The Starling City Times: News and Media about Arrow

[lemotomato]

They retconned to make LL a saintly no-kill advocate for story purposes in 501, so it's not surprising they decided to change their minds about how skilled she actually was to emphasize the plot of 502, with Oliver being afraid the the boobs noobs were inexperienced and would get themselves killed.

[kes0704]

The LL of S5 has the same problem the writers had with her in S1-S4.  Her characterisation changes based on the needs of plot. Every character on the show has had their OOC moments but it's hard to know what was OOC and what was in character for Laurel because of the inconsistencies.

[looptab]

While I'm all for criticizing how the writers handled/handle Laurel, this time I can kinda see their point. Oliver last season thought Laurel could take care of herself. And then she died. Since he now is blaming himself for her death, I can see him thinking that it wouldn't have happened if she had had more training, if she had trained as much as he did, or if he hadn't allowed her to be on the Team without it - even if the way she died had very little to do with training - I could understand this more if she had died when she jumped out of a window onto a helicopter's ladder in her very first outing. Anyway, it doesn't seem that far fetched that now Oliver is reluctant to let other people in the Team because of that. Not very rational, but maybe that's the explanation he gave himself - he had no reason to blame himself so he had to find one.

[EmilyBettFan]

But during those flash forwards at the grave he said it's not his fault, it's his responsibility. He doesn't blame himself and he shouldn't IMO. Laurel was a really low trained "fighter." That had nothing to do with Oliver because he was under the impression she was being trained.

[looptab]

Yeah, but they have retconned that this season. He blames himself now.  And thinking he should have known better than to allow her on the Team with so little training, that he shouldn't have considered her training enough seems a good reason to blame oneself. Even if it makes no sense with how she actually died.

[CabotCove]

Quote

This show reinvents its past every episode. 

?

[tv echo]

‘Arrow’ Review: “The Recruits”
Nora Dominick  Oct. 14, 2016
http://emertainmentmonthly.com/index.php/arrow-review-recruits/

Quote

... After last season’s missteps, Arrow has landed firmly on its feet and proves why it’s the superhero show that started it all.
*  *  *
Out of the entire new Team Arrow, Gonzalez makes the biggest impression. Rene “Wild Dog” Ramirez is changing things up in a positive way. He’s one of few characters that isn’t afraid to go toe-to-toe with Oliver. While Felicity often speaks her mind, Rene reminds us of a younger version of Oliver. He’s very obstinate and will do anything to help Star City, much like Oliver. Gonzalez brings his A-game to the role of Wild Dog and it’ll be interesting to see him develop the character as the season continues. We are most excited to see his relationship with Oliver expand. Gonzalez is a brand-new, bright spot within a solid episode of Arrow.
*  *  *
She’s back and better than ever! Felicity is back slinging jokes and it is honestly the best part of Arrow this week. Rickards proves just how far she has come in five seasons. If anyone was wondering who the leading female of Arrow was going in, they have been silenced. She is equally as involved in training Team Arrow as Oliver and that’s just the tip of her story this week. Felicity is back cracking her classic one lines, thus allowing Rickards to flourish in her sweet spot. A spot where Felicity has equal parts humor and heart. Rickards remains the comedic voice on Arrow and it shows this week. From “I only wear a mask once a year and that’s if my halloween costume calls for it” to her dead pan, “At least he’s not shooting them,” Felicity is the true MVP.
*  *  *
While we’re excited for Felicity to separate herself from Oliver’s storylines, it’s nice to see the duo working together this week. Rickards and Amell further prove why they have carried Arrow on their backs for so long. Their chemistry is electric especially towards the end of the episode. Felicity has always been the voice of reason, this is even apparent in The Flash, but her pep talks with Oliver always have a certain edge. When Oliver begins to doubt training Team Arrow 2.0, she tells him, “When I got to know you, the real you, I was in awe. I had never met somebody so passionate, so focused, and determined to make a real difference.” Rickards and Amell have natural chemistry and it shows in this scene. They thrive in the quiet moments where it’s just the two of them. These are the sides of Oliver and Felicity we fell in love with and we’ve missed them.
*  *  *
The only storyline that falls flat this week is Diggle’s storyline. ... It seems like Arrow is moving Diggle’s storyline faster so he can return to Star City quicker. It felt strange that Diggle’s entire military career implodes within one episode.

Edited October 15, 2016 by tv echo

[tv echo]

Includes review of Arrow 502...

Agents of GEEK Podcast Episode 47
Craig Wack & Tatiana Torres  10/14/2016
http://agentsofgeekpodcast.com/wordpress/

-- Craig said that Arrow "is doing its best to get back into our good graces after, like, two seasons of magic and gloominess and a lot of crying." He thought that these first two episodes were "very reminiscent of the way the first three seasons of Arrow were and really what got you hooked on the show in the first place." Tatiana really enjoyed Arrow "a ton this week" (esp. compared to Flash and LoT). She thought a couple things still felt "a little off but they were good for the story" and she also thought the flashbacks were "a little too on the nose now." You would see the thing in flashback and then immediately see the same thing in present day. In past seasons, you wouldn't see the payoff until the end of the episode or after the commercial break. But the flashbacks were still better than last year when we didn't know "why they were going to the f**king island." They both enjoyed the episode and found it entertaining, despite not moving the plot forward much.

-- Craig and Tatiana noted some unintended similarities between Agents of SHIELD and Arrow, almost like they were copying off each other (like a strobe fight scene and a new mystical person who's avenging a past family member).

-- Tatiana said to "stop mentioning Laurel so much!"  Craig added: "Yeah, the whole 'do it for Laurel' thing is just not good." Tatiana joked: "'Go look at the statue of Laurel Lance!'... 'No! Because it looks like a block of cheese.' Go away."  Craig: "Nobody needs to see that statue."

-- Craig said that he's a "huge fan" of the storyline of Oliver trying to split his duties between being Mayor and being Green Arrow. Craig thought that after Oliver lost the company and had nothing to do other than be the vigilante, he became a less interesting character. Now having to balance that public face as well as being the Green Arrow "adds a little more depth to Oliver's character" and "makes it more real."  Tatiana added: "I like when he has to do that because he has more layers that way. But it's like what Felicity said, like, the thing that makes him special is not when he's just trying to be Arrow, it's when he does have to marry those two parts of his personality. Um, and I think that's one of the reasons I really liked this episode is because she's - Felicity's always been the person that pushed him. But at the same time, she would sometimes cower back and not be fully honest. And I feel like in this episode, she's like, well, 'Paugh! Stop it!' Like, 'No, you're not the only one in charge anymore and, heads up, I stayed.' Like, 'I'm still part of this team, I didn't leave you, you don't have to be a sad sack, you're not all by yourself, you do have to form a new team, and you can't just be like gloomer guy.' And it was just like really beautiful." Tatiana noted that this came about in the middle of the episode when Oliver was talking to Felicity about Bratva.  When Felicity said that he never talked about Russia before, Craig pointed out that that was because Oliver "can only remember his past in 90-second bursts in chronological order."

-- Tatiana said that, although she's an Olicity shipper, "they don't have to be together for the show to work" because Oliver & Felicity weren't together and the episode still worked. However, "it made seeing her with the new boyfriend that much harder, to see how still how deep their connection is, you know?" She added: "Obviously they have to get back together at some point, whether it be at the end of the season or the middle of the season or like at the end of the show... They have to get back together or else millions of people will riot, including myself. And Berlanti knows that... I think what's important with the way their relationship is now is that, even when they were 'happy' for like a minute at the beginning of season 4, I feel like they were both lying to each other in certain ways. Like, Ollie was pretending like he really liked suburbia and cooking and, like, that that could be enough for him when obviously it wasn't. And the same thing when she was lying too because it wasn't enough for her either. And then you had the lying with the son and you had this, and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. But now I feel that, because they've had the relationship, they've broken up, and now they've seemed to at least get back on the same ground with their vigilante-friendship-relationship bond, blah, blah, blah - that maybe when they do get back together, we won't have to deal with that same stupid drama that ended up coming up in season 4, because they're already more comfortable, with, like, him being more truthful and vulnerable, and with her calling him out and forcing him to talk about stuff, you know?"  

-- Craig: "This show is stronger when Felicity is stronger... For whatever reason, whenever they make her a weepy basket case, which they did for large chunks of the back half of last season, the show definitely does suffer for it... She is the heart of both this show and of Team Arrow. And so when she is weakened and isn't, you know, 'herself' - I don't think she necessarily has to be - I think the problem is that, you know, when they sort of make Felicity not at her best, there's no, like, middle ground. There's no, like, her just kinda in the dumps - like, she goes from being hyper-competent to almost worthless. And there's no, like, her just being a little off.  And so, when she's strong and she's competent, I think that that is the best way that Felicity is written and that Emily Bett Rickards performs it... I think the show really does suffer when, you know, Felicity is sort of more dependent than independent." Tatiana noted that Felicity was kinda shown to be in the middle ground when she was paralyzed because she was weaker but she was still strong and independent in running Palmer Tech and working with Curtis to think of new things; however, they "leaned into the negative part at the tail end of last season." Tatiana: "But I definitely think she's back to being - calling people out. And she's basically the backbone of that team. It's not Ollie right now. Like, yes, Ollie is technically the leader. But she's definitely the leader because she's putting the new kids in check and Ollie in check and making sure that everything actually kind of f**king functions." Craig noted that that was the role Felicity had in the past, that she was the one "who kept the family together in a lot of ways."

-- Tatiana liked that Thea is more of her own character this season and not tied to Malcolm. They also both liked her developing father-daughter dynamic with Quentin Lance.

-- Tatiana was very concerned about Diggle and how he's going to be rescued. They both wondered if Lyla still existed, since Barry wiped out Diggle's daughter. Tatiana: "Listen. Bartholomew. If you took away Lyla, I will cut you... She is too cool for you."

-- Craig concluded that 502 was a good episode: the fight scenes were still good, the way the new team was "maneuvered in" was done in a way that he didn't hate them, and "Arrow feels like Arrow again."

(They then went on to review the Flash episode.  Craig has decided to treat Barry like a villain going forward. I didn't listen to their entire Flash review, but I did catch their comments on Tom Felton. Craig: "And then CSI Draco Malfoy is now Barry's partner." Tatiana: "Obviously, Slytherin are never going to get along with Hufflepuff... And if anybody thinks Barry isn't Gryffindor, you have never read Harry Potter.")

[Morrigan2575]

She's right, never thought of it before but Barry is Hufflepuff.

[statsgirl]

From the social media thread

15 hours ago, Delphi said:

http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/us_580040e7e4b0f42ad3d25ec1

I put this here, cause Caity was once a recurring player.   I thought it was a nice, though short read. 

I was struck by this:

Quote

 Not only do those fans who have once felt left out now feel reached and included, Lotz has reached a wide audience of dedicated followers who have grown to consider her one of the greatest queens of fandom television. Extremely admired for her talent and charm, the actress has grown to an iconic stature that is easily becoming as legendary as the likes of Sarah Michelle Gellar from Buffy The Vampire Slayer, and Lucy Lawless on Xena: Warrior Princess, easily making this exciting star also a strong role model for women everywhere. A diverse talent with many different specialties, Lotz is well-trained not only in acting, but also in dance and martial arts, definitely making her one to watch out for in a big way.

-----

When I spoke with Katrina Law, who recurs as Nyssa al Ghul on both “Arrow” and “Legends Of Tomorrow,” she spoke about the importance of representation of women in the superhero genre and how both these shows beautifully do that. Would you like to touch on that a bit? How does it feel to know you are making such an impact for little girls?

I can only hope that it does. I play the role, and if people say that it makes them feel stronger, that is so great. I know when I watched Star Wars: The Force Awakens I was really impressed. When I was growing up, the roles put forth for us to admire was the princess, or maybe Jeannie in I Dream Of Jeannie, and she’s sort of chained up! [Chuckles] And granted, she’s still an awesome character, but you get the idea. And now, here’s this girl that comes along and she’s the Jedi! As a little girl now you get to grow up thinking you can also be the Jedi. That’s pretty cool. So, I’m hoping that the same way that I felt when I watched Star Wars is the way that I can inspire other women and little girls to feel empowered. That would be amazing.

And of course, one community that is tremendously under-represented in the superhero community is the LGBTQ community, and your character has now helped give a voice to that fan-base. Can you touch on that?

That’s actually what I think is one of my favorite things about this character. I truly feel honored to be embraced by the LGBTQ community and to be able to be a positive representation, and help kids out there watch and think; “Wow, that person out there on TV is just like me! It’s okay! It’s normal.” And also inspire them to know that they can be heroes as well. And it’s also great to help introduce these characters to people who might not be used to seeing LGBTQ characters on television, and let them grow to love these characters and know they are just like everyone else. That for me has been really one of the greatest parts of all this. I didn’t know that it would turn into my favorite part, but just seeing how much it meant to people, that has definitely become my favorite thing about playing this character.

I know it's been said before but Arrow got exactly what it wanted, a strong, iconic female character to pull in the girls the way the Green Arrow and other masks pulls in the boys.  It just happened to be not with Laurel Lance but with Sara.

[romantic idiot]

11 minutes ago, statsgirl said:

Extremely admired for her talent and charm, the actress has grown to an iconic stature that is easily becoming as legendary as the likes of Sarah Michelle Gellar from Buffy The Vampire Slayer, and Lucy Lawless on Xena: Warrior Princess, easily making this exciting star also a strong role model for women everywhere.

Heh. She is great and all, and Sara is great and all, but nope. 

[scarynikki12]

42 minutes ago, Morrigan2575 said:

She's right, never thought of it before but Barry is Hufflepuff.

NO.  Hufflepuffs are awesome (if overlooked) and Barry isn't anywhere near as cool as that.  Barry's the guy who was rejected by Hogwarts.

[bijoux]

4 hours ago, tv echo said:

Includes review of Arrow 502...

Agents of GEEK Podcast Episode 47
Craig Wack & Tatiana Torres  10/14/2016
http://agentsofgeekpodcast.com/wordpress/

...For whatever reason, whenever they make her a weepy basket case, which they did for large chunks of the back half of last season, the show definitely does suffer for it...

I'm a bit perplexed as to what season they're talking about here. I mean, she cried when Laurel died and there were tears in her eyes after the funeral, but that's all I can think of now.

[Chaser]

I've stopped trying to understand some peoples perceptions. It's pointless.  [Mod note: It's also not an appropriate topic for discussion here. PLEASE STOP, Y'ALL.]

Edited October 18, 2016 by MuuMuuChainsmoker

[Morrigan2575]

3 hours ago, scarynikki12 said:

NO.  Hufflepuffs are awesome (if overlooked) and Barry isn't anywhere near as cool as that.  Barry's the guy who was rejected by Hogwarts.

I give, i give. I will never insult Hufflepuff again by including Barry Allen.  LOL

[Delphi]

2 hours ago, bijoux said:

I'm a bit perplexed as to what season they're talking about here. I mean, she cried when Laurel died and there were tears in her eyes after the funeral, but that's all I can think of now.

I honestly think they probably meant season 3, which if so then fair point. 

[Carrie Ann]

I think she also cried in the hospital in 410 (how dare she), probably in 411 (can't recall), there were tears in her eyes during the breakups in both 415 and 416, there might have been something in the later episodes related to her dad or the bombs? I don't remember. The teary stuff was definitely more of an issue in S3, but since that happened, [Edited by mod: fan talk.]

Edited October 18, 2016 by MuuMuuChainsmoker

[catrox14]

Edited by mod: Talking about fan reaction is fan talk. 

Edited October 18, 2016 by MuuMuuChainsmoker

[Morrigan2575]

Only if they're female.

[Princess Vanellope]

Edited by mod: Talking about fan reaction is fan talk. 

Edited October 18, 2016 by MuuMuuChainsmoker

[catrox14]

Edited by mod: Talking about fan reaction is fan talk. 

Edited October 18, 2016 by MuuMuuChainsmoker

[calliope1975]

The character was reacting to the story being told, so what they really have a problem with is the story line. When Felicity found out Oliver decided to chill with Ra's or when he was skewered on a mountain top, should she have been all - eh, no big deal, lemme get a latte. 

Edited October 16, 2016 by calliope1975

[EmilyBettFan]

Yeah Barry has probably cried in almost every episode. I don't see nobody calling that out in the press.

[tv echo]

UPDATE: I have deleted the Observer reviews and removed Observer from my media list (because I found out who owns Observer.com).

Edited October 18, 2016 by tv echo

[BkWurm1]

Quote

I think what's important with the way their relationship is now is that, even when they were 'happy' for like a minute at the beginning of season 4, I feel like they were both lying to each other in certain ways. Like, Ollie was pretending like he really liked suburbia and cooking and, like, that that could be enough for him when obviously it wasn't.

I honestly didn't get that he was lying about that, lol.  It's kind of hilarious the denial that remains.   

Edited October 17, 2016 by BkWurm1

[calliope1975]

12 minutes ago, BkWurm1 said:

I honestly didn't get that he was lying about that, lol.  It's kind of hilarious the denial that remains.   

If so, SA never played it that way. If he hadn't been summoned back, Oliver would have been married, hosting neighborhood BBQ's, probably chaperoning school field trips even though he didn't have any kids, etc. 

[lemotomato]

And the proud author of the "Slowcooker Gourmet Meals" cookbook series.

[Morrigan2575]

16 hours ago, BkWurm1 said:

I honestly didn't get that he was lying about that, lol.  It's kind of hilarious the denial that remains.   

That completely defies show canon. Oliver was HAPPY in suburbia, Felicity was the one that was unhappy and missed the action. FFS!

Edited October 17, 2016 by Morrigan2575

[looptab]

Edited by mod: indirect fan talk. 

Edited October 18, 2016 by MuuMuuChainsmoker

[lemotomato]

[Edited by mod: Talking about how wrong a reviewer's position is is basically fan talk.  Please be more careful.]  [Felcity] accomplished more on her own than she did in any other season. The show had her successfully hacking into ARGUS  while she was hallucinating and still recovering from being paralyzed, FFS. [Edited by mod.]

Edited October 18, 2016 by MuuMuuChainsmoker

[looptab]

Haha, yeah, you're right. I should have written "confusion", since I meant it sarcastically. :)

[EmilyBettFan]

Edited by mod:  This was fan talk which is completely not ok. 

Edited October 18, 2016 by MuuMuuChainsmoker

[Primal Slayer]

[looptab]

12 hours ago, looptab said:

Edited by mod: indirect fan talk. 

Not really, since I was talking about reviewers. I thought discussing reviewers was ok?

[statsgirl]

I don't think this has been posted yet.  I review of the Flarrowverse shows with a focus on the female characters (of course).  The focus is on Sara but Felicity gets a few nice words.

.  Superqueero Round Up Recap

[Sunshine]

Not sure if this is the appropriate place but what is the purpose of TNT only having certain episodes available to watch?  I thought syndication meant it would run from the pilot to 4.23.  I just saw someone say it went from Taken back to the Pilot.  I checked TNT's schedule and it does go from 4.15 Taken back to the pilot. 

[Morrigan2575]

That does sound odd. I thought it would go through 423. 415 doesn't even get them to.magic #88.

[Sunshine]

2.11 & 2.12 are airing back to back Saturday at 11:30pm.  This is a serialized show.  It doesn't make sense to me that anyone would watch it for long if they don't know what's going on.  Did they expand the "Previously on" segments?

[JenMD]

I'm pretty sure I've seen the end of season 4 on the schedule, at least.  I'm not taping those, so no idea if they actually aired at some point.  The TNT schedule has been a guessing game, it's basically a total mess.  I've had episodes set to tape that turned into other episodes.  I had one episode that was actually Law & Order but the dvr still had the description as Arrow.  The schedule is not only being run out of order but changing as it goes.  They'll skip a couple of eps, go to a totally different season and then go back to the couple of eps they skipped.  Oh, then let's air a couple of season 1 eps just for the heck of it, but those won't be in order, either.  It's been incredibly frustrating trying to catch certain eps.  I pity anybody new who decided to check the show out.  And it's been on, what, not quite 3 weeks and they're already through the 4th season and that's including popping in random earlier season eps. 

[catrox14]

They do that with Supernatural at times. They will air  blocks of episodes that had a theme or something despite SPN being heavily serialized.

If Arrow is airing 3 episodes a day they can go through nearly a full season in one week.  They can cycle through 2 or 3 seasons pretty fast that way. Maybe they only have the rights to 4.15 to this point in time. I dunno. Just a thought. 

[ohjoy]

They might also be going through the series at different speeds depending on the time of day. The episodes that start at midnight on day are going in order from a different starting point than the episodes that run from 2pm to 5pm on most afternoons, and those are also different from the episodes that start at 2am some late nights/early mornings. Tuesday seems to be its own special block; the run those episodes completely separately from what they air on Monday or Wednesday, and sometimes the Tuesday block ends at 8pm, while other times (like today) it seems to go well past midnight. (These are all EDT, btw.) I don't know if the assumption is that people watching at midnight won't be able to continue following the next day at 2pm, or that people who make time for Arrow all through Tuesday evening are not the same people who make time during the afternoon Wed. through Fri.

AKA, a mess.

[Morrigan2575]

I agree, it's a total mess.

[JenMD]

I'm going to continue this in the Ratings thread.

[tv echo]

‘Arrow: Oliver Queen’s Dossier’ book review: A visual treat for ‘Arrow’ fans
11:00 AM EDT, OCTOBER 18, 2016
http://www.hypable.com/arrow-oliver-queens-dossier-book-review/

[lemotomato]

Not really spoilery:

‘Arrow’ EP Teases Fallout From Felicity’s Havenrock Decision

Quote

Executive producer Marc Guggenheim admitted he was surprised by some of the fan reaction to Felicity Smoak (Emily Bett Rickards) redirecting a missile, sent by Damien Darhk (Neal McDonough), from the densely populated Monument Point to a nearby town called Havenrock.

“A lot of times, you write something and do a storyline and it has, not the opposite, but a very different reaction than the one you expected,” the EP admitted to reporters following a screening of this Wednesday’s “Arrow” episode. “We were all taken aback, not in a bad way, but just surprised, that there was so much outrage over Felicity’s actions in [episode] 421. That people were upset at Felicity somehow, for saving Monument Point, at the expense of Havenrock.”

If I had a nickle every time MG is "surprised" at how the audience reacts to a plot point...

Edited October 19, 2016 by lemotomato

[Morrigan2575]

I'm shocked people thought forcing a lesbian character to marry our male hero and, the implied threat of rape was viewed negatively.

All joking aside, I can't say I was surprised but, certainly saddened by the reaction to Havenrock.

Edited October 19, 2016 by Morrigan2575

[Carrie Ann]

Good Lord, I cannot stand him. Why weren't you taken aback "in a bad way?" Why don't you point out the obvious--that that "outrage" is ridiculous, given that the character chose the only possible harm-reduction option available? I mean, go ahead and take the blame for not presenting that explicitly enough--apparently, for some people--but don't act like that's a reasonable interpretation of the text. JFC.

ETA: Just read his full comments in the spoiler thread, and he actually made it worse.

Edited October 19, 2016 by Carrie Ann

[catrox14]

This is really cute.

 

[tv echo]

Arrow S5: E3 – 'A Matter of Trust'
By Robert Dougherty October 20, 2016 09:29AM EDT
http://www.themovienetwork.com/review/arrow-s5-e3-matter-trust

Quote

Renee clearly has the more set in stone lethal methods on the new team, as he even seems to take out the target early. But with 40 minutes still left in the episode, and with guest star and Stephen Amell's frequent WWE opponent Cody Rhodes not having fought Oliver to that point, Sampson just has to emerge as the superhuman Stardust. So in a season that’s supposed to be more grounded and a step back from magic and metas, we have a man with super powerful rags and a superman who can’t feel pain within the first three episodes.
*  *  *
Marc Guggenheim painted a sad picture in an interview before A Matter of Trust, saying they were "taken aback" that "there was so much outrage over Felicity’s actions" about Havenrock, and that they decided to have fun in articulating "the anti-Felicity point of the view and the pro-Felicity point of view" through Ragman. Since there was no good reason in the slightest to have Felicity destroy Havenrock in the first place, just like there was no legitimate reason to do everything else they did to her in Season 4B, the real reason to be taken aback is that these fans apparently can't see well enough to blame the writers and Guggenheim for all of it instead of Felicity. As such, people like that probably shouldn't be taken that seriously, and yet here we are.

These are the same people who will likely say Felicity is getting what she deserves, is the world's biggest hypocrite or both when Curtis tells her keeping secrets doesn't work. They'll probably likely crow over Felicity being the one advising Evelyn not to date other vigilantes too, whether over Olicity or over her still secret boyfriend. Even if Guggenheim and company are making it easier for the anti-Felicity people to have a voice only to shoot them down later, it still doesn't erase that they never needed to give them all these excuses to fuel their voice, and that they are now bogged down cleaning up that mess with Havenrock and more if they are even cleaning it up at all.
*  *  *
Out of all the new actors, it is telling that only Josh Segarra is credited among the main cast. He makes his debut this week as new DA and Mayor Queen's potential ally/thorn Adrien Chase, ....
*  *  *
The notion that Deadshot could be revived over all the other Squad related Arrow characters cleared out before the movie, like Amanda Waller, is worth questioning for a while. Yet it turns out they find a way around that, as Felicity isn't the only OTA member spiraling even further over a murder they committed in late Season 4B. Diggle is now going full blown Oliver as a result, right down to shutting Lyla out and insisting on punishment for his sins, which demands an episode-long wake-up call and mission next week.

That will likely set off more fireworks than A Matter of Time did this week, as it loses itself in a theme restated 20 more times than necessary, in trying to get out of some of its own self-inflicted wounds, in twisting a few characters for the sake of plot, and in killing time as a set up for bigger things. There are some fireworks in Amell and Rhodes’s brawls, although wrapping the action up with a slow-mo “walk away from explosions” shot is fairly cheesy.

Edited October 22, 2016 by tv echo

[tv echo]

Arrow Review: Ollie and the No-Good, Very Bad Day
BY CRAIG WACK · OCTOBER 20, 2016
http://oohlo.com/2016/10/20/arrow-review-ollie-and-the-no-good-very-bad-day/

Quote

If last week’s episode wasn’t enough to convince you, this week’s Arrow is back to reinforce the point that Oliver Queen has trust issues and those issues often get him into trouble.
*  *  *
It’s all a road we’ve been down many times before, and it doesn’t matter. Between all the little meta winks, tight action, and Felicity and Diggle doing the dramatic heavy lifting on the episode, the formula works. Much like with the boxing glove arrow from a couple of seasons ago, seeing Curtis in the Mr. Terrific “FAIR PLAY” jacket and T mask forgives a lot of sins.
*  *  *
It’s not easy for a show of any genre to feel like it still has potential as it closes in on its 100th episode. Thanks to an overhaul of cast and characters, Arrow is far from just playing out the string.