Velocity23 April 15, 2015 Share April 15, 2015 Interviews with Paul Blackthorne http://www.accesshollywood.com/arrows-paul-blackthorne-lance-is-on-the-warpath-coming-for-oliver-queen_article_106459 http://collider.com/arrow-season-3-finale-paul-blackthorne-says-its-groundbreaking/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter http://www.etonline.com/tv/162786_arrow_paul_blackthorne_lance_is_on_warpath_to_bring_down_oliver_queen/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ETTopStories+%28Entertainment+Tonight%3A+Breaking+News%29 Link to comment
tv echo April 15, 2015 Share April 15, 2015 (edited) FYI: Laura Hurley's 'master list' of all her Arrow articles (wherever published)... Article Master List: Arrowhttp://laurawritesabout.tumblr.com/post/115784794141/article-master-list-arrow Edited April 15, 2015 by tv echo Link to comment
MostlyC April 16, 2015 Share April 16, 2015 How would Barry know Laurel? They never even communicated in The crossover. Are we really supposed to think the Flash would care what Laurel is or is trying to be?Yep, everyone is supposed to care about Laurel and how awesome she is. Despite going out there like an idiot with no training. Unnecessary Laurel-hatin' GUESS WHAT?!!? 1) I have just hidden/deleted a ton of posts that belong in the Flash Episode Thread from Last Night (yes, even the post I am quoting). Yes, even articles that talk about the Flash and Felicity/Ray/Cisco go there. b) I don't believe there has been confirmation if Laurel/Barry meet up. And if it has, it's hasn't been aired yet so it belongs in the Spoiler Discussion Thread. iii) People like Laurel, so please respect their opinion, even if you think they are wrong. It is okay to agree to disagree. (Shocker: Some people like Felicity too!). d) Please stay on topic 5) Do you want us NOT to watch the episode? You can use the RC to report, and we like that you do, but MUST you do it during the episode? I might miss a fernlicity sighting, and maybe some Arrowmance moments!, Sob! Waaaah! Someone pass me the kleenex. 1 Link to comment
Delphi April 16, 2015 Share April 16, 2015 http://www.buzzfeed.com/jarettwieselman/colton-haynes-leaves-arrow?utm_term=.dm83bml7W Contains spoilers for 419 if your on the west coast. 1 Link to comment
Artsda April 16, 2015 Share April 16, 2015 :( Deadline - http://deadline.com/2015/04/arrow-colton-haynes-exits-1201410756/ Link to comment
Velocity23 April 16, 2015 Share April 16, 2015 Review of Broken Arrows http://www.examiner.com/article/arrow-recap-even-heroes-need-help-from-their-friends Link to comment
tv echo April 16, 2015 Share April 16, 2015 (edited) EW's review of 3x19... 'Broken Arrow' Arrow Ep. 19 | Aired Apr 15BY CHANCELLOR AGARD Posted April 15 2015 — 11:46 PM EDThttp://www.ew.com/recap/arrow-season-3-episode-19 If there’s two things we know about Oliver Queen, it’s that he needs to be in control of everything and hates having to depend on people. This season, Arrow has been concerned with exploring what exactly happens when Oliver encounters an existential threat (such as Ra’s al Ghul) that forces him to cede control and turn to others for help. To make matters worse for him, his teammates, who used to blindly follow his orders, are becoming more assertive and independent. And, Oliver reacts as anyone else would to losing control: He doubles down and tries to reassert his dominance, which has led to some not so likeable behavior. But, his behavior is understandable. Thus, we arrive at tonight’s episode, which brings this theme into sharp relief. With Lance hot on his trails and his Arrow persona compromised, Oliver Queen has no other option, but to turn to others for help—which we know he hates. However, by the end of the episode, he’s definitely learned that depending on people isn’t such a bad thing, and that sometimes, he is the one who needs to be saved.* * * Edited April 16, 2015 by tv echo Link to comment
tv echo April 16, 2015 Share April 16, 2015 (edited) Comic Book Resources review of 3x19... ‘Arrow’ Recap: Loyalty, and a Suprising Loss, in ‘Broken Arrow’Thursday, April 16th, 2015 at 4:31am PST - by Marc Buxtonhttp://spinoff.comicbookresources.com/2015/04/16/arrow-recap-loyalty-and-a-suprising-loss-in-broken-arrow/ Speaking of Roy, “Broken Arrow” probably serves as the greatest spotlight yet on the character. It displays his selflessness, his loyalty to Oliver and his physical and mental toughness as he has to survive in a prison filled with inmates he helped to put behind bars. One of the episode’s best action sequences takes place when a handcuffed Roy has to defend himself against a group of vengeful thugs. I’ve made light of Roy’s propensity for getting knocked out this season, but Oliver’s partner certainly proves his fighting chops this week.* * *... Deathbolt wasn’t in Central City but rather Opal City at the time of the particle accelerator accident. It seems there’s another metahuman source, and it will be up to Ray to find it. Could this be the lead-in to the “Arrow”/”Flash” spinoff series? And does the mention of Opal City mean Starman is in our future?* * *“Broken Arrow” concludes with Oliver, Diggle, Felicity and Ray bidding farewell to Roy Harper, who departs Starling City to maintain the charade of his death. Roy’s ultimate act of loyalty is leaving Thea and his old life behind, allowing Oliver to continue operating in his beloved city. It seems as if the death of Roy would have broken Oliver, but the fact that Roy is alive and appears to invigorate the Arrow. Edited April 16, 2015 by tv echo Link to comment
Velocity23 April 16, 2015 Share April 16, 2015 Vulture review of Broken Arrow http://www.vulture.com/2015/04/arrow-recap-season-3-episode-19.html 1 Link to comment
blixie April 16, 2015 Share April 16, 2015 definitely learned that depending on people isn’t such a bad thing Definitely? Pretty sure he "learned" the same thing last year and it did not stick. Which is my problem with the season overall. 15 Link to comment
tv echo April 16, 2015 Share April 16, 2015 (edited) Just About Write's review of 3x19 (too lengthy to quote except for a few snippets, but worth reading - all about the theme of sacrifice)... Arrow 3x19 "Broken Arrow" (The Essence of Heroism)http://www.itsjustaboutwrite.com/2015/04/arrow-3x19-broken-arrow-essence-of.html Team Arrow... I have honestly never loved Dig, Felicity, and Roy more than I did in that moment. Why? Because it proved to me that their love for Oliver outweighed their dependence on him as their leader....* * *But "Broken Arrow" was an absolutely stellar episode for Team Arrow. It really and truly was and I may have shed an actual tear when they revealed their elaborate plan to Oliver in the foundry. (I also nearly got up from my seat and actually gave the group a standing ovation for what they did. OT3 status, right there.) Because finally, the person who spends all of his time worrying about and protecting and sacrificing? He was the one on the receiving end of such a gift. OLIVER was the one being saved and Team Arrow was saving him.* * *... When Oliver snaps at Diggle and storms out of Palmer Tech, it's Felicity who goes after him, matching him stride for stride and line for line. And when Oliver talks about his anger, Felicity doesn't chastise him for being angry -- she pinpoints the actual source of his anger. She knows that the reason he is upset is because everything he knows -- everything he has ever wanted or loved or worked for -- has been stripped away from him. His company. His identity. His team. Her. Let's dwell on that last one for just a moment, shall we? Because what happens next in this Oliver/Felicity exchange is extremely important. In last night's episode of The Flash, Felicity reminisced with Barry about when she first met Oliver. She talked about how she knew he was a good person with a good heart. She still believes that. But she also knows something that most people don't. She knows what terrifies Oliver. She knows that he's always at his weakest when he feels out of control and she accurately tells him that Ra's has managed to strip away his identity. He forcefully took away The Arrow from Oliver. And you can see how much that visibly affects Oliver -- how Felicity hit on a truth that he hasn't even vocalized to anyone, even himself, yet. Because Felicity KNOWS Oliver, remember? She knows every piece of him: every fear, every insecurity, every hope, every longing. She knows that it bothers him to be forced to sit on his hands. She knows he would have never went along with their plan to save Roy. She knows all of this. But for as much as Felicity Smoak knows The Arrow, there's something more important at play here. She knows The Arrow and she has always believed that person to be a hero. But Felicity Meghan Smoak believes in Oliver Queen. He is the man that she loves. Felicity stops herself in "Broken Arrow," when she tells Oliver: "You're the man that I --" We all knew how the sentence was going to end. Oliver seems startled by it, and so does Felicity for that matter. Three words that are impossible to say to Ray slip out naturally in conversation with Oliver because they're real and they're genuine and they've been threatening to spill out of her mouth ever since Oliver left her in "The Climb," I think. But take note: Felicity doesn't want to tell Oliver that she loves him in this episode in order to make him feel better. She wants to tell him that she loves him during this particular moment because while he thinks he has lost everything, he hasn't ever lost her. He can't see that. He thinks he's lost her to Ray -- thinks that she's blissfully and perfectly happy. But she's not. She's happy, but it's not right with Ray. Felicity's heart? It belongs to Oliver. And it's not going anywhere. Edited April 16, 2015 by tv echo 6 Link to comment
tv echo April 16, 2015 Share April 16, 2015 (edited) TV.com's review of 3x19 (raises new and interesting speculation about Thea becoming Heir)... Arrow "Broken Arrow" Review: With a Little Help From My FriendsBy Noel Kirkpatrick 8 hours agohttp://www.tv.com/shows/arrow/community/post/arrow-season-1-episode-19-broken-arrow-review-deathbolt-142896162103/ At this point, I feel like I really need to just lean into what Arrow is doing and not think about it too much. The off-screen planning the writers employed to get Roy in and out of prison was a classic bait-and-switch plot that rather amusingly gave Oliver a taste of his own "We had to lie to you to protect you!" medicine (kind of, anyway)....* * *... My bet is that Oliver joins the League for a bit and tries to shut it down from the inside, but his plan somehow goes south and Thea ends up being Ra's new protégé instead of Oliver. After all, that prophecy Malcolm mentioned says that the person who survives being killed by Ra's blade will become Ra's al Ghul. The prophecy doesn't say how that person survives, so there's some room for Thea to claim the prize provided the healing pool does its thing.* * *– The most interesting thing to come out of "Broken Arrow" was the revelation that Deathbolt wasn't in Central City the night of the particle accelerator explosion. So how did he get his laserbeam eyes? Honestly, this feels like a very early seed for The CW's combined spin-off of Arrow and The Flash, or something that's going to connect either to Shrieve here on Arrow or to Eiling over on The Flash. Edited April 16, 2015 by tv echo Link to comment
tv echo April 16, 2015 Share April 16, 2015 (edited) For comic book fans... Arrow: Easter Eggs and DC Comics References in Broken ArrowBy Russ Burlingame 04/16/2015http://comicbook.com/2015/04/16/arrow-easter-eggs-and-dc-comics-references-in-broken-arrow/ Arrow Season 3, Episode 19 Watch: DCU Connections And Easter EggsBY JESSE CARP 36 MINUTES AGOhttp://www.cinemablend.com/television/Arrow-Season-3-Episode-19-Watch-DCU-Connections-Easter-Eggs-71348.html Edited April 16, 2015 by tv echo Link to comment
tv echo April 16, 2015 Share April 16, 2015 (edited) 'Arrow' Recap: 10 Bone-Crunching Moments From 'Broken Arrow'Adam Bellotto April 16th, 2015 10:16am EDThttp://www.starpulse.com/news/Adam_Bellotto/2015/04/16/arrow-recap-10-bonecrunching-moments-f If at any point this season, you've felt "Arrow" wasn't quite on its usual game (maybe a little slow, maybe a little unfocused), "Broken Arrow" was everything an "Arrow" fan could have wanted.... Edited April 16, 2015 by tv echo Link to comment
tv echo April 16, 2015 Share April 16, 2015 (edited) io9's positive and kinda funny review of 3x19... You Got Me, Arrow. You Totally Got Me.Esther Inglis-Arkell 4/16/15 10:58amhttp://io9.com/you-got-me-arrow-you-totally-got-me-1698159314 What follows is a tea-party-on-the-ceiling of an episode, with Ray as a little ball of sunshine and Ollie as a little black rain cloud and Felicity as the woman who can't decide which type of weather she prefers. (Psst. Felicity. It's rain. You like the rain and I suggest you go splash through a few puddles, before the show forces Laurel-Ollie on us again.) I could honestly watch Stephen Amell and Brandon Routh play off each other for hours. Ray is irrepressible, even when the bad guy chokes him with a chain, and Ollie conveys, without changing expression, his endless frustration with the situation. Between the forced high-fives, the cutesy-poo gadgets, the times when Felicity goes in for a kiss — Ollie spends the entire storyline looking like the world's most chisel-jawed blobfish.* * *... When Felicity is in danger, and Ray still isn't in touch with his inner fighter, Ollie takes over and remote-controls Ray's suit with Ray still in it. The visuals of Ollie shadow boxing and Ray beating the guy up are fantastic. Better yet, Felicity's true love saving Felicity using the body of Felicity's proxy-boyfriend? I would say that's Freudian — but Freud didn't have that much imagination....* * *And then we see Ra's al Ghul go after Thea. She fights him. I can just picture his internal monologue. "Seriously? You're trying to fight me? You couldn't even fight that guy I sent to be a DJ at your club. What was his name? I wanna say Chad? Tad? Thad? The point is, do you know how bad a guy has to be at fighting for me to decide that he can best serve my interests as a DJ? If he had been any worse we'd just have kept him in the basement and harvested his hair every year. Anyway, I'm stabbing you through the stomach with my Queen-killin' blade. Here's a little Arabic to sweeten the deal." Edited April 16, 2015 by tv echo 3 Link to comment
tv echo April 16, 2015 Share April 16, 2015 (edited) Arrow 3x19 Olicity Heart-to-Heart: Love and SacrificeMARILYN_PORTER THU APR 16 2015 11:15AMhttp://www.heroesandheartbreakers.com/blogs/2015/04/arrow-season-3-episode-19-olicity-heart-to-heart-love-and-sacrifice The police flood the lair and the fern is knocked off, pot broken. A collective gasp sounds through the fandom. NOT THE FERN! Even Felicity looks horrified.... Edited April 16, 2015 by tv echo 1 Link to comment
tv echo April 16, 2015 Share April 16, 2015 (edited) jbuffyangel's review of 3x19 (warning! includes spoilers for next week's episode)... SECOND CHANCES: BROKEN ARROW ARROW 3X19 REVIEWAPRIL 16, 2015 @ 13:29http://jbuffyangel.tumblr.com/post/116572530423/second-chances-broken-arrow-arrow-3x19-review THIS is what has been missing from the Ray Palmer character. An entire season of Oliver interacting with Palmer? Ratings gold. Palmer interacting with just Felicity for 90% of the season? Yeah, not so much. For a character like Palmer to work, you need a straight man like Oliver Queen for him to bounce off of. Otherwise, the jokes fall flat and Ray is just…weird. Edited April 16, 2015 by tv echo 3 Link to comment
Starfish35 April 16, 2015 Share April 16, 2015 (edited) She's not wrong about Oliver and Ray. I laughed so hard at their scenes last night. If they could somehow replicate that dynamic on the spinoff, I think it would really help. Edited April 16, 2015 by Starfish35 2 Link to comment
Delphi April 16, 2015 Share April 16, 2015 That gif makes my life. It's like if someone tried to explain the whole season with an expression. #sorrynotsorry 11 Link to comment
tv echo April 16, 2015 Share April 16, 2015 (edited) Jessica Breaux's review of 3x19 (entire article is worth reading)... Arrow “Broken Arrow” Review (Season 3, Episode 19)Jessica Breaux April 16, 2015http://www.tvequals.com/2015/04/16/arrow-broken-arrow-review-season-3-episode-19/ ... Oliver could probably live with Starling City turning on him. He could probably even live with being hunted by Starling City PD. What he could not live with is being completely unable to take any action at all. It’s just not in Oliver to sit on the sidelines while his family is in danger. Something else that’s not in Oliver is asking for help. Oliver refuses to let Dig, Felicity, or anyone else for that matter carry their burdens alone, so why does he believe he has to bear his all by himself? No one makes it through this life alone. No one. And it’s high time for Oliver to realize that. I said a little while ago that Oliver has worked so hard to perfect being The Arrow that he’s forgotten how to be Oliver Queen... He’s been through a lot since he landed on the island, and the Oliver Queen who landed there is not the same Oliver Queen who came back to Starling City. He has gone from being a spoiled, selfish, entitled brat to a brave, self-sacrificing hero who has given everything for the people and city he loves. What Oliver has never allowed himself to do is find any sort of balance between being a person and being a weapon... He’s got to allow his friends help him find the man that he’s so carefully hidden behind the mask. Hopefully, now that he’s seen the lengths that his friends are willing to go for him, he’ll stop shutting them out. Speaking of friends, Oliver needs to fall on his knees and thank whatever deity he believes in for Dig, Felicity and Roy. They have saved Oliver’s life in more ways than one over the years, but this episode once again highlighted just how strong their bond of friendship is. They all knew that Oliver wasn’t going to go along with their plan, but they also knew that unless they took action, they were going to lose Oliver....* * *... It shouldn’t come as a surprise to Ray that Felicity is in love with Oliver though. Anyone who’s got eyeballs can see that she and Oliver are in love with each other. Edited April 16, 2015 by tv echo 1 Link to comment
tv echo April 16, 2015 Share April 16, 2015 (edited) WeMinoredInFilm's review of 3x19... ARROW’S “BROKEN ARROW” (S3,EP19) & AN ACTOR’S EXPIRING CONTRACTPosted on April 16, 2015 by Kelly Kondahttp://weminoredinfilm.com/2015/04/16/arrows-broken-arrow-s3ep19-an-actors-expiring-contract/ I never fully invested in Roy Harper as a character, though, because I rarely got the sense that the actual show was invested in him, routinely placing him on the backburner in favor of more pressing matters.... Yet his perpetual sidekick status seemingly always resulted in him more or less getting his ass kicked, as if in the pecking order for fight scenes Oliver rules all, Diggle is close behind, then Roy, and then Laurel’s Black Canary.... As a result of all that, “Public Enemy” felt like the Arrow writers’ last valiant attempt to make up for their past sins and send Roy out on a high note, doing a very Oliver kind of thing and helping to save someone close to him without telling them he was doing it.... Obviously, the real reason they didn’t tell Oliver is because he wouldn’t have let them go through with it. Roy making such a big decision like that for Oliver without even asking him is definitely a “The student has become the master” moment, even if the exact specifics are a bit goofy.... ... I have no idea what’s going to become of Thea. However, this is an inarguably effective method for Ra’s to finally convince Oliver to accept his offer, e.g., Replace me or your sister dies, even if all of this is forever undercut by lingering questions like “Why the heck is Ra’s so determined that Oliver be his successor?” Edited April 16, 2015 by tv echo 2 Link to comment
tv echo April 17, 2015 Share April 17, 2015 (edited) Arrow: 3×19 Review – Broken ArrowBy: Alisha Bjorklund 13 hours agohttp://www.threeifbyspace.net/2015/04/arrow-3x19-review-broken-arrow/ Turns out Roy was a red herring, which is fitting because, you know, red.* * *... This team up storyline highlighted two key things: First, Ray realizing not only what it means to be a hero, and second, Ray realizing that Felicity’s love for Oliver is real and not going away. Felicity may have been affectionate towards Ray in this episode, but by the end of it, that’s all it was. Affection. She definitely cares for Ray, but her interactions with Oliver show their relationship as being so much more. Even Ray noticed during the scene when Roy left Starling City.* * *The important takeaway from this week’s flashbacks: it was revealed that General Shrieve, not Waller, is the one behind trying to kill Oliver and Maseo’s family and infect China with the Alpha/Omega virus. Oliver may have managed to snag the cure, but he has a long way to go before he can save the other people in danger. The one thing I’m still on edge about is if/when they kill off Akio. Either way, something bad is going to happen to that poor kid.* * *... One nitpicky thing: Even though I think Thea was a smart choice for who should die, I kind of wish Arrow would stop trying to kill off the its women (cough, Sara, cough). Regardless, I’m still riding high on all the great stuff that happened. Edited April 17, 2015 by tv echo 1 Link to comment
tv echo April 17, 2015 Share April 17, 2015 (edited) Robert Dougherty's review of 3x19 (good read, as usual)... Arrow S3: E19 -- 'Broken Arrow'By Robert Dougherty April 16, 2015 06:47PM EDThttp://www.themovienetwork.com/review/arrow-s3-e19-broken-arrow First of all, there’s the fate of Roy to deal with, in an episode that is virtually crafted to be Colton Haynes’ farewell. Just as Oliver saved his life before he even joined Team Arrow, now Roy gets to save his – and just as Oliver is prepared to self-sacrifice himself for his sins, Roy is determined to finally be punished for last year’s cop murder. Thus the cycle of self-loathing, martyring male heroes continues anew. Broken Arrow also tries to set itself up as a landmark by having Quentin invade the Foundry before the title card displays – something that at any other time would be an episode ending cliffhanger. And as it turns out, the most major death that is going to last for good happens during the raid. Beyond that, it forces Oliver to turn to something that is barely preferable to death – asking Ray Palmer for help.* * *As is customary with Raylicity, the awkwardness – intentional and unintentional – is at a premium in the early going, even in the wake of the “I love you” debacle last week....* * *This time around, their heart to heart is even more overdue – and makes it so much more obvious that it should have been allowed to happen months ago. At long last, Felicity is allowed to propose that other people help Oliver and give him another way besides sacrificing himself, as she should have been written to do the second he started working with Malcolm. At long last, Oliver finally starts taking another look at his and Maseo’s “A man cannot live by two names” philosophy, and is allowed to hear Felicity address the matter another way. And for only the second or maybe third time in the last 18 episodes, Stephen Amell and Emily Bett Rickards don't have to have a dark cloud over their major scenes together. Basically, this entire scene is like months of fix-it fanfiction come to life, even if it doesn’t go as far as fanfics might have.* * *So like always, every time something positive and a possible step in the right direction happens for Oliver and Arrow this season, the real cause to celebrate will be if they build on it for two weeks in a row – or if we’re back to nothing but tragedy, martyrdom and Oliver’s refusal to believe in anything other than his doom. Only this time, having that happen all over again could be a death blow to the Season Three end game before the final three episodes even start.* * *Yet this season, taking a step forward almost always results in two or more steps back the next Wednesday – as proved recently by Suicidal Tendencies after The Offer. Considering what is to come this next Wednesday, the steps backwards could be the steepest and most fatal fall of all, and not just for Oliver’s soul. Edited April 17, 2015 by tv echo 2 Link to comment
tv echo April 17, 2015 Share April 17, 2015 (edited) Arrow Review: “Broken Arrow” (Episode 3.19)By Mark Rozeman April 16, 2015 | 5:29pmhttp://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2015/04/arrow-review-broken-arrow.html If this plotline does anything, it reiterates just how charming a presence Brandon Routh can be when given the chance. He’s certainly a much lighter presence than Oliver and, in a way, almost more geeky and excitable than Barry Allen. One of the episode’s best moments come when he high-fives Oliver in a moment of euphoria and we see the semi-disgusted look on Oliver’s face. Indeed, a good portion of the plotline finds Oliver rolling his eyes at Ray’s Boy Scout-like enthusiasm and his adorable chemistry with Felicity. Of course, Oliver is right on the money when he says they act like siblings and, in a way, that’s probably what may eventually push them apart. No one wants someone too close to themselves.* * *And so the episode bids adieu to Colton Haynes’ Roy Harper. And while it’s sad to see such an iconic character as Red Arsenal leave the Arrow universe, I can’t honestly say it’s a massive loss. If anything, Season Three has seen Team Arrow feel a little stretched thin. Between the introduction of Atom and Laurel’s Black Canary, Roy often got the short end of the stick in terms of character development. The episode that did focus on him proved to be one of the season’s weaker entries and, without a relationship with Thea, there wasn’t a lot for him to do aside from act as Oliver’s wingman. All in all, the episode gives Roy a proper, organic send-off. Moreover, there’s a good chance we’ll probably be seeing him again in time for the season’s final big fight. Edited April 17, 2015 by tv echo Link to comment
tv echo April 17, 2015 Share April 17, 2015 (edited) SoundOnSight's very critical review of 3x19 (excerpt quoted, but recommend reading entire article)... Arrow Ep. 3.19 “Broken Arrow” sees off a series regular in another overstuffed hourPosted on April 16, 2015By Randy Dankievitchhttp://www.soundonsight.org/arrow-season-3-episode-19-broken-arrow/ All season, Arrow has struggled to find balance – a fitting metaphor for its main character, who is now learning that when there are too many balls in the air, there is no such thing as balance. Hell, half of the season has been hijacked by the Tony Star- Ray Palmer story, which is basically Oliver’s story without all of the physical and emotional trauma that comes along with it, which has often left Oliver a reactionary character on his own freakin’ television show. Throw on top the show’s regression with characters like Quentin (who is back to season one levels of obsessed dickhead cop in recent weeks, as he hunts the Arrow), Diggle, and Nyssa, and it’s become clear that Arrow is way too crowded, both in terms of the pretty white faces we see every week, and the story lines accompanying them.* * * Edited April 17, 2015 by tv echo Link to comment
tv echo April 18, 2015 Share April 18, 2015 (edited) Mordechai and Corrina are back to discuss 3x19... Same Geek Channel Review: ‘Arrow’ Episode 319 “Broken Arrow”Posted on 18 April, 2015 by Mordechai Luchinshttp://geekdad.com/2015/04/sgc-arrow-319/ Mordechai: I freely admit, I thought [Roy's death] was legit. I was expecting Roy to become Thea’s motivation for taking up a mask. What, only women can be fridged on this show?* * *Poor Ray. He’s not given any of the studly, manly flaws, like being emotionally distant or hiding secrets from the one he loves to “protect” them or feeling responsible for every single death on the show, even though that’s ridiculous. Nope, his flaw is that he gets scared when someone with a superpower is close to killing him and needs a pep talk.* * *Corrina: Now we get to the flaws. Tell me why Merlyn is still running around Starling City if he’s not even there to protect Thea from Ra’s Al Ghul’s attack.... Mordechai: Yes! And if the team is willing to go to A.R.G.U.S. for help with faking Roy’s death, why not go to them about countless other issues? You think a massive spy agency that’s indebted to you might be some help now and again.* * *But booo!! to the show for once again making “saving/avenging the womenfolk” a plot point. In season 1, it was Sara’s death that motivated many of the cast members. Forgivable, seeing as how Laurel, Thea, Shado, Felicity, and Moira had their own stories and motivations. In season 2, the entire motivation of the villain is based on the fridging of Shado. Moira is also fridged after the writers admitted they had no idea what to do with her. Somewhat mitigated by Sara coming back and being awesome. Season 3, however, brought us Sara’s death to once again motivate everyone over a fallen woman, pulled Felicity into a romance subplot that isn’t horribly integrated into the show, and turned Thea into a hypnotized assassin and, now, a hostage to fortune. So, of the women from season 1, Laurel has the most agency now, with Felicity a close second and we’ve lost everyone else. (Maybe not Thea, but she’ll be busy being dead for a while.) Not a good track record, show, especially when you toss in Ray’s dead fiancee, who’s a motivation for his becoming a hero, and Malcolm Merlyn’s original motivation for wanting to blow up the Glades: his wife’s death. I humbly suggest this plot device has been used up. Bored now.* * *... Oliver’s totally going to take the mantle and use it to save his sister, but what does he do after that? Corrina: He should ask Team Arrow. They know how to plan. Edited April 18, 2015 by tv echo 1 Link to comment
tv echo April 18, 2015 Share April 18, 2015 (edited) 3x19 review by those two USA Today romance authors... Romance authors on latest 'Arrow': Stunned!Allison Brennan and Lavinia Kent 8:14 p.m. EDT April 17, 2015http://www.usatoday.com/story/happyeverafter/2015/04/17/allison-brennan-lavinia-kent-arrow-broken-arrow/25965511/ I am still not quite believing Captain Lance. I do understand that he is returning to his original beliefs, but he feels very shortsighted to me. His absolute focus on bringing down Oliver leaves him missing the big picture of everything that is going on in the city. He in many ways is becoming a vigilante himself, i.e. one with a badge. He is acting out his personal need for vengeance, not protecting the city. Although, I do understand in his mind the two are mixed.* * *I also wanted Lance to show some interest in capturing Deathbolt (villain of the week). It just doesn't ring quite true to me that he is so focused on Oliver, rather than pursing the more immediate threat.* * *AB: ... The triangle between Oliver, Felicity and Ray became more pronounced this week, because while Felicity couldn't say I love you to Ray, she almost said it to Oliver. She's truly torn. Ray is perfect for her in every way — he's smart, he's rich, he's handsome, he's noble and heroic and compassionate. He's the light to Oliver's dark. He's the light like Felicity is the light, and they are really very much alike. But one thing I noticed this week that I didn't really consider before ... Ray doesn't need Felicity. Sure, he loves her and cares about her. But he's an optimist. He will absolutely survive and be the same if Felicity walks out. Oliver needs light in his life, and the only way he can get it at this point is from Felicity. Whether that's going to work or not, we don't know. But without the light, there is only darkness for Oliver. LK: Wow. I'd never thought of it that way. And I completely agree. Oliver needs Felicity to keep him balanced. Ray has balance by himself. I think this episode clearly hints at how they are going to resolve this tangle of relationships.* * *I am curious what Nissa will do. Could a resurrected Thea become the new Ra's? (My favorite pet theory — although I don't actually think it will happen.) What will happen with Merlyn? Will Oliver finally say yes to Ra's? Will the season end on that cliffhanger? AND WHAT ABOUT OLIVER AND FELICITY? Edited April 18, 2015 by tv echo Link to comment
wonderwall April 19, 2015 Share April 19, 2015 (edited) Arrow S03E19: What worked, what didn't, and what needs to happen nexthttp://www.examiner.com/article/arrow-s03e19-what-worked-what-didn-t-and-what-needs-to-happen-nextBy Laura Hurley On a happier note, not all of the Team Arrow action of “Broken Arrow” ended quite so tearfully. The original trio moving their base of operations into Ray’s office at Palmer Technologies was fantastic. Oliver finally got to react to the Ray/Felicity romance like a human rather than a martyr, getting the best line of the episode as he snarks on their similarities. “You know, there’s a decent chance that you and Palmer are related,” he casually says to Felicity, immediately falling back into referring to Ray by his surname as soon as the big goofball is out of earshot and earning himself a death glare from his lady love. Diggle had his moment of humor as well, shaking his head at Oliver behind Felicity’s back when Oliver asks if she frets as much when he is out in the field as she does for Ray. Each of the relationships was honored in “Broken Arrow,” and seeing Original Team Arrow back in the thick of things together was a nice reminder of why this show is worth watching. ... Speaking of emotional resonance…how about that Olicity? Oliver Queen is the kind of alpha male who would bristle at anybody daring to describe him in any terms than cannot be euphemized down to “ferocious” or “intense,” but he would have had one heck of an entry for his diary after Felicity called him “adorable.” Even big tough vigilantes need to bust out the Lisa Frank office set from time to time, and what healthier outlet would he have to express his feelings than with gel pens and heart doodles and scribbles of “Mr. Oliver Smoak” in the margins? Okay, maybe not. But could the boy be any more desperately smitten? When Felicity stopped herself from uttering those three little words to him outside of Palmer Tech, Oliver looked as though it was only his deeply ingrained discipline that prevented him from freaking out and telling her to forget the stupid metahuman and finish her sentence. Judging by his expression, however, it’s probably best that Felicity hedged on the big confession; Oliver was close enough to the edge in “Broken Arrow” that he totally would have swooped in and kissed the breath out of her right then and there, consequences be damned.... Great as he was, however, the MVP of the episode was Colton Haynes as Roy. He sold the conflicting remorse for the death of the police officer, grief at the impending loss of the family that he had built in Starling, and determination to do what was right for the man who had saved his life in every way that a life can be saved. He even got a fairly awesome final action sequence as he took on five burly inmates with his hands cuffed behind his back. Sure, he got stabbed in the back, but what would a prison stay on television be without a shanking or two? Edited April 19, 2015 by wonderwall 4 Link to comment
kismet April 19, 2015 Share April 19, 2015 Arrow S03E19: What worked, what didn't, and what needs to happen next http://www.examiner.com/article/arrow-s03e19-what-worked-what-didn-t-and-what-needs-to-happen-next By Laura Hurley Was just gonna post this! Love the way she breaks down the episodes into sections. Favorite line: "As it turns out, even Palmer is better off of Palmer Island. Welcome to the mainland, Ray. Feel free to find someone who can accept your love without prompting you to qualify it as lowercase." The rest of it was a good review, worth the read. 1 Link to comment
Angel12d April 19, 2015 Share April 19, 2015 Yeah, the examiner reviews are always so accurate. Love them. 1 Link to comment
BkWurm1 April 19, 2015 Share April 19, 2015 Does anyone remember where the expression "Palmer Island" originated from? 2 Link to comment
tv echo April 19, 2015 Share April 19, 2015 (edited) Does anyone remember where the expression "Palmer Island" originated from? I first saw the term "Palmer Island" used in Laura Hurley's review of 3x18 (Public Enemy) that's posted on the previous page of this thread: "Team Arrow did not get to spend a whole lot of time together in “Public Enemy.” With Oliver on the run and Felicity marooned over on Palmer Island, the episode only featured a few scenes of the group together." That entire Hurley review of 3x19 (Broken Arrow) is great and such a good read. Incidentally, if you like her reviews, you should check out her tweets at https://twitter.com/lah9891 . Edited April 19, 2015 by tv echo 1 Link to comment
tv echo April 19, 2015 Share April 19, 2015 (edited) Instead of doing an episode review this week, Erik Kain (Forbes Contributor) wrote an article on what he considers to be Arrow's "biggest problem...at the moment"... Quentin Lance Is Ruining 'Arrow'Erik Kain 4/18/2015 @ 5:00PMhttp://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2015/04/18/quentin-lance-is-ruining-arrow/ This is a television program I’ve really come to love, with a cast of characters I think are really great, but the whole thing is falling apart because of one man: Quentin Lance.* * *But Lance, despite everyone telling him to chill out, is still on Oliver’s trail, raiding the club, searching Thea’s place, making threats. It’s exhausting. It’s not fun or interesting, it’s just exhausting. It’s also not all that realistic, and it mucks up Lance’s character arc. He was dubious of the Arrow’s good intentions, but then Queen stopped killing people, and he saved a bunch of people during Merlyn’s Undertaking, and he saved a bunch more people at the end of Season 2. Nevertheless, Lance is convinced he’s just the worst sort of villain, convinced (against all logic) that all these bad things happened not in spite of the Arrow’s best efforts, but because of them. How stupid can one character be? His grief is not an excuse. If Oliver hadn’t come to Starling City when he did, Malcolm Merlyn would have destroyed the Glades. That, all by itself, should be enough to convince Lance that he’s wrong. But it’s not because the CW apparently feels the need to create stupid, extraneous drama when none is needed.* * *I really feel like the show has dropped the ball in the third season, which is a shame. I still love the characters and I think Oliver is a great serious hero to play off against Ray Palmer’s Atom and Barry Allen’s Flash, but season 4 will need a major shot in the arm to come back to form. Edited April 19, 2015 by tv echo 3 Link to comment
tv echo April 19, 2015 Share April 19, 2015 (edited) Interesting article... ‘Arrow': Too many women in refrigerators (opinion) "Warning: This article contains major spoilers from Arrow season 3, episode 19, 'Broken Arrow.'"Caitlin Kelly 1:55 pm, April 18, 2015http://www.hypable.com/arrow-women-refrigerators-opinion/ Edited April 19, 2015 by tv echo 2 Link to comment
tarotx April 19, 2015 Share April 19, 2015 (edited) The comments are interesting as well-thanks :) Interesting article... ‘Arrow': Too many women in refrigerators (opinion) "Warning: This article contains major spoilers from Arrow season 3, episode 19, 'Broken Arrow.'" Caitlin Kelly 1:55 pm, April 18, 2015 http://www.hypable.com/arrow-women-refrigerators-opinion/ Edited April 19, 2015 by tarotx 1 Link to comment
Angel12d April 19, 2015 Share April 19, 2015 (edited) Instead of doing an episode review this week, Erik Kain (Forbes Contributor) wrote an article on what he considers to be Arrow's "biggest problem...at the moment"... Quentin Lance Is Ruining 'Arrow' Erik Kain 4/18/2015 @ 5:00PM http://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2015/04/18/quentin-lance-is-ruining-arrow/ It's interesting that people forget which character set Quentin on that annoying path though… I agree that he's gone too far and it's incredibly frustrating but if Laurel hadn't lied in the first place, things might be different. So yet again another character is being affected by Laurel's decisions. Sorry, it just annoys me that she's not taken ownership for her role in this mess. If she had one brief line that said "I'm so sorry, I feel like this is my fault" or whatever, it'd be much better. Edited April 19, 2015 by Angel12d 9 Link to comment
tv echo April 19, 2015 Share April 19, 2015 (edited) 3x19 review by Rich Epstein at Bleeding Cool... Flashbacks, Flashbacks, Flashbacks - Recapping Arrow 3.19: "Broken Arrow"By Rich Epstein April 19, 2015http://www.bleedingcool.com/2015/04/19/flashbacks-flashbacks-flashbacks-recapping-arrow-3-19-broken-arrow/ This was kind of a weird episode to me. A lot happened, but none of it was particularly compelling. We were dealing with Quentin’s obsession with Oliver, Roy’s situation in prison, flashbacks and a new villain of the week while also referring to the main plot every now and then and showing glimpses of the growing divide between Ray and Felicity. Deadbolt was just kind of thrown in with little screen time, but to me he seems like a big deal, not just for Arrow but for the whole Arrow/Flash/New Show universe. This was a meta that was not a result of the Star Labs explosion. The first we have seen, and it was kind of a secondary matter. I am hoping that metas on Arrow is the exception and not the rule. It just isn’t that kind of show, and I think it works better when it is more grounded and more personal.* * *Speaking of the flashbacks, it seems like every week now Oliver is learning the same lesson that he supposedly learned five years earlier. It kind of ruins the point of the flashbacks. Right now, we are watching another story. In previous years, we were seeing how Oliver became the Arrow. He would learn things in the flashbacks that would be of use to him in Starling City, rather than just lessons that he needs to repeat. For instance, the flashback would have worked much better if he had learned about relying on himself rather than his equipment, the message that he imparted to Ray. It would tie into the episode, but also show how Oliver has grown and learned from his time in Hong Kong. Meanwhile, the main plot didn’t really go anywhere. Ra’s al Ghul was mentioned a few times, but that was about it. I am still trying to figure out if Merlyn will actually serve a purpose this year. ... How much longer is Ra’s planning on being around? Are the next couple of episodes going to take place in Nanda Parbat with Oliver apprenticing with Ra’s? It really does seem like there is nothing in Starling City for him. Edited April 19, 2015 by tv echo 2 Link to comment
tv echo April 22, 2015 Share April 22, 2015 (edited) Robert Dougherty's editorial in anticipation of tonight's episode - warning! includes spoilery tweets (so if you don't want to know beforehand, wait to read until after 3x20 airs)... Are 'Arrow' & Olicity Truly Headed Towards Redemption?By Robert Dougherty Apr 21, 2015 11:44 AMhttp://www.themovienetwork.com/article/are-arrow-olicity-truly-headed-towards-redemption Edited April 25, 2015 by tv echo Link to comment
Velocity23 April 23, 2015 Share April 23, 2015 Review of The Fallen http://www.denofgeek.us/tv/arrow/245694/arrow-the-fallen-review 1 Link to comment
Velocity23 April 23, 2015 Share April 23, 2015 Another Fallen review http://screencrush.com/arrow-the-fallen-review-olicity-lazarus-spoilers/ Link to comment
wonderwall April 23, 2015 Share April 23, 2015 (edited) Arrow Recap: The Mourning AfterBy Jenny Raftery http://www.vulture.com/2015/04/arrow-recap-season-3-episode-20.html BULL’S-EYE • Oliver’s good-bye to Diggle was beautiful and touching. • Diggle fighting with Oliver on his back and winning that fight. • “There’s not much to toast to up here, is there?” Felicity asks Oliver. “There’s us,” he offers. DEAD. • Felicity and Thea finally interact — yay! Oh, but Thea was crazy and probably won’t remember — boo! • “I have seen enough movies to know that every scary fortress has a secret exit.” —Felicity, trying to convince Dig and Malcolm to escape. • I am onboard with the idea that post-Lazurus Thea could become a big bad like Willow on season six of Buffy. If not in these last episodes, then next season. • The jet scene where Oliver shares that he broke that drug dealer’s neck during his missing five years speaks volume of his trust and feelings for Felicity. He’s rarely spoken of that time to anyone. MISSING THE MARK • Lately, I’ve enjoyed the fast-paced action of the show, but sometimes I wish they would slow down a bit and let some scenes marinate a little longer. Edited April 23, 2015 by wonderwall 5 Link to comment
tv echo April 23, 2015 Share April 23, 2015 (edited) I also like this part from the Vulture review of 3x20... Felicity Smoak could have been so easily bungled. All the TV clichés are there: a wisecracking geeky sidekick; a cute blonde in a short skirt; the girl who pines for her best friend. Yes, Felicity is all of those things, but she is also none of those things. Emily Bett Rickards and the Arrow writers have created a rich, complex character who impressively remains consistent without feeling stagnant. Case in point: Felicity has always been a brave character (stopping the earthquake machine, stabbing Slade Wilson, talking to Moira Queen), but this week, Felicity’s bravery reaches new levels of nerve and chutzpah. And I’m not just talking about straddling Oliver Queen. (Though that is one of my favorite topics of conversation.) Edited April 23, 2015 by tv echo 2 Link to comment
tv echo April 23, 2015 Share April 23, 2015 (edited) Laura Hurley's "deleted scenes" from her 3x19 "Broken Arrow" review... Deleted scenes from “Arrow S03E19: What worked, what didn’t, and what needs to happen next”Laura Hurley Apr 19, 2015http://laurawritesabout.tumblr.com/post/116838745726/deleted-scenes-from-arrow-s03e19-what-worked …The fight sequence between Thea and Ra’s al Ghul was amazing. Ever since the loss of Sara, there’s been an unfortunate dearth of effective female fight scenes. What made Sara’s stunts so effective - other than the fact that Caity Lotz was usually recognizable - was that she was allowed to lose to superior and stronger opponents on a regular basis rather than just when she needed to learn a lesson for a Very Special Episode. Thea going all out against Ra’s and losing - because of course she lost - added a touch of realism and raised the stakes exponentially. She was fighting for her life with everything that she had…and she never stood a chance.* * *... Ray’s assertion that the eight minutes that it would have taken for Oliver to reach the power plant on his motorcycle was time that they didn’t have…didn’t quite work. Honestly, the clunky ATOM suit would have taken that long just to put on. Add in setting up the neural link and teaching Oliver how to control it, and they’re lucky that Felicity’s corpse wasn’t entering rigor by the time that anyone showed up to help her....* * *If “Broken Arrow” could be a backdoor pilot for the Ray Palmer spinoff, “Broken Arrow” could be a backdoor pilot for “Vigilantism 101 with Oliver Queen.” Whether he’s talking about the importance of heart of strength, demonstrating his own awesomeness at fighting, or making sure that his subjects are capable of taking beatings, Oliver could find a way to contribute to the superhero circuit while his hood is in SCPD lockup. Besides, some faces are just meant to be featured in HD. Edited April 23, 2015 by tv echo 1 Link to comment
tv echo April 23, 2015 Share April 23, 2015 (edited) EW review of 3x20 (generally positive, although I hate the repeated references to "fan-service")... 'The Fallen' Arrow Ep. 20 | Aired Apr 22BY CHANCELLOR AGARD Posted April 22 2015 — 11:26 PM EDThttp://www.ew.com/recap/arrow-season-3-episode-20 It’s no wonder Oliver Queen is suffering from an identity crisis. “Broken Arrow,” last week’s episode, was about how there was no more Arrow. Tonight’s wonderful, fan-service filled, tear-jerker of an episode ended with Ra’s al Ghul declaring that Oliver Queen was no more and all that remained was the Arrow. However, not the Arrow Starling City hated, then grew to love, and then hated again. This was someone different: “The Arrow, Ah Sah-Him, Heir to the Demon.” But, before we get there, we must first wade through the many exceptional moments of tonight’s episode—including Arrow taking its big boy steps into the supernatural.* * *Felicity’s storming off takes her to the Lazarus Pit room to give Ra’s al Ghul a piece of her mind. She doesn’t hold back and even threatens to bring war upon the League to get Oliver back. (ASIDE: I wonder if Ra’s made a mental note to unplug every computer in Nanda Parbat, assuming there are some.)....* * *... Sending #Olicity shippers worldwide into a frenzy, Oliver and Felicity have sex for the first time. Once the deed is done, Felicity drugs Oliver and takes command, again, of Team Arrow. Spoiler alert: Badass-in-charge Felicity has no time for Malcolm b.s. She knows he knows a secret passageway out of Nanda Parbat and demands he show it to them....* * *FACT: When Oliver Queen cries, we all cry. Edited April 23, 2015 by tv echo Link to comment
tv echo April 23, 2015 Share April 23, 2015 (edited) Two different types of reviews at CinemaBlend... Arrow Season 3, Episode 20 Watch: The Fallen - Well, That HappenedBY KELLY WEST 2 HOURS AGOhttp://www.cinemablend.com/television/Arrow-Season-3-Episode-20-Watch-Fallen-Happened-71469.html Points to Felicity, not only for refusing to let Oliver go without a fight, but for her willingness to face Ra's al Ghul and essentially threaten him. It may not have done any good in the end, but it was a perfect demonstration of Felicity's bravery, and what makes her such a vital part of Team Arrow. By superhero standards, she has no special abilities, beyond her exceptional tech-savviness, and her ability to drop a well-timed remark, but she stands firm in her beliefs, even in the face of someone as dangerous as Ra's al Ghul. I believe she'd die to protect Oliver if it came to it. (And honestly, I'm kind of afraid it might at some point). Arrow Season 3, Episode 20 Watch: DCU Connections And Easter EggsBY JESSE CARP 7 HOURS AGOhttp://www.cinemablend.com/television/Arrow-Season-3-Episode-20-Watch-DCU-Connections-Easter-Eggs-71472.html Edited April 23, 2015 by tv echo Link to comment
tv echo April 23, 2015 Share April 23, 2015 (edited) ‘Arrow’ Recap: A New Heir to the Demon Rises in ‘The Fallen’Thursday, April 23rd, 2015 at 4:34am PST - by Marc Buxtonhttp://spinoff.comicbookresources.com/2015/04/23/arrow-recap-a-new-heir-to-the-demon-rises-in-the-fallen/ While “The Fallen” is action-packed, with Team Arrow desperately trying to save Oliver and Thea from the League, it’s the episode’s more thoughtful moments that make it something special.* * *Maseo and Diggle are mirror images of each other, two men whose lives have been touched by Oliver Queen; they’re warriors but, more importantly, fathers who will do anything for their children. The only difference is that Maseo has lost his child and the shell of a man he once was now serves Ra’s Al Ghul. Maseo’s meeting with Oliver’s current wingman reminds him of who he used to be. This compels Maseo to help Oliver escape — a noble effort, but one that’s thwarted by Ra’s, and Oliver’s need to keep his extended family safe. Most of this season has focused on the war between Oliver and Ra’s. On the surface, it appeared Oliver didn’t want to join the League for reasons of morality, but this week, it becomes clear he also doesn’t want to leave Starling City and his family — particularly Felicity. She’s the member of Team Arrow most willing to fight for Oliver, the one desperate to keep him out of the League’s clutches, and it’s Felicity who changes most because of this week’s events. Edited April 23, 2015 by tv echo Link to comment
tv echo April 23, 2015 Share April 23, 2015 (edited) JustAboutWrite's review of 3x20 (quite lengthy but excellent analysis, recommend reading the entire thing though I've quoted some of my favorite parts)... Arrow 3x20 "The Fallen" (Come To The Water)http://www.itsjustaboutwrite.com/2015/04/arrow-3x20-fallen-come-to-water.html ... Themes of Arrow -- sacrifice, heroism, identity, etc. -- always seem to come back to one giant symbol: light. Darkness and light are huge components of this series because darkness, by definition, is the absence of light. And directors on this show play with shadows and darkness and colors and scattered rays of light a lot. Why? Because there's a constant dichotomy there -- there's a constant push-and-pull within most of our characters' minds and hearts: they can choose the darkness or they can choose the light. (And then you have names like the Black Canary and symbols like Felicity and a fern that "thrives on low light" and morally depraved character like Malcolm Merlyn and the vibrant red seen throughout Nanda Parbat, shrouded in darkness and low light, etc. etc. as giant, glaring symbols.) Arrow is a show that constantly tackles issues of morality and heroism and whether or not people are too far gone to ever harness light again. ... Arrow is a show about darkness and light and "The Fallen" is just another episode that emphasizes those symbols through its characters and their journeys.* * *The fact that Ray was the one to initiate the break-up (by citing that HE noticed Felicity's feelings for Oliver... say what you want about it being "mutual" but by logical standards, unless Ray had vocalized that fact, Ray and Felicity would still be together -- she wasn't certainly going to bring it up, even if she didn't deny her feelings for Oliver) irks me because it makes RAY the subject of the relationship and Felicity the object that he is doing something/saying something to. The show has built up the Oliver/Felicity of it all as almost this sense of inevitability -- that they would be together. That if they had a choice at all, they would always choose each other. My problem, then, is that when you have Ray talk about Felicity's feelings for Oliver first and how he noticed that she was in love with him, you remove part of Felicity's agency....* * *So that brings us right to "The Fallen," an episode so full of emotion and love that it nearly imploded on itself. First off, Oliver has been emotionally vulnerable with Felicity a lot recently, but never more so than in this episode. He tells her about returning and seeing Thea. But Felicity is also emotionally vulnerable with Oliver in this episode, long before she explains to him that he caused her to open up her heart in ways she didn't think were possible (*swoon*). The last few times Oliver has left (to face Ra's, to go to the island again with Thea), Felicity has watched him walk away. "The Fallen" was the first time she insisted upon going with him and not letting him go alone. He didn't really have a choice in the matter but I thought it was wonderful that Felicity took that journey with him. In fact, I think it's amazing that Felicity did EVERYTHING she did in this episode including -- but not limited to -- barking orders at The Dark Archer, aka The Devil, Malcolm Merlyn. (Who then obeyed like her own personal lapdog. Seriously, Ra's, are you SURE you chose the right person to take over the League of Assassins? Because "The Fallen" made a strong case for Felicity-Heir-to-the-Demon-Smoak.) When Felicity knows what she wants, she's the most fearsome woman to behold....* * *... Felicity tells Oliver what he means to her. And you can see (brilliantly, might I add) the confusion and hesitation across Oliver's face as she holds his hand and says these words. Because he doesn't want to hope. He can't dare to hope again that she'll feel the way he feels about her. Every time he does, a phone rings or a person interrupts. But this time... none of that happens. This time, Felicity tells Oliver more than what she did last week. She tells him that he is a man who has literally saved lives, and figuratively saved hers. She's been changed by him. Her heart -- this broken, fragile thing -- has been changed by him and his love for her. But most important of all, it hasn't been just changed by his love for her but by HER love for HIM. The moment Felicity confesses her love -- actually says the words -- you can literally see Oliver's entire world change (again: kudos to Stephen Amell who understands SO intimately what it means to Oliver to hear those words from her). I think one of my favorite things in the whole Oliver/Felicity sexcapade (and there is a LOT to love, of course) is the moment that Oliver tenderly removes Felicity's glasses. After she tells him that she loves him, he gently removes them and it's such a powerful, poignant, feels-inducing moment for me because this is the moment Oliver has been waiting for -- hoping for and dreaming about (literally, kinda, but definitely figuratively) and in this moment, all he wants to do is to look at her, directly and deeply in her eyes, without anything holding either of them back. He wants to memorize everything about this moment because it's going to be the thing that keeps him holding on -- this memory, this mental snapshot -- when he joins the League. You can just see how clearly Stephen Amell understands Oliver in that moment, how he knows that Oliver wants to just look at her -- this woman, this light, this love of his life -- before anything else happens.* * *... And then, after everyone else, it comes time for Oliver and Felicity to say goodbye. I loved this scene more than the sex scene, to be honest. I loved hearing their score swell in the background (Blake Neely is a genius). I loved that it allowed us to glimpse Oliver and Felicity at their most vulnerable and emotional. They both refuse to say goodbye....* * *Because this girl, this unsuspecting blonde and babbling IT girl, changed Oliver's life forever. It is because of her that he's learned how to hope again. It is because of her -- just the thought of her, happy -- that he can survive hell on earth. As long as the memory of her -- his light, his happiness, his Felicity -- exists, he will be able to stay alive. Felicity doesn't want to lose him. She can't bear to lose him. And the tender promise in "The Fallen" is that she won't. They're not saying goodbye. Not this time.* * *MVP for this episode is far too close to call between these two: Stephen Amell and Emily Bett Rickards. First of all, what a powerhouse duo, let me tell you. Stephen has this amazing ability to lower his voice to a near-whisper... and make everything that comes next feel so heavy and full of pain and emotion. I love Stephen Amell's performance on this show. I think his acting is some of the most consistently underrated on television, period. He can switch from rage to quiet desperation to an emotional breakdown in a few seconds in a scene.... The second MVP is, of course, Emily Bett Rickards. "The Fallen" was a tour de force for her as we had the chance to witness every facet of Felicity's personality. She's stubborn and strong and compassionate and loving and determined and supportive and everything, honestly, that draws people to Felicity Smoak is at play in this episode. Emily has such an unabashed rawness and realness to the portrayal of her character that it invites you in, causes you to feel empathy, and begs you to love her. Emily is extremely honest in her portrayal of Felicity, taking a character that should have literally only been in one scene and turning her into one of the most layered, complex, inviting characters on television. So brava, lady. Brava. Edited April 23, 2015 by tv echo 5 Link to comment
Soulfire April 23, 2015 Share April 23, 2015 (edited) The point is, this definitely isn’t the first time a major ’ship like Olicity has actually come to fruition, but it’s certainly the first time — in my memory, at least — that a pairing that wasn’t initially endgame (I’d say initially that was Laurel and Oliver) overtook the show both due as much to the actors’ chemistry, as fan response. What helps is that this isn’t just simple fan-wanking, it’s a legitimate plot-point that pushes both characters and the over-arching plot of the show forward. And regardless of whether it was fan-generated or not, that’s good drama. http://www.mtv.com/news/2141432/arrow-olicity-the-fallen/ Edited April 23, 2015 by Soulfire 9 Link to comment
tv echo April 23, 2015 Share April 23, 2015 (edited) This review is kinda funny in parts... ‘Arrow’ Recap: Oliver and Felicity, Together at LastRobert Chan April 23, 2015https://www.yahoo.com/tv/arrow-recap-oliver-felicity-sex-117170243320.html Yes, yes, people come back from the dead, and yes, something or other becomes heir to the whatever. Who cares? After three seasons of will they/won’t they, they did in this week’s episode of Arrow, “The Fallen.” Naturally, Oliver and Felicity were immediately torn apart, but for a brief, shining, GIFable moment, things were good.* * *To save you the trouble: Yes, the Internet did blow up.* * *Is there no room on The CW for nerd love? No Ray and Felicity, no Barry and Felicity, no Caitlin and Barry. Our last hope rests with Laurel somehow getting together with Cisco; just think of all the beautiful Canary tech they could make together!* * *At least the League’s insignia — which they brand on Ollie’s back — looks like an arrowhead, so it won’t clash with the rest of his décor. It would’ve been really embarrassing if, years from now at a Justice League meeting, he accidentally revealed a scar shaped like a dolphin or a bat. Edited April 23, 2015 by tv echo Link to comment
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