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Mind Your Surroundings: Arrow, The Flash, Supergirl, Legends of Tomorrow and Other Superhero Universes


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(edited)

I don't think the names are in any particular order...

The Performances That Built The Arrowverse
By RUSS BURLINGAME - March 5, 2018
http://comicbook.com/dc/2018/03/05/the-arrowvverses-best-performances/

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In a superhero universe, it is easy to get caught up in the narrative and the visual effects, but at the end of the day, it is the performances of the actors who can really make or break the material.
*  *  *
SLIDE 2/17 – STEPHEN AMELL
...
Arrow is the show that started it all, and while the character of Green Arrow had been elevated by Smallville, which ended shortly before the launch of the Berlantiverse, nobody is deluding themselves into thinking that a TV series based on a character who struggled to keep a solo comic afloat was a sure thing.

They needed a leading man who would own the role, make (most) fans forget about Justin Hartley, and advance the cause of superheroes on TV at a time when not everybody thought that was a guaranteed growth area.

Enter Stephen Amell, who seems like he was built in a laboratory to be the perfect CW leading man: handsome, brooding, with an approachable public persona and abs that could cut onions, Amell blended a human, relatable Oliver Queen with his best growling, The Dark Knight-inspired Green Arrow.

The results speak for themselves. Amell has had the difficult task of making Oliver feel consistent whether he is shooting arrows into gangsters or riding a time machine to fight a multidimensional Nazi doppelganger of himself, and he has managed it admirably.

If his tortured, self-loathing take on the hooded vigilante set the standard for other, future small-screen DC heroes to live up to, so did the genuine affection and effortless chemistry between Oliver and his team. As ghood [sic] as Amell is when he is on his own, Arrow would be a magnitude less compelling without the interplay between Amell, Willa Holland, Emily Bett Rickards, and David Ramsey.
*  *  *
SLIDE 8/17 – CANDICE PATTON
...
The emotional core of The Flash does not work if Barry and Iris do not work, and frankly it was dicey in the early going. Patton and Gustin do not have the same breezy, effortless chemistry that Stephen Amell and Emily Bett Rickards have, and so they had to commit more time, talent, and resources to building "WestAllen" into something special.
*  *  *
SLIDE 15/17 – EMILY BETT RICKARDS
...
As we have noted repeatedly throughout the course of this article, Rickards' on-screen chemistry with Stephen Amell elevated a minor season one character to the status of fan-favorite almost immediately and displaced Katie Cassidy as the obvious choice for Oliver's love interest.

The way she commands the screen goes beyond her relationship with Oliver, though, and what is arguably more interesting is the way she took the nervous tics and uncertainty of a bubbly young IT girl and turned them into the basis for a character who has served as a cornerstone of a vast, interconnected superhero universe.

To do so without losing her appeal to the audience or without fundamentally changing what makes Felicity tick is an impressive feat, and the fact that six seasons in, fans are still seeing new aspects of her (such as her onscreen relationship with Oliver's son) is all the more reason to be excited to see what is next for Rickards and the character.

SLIDE 16/17 – DAVID RAMSEY
...
John Diggle, another character built for the screen and embodied by an actor with little in the way of baggage that would help the fans know what to expect, has turned out to be the gold standard by which all the other superhero "Team" members are judged.

 That is, of course, partly down to the writing but even more of it can be credited to David Ramsey's vulnerable, intense performance as Oliver's best friend, bodyguard, conscience, and eventually partner.
...
The "Arrowverse" was built on Stephen Amell, but Amell alone could not hold the weight of such a project on his back. Without Rickards and Ramsey, there is every chance the show would not have been what it needed to be, and none of these other actors would have had their chance to shine.

SLIDE 1/17 – HONORABLE MENTIONS
SLIDE 2/17 – STEPHEN AMELL
SLIDE 3/17 – MELISSA BENOIST
SLIDE 4/17 – GRANT GUSTIN
SLIDE 5/17 – BRANDON ROUTH
SLIDE 6/17 – CHYLER LEIGH
SLIDE 7/17 – JESSE L. MARTIN
SLIDE 8/17 – CANDICE PATTON
SLIDE 9/17 – DOMINIC PURCELL
SLIDE 10/17 – KATIE CASSIDY
SLIDE 11/17 – TOM CAVANAGH
SLIDE 12/17 – CALISTA FLOCKHART
SLIDE 13/17 – NEAL MCDONOUGH
SLIDE 14/17 – VICTOR GARBER
SLIDE 15/17 – EMILY BETT RICKARDS
SLIDE 16/17 – DAVID RAMSEY
SLIDE 17/17 – SLIDE 17

Edited by tv echo
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16 minutes ago, tv echo said:

SLIDE 10/17 – KATIE CASSIDY

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Yes, we know, any time we get into the women of Arrow, there will be some fans who can't help themselves but get into flame wars.

Hey, guys! We have comments now! Go have yourselves some fun.

Anyway, Katie Cassidy.

We have seen Cassidy's previous work, and...she is no Victor Garber, we will admit that. Still, Cassidy has the distinction of being the actor who has progressed the most and honed her craft the best since she first appeared on Arrow.

It helps that, after she became comfortable in the role, the ground kept shifting underneath her feet, becoming first a superhero and then a villain and now...whatever is going on with Black Siren.

Why did he include Katie considering he spent like most of the time being shady? LOL

20 minutes ago, tv echo said:

Patton and Gustin do not have the same breezy, effortless chemistry that Stephen Amell and Emily Bett Rickards have,

This also made me LOL

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He should've picked CL over KC, IMO. CL's performance turned an original character into someone that was popular enough to help anchor a new show. KC's performance was part of the reason a legacy comic book character had to get rebooted 3 times. 

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1 minute ago, lemotomato said:

He should've picked CL over KC, IMO. CL's performance turned an original character into someone that was popular enough to help anchor a new show. KC's performance was part of the reason a legacy comic book character had to get rebooted 3 times. 

I was about to add on I'm glad he didn't include CL. She's such an awful actress. And tbh it would've been nicer to KC if he didn't include her because that write up was kind of mean lol

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32 minutes ago, quarks said:

Frankly, I think that as incredibly wrong as they both are for that role, either one of them would be better as Catwoman than Tom Cruise would be as Green Lantern, and that's even if they include a scene of Tom Cruise shouting "YOU CAN'T HANDLE THE RING!" at a quavering Jack Nicholson which we all know they aren't going to do.

I can't stand Tom, but I'll admit to being a fan back in the day (before I knew he was nuts lol), but I do think he's a better actor than those two. All three of them are awful imo. Either way, I'm just gonna assume it's a fake rumor like so many of the others.

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Quote

The "Arrowverse" was built on Stephen Amell, but Amell alone could not hold the weight of such a project on his back. Without Rickards and Ramsey, there is every chance the show would not have been what it needed to be, and none of these other actors would have had their chance to shine.

Exactly this. OTA, the OG's, getting the respect they deserve. 

The moment Felicity joined the team and the three of them were together is the moment the show became meh to must-watch for me.

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(edited)

So just got to watching the Legends episode and all through the very fun episode, I kept thinking that Damien Dahrk comes off less insane when it come to the daddy/daughter dynamic than Quentin and NotLaurel.  And DD pushed his kid into sharing brain space with some demon for twenty years.

Edited by BkWurm1
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Finals. No change other than very minor adjustments in viewers.

IMG_0830.PNG

Unrounded CW finals for last week from RJK at SpottedRatings:

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The Flash .......................... 0.739
Supernatural ..................... 0.567
Black Lightning ................. 0.545
Legends of Tomorrow ...... 0.421
Arrow ................................ 0.394
iZombie ............................ 0.324
Jane the Virgin ................. 0.216

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1 hour ago, BkWurm1 said:

I kept thinking that Damien Dahrk comes off less insane when it come to the daddy/daughter dynamic than Quentin and NotLaurel.  And DD pushed his kid into sharing brain space with some demon for twenty years.

For sure, it says a lot that whenever NM wasn't on screen the episode dragged (imo), whereas I think it's the opposite for the Lance family drama in Arrow.

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1 hour ago, way2interested said:

For sure, it says a lot that whenever NM wasn't on screen the episode dragged (imo), whereas I think it's the opposite for the Lance family drama in Arrow.

Oh I can't say the rest of the episode dragged for me.  NM was a lot of fun but I was loving Ray and Nora (Brandon and his real life wife) playing off each other.  Every time she slapped his hand away had me giggling.  Even the little we saw with the rest of the Legends was entertaining to me.  But yes, I agree, the seconds drag on forever when Quentin has been trying to get through to his "daughter".  I think the biggest reason for that is I don't buy Lance really would feel and act like this.  

1 hour ago, Primal Slayer said:

It is also a big difference when Darhk is having over the top comedy with their family "drama". Though the Lance family drama as tiring as it is has always been good to me.

The fail for me is that I believed the emotions behind what happened between DD and Nora despite the comedy of a lot of it while Lance family drama is always deadly serious and still manages IMO to be a joke.  And way lamer than DD's bad dad jokes.  (Which hit that sweet spot of so bad it's good!)

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(edited)
48 minutes ago, BkWurm1 said:

I was loving Ray and Nora (Brandon and his real life wife) playing off each other.  Every time she slapped his hand away had me giggling. 

Yeah, that was a lot of fun. :) I especially liked the scene where she's like "noooo Ray, I'm not being sarcastic" and then slapping him on the chest "of course I'm being sarcastic you idiot!" (The "you idiot" may have been implied.) And their horrified look when Damien told them to use protection.  

Oh, and all the riffs on Brandon's coffee obsession were hilarious.  And Upswipes pairing Damien with Cupid.  

Edited by Starfish35
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(edited)

Also the little punk that started Upswipes who trashed talked about Felicity driving Palmer Tech into the ground got killed.  I winced at first and then I shrugged and went with it.  I may have held a grudge.  ?

Edited by BkWurm1
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The other part that cracked me up was Wally and Sara reminiscing about Barry and Iris's wedding.  Sara's all like "hey Wally, I remember you from the wedding", and he's like "oh yeah that was so much fun, beautiful ceremony, meh hors d'oeuvres, and yeah, that nazi invasion" and Rip's like "wait what?"  Poor Rip, no one ever tells him these things. Lol.

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I'll admit it's kind of a shame since I would say that last night's episode was the best episode of the entire season (the fact that Ralph wasn't in it cannot be understated as one of the reasons why it was actually better).

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I got to it late and when I turned on the channel, I saw Barry running fast, faster, fastest in his latest task to save the world.  And I know that running fast is Barry's metapower and that's how he's a superhero but season 4 it seems like it's limiting the show because the solution is always the same.  He always runs fast except when he should be getting out of there before he's arrested.

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Loved last night's episode as well, I was actually shocked by how much I enjoyed it-It did have a lot of plot holes and eye rolling moments but I liked the slow moments and the conversations between the characters.

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(edited)

I do feel for Black Lighting being down to a 0.5 in it's first season. It's a good show. They really like their shocking endings though. For me most of the episode is okay then they do something shocking at the end. 

Edited by Sakura12
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22 minutes ago, strikera0 said:

The CW needs to look for other avenues to fill their schedule. Black Lightning is already down to 0,5's after what? 5 or 6 episodes? Audience saturation has set in, IMO. 

i mean still better then Riverdale and they calling that a hit. 

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Half-hours for last night from RJK at Spotted Ratings:

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The Flash .............................. 0.714 ... (0.721 ... 0.707)
Black Lightning ...................... 0.478 ... (0.507 ... 0.449)

Life Sentence, the last new CW show this season, premieres tonight in Dynasty's old slot - it will be interesting to see what that does.

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That's not so much behind The Flash.  And Black Lightning is a more complicated show.

Looking at what makes "a hit" these days..... I remember when House dropped to 8.0 and we all thought (hoped) how much it was going downhill.

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39 minutes ago, statsgirl said:

Looking at what makes "a hit" these days..... I remember when House dropped to 8.0 and we all thought (hoped) how much it was going downhill.

Yep.  I remember when ratings that would be hits nowadays would be instant cancellations just a few years ago.  The broadcast audience keeps sinking every year.

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55 minutes ago, statsgirl said:

I remember when House dropped to 8.0 and we all thought (hoped) how much it was going downhill.

8.0? or do you mean 0.8? The first would indicate to me it was a mega hit and the show wasn't going anywhere.

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In those days, 8.0 was a drop from their earlier 12.0 or higher.  It was season 4 or 5 and a group of us hated that Chase and Cameron were on the back burner for a bunch of new, less interesting clones  and we were hoping that now that the ratings were tanking they would bring the original characters back.

That's how much ratings have changed in the  past decade.

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9 minutes ago, statsgirl said:

In those days, 8.0 was a drop from their earlier 12.0 or higher.  It was season 4 or 5 and a group of us hated that Chase and Cameron were on the back burner for a bunch of new, less interesting clones  and we were hoping that now that the ratings were tanking they would bring the original characters back.

That's how much ratings have changed in the  past decade.

Ohhhh, okay. Thanks for the explanation.

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33 minutes ago, statsgirl said:

In those days, 8.0 was a drop from their earlier 12.0 or higher.  It was season 4 or 5 and a group of us hated that Chase and Cameron were on the back burner for a bunch of new, less interesting clones  and we were hoping that now that the ratings were tanking they would bring the original characters back.

That's how much ratings have changed in the  past decade.

Sounds so familiar ?

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5 hours ago, way2interested said:

I'll admit it's kind of a shame since I would say that last night's episode was the best episode of the entire season (the fact that Ralph wasn't in it cannot be understated as one of the reasons why it was actually better).

I forgot he wasn't around but didn't they mention him at the start and that he was actually in Star Labs the whole time setting up his living space in the basement or something?  Lol. Huge crisis and no one even mentions it to him and no reason to bring him in to help in the first place.    

18 minutes ago, Mellowyellow said:

 @Starfish35 thanks for the chart! Went hunting for FotB until I saw the chart! It didn't air! Useful rating chart strikes again! ?

 

Stupid Bachelor!  Bumping the good shows.  (I like The Middle.  The Sean and Sue stuff has me very interested this last season, lol.)

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21 minutes ago, BkWurm1 said:

Stupid Bachelor!  Bumping the good shows.  (I like The Middle.  The Sean and Sue stuff has me very interested this last season, lol.)

A long time ago when I was a naive youngun I used to watch that thinking these people would find true love! Lol I'm neither naive or young anymore!

Our best rated show in Aus is Married at First Sight! People like trash! 

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You guys talking about Ray and Nora made me go see LOT and I laughed so hard at these two. Actually, I was laughing at Darhk with Ray and Nora. The three of them, that could be a whole new show. Ray and Nora falling in love and then time-traveling to outwit Damien and save the world :P BTW, Ray trying to explain the opera "big show, good show, we have the best show" OMG, he was totally doing Trump!

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Just caught up on the last two episodes of Legends. The pirate episode dragged.  My one big question was why Sara didn't visit her father (and slap him upside the head for his Laurel obsession) while she was in Star City.

The Darhk episode was perfect.  Ray and Nora made a wonderful odd couple, and I loved Darhk's dad jokes.  I also liked that Damien was matched with Carrie Cutler on the dating app.

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I'm kind of sick of Darkh, but I did enjoy the Darkh family drama. BR working with his real life wife helped it as well. Especially since they made it like Ray was taking Nora on a date to get the cold fusion formula from 1960's East Germany. 

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(edited)

One thing I found interesting was the chemistry between BR and his wife! They were so darn cute! There wasn't heart eyes or anything since Nora was kinda evil but there was so much spark even though it wasn't a lovey dovey script.

I have always been surprised that Kara and Mon El don't have more chemistry since MB and CW are a couple in real life. I don't mind Kara and Mon El at all so I don't think I'm biased in saying that they seem a little "meh"

Edited by Mellowyellow
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Well there's that old supposed "rule" that a real life couple won't have chemistry on screen, but I think it's more hit and miss than that in reality. BR and CF certainly seemed like they were having a blast together. I thought MB and CW did have their moments, especially when CW was allowed to be funny, but I just got frustrated by "From Zero to Hero, the Journey of Mon-El with assist from Kara Zor-El (don't ask us why they have the same surname)"

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I'm still on the first episode, but I'd agree on the slow. But I feel these marvel/netflix shows all sorta start that way, with the exception of Punisher. 

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21 hours ago, Starfish35 said:

Life Sentence, the last new CW show this season, premieres tonight in Dynasty's old slot - it will be interesting to see what that does.

It does not seem destined to be their next breakout hit. Source:

IMG_0832.PNG

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(edited)

They barely promoted it and shoved it into a March debut long after most mid-season shows premiered.

Why would anyone think The CW expected a hit, instead of planning to burn it off?

Edited by Morrigan2575
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