S06.E21: Docket No. 11-19-41-73

[formerlyfreedom]

Quote

The pressure mounts for Oliver who begins to wonder if he will lose everything in his battle to save Star City. A familiar face returns.

 

[tennisgurl]

That doesn't change anything, Hoss. 

[Twilight Man]

When I saw the previews for this episode last week, I actually thought "I bet that is the Human Target pretending to be Queen on the bench."

(Well, I was almost right.)  Happy to see Chance again.  I really hope that DC decides to make a(nother) series about him.

If the CW is not interested, they can always put in on their new streaming service (now with 100% more Swamp Thing!!!).

Edited May 4, 2018 by Twilight Man

[insomniadreams88]

All the Olicity (give me more of them, always), Felicity + William, Oliver + William scenes were excellent. 

The newbies are still the worst. 

BS' "redemption" arc is awful. 

I don't care what HT did for Oliver, I'm still never going to forgive him for pushing him in Susan's (oh, hey, nice reminder that she was shady, no matter what they tried to claim with that photo) direction last year, sorry. 

I've missed Colin Donnell on Arrow. 

I feel like I should've cared about the judge getting killed, but I didn't?

[apinknightmare]

Kudos to the show for shocking me with the judge thing. Doesn't change anything with Rene (Hoss). 

Also, I'm gonna really need Black Siren Laurel to stop snarking on OtherLaurel's smarts when she herself is a complete idiot. You try to kill Diaz BEFORE you tip him off that you're scared of him you useless moron. Not after!

[catrox14]

I loved seeing "Tommy" again. Colin Donnell is so good. I want him back.

Oliver apologizing is such trash. Screw you, writers.

I'm so tired of Black Siren. She needs to go away now.

Maybe Cisco will come over, and open a breach and shove NotLaurel and Diaz into it. 

SA, CD, and EBR were all so great in this episode.

[Lantern7]

Well. That's one way to get Oliver off the hook.

I'm a bit upset that the only option for the series was Chance Ex Machina . . . where they bring in the one guy who disguises himself to take Oliver's place in an assassination attempt. That was two seasons ago. If we didn't have Felicity putting the crumpled Oliver mask over her face and growling, "You have failed this city," I might have forgotten about the Human Target. That said . . . .impersonating the judge? So funny. Well, except foe the judge. With all the bullshit that happens in Star City (including Laurel-2), Ol' Mumblegrowl could have at least tried to give the guy the benefit of the doubt and merely torture the poor bastard, as opposed to killing him. I mean, guy was on the take, but that's a sucky way to go out.

Looks like Team Arrow is slowly coalscing back together. Good timing, since Diaz has basically decided to stop fucking around. Seriously, subtlety and bought cops didn't seem like his usual method. Maybe he had been playing from Cayden's playbook. He's still not compelling as a Big Bad. Antoly would've been better, as the spurned lover compatriot of Oliver. Maybe next season?

Still not hating the supporting characters. I mean, I get the hate, but I never got the haaaaaaaaaaate. Of course Diaz would use Rene's kid against him. If it makes anybody feel better, Diaz will be rampaging in the final two episodes, so some of the more hated players might bite it. I'm pulling for Laurel-2, though they'd replace her with Laurel-X from last week's Flash. BTW, Cliff DeVoe/The Thinker revealed his master plan this week: use satiates and tech to make humanity more simple. Theory: maybe he's done experiments in Star City. It would explain the unsatisfying direction this season has taken.

[Soulfire]

I'm not the best when it comes to legal stuff, but why did nobody call for a mistrial?

Ah, realism. I forget this is Arrow.

[Primal Slayer]

Overall I enjoyed it even though I was not a fan of the Human Target pretending to be Tommy or the judge.

I would much prefer if this turned out to be E2 Tommy but of course they had to do something to make sure Colin got in and out, I just want Colin back so I can get some more Tommy/Laurel anyway I can get em!

Though I REALLY hated that HT was the judge. Not only was this whole trial useless because the jury appeared to be corrupt, even the judge was so it made everything useless. Diaz could've just called anyone to go against Oliver and say he was the GA to get his outcome.

I was happy that Laurel finally remembered she was a grade A. screamer! Of course this is something that should've been done in the last episode and then have her be under Diaz' thumb and fear for her life. But I still screamed when she finally took him on. I was surprised that Diaz didn't have his men just arrest her on sight after she said that Tommy was the GA or that she didn't go to Oliver and co. and tell them that she was ready to take Diaz down. 

Dinah....why are you afraid of a little lying? You were an undercover cop, lying is part of your dna at this point. And I'm guessing pleading the 5th will have no effect on her personal life either. Glad that Curtis wasn't important enough to even be called lol.

This lawyer was vicious! She had a job and she was going to get it DONE. I thought she'd be go after Diggle/Rene for obviously missing at certain moments of the case but oh well. 

I'm glad that Oliver was against outing himself and talked Felicity out of him outing himself. It would've just been a hot mess for everyone if he did. You would've lied under oath, you'd be on the run, William be on the run. Probably would've had to set up base on Lian Yu! 

Olivers true 5 year journey getting outed, I liked. I wish it would come back to haunt him in the long run but it will be forgotten after this most likely.

[BkWurm1]

All the trial bits were just so badly written I can't properly judge what I thought about the rest of the episode until I watch it again with the ability to fast forward past the cringe-worthy cross-examinations of the witnesses.  The second use of Chance was really well done though if I were the kind of person to hold a grudge, I'd point out that Rene just got someone killed.  

[Mellowyellow]

Did anyone catch Oliver's schmoopy face when Felicity said she's been in love with him for 6 years! Hehe boy is in the weeds but still got time to look smitten when the wifey declares she's loved him for a long time. 

[KenyaJ]

I can't remember the last time this show genuinely surprised me, but tonight's episode did it twice in 3 minutes. First with the judge granting a JNOV and then when finding out the judge was actually Human Target.  Well played, show. 

Even though the Arrowverse legal system is a total joke and Arrow trials make me want to burn my law degree, I actually liked this episode. I attribute that solely to Sassy!Tommy and all the Queen Family feels. Since NTA and Diggle want to be such heroes, I'm almost willing to leave this show to them and spin Oliver, Felicity and William off into a sweet family dramedy where Oliver gets to have a normal life and Felicity hires out her teach skills to other needy superheroes.

No, I still don't forgive the newbies. But it made me happy that Diggle came through for Oliver. At some point, I'm still going to need Diggle to apologize to Oliver because the way he blamed Oliver for his midlife crisis was shitty, but six years of watching them together has made it believable that either of them would drop everything to get each other out of a jam, no matter the state of their relationship. Oliver and the newbies don't really have any personal relationships to speak of, so trying to make me think they have his and Felicity's backs just makes me roll my eyes. Just like the song says, "It's too late to apologiiiiiiiiiize." The writers have only themselves to blame.

Edited May 4, 2018 by KenyaJ

[TV Anonymous]

7 minutes ago, Soulfire said:

I'm not the best when it comes to legal stuff, but why did nobody call for a mistrial?

Ah, realism. I forget this is Arrow.

Can a judge have someone arrested other than contempt?

[Guest]

First things first, OLICITY KILLED ME. They were perfect. This is all I've ever wanted from them tbh. Just a solid couple, together, fighting for each other. Their scenes really moved me tbh, especially when Oliver was basically saying goodbye to William just in case. And on that note, I'm beyond tired of this show taking Oliver away from the family he loves and desperately wants, the only good thing in his life. I just want him to be happy. It's exhausting watching this sometimes. 

The trial was a bit of a mess tbh, though I loved Felicity on the stand, even though I got some weird foreshadowing vibes when she told the lawyer good luck proving she committed cyber crimes. Yikes. 

I do not, however, forgive the newbies. I actually think it's bullshit that not only did Felicity thank them for coming but Rene got a thank you at the end, too. It's too late. The damage has been done. Bye!

The Black Siren redemption is just making me laugh now, though I'm glad that she finally used her brain cells and her canary cry. And now we finally have a reason why she can't easily kill him. But it's even more dumb that she didn't do this sooner. Haha.

[tennisgurl]

It was awesome seeing "Tommy" again, even if he was actually Human Target. I miss Tommy so much. It was cool seeing Human Target again as well though.

I hate that Oliver apologized to that freaking loser Rene, but at least Rene apologized too, unlike the rest of the horrible Newbies. It looks like they're going to be starting the rehabilitation of the Newbies, and I do not care. The damage is long done. I freaking hate them, I want them off my screen, and I dont care if OTA has forgiven them. If they really want them to look better, have them apologize to OTA, then leave to go to another city, and we never see them again.

I actually was shocked when the judge overrode the stupid jury and gave Oliver the not guilty verdict. They successfully throygh me for a loop. At least poor Oliver got one win. And Diggle doesn't seem mad at him anymore. Maybe he heard our comments and realized what a dumb fight this was. Also, the legal system in this shows universe is utterly bizarre, and so hilariously quick. It takes more than one freaking day, shows!

The Olicity stuff was on point! "I've been in love with Oliver for six years, it wasn't quick". Oh my God that was adorable. Those two are just so sweet and wonderful and filled with heart eyes, I cant even deal with them. Their sweet little family just needs a break damn it! They just love each other so much, and support each other!

Seriously. I have zero fucks about the Newbies. Literally not one single fuck. 

Edited May 4, 2018 by tennisgurl

[Guest]

Oh, I forgot to mention Tommy. I liked sassy Tommy! And Oliver's face when he saw him was heartbreaking. I really expected more though, with how much they hyped his appearance. I was like "Was that it?!" Haha.

I kinda love that Oliver was in on this plan with Diggle. Even though they're on the outs, Diggle still had his back. I'll forgive him. The newbies, however, can choke.

[jay741982]

8 minutes ago, Mellowyellow said:

Did anyone catch Oliver's schmoopy face when Felicity said she's been in love with him for 6 years! Hehe boy is in the weeds but still got time to look smitten when the wifey declares she's loved him for a long time. 

LOL I saw his stupid face lol. 

[Soulfire]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 '

 

 

Many from here. 

Edited May 4, 2018 by Soulfire

[Mellowyellow]

OMG I LOVE LOVE LOVE his dumb smitten face!!!!!! 

Welcome back @Soulfire! Sorry they FORCED you to go on a holiday last week! 

[Soulfire]

3 minutes ago, Mellowyellow said:

OMG I LOVE LOVE LOVE his dumb smitten face!!!!!! 

Welcome back @Soulfire! Sorry they FORCED you to go on a holiday last week! 

It's good to be back! NoGIFsVille is not a fun place to be.

Edited May 4, 2018 by Soulfire

[JJ928]

I enjoyed this episode. I wish they would have brought in E? Tommy and had HT just act as the judge, but I still thought it was a good ep. Still hate the noobs, they're not redeemable to me, love that Raisa isn't dumb, enjoyed all the Olicity/Queen family scenes, and Diggle saving Oliver was a nice change. I was never a Tommy (original Tommy) fan but I wouldn't mind other versions of him. 

The Siren plot is boring, and made worse by the fact that all this time she was scared of Diaz for no reason, because she had no clue he had a sonic dampener. This show makes her more lame by the ep. Diaz  is the worst villain ever, I can't think of anyone worse. He's just so pathetic and not scary. How do you follow up people like Chase, Slade, and even MM with that wet blanket?

Next week looks interesting, I can't believe we have two eps left for the season. This season has been long and tortuous lol.

[Primal Slayer]

I was glad that Quentin was able to turn Siren and show that she hasnt been playing him for a complete and utter fool.

[apinknightmare]

Nah, he's still a fool. Just a lucky one. 

[Chaser]

I love it. Laurel doesn’t out Oliver and she still can’t get a scene with him. Lol

Lance is a moron. Laurel not turning on him doesn’t make him smart.

[KenyaJ]

28 minutes ago, apinknightmare said:

Also, I'm gonna really need Black Siren Laurel to stop snarking on OtherLaurel's smarts when she herself is a complete idiot. You try to kill Diaz BEFORE you tip him off that you're scared of him you useless moron. Not after!

Black Siren : competent villains :: Laurel : competent superheroes.

[insomniadreams88]

Just now, Chaser said:

I love it. Laurel doesn’t out Oliver and she still can’t get a scene with him. Lol

Well, it's not as bad as earlier this season, when Oliver would actually fly away if BS got in the same frame as him. Just imagine Oliver pulling out his bow and a parachute arrow in the middle of the courtroom. "I'm sorry, your honor, members of the jury, but we're too close to each other. Gotta run!" 

[apinknightmare]

1 minute ago, insomniadreams88 said:

Well, it's not as bad as earlier this season, when Oliver would actually fly away if BS got in the same frame as him. Just imagine Oliver pulling out his bow and a parachute arrow in the middle of the courtroom. "I'm sorry, your honor, members of the jury, but we're too close to each other. Gotta run!" 

Arrow into the mooooooooooooon, my favorite move of his.

[JamieLynn832002]

Weirdly, despite being the actual betrayer, Rene is now the newbie I like best/hate least*. At least he apologized and spent tonight attempting to keep Oliver out of prison unlike  Curtis who's never really done anything except whine about not being subpoenaed/interviewed by the FBI.

 

 

*This only works if I ignore the axe thing but since the show does, I might as well.

[Chaser]

We aren’t talking enough about the way Oliver lunges at Felicity after the “judge” frees him.

They should have had BS kill Diaz at the end of 6x19 and take over the Big Bad role. 

[Guest]

4 minutes ago, Chaser said:

We aren’t talking enough about the way Oliver lunges at Felicity after the “judge” frees him.

The Queen family hug was THE BEST!

I don't know how they've done it but I really went from lowkey dread at having William on the show this season to loving their family. I know I've said this before but I'm still surprised. The kid is still a bad actor (he gave SA nothing in that scene where he was preparing him that he might go to prison) but I still love their little family. It's adorable and heartwarming and just makes me want Oliver to be happy and have what he wants.

[Primal Slayer]

Hearing that Colin wrapped CM for the season I am disappointed even more that they didn't make Tommy into E2 Tommy and bring him back for the remainder of the season.

[thuganomics85]

Nice to see Catherine Dent taking a break from going after the gang on Agents of SHIELD and instead, going after Oliver instead.  I'd get a kick out of that being her new thing: showing up all on the comic book shows as secondary antagonist.  She'll get one, eventually!

Totally new that "Tommy" was actually going to be Christopher Chance, but they did fool me with the reveal of him being the judge, so credit to the show on that part.  Still, it was great seeing Colin Donnell again.  I know the show has overplayed the "bring someone back to life" way too much, but there is still parts of me that would be perfectly fine with more Tommy.  He was such a great character, and not only is Colin just a great actor, but he is someone who seems to automatically have chemistry with anyone else on screen.  In other words, if he ever gets tired of Chicago Med and wants back, I'd be perfectly fine with Barry fucking up the timeline again!

Holy shit!  Rene not only helped free Oliver, but he even apologized for betraying him in the first place.  I wish he had shown an ounce of that guilt beforehand, and then just go from "Smug, doesn't give a shit" Rene to apologetic Rene in what felt like five seconds, but at this rate, I'll take it.  Still not a fan, but it at least as quelled some of the rage that I usually seen whenever he shows up.

Glad Diggle helped out as well (although I hope he and Oliver really have a serious discussion soon), and Felicity was her awesome supporting self.

And then there was all the dumb shit with Black Siren and Diaz.  I just can't figure out why this show is obsessed with trying to make him the biggest badass on the planet, and someone who makes the BS cower from.  All those moments where he was choking her and I was clearly suppose to think he was the worst, all I was thinking was "You know who did that, too?  Damien Dahrk.  But he did that telepathically through his mind!  Now, that's something I can see someone being terrified over."  But Black Siren finally decides to fight back and.... she fails.  Big time.  Sigh....

The entire police department in Star City is actually under Diaz's control?  I think we've found a police department that makes the GCPD over on Gotham actually look good.

[KenyaJ]

14 minutes ago, Chaser said:

We aren’t talking enough about the way Oliver lunges at Felicity after the “judge” frees him.

Awww, love that moment. The way SA always swoops down to hug EBR is one of my favorite things.  

And I'm cracking up at the scene where Human Target hands the judge mask to William. That kid is having the most interesting upbringing right now. Beats being subjected to a lifetime of coloring with Samantha.

[CTrent29]

I wish Oliver had been convicted and forced to spend some time in prison.  

[mxc90]

The same trick was used to release Barry (Ralph pretending to be Devoe in court). The Flash/Arrow writers need to stop drinking from the same water cooler.

Diaz! Last week, you had your chance to execute Plan B when you had Oliver as your prisoner. 

[Cthulhudrew]

Next season on the CW:

JOHN DIGGLE, ONE MAN ARMY CORPS!!!

[Macktor]

1 hour ago, JJ928 said:

This season has been long and tortuous lol.

This is the understatement of the year! 

42 minutes ago, Angel12d said:

The kid is still a bad actor (he gave SA nothing in that scene where he was preparing him that he might go to prison)

Sure he did. "What does that mean?" "What does that mean?"

I really don't know how they're gonna come back from the tediousness that this season has been, especially with only 2 episodes left. I can't remember when I've rolled my eyes more at a TV show or been more bored by one-note villains who never lose. At least Flash gave us a glimmer of hope this week from its tediousness and one-note villain who never loses, but BS is no Marlize.

Also: Laurel said there's no where she can go to escape Diaz. Did I miss something? Why doesn't she just go back to her own damn Earth? Can she not?

Also, part 2: Prosecutor accusing Oliver of lying about the 5 years on Lian Yu? Again, did I miss something? Why does Oliver owe ANYONE a truthful explanation of exactly where he was during those 5 years, especially since he can chalk it up to mental anguish. 

Ah well...

[Cthulhudrew]

I say we lobby for Christopher Chance to join Legends next season.

ETA: Or better yet, both of them with Dig and Captain Boomerang on a Suicide Squad show.

(Figured it was Chance pretty early on, but I was keeping my fingers crossed that I was wrong and Dig rescued Deadshot instead- even though the voice and physique didn't match. Dammit! Why can't we get Michael Rowe back, show?)

Edited May 4, 2018 by Cthulhudrew

[Guest]

The only thing I found odd or maybe confusing is that Oliver is still talking about having a life AFTER the GA. I thought one of the main journeys for his character has always been balancing having a life with being GA so I'm not sure why we're going backwards here. Unless I'm reading too much into that?

I found that speech to Jean really emotional but I still went "huh?" at that part.

Edited May 4, 2018 by Guest

[JamieLynn832002]

14 minutes ago, Angel12d said:

The only thing I found odd or maybe confusing is that Oliver is still talking about having a life AFTER the GA. I thought one of the main journeys for his character has always been balancing having a life with being GA so I'm not sure why we're going backwards here. Unless I'm reading too much into that?

I found that speech to Jean really emotional but I still went "huh?" at that part.

 

Yeah, I also liked the speech but don't get this. He just voluntarily left his second retirement from vigilantism, when is he expecting this to happen? He's already married with a child and I doubt Star City will ever be non-corrupt. I feel like this is something Oliver keeps convincing himself he wants but in practice, he doesn't.

Edited May 4, 2018 by JamieLynn832002

[Guest]

4 minutes ago, JamieLynn832002 said:

Yeah, I also liked the speech but don't get this. He just voluntarily left his second retirement from vigilantism, when is he expecting this to happen? He's already married with a child and I doubt Star City will ever be non-corrupt. I feel like this is something Oliver keeps convincing himself he wants but in practice, he doesn't.

I've just rewatched that scene and it seems he's talking about much later in life (something I missed in the live watch)? But I guess I thought with his realization that he liked being GA and it gave him purpose or whatever, that he'd always want to be GA, or at least for as long as physically possible. So I'm not sure why we're back to "I can't have a life until after GA." IDK.

[SleepDeprived]

This was a pretty good episode and I was entertained a lot. Mainly because of all the Queen family content we got and Oliver and Felicity pretty much declaring their love for each other in every other scene. They're just such a great OTP. I love them so. I also liked that Diggle and Oliver are still ride or die for each other even though their bromance is still on the rocks.

I enjoyed Human Target as Tommy as Green Arrow. Colin really looked great in the GA suit and his snarking was fun. That twist with Human Target as the Judge got me. That was good, I have to give that to the writers. They got me there.

However, I still don't understand (and probably never will) how the heck does this whole plotline make sense. I really do have to wonder what kind of drugs were these people who call themselves professional writers smoking to make them think that this whole "arrest Oliver for being the GA and a vigilante then put him on trial" thing would make work, given that his entire team that ended up as witnesses are all vigilantes, as well. How did they figure that any of their audience with any intelligence would actually believe in this pseudo-trial?!? Like, how is Star City undertaking this huge, highly-publicized and televised trial condemning Oliver about his vigilantism when BS (as Laurel) is a widely-known vigilante (with the DA even acknowledging that in court) AND Rene just testified in court that he's a vigilante, too, AND THEN have both of them be allowed to walk away and NOT apprehended or read their rights for violating the Anti-Vigilante Law, as well, or even told not to leave town. I mean, I know the whole police department and the judge are on 3-Diaz's payroll but I thought the star prosecutor wasn't? Like, is it specifically stated in the Anti-Vigilante Law of Star City that the Green Arrow is the only one who can't "take the law into his own hands" and his team/co-vigilantes get to walk free? 'Cause Tommy/HT was immediately taken into custody after he "confessed" on the stand. Or did they all get immunity to be witnesses? But then why would they need to be subpoenaed if they had immunity? And, also, is the entire media on the take, as well, because they didn't seem to care at all about vilifying any other vigilantes other than Oliver? How many brain cells do I have to lose to be able to make sense of this whole godforsaken plot? LMAO! I should just quit thinking about this.

The noobs are all still jerks. And my position on that hasn't changed. They can all disappear in a cloud of ash and I would remain unbothered.

[Soulfire]

[marketdoctor]

The legal issues on this show were about as accurate as the science--it works as much as it can, but the story line comes first.

I liked Kate Cassidy's acting choices as the Black Siren.  Also that she, unlike Old School Black Canary, also thought to bring a gun as a backup plan.  It didn't entirely work, but at least she planned ahead.

"Try not to need me for at least another year."  Because the writers know we'll only put up with so much Human Target-ex machina.

[ladylaw99]

Aside from the legal mumble jumble, I enjoyed this episode.

Put me on the train of liking the Queen family scenes. William (the actor) still needs to loosen up but then again he is a pre-teen and they are awkward at this stage of their life, I know I have a couple of them.

I love the Olicity scenes, like I said in the live thread they feed off eachother so well, it's second nature to them.  Love Digg helping Oliver, that's my bromanace.

Diaz still sucks and god help me to try to understand anything that comes out of his mouth.  At this point I use the CC and it still didn't make sense. It's no wonder I don't find him a threat.  As for BS the writers really messed that up.  BS had one job - kill marble mouth, but noooooo the writers couldn't give her that and make the big bad.  Now that would have been entertaining not the damsel in distress we are going to get.  At this point anyone will be a better villain than Diaz.

Rene - ugh sorry writers like many others nothing has changed for me.  Too little too late.  Diggle is the real person to thank not Rene.  Diggle is the one who went Kasine and got HT.  Diggle still protected Oliver on the stand, heck he even risked getting arrested by assaulting Diaz and his thugs, I mean cops outside.   I find  it hard to believe he would come up with a good plan to save Oliver.  I need the noobs to leave, nothing at this point will make me like them.

Tommy, I started to like Tommy at the end of season 1. I feel annoyed that I will miss out on a snarly, sarcastic Tommy.

[insomniadreams88]

You know, all Jean needed to do was show photos of Oliver looking at Felicity/reacting when she talks about him (like in 618, minus the GA suit of course, and this episode when she's on the stand): "Do you really think this man could be a brutal killer? Just look at those heart eyes." Jury: "Not guilty!" 

[cambridgeguy]

9 hours ago, Angel12d said:

I've just rewatched that scene and it seems he's talking about much later in life (something I missed in the live watch)? But I guess I thought with his realization that he liked being GA and it gave him purpose or whatever, that he'd always want to be GA, or at least for as long as physically possible. So I'm not sure why we're back to "I can't have a life until after GA." IDK.

I'd like to think he knows he'll either be forced to retire due to age/injuries or he'll keep going until he ends up face down in an alley somewhere.  If he were still flying solo then I could see him not caring too much one way or another (i.e the Batman model) but now that he's a family man I can see him looking forward to the post-GA days.  It makes me wonder if Sara ever told him about her encounter with old man Oliver on Legends.

So is Star City going to need to replace its entire police department?  Because it sure seems like the entire force is working for Diaz and not being particularly subtle about it.

[apinknightmare]

I was just thinking...how would Diaz have learned about Chance via the bug Black Siren put in the bunker? Did they talk about him extensively down there for some reason?

[tv echo]

After some initial ambivalence, I think that I mostly liked this episode...

I loved watching an episode that's about Oliver again, and not about the annoying newbies or the underwhelming villains. I loved all of the Oliver/Felicity, Felicity/William and Oliver/Felicity/William scenes. I loved Diggle going above and beyond to save Oliver. I really loved how tough Felicity was on the stand in the face of Van Owen's cross-examination (see Quotes thread here for her entire testimony). I liked that Raisa knew all along that Oliver was the Green Arrow. I also enjoyed Colin Donnell's version of a kinda snarky Green Arrow.

However, there were still some things about this episode that I didn't like.

Although Rene acknowledged his fault, tried to make up for it and finally apologized to Oliver, it was an abrupt about-face from previous episodes and he still called Oliver a "jerk" in this episode. Also, Dinah and Curtis are still acting like assholes. When are they going to apologize (Dinah for deceiving Oliver, Curtis for hacking Diggle's chip)? I didn't like how Felicity and Oliver are still groveling to the newbies, while the newbies are still acting so self-righteous. 

I also didn't like Felicity's mostly passive role throughout this episode (and indeed throughout the back half of this season), while Diggle and Rene were the ones to come up with both plans to get Oliver acquitted. The Felicity I've gotten to know on the show would've been using her considerable brains and hacker skills to come up with her own plan to save Oliver and expose Diaz.

Incidentally, a reviewer pointed out that the reference to Diggle's child being abducted made no sense because, in S3, Diggle's wife Lyla was abducted and Baby Sara Diggle was left alone (by Oliver), but Diggle's current son JJ was never abducted. (Van Owen: "Well, Mr. Diggle, you can't even keep yourself safe. I mean, in the past four years, you've been abducted by Damien Darhk, your own child was also kidnapped. You were hospitalized for nerve damage caused by severe trauma. Mr. Diggle, either you travel in some very dangerous circles, or you have the worst luck ever.")

Speaking of Diaz, he continues to be the least scary Big Bad in six seasons of Arrow. Now he's also wishy-washy. A couple episodes ago, he wanted to kill Oliver by drugging him with Vertigo and luring him into suicide by cop. Then he captured Oliver but didn't kill him; instead, he wanted to send him to prison. Now he wants to kill Oliver again. Make up your mind!

This episode finally explained why Black Siren is obeying Diaz (who apparently has a sonic dampener that he must've inherited from Cayden James), but her current behavior as a frightened woman who needs her "daddy" to inspire her to stand up against her powerful lover just doesn't square with the cold-blooded, calculating, strong killer that first showed up last season on The Flash and throughout most of this season of Arrow. Given what Black Siren has herself done in terms of killings, I still find it difficult to believe that Diaz torching his childhood bully is what crossed the line for her. Also, Black Siren has presumably been sleeping with Diaz. Why didn't she kill him while he was sleeping - or any of the other innumerable times she's had the chance while she was with him? It's not like Diaz has that device turned on all the time - he had to turn it on in this episode. Btw, why hasn't 'Laurel' - who everyone believes to be the Black Canary - been arrested for being a vigilante or, at the least, for aiding and abetting or conspiring with the Green Arrow to commit murder? Felony murder is also a crime, right? 

This episode did do a good job of highlighting the problem with portraying superheroes as vigilantes. We watched almost all of our heroes commit perjury on the witness stand - and yet it was a necessity in order to enable them to keep fighting the bad guys as vigilantes, especially when they're facing a corrupt justice system, a corrupt administration and corrupt law enforcement.

As for the promo for next week's episode that aired at the end of this episode... WTF?!  We hear Oliver saying, "As the Green Arrow, I have gone up against some terrible people, but this guy's got an army."  Uh, Oliver, did you forget that Slade Wilson had a mirakuru army? And that Ra's al Ghul had the entire League of Assassins behind him? And Damian Darhk had magic? And Adrian Chase almost managed to kill all of your loved ones almost all by himself? But now you're intimidated by a human bad guy who has an army of human minions?

Edited May 4, 2018 by tv echo

[apinknightmare]

4 minutes ago, tv echo said:

As for the promo for next week's episode that aired at the end of this episode... WTF?!  We hear Oliver saying, "As the Green Arrow, I have gone up against some terrible people, but this guy's got an army."  Uh, Oliver, did you forget that Slade Wilson had a mirakuru army? And that Ra's al Ghul had the entire League of Assassins behind him? And Damian Darhk had magic? And Adrian Chase almost managed to kill all of your loved ones almost all by himself? But now you're intimidated by a human bad guy who has an army of human minions?

I think it's a little different here, at least. Diaz has somehow managed to get literally everyone at all levels of government on his payroll. He's got the cops, the courts, and the councilpersons.. Even Mayor Quentin is willing to sign off on pretty much anything to save his Not!Daughter. Oliver only managed to not go to jail because Rene was clever about it. Diaz is a loser and I can't even fathom how he found dirt on or came up with the money to pay off like, everyone in Star City - but even if Oliver offs Diaz, the corruption running through the city has got to be an intimidating prospect when you think about fixing the situation.