friend" and someone to talk to. He accepts and, for some reason, seeks her advice on some insecurities he has being a restrained mayor versus someone else who acts more extreme (we really know he's talking about his doubts as a vigilante versus the Vigilante, but whatever). Nothing romantic happens, except at one point she puts her hand over his hand and Oliver looks down at their hands. Later, she ambushes him at the end of his work day and wants him to treat her to a drink, and they go off together at the end of this episode (so we don't know what happens on that second "date"). Honestly, it strains credibility that Oliver needs to confide in this reporter who he barely knows and shouldn't trust (listen to Thea!), rather than talk to Diggle, Thea or even Felicity. Susan's motives are still suspect, but since she's a comics character, she'll probably turn out to be an ally. (Oh, and there was another reference to Felicity's cop boyfriend in this episode - just to reinforce that fact, so it's totes fine that Oliver is now apparently dating this reporter.) Diggle is acting all angry and out of control in the field because he missed his son JJ's 2nd birthday. U.S. Marshals are watching his family, so he can't go near Lyla or JJ. So Wild Dog of all people somehow manages to smuggle in Lyla and JJ to the Arrow Bunker so that Diggle can celebrate JJ's birthday together with his family. I guess we're supposed to believe that Wild Dog acts tough but has a heart of gold. (Oh, and Wild Dog called Felicity "Blondie" twice in this episode, and no one blinked an eye.) In flashbacks, Kovar's men have apparently been torturing Oliver for a week but he hasn't said anything other than to scream out Taiana's name and wanting to avenge her a few times (major eye roll). Kovar has Oliver brought in to share a meal with him. Kovar tells him that he has a deal with Bratva. The Bratva will stop hostilities against him in exchange for a percentage of Kovar's casino's profits. Oliver doesn't believe him and attempts to escape but fails. Gregor conveniently enters at this point and confirms that Bratva indeed is working with Kovar, its supposed enemy. We also meet Taiana's mother, Galina, who is apparently now working as Kovar's housekeeper horticulturist and has been for a year, ever since she approached Kovar about finding her missing children. At the very end of this episode, we see Evelyn on a building rooftop. Prometheus appears. She then tells him: "Don't worry. Nobody followed me. They don't suspect a thing." Dun, dun, dun. (If she had a mustache, I'm sure she would've twirled it at this point.) So I'm wildly guessing that Evelyn and Prometheus are siblings, whose father was killed by Oliver in S1. What a ridiculous episode. Arrow has just felt really surface-y lately. Lots of action, shallow character development, little emotional connection. There also seems to be more posing than acting going on with the cast. Each episode has a loudly telegraphed theme. In case you're wondering, variations of the same theme were said by various people at various times, including Kovar: "Who's the monster and who's the hero?" and "The truth is a matter of perspective." ETA: Two moments when young women were used as sex objects in this episode: Teenage Evelyn (who's supposed to be 15, 16 or 17 years old) dresses up in a short, tight dress and high heels to lure a criminal into an alleyway, so she and Ragman can interrogate him. The Vigilante busts up a criminal transaction where sex traffickers are buying a drugged young woman. (I seem to recall an EP interview at one time where they said that they will never have storylines that exploit women, like sex trafficking or prostitution, but I can't find the quote - so if anyone has it, please post. However, more recently, WM did mention human trafficking in relation to S5.)

Another RG interview today...

The confusion for me is that pre-island Ollie's idea of a perfect world would be different from current Oliver's idea of a perfect world. So are the aliens basing their illusion on current Oliver or past Oliver? ETA: We meet Poppy's mom tonight!

MG tweeted this article (fwiw)... Oliver Faces An Alternate Timeline While Team Arrow Faces "Invasion!" In 100th Episode Russ Burlingame Nov. 16, 2016 http://comicbook.com/2016/11/16/oliver-faces-an-alternate-timeline-while-team-arrow-faces-invasi/

SA's latest facebook video (from yesterday, I believe) - no spoilers... Stephen Amell ~ We are zooming right along! Published on Nov 16, 2016, by Stephen-Amell™

Sky 1's promo of tonight's episode...

For people having trouble with facebook, here's the youtube version of RG's Q&A...

Rick Gonzalez did a live Q&A on CW Arrow facebook this afternoon... https://www.facebook.com/CWArrow/ -- On whether Wild Dog will get a new uniform this season, -- On who is the funniest, RG thinks it's Echo, but he laughs the most with Joe. -- On whether SA is as strong as he looks, RG: "Yes. That guy is a beast." -- On whether Wild Dog could beat GA, RG said that he could "eclipse the teacher" with a "little more training." -- On how it was working with Emily, RG said it was "great" working with EBR and everyone else. -- On what it was like playing Wild Dog, RG said it was "physically challenging." He had to get physically fit to do the things that James Bamford expected. -- On Wild Dog coming across as a "chauvinist," RG doesn't think he is a chauvinist but more of a "closed book" who's "struggling to open up to the crew" and that WIld Dog "mirrors a lot of traits that Oliver had in the first season." -- On whether we can expect Wild Dog to go on a date with Thea, -- RG said that he came into Arrow with a "clean slate" and hadn't even seen the show before or read the comic books before. -- On whether Wild Dog could beat Arsenal, RG thinks that Wild Dog could "wipe the floor" with Arsenal. -- On whether SA is a good guy to work with, RG: "Absolutely. Hands down. Super professional. Super funny. And super giving as an actor." -- On whether he does his own stunts, RG said that there's a lot of things that he's not allowed to do insurance-wise, but there's a lot of things that he can do. He estimates that he can do his own stunts about half of the time. -- On whether Wild Dog will ever turn evil, RG said that he hoped not and didn't think so, that Wild Dog may make a lot of mistakes but his heart is pure. -- On his fave DC hero, RG said: "Wild Dog." -- On whether Wild Dog will step up to be a leader, RG said that Wild Dog has a lot of potential and has a lot of the same qualities as Oliver. -- On his fave character from Arrow/Flash/Supergirl, RG said that he likes the Green Arrow and thinks the way SA plays him "is so cool." -- On whether Wild Dog is "a misunderstood character" with "a good sense of justice," RG thinks "the direction will come from Oliver," that we need to give him a chance to figure out where he is and what's needed of him, that Wild Dog has a lot of these qualities and wants to do good, and that we need "to stick through it" and really give the show and these characters a chance "to take their moments in a truthful way to find out who they are." -- On who's the biggest prankster on set, RG said: "Stephen." -- On whether Wild Dog will stop calling Felicity "Blondie," RG: "Absolutely not. Don't ask me again." -- On whether we'll see the back story of Wild Dog, -- On what superpower he would want, RG wants the power to teleport. -- On whether Wild Dog likes Felicity and want to be friends with her, RG said that Wild Dog wants to connect with people but does it in his own way and that he struggles to connect with people. RG again compared Wild Dog to Oliver. -- On whether Wild Dog will be in the 4-way crossover, -- On how he feels about Ragman's power level and whether it's an imbalance of power, RG said that he loves Ragman's power and that having someone like Ragman as part of the team only helps the team. Although Wild Dog doesn't feel comfortable with that kind of power, he knows that Ragman enhances the team and somehow still feels grounded. -- RG said that he doesn't have a fave cast member to work with, but he mentioned Echo, Joe and Madison. -- RG thinks that Wild Dog's weakness is "the pain that he walks around with inside him" and that he struggles with.

From Rick Gonzalez's facebook Q&A today at CW Arrow - ???... On whether we can expect Wild Dog to go on a date with Thea, RG said that he read those scenes as moments where Wild Dog was being selfish and going after something he likes. RG then added: "He's not shying away from wanting that - that connection with her, but, um, will she reciprocate? That's another story. So it'll be interesting to see if that even happens, you know, um, which is - which is great. But I will say that there's going to be a lot of other different connections for Wild Dog to encounter in this season that I - that I know about that's going to be awesome. So yeah, it's going to be great."

I don't recall clearly anymore... Was Oliver already cheating on Laurel with Sara before he went on the boat trip? Or was the boat trip the first time hook-up for Oliver and Sara? If they were already hooking up before, then would this AU Oliver be marrying Laurel while still sleeping with her sister on the side? ETA: Maybe they used old footage of Colin Donnell? Here are the previous Tommy/100th episode spoilers...

JDM was nominated for a Critics' Choice award (believe it or not)... 2016 Critics' Choice Awards TV Nominations: The Complete List by ZACH JOHNSON | Mon, Nov 14, 2016 11:00 AM http://www.eonline.com/news/809137/2016-critics-choice-awards-tv-nominations-the-complete-list

Interesting articles... Networks Rethink Midseason Hiatus Plans After Last Year's Ratings Collapse Can shorter breaks and big cliff-hangers stave off audience erosion? By Jason Lynch November 14, 2016, 7:57 PM EST http://www.adweek.com/news/advertising-branding/networks-rethink-midseason-hiatus-plans-after-last-year-s-ratings-collapse-174570 14 TV shows you're watching that are probably going to be canceled Jethro Nededog Nov. 11, 2016, 9:50 AM http://www.businessinsider.com/tv-shows-that-are-getting-canceled-2016-11/#notorious-abc-2