The Flash Episode Guide: Season 9, Episode 9 - It's My Party and I'll Die If I Want To

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.

Plot

Barry's birthday party is ruined by the return of Bloodwork, who has plans beyond taking over the world involving Kid Flash and the multiverse. In order to save his friends and all reality, Barry Allen will have to turn to someone else... who has become something else.

Influences

Zero Hour (Bloodwork's plan to "fix" the Multiverse mirrors Parallax's mad plan.) and the previous annual The Flash/Arrow crossovers.


Goofs

Cecile says that Barry's first 30th birthday took place while the team was fighting Cicada all night. This is likely a reference to the events of 516. However, that episode took place on March 12, 2019 when Barry's birthday is March 14. (Possibly his party was planned for that night.)

This episode takes place on March 14, 2023. This means that it must occur before the last three episodes chronologically. However, that doesn't fit the timeline of the previous episodes, with Allegra telling Chester she loves him, which first occurred in 908 on April 5, 2023.

Bloodwork says he just escaped from prison, However, his escape came during the 2022 Earth-Prime comic series, meaning that he should have been on the run for at least two and a half months. 

Performances

Stephen Amell slips easily into the role of Oliver Queen one more time, but with a little more humor given the knowledge he has now as The Spectre.


Artistry

The special effects are fairly solid this time around.

Flash Facts

The title is a pun based on a lyric from the Lesley Gore song "It's My Party."

This episode continues the tradition of the annual Arrow/The Flash crossover taking place on the 9th episode of the season.

The episode features a special title card, in the middle of the episode.

This episode was directed by Danielle Panabaker, who plays Khione.

This episode marks the first time Barry's birthday party has been celebrated on-screen.

This is the first episode in which David Singh and Kristen Kramer have appeared together, despite Kramer serving directly under Chief Singh.

Barry makes reference to "the Hall" as a place to display Oliver Queen's bow. This seems to be a nod to the Hall of Justice which was established (without being named) at the end of Crisis on Infinite Earths.

Chester exclaims "Holy Duane Jones!" when encountering the Bloodwork zombies. This is a nod to actor Duane Jones, who played the lead role of Ben in the original Night of the Living Dead.

Oliver tells Diggle that his brightest days are ahead of him. This is a nod to the Green Lantern oath.


Technobabble

Wally recommends a drink made of dried sendru and honey to help Iris fight morning sickness.

The necklace Chester made Allegra contains a facial transmogrifier.

To stop Bloodwork's powers from metastasizing inside a breach. a massive ultraviolet pulse is required.


Dialogue Triumphs

(After Wally refuses to work with Bloodwork.)
Bloodwork: I understand your hesitation. No one has ever really believed in you, have they? You have been cut down your entire life, forced to watch your mother suffer. It is a pain that I know all too well. My mother was diagnosed with HLH, and I couldn't save her either, Wally. I had to watch her die. And we have that in common. Then you understand what it is that I'm trying to do... That it's about more than just stopping death. It is about ending the suffering that we have both endured, that, together, we can create a Multiverse where no one has to watch their loved ones die...

Ollie Queen: Oh, Barry, Barry, Barry... what have you done this time?

(Wally hugs Ollie, who, for once, returns it.)
Ollie: Okay. Let go. Barry, let go.
Barry: Wait. If you're here, that means I'm really...
Ollie: You're dead. Otherwise, why would I let you hug me that long?

Barry: But when we fought the Red Death, she thought she escaped from her timeline into an alternate one -
Ollie: She is from Earth-4125. 

Barry: You're numbering them?
Ollie: I've had a bit of time on my hands...

Barry: I fight some random mad scientist. I get three extra years to live. You know everything now, right, Oliver? Tell me, how is it right I'm alive and they're dead? How's that fair?
Ollie: Life is a lot of things, Barry. Fair isn't on the list. 

Barry: I don't know what my life would have been like if I hadn't taken that train to Star City.
Ollie: You still would have been a hero.
Barry: Maybe. But you made me a better one.
Ollie: You made me a better man. 

(Ollie gets ready to leave the bar.)
Ollie: Okay, Mr. Allen, I think that I have done enough to upset the cosmic order for one night. Can you get this?
Barry: Are you kidding? You're a billionaire.
Ollie: Well, you... you can't take it with you. 


Continuity

As the episode opens, Team Flash is preparing a surprise birthday party for Barry Allen.

Cecile says that the first time Barry turned 30, the team was too busy fighting Cicada to celebrate.

Chester says that Barry is physically 30 years old, referring to his battle with Dr. Orloff in 816 and how it deaged Barry a few years.

Chester is in charge of the entertainment for the party, Allegra and Cecile took care of the decorations, and Khione is said to be out getting the cake.

The party attendees include Cecile, Chester, Allegra, Kristin Kramer, David Singh, Joe West, Wally West and John Diggle.

John Diggle appears for the first time since 818.

Wally West appears for the first time since 614.

Kristin Kramer and David Singh argue over who is the better Captain.

Diggle gives Barry Oliver Queen's bow, which ARGUS recovered from National City. Somehow, it wound up there after being presumed lost on Earth-38.

It has been three years since Oliver Queen died saving the multiverse.

Diggle makes reference to Caitlin's apparent death.

Barry tries to refuse it, but suggests maybe they could display the bow in "The Hall."

Chester makes Allegra a necklace that should hide her face whenever she is using her powers for their one-month anniversary. 

Wally is still studying with Bhikkhuni Amala in the Himalayas.

Wally tells Barry that after Iris told him about the Red Death, he began projecting his consciousness into the Speed Force to explore alternate timelines, hoping to find another version of himself who already found enlightenment whom he could learn from.

Wally says there's baggage he needs to get past, but doesn't talk about it more when Barry asks what his issue is.

Bloodwork was last seen in 617. However, his escape from ARGUS custody occurred during the Earth Prime crossover comic event.

Bloodwork is revealed to have put his blood into the champagne and cider for Barry's birthday toast.  Everyone except Chester (who doesn't drink), Iris (who shares Nora's healing factor) and Barry and Wally (whose powers protect them) are infected. 

Bloodwork reveals that his plan this time is to target Wally and break his mind through their connection then use his powers to travel the multiverse and spread his tainted blood around multiple Earths.

Bloodwork sees that the real reason Wally was exploring the alternate timelines was to try and find somewhere his ex-girlfriend, Jesse Quick, was still alive.

Chester flees to his lab and barricades himself inside.

Iris is able to lock herself inside the Time Vault, but is slowly losing control of herself.

Bloodwork gets Wally to kill Barry by vibrating his hand through his chest.

Barry wakes up in Purgatory (which looks like Lian Yu island) and is greeted by Oliver Queen.

Oliver Queen appears for the first time since A810.

Oliver confirms that he created Earth-Prime so that all his allies would have a single Earth to protect together. He also created the new Multiverse.

Red Death is confirmed to be from Earth-4125 rather than an alternate timeline.

Oliver explains that rather than traveling to alternate timelines, Wally has been traveling to parallel Earths in the new multiverse.

Khione saves Chester by freezing the water inside the bodies of Team Flash.

Khione says she felt a presence calling her, telling her she was needed back at STAR Labs, while she was waiting in line for the cake. This presence is later revealed to be Oliver Queen.

Oliver explains that he can only step in as The Spectre when the multiverse is endangered. This retroactively explains how he was able to help XS and Impulse fight Magog in the Earth Prime comic.

Oliver resurrects Barry and manifests, temporarily as Green Arrow one more time.

Khione is only able to safely thaw out John Diggle after removing Bloodwork's blood from his system.

John Diggle joins the fight against Bloodwork.

Barry is able to reach Wally and help him fight Bloodwork's control.

Oliver shoots an cosmic arrow into the breach, rewriting reality so that Bloodwork loses his powers. He also heals Bloodwork's HLH so he can live a long life in prison.

Barry and Team Flash learn that a new multiverse exists.

Ollie reveals that Khione's powers come from a connection to the natural world, which allowed her to expel Bloodwork's unnatural cells from the rest of the team.

Wally decides to stop exploring the multiverse and look for the answers he seeks within.

Ollie gets a chance to stay goodbye to John Diggle that he didn't during the Crisis.

Ollie confirms that he is keeping an eye on Felicity, Mia and William, but that part of the rules of his being The Spectre are that he can't make contact with his family. He was, however, able to bend the rules for Diggle since he was there at the crisis point.

Diggle confirms he is watching over Ollie's family too, telling him that William has started college and Mia can already climb a salmon ladder scaled to her height.

Oliver confirms that there are Flashes on the other Earths, but Barry is still his favorite.

Ollie and Barry have their traditional post-team-up drink before Ollie disappears.


Location

Purgatory
O'Shaughnessy's Bar in Keystone City

Untelevised Adventures

Oliver Queen has been defending reality as The Spectre ever since Crisis on Infinite Earths.

The Bottom Line

Easily the best episode of this short season so far. Ignoring the lore involving the larger Arrowverse setting and all the nods to past episodes, Bloodwork is allowed to be far smarter than any villain in recent memory. This was a flashback to better days, no pun intended, and it is a shame that more of Season 9 couldn't be like this.

Arrow Episode Guide: Season 6, Episode 20 - Shifting Allegiances

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.



Plot

Oliver turns to an unexpected old friend for help in dealing with Diaz. Meanwhile, Rene leaves the hospital but has trouble readjusting to life as Wild Dog and Quentin discovers the true nature of Black Siren's relationship with Diaz.


Influences

The Green Arrow comics of Judd Winick (Ollie deciding to work with criminals rather than other heroes to accomplish his goals.)


Goofs

Quentin points out the biggest problem with the keystone idea of The Black Siren Redemption Arc - the idea that Black Siren can honestly feel threatened by Diaz. That idea might have washed with Zoom. It might even have worked for Prometheus last year. But there is no way that Black Siren couldn't reasonably wipe the floor with Diaz AND his immediate circle of bodyguards given what we've seen her do to against whole mobs in his service. She was able to overcome a helpless metahuman with a healing factor at point-blank range. She could easily liquefy Diaz' brain in his sleep if she wanted to.

Once again, we see characters learning the wrong lessons and forgetting lessons they learned for the sake of a story. First, with Ollie continuing to believe he is stronger alone.  Next, Quentin forgetting how nothing good ever comes of doing bad things for good reasons.

The idea that Ricardo Diaz is somehow more inhuman than Zoom (the super-fast serial killer who enslaved an entire world, vibrated the hearts out of countless people and stole a superhero's identity just for the fun of it), Prometheus (the man who tortured and killed countless people in the name of avenging his father's death)  and Cayden James (the man who dispassionately plotted to destroy an entire city because of the death of his son) because he killed the man who tortured him every day of his life as a child is the most eye-rollingly stupid thing to come out of Black Siren's mouth yet. And that, to quote Anatoly, is saying something!


Performances

The high point of the episode is David Nykl and Stephen Amell playing off of each other. After five seasons, it is still amazing to watch Nykl go from being sinister to snarky in the span of a sentence.


Artistry

The sequence of Mister Terrific tagging The Quadrant trucks is probably the best use of the character to date in an action sequence.


Trivia

One of the Quadrant leaders is identified as a gun lobbyist named Lydia Cassamento. In the DC Comics Universe, The Cassamentos are one of The Five Families making up the Gotham City Italian Mafia. This Five Families are The Bertinellis, The Berettis, The Cassamentos, The Inzerillos and The Galantes.

The Arrow logo in this stinger of this episode lacks the usual addition of the other Team Arrow icons.

The weapons brought in to Star City by Cassamento are said to be of Kasnian origin. Kasnia is a fictional country first introduced to the DC Comics Multiverse in Superman: The Animated Series. It has since then been used in The Arrowverse where Kasnia is a Republic in Eastern Europe.


Technobabble

Curtis hacks a thermal-sensing program from the NSA to try and track Diaz.

Curtis has a laser microphone of better quality than anything the CIA has.

The Quadrant's guns are equipped with stealth-adapters making them invisible to ASMs.


Dialogue Triumphs

Oliver: I just want to talk.
Anatoly: We stopped talking year ago. How you find me?
Oliver: I got a tip. From a friend of yours in Russia.
Anatoly: I have no friends in Russia. Your doing.
Oliver: That's fixed. (places a dagger on the counter) Also my doing.
Anatoly: (looking at the dagger) This is Pakhan's. How you come to have it?
Oliver: You told me that The Bratva exiled you because of your friendship with me. I owed you a debt. I owed them a debt. I paid it. You can go home now, Anatoly.  (pauses) You said you were an honorable man. Now, I think you know deep down that Diaz isn't. Help me stop him.
(There is a long pause before Anatoly sighs and steps closer to Oliver.)
Anatoly: Well, you were right. I was an honorable man.
(Before Oliver can react, Anatoly pulls a taser and zaps him in the chest, knocking him out instantly.)

Oliver: My mission was always supposed to be solitary. Put with a team? Fill it with people that I care about? It splits my focus.
Anatoly: Is that why you think Diaz was able to beat you?
Oliver: He took over the city while I was distracted.
Anatoly: If you seriously believe that, then you are an even bigger fool than I thought. And that is saying something.

Anatoly: Time to go see Diaz!
Oliver: (sarcastic) Think he'll give you a reward?
Anatoly: A man can dream. But I'll settle for satisfaction.

Rene: You got a kid. Younger than Zoe. How do you deal with it?
John: I don't, man. Not out here. When I put this holster on, I leave Daddy at home. 

Quentin: Don't pretend like you give a crap about me, alright? Are you proud of yourself, huh? Turning a father's grief against him? As far as I'm concerned, you're worse than Diaz!
Black Siren: You have no idea what he's capable of.
Quentin: I know what you're capable of. You can bring walls smashing down. You really expect me to believe that you are scared of a thug like Diaz?

Anatoly: You say I betray myself working with Diaz. I think much on this.
Oliver: Yes?
Anatoly: You may be right. But I realize moment things went wrong. Last year when I trusted you to bring me into city. So if I betray myself, Kapiushon? It is because you... you betray me first.

(Anatoly enters into Oliver's cell. He is carrying bandages and antiseptic spray.)
Oliver: Thank you.
Anatoly: Bandages least I could do.
Oliver: Not for the bandages, Anatoly. Thank you for giving me the chance to take out Diaz.
Anatoly: What makes you think that's what I was doing? Maybe I wanted to see for myself.
Oliver: See what?
Anatoly: Which one of you has honor.

(Anatoly kneels down before Oliver.)
Anatoly: Just like you wanted, no? You allow yourself to be captured, so I bring you to Diaz?
Oliver: I just thought that I could count on you to be the man I knew. That man was my friend.
Anatoly: (nodding quietly) Hurry up with bandages. I have plan to get you out of here.


Dialogue Disasters

Black Siren: I have known a lot of bad men. And they have been filled with anger and with hate. But not Diaz. He's not filled with anger inside because he's not even human inside. I watched him burn a man alive over a childhood grudge. If I cross him, what is he going to do to me?


Continuity

Oliver captures a man wanted by the Bratva in Moscow to buy Anatoly's way back into The Bratva.

Rene is release from the hospital.

Diaz now controls all the security cameras and police in Star City.

The Quadrant leader who accepted Diaz into The Quadrant in 619 is identified as Lydia Cassamento - a gun lobbyist who oversees the gun-running operations of The Quadrant.

Anatoly refers to Oliver's attack on SCPD HQ in 618.

The Scorpions were the gang that Ricardo Diaz ran before being imprisoned. Reportedly they run most of the drug trade in The Glades.

Rene has connections to The Scorpions through a gambling operation in The Glades.

Rene is having PTSD flashbacks to the last few times he nearly died.

Black Canary, Wild Dog and Mister Terrific blunder into the arms deal as ARGUS is attacking it, as The Quadrant was trying to kill The Scorpions. John Diggle helps them escape.

John Diggle tells Dinah, Rene and Curtis about The Quadrant.

John apologies for his role in everything that caused Team Arrow to split.

Quentin tells John, Rene, Dinah and Curtis about how Diaz came to him demanding he sign over a certain building.

Between the five of them, they figure out that Diaz is now part of The Quadrant and he's turning Star City into a way station rather than having guns shipped in for his men.

Quentin kicks Black Siren out of his home.

Rene elects not to go on the mission to destroy The Quadrant's guns.

There is a version of Damien Darhk on Earth 2. He is as evil as the Earth 1 version, according to Black Siren.

Quentin winds up signing the oreder Diaz gave him, due to his being convinced that Black Siren was scared of Diaz.

Quentin refers to his working for Damien Darhk in Season 4 and how he did bad things for a good reason before.

John declines Curtis' offer to join his team but says ARGUS will continue to work with them.

Zoe is revealed to know about her father's secret identity. She encourages him to keep being Wild Dog.

The episode ends with Diaz having Oliver arrested and arranging to have his trial bumped up to May 3rd, 2018.


Location

Moscow


The Winick Factor

Rather than work with any of the heroes or groups he can rest assured will not double-cross him to Diaz, Ollie decides to approach someone he actively knows is working with Diaz and has even less reason to work with Ollie than New Team Arrow or ARGUS.


The Bottom Line

Were it not for the Black Siren Redemption nonsense, this might be a serviceable episode. Even though Rene's subplot feels recycled from John's storyline earlier in the season, at least it's somewhat acknowledged with Rene asking John for advice on balancing fatherhood and vigilantism. It's a nice, brief moment and the sort of team dynamic this series really could have used this season. Even Curtis gets a few good moments and that never happens! What really sells the episode, however, is the Oliver/Anatoly relationship and their interactions.

Unfortunately, it seems like the rumors of Season 7 of Arrow being used to tell the Supermax "Green Arrow in prison" story that never got made are true. I knew having something with Ollie living an outlaw's life in the forest outside Star City was a bit much to hope for, but I'd rather have this show  emulating Benjamin Percy than David Goyer any day of the week.

Arrow Episode Guide: Season 6, Episode 19 - The Dragon

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.



Plot

Seeking to expand his empire in the wake of Mayor Queen's impeachment, Ricardo Diaz and Black Siren meet with The Quadrant - an international cabal of organized crime families. Meanwhile, Felicity and Curtis try to mend their broken fences to get their company back on track as Oliver begins to wage war on "The Dragon" alone.


Influences

The Green Arrow comics of Jeff Lemire (character of Ricardo Diaz)


Goofs

So, Quentin isn't going to question Black Siren disappearing for several days? Granting that he's probably got his hands full running the city in the wake of Ollie's impeachment, you'd think this is something he'd be trying to stay up on.

You'd also think it's also something Dinah would be doing, particularly since she doesn't have her job as a cop keeping her busy anymore.

The fight scene in which Black Siren attacks the FBI agents has got to be one of the worst in the show's history. Ignoring the poor lighting and odd camera angles (presumably used to hide the face of Katie Cassidy's stunt double), we clearly see the stunt men playing the agents discharge their guns inches away from Black Siren without hitting her!

One does wonder why Cartier's men don't shoot Baylor and Diaz in the head as well as the chest, as Black Siren pointed out.

The final scene, in which Black Siren is apparently meant to be disturbed by Diaz setting his childhood bully on fire - does not ring true at all. And for once it's not because of Katie Cassidy's inability to show any emotions beyond annoyance and dull surprise. It's because it does not make a lick of sense for Black Siren - who has worked for three obsessive sociopaths without complaint before Diaz and spent the better part of this episode complaining about not being allowed to kill for the hell of it - suddenly having reservations about setting a man on fire.


Trivia

The episode name is taken from the nickname Ricardo Diaz gave himself in Jeff Lemire's Green Arrow comics. 

The episode reveals that Diaz was raised in a Zandian orphanage in Starling City. In the DC Comics Universe, Zandia was a European nation which was the home of The Church Of Blood in the Teen Titans comics. Depending on the story, Zandia was said to be east of Sicily or was an island nation in the Baltic Sea. 

Diaz and Black Siren travel to Bludhaven to meet with The Quadrant. In the DC Comics Universe, Bludhaven is a city in New Jersey, even more corrupt than Gotham City, which becomes the adopted home of the vigilante Nightwing.

The DCTVU version of Bludhaven is similarly lawless and has been depicted several times on Arrow as a haven for various criminal organizations.

The bar where Diaz meets The Quadrant agents in Bludhaven is called Hogan's Alley. In the Nightwing comics, when Dick Grayson (aka Nightwing) first moved to Bludhaven, he took a job a bar called Hogan's Alley which was frequented by cops. Dick used his position to get a feel for which cops were clean and which were dirty as well as a source of information.

The title card for this episode features a stylized Eastern dragon icon rather than the usual Arrowhead symbol.

Diaz says the he called his fear of the bully Jesse "The Dragon". It was from this that he took his street name later on.  In the original Jeff Lemire Green Arrow comics, Ricardo Diaz took the name Richard Dragon to honor a martial artist by that name who trained him and was later killed by him.



Technobabble

Felicity is still trying to stabilize the neuro-interface of her and Curtis' latest project.

Curtis theorizes that the serotonin interface is a result of the pathogenic reaction.

Working together, Curtis and Felicity stabilize the pathogenic reaction completely.


Dialogue Triumphs

Baylor: I didn't say nothing! I swear to God!
Cartier: (laughs) Tell him yourself.
(Cartier's driver pulls out an assault rifle and shoots Baylor and Diaz.)


Dialogue Disasters

Black Siren: Oh. So more waiting then. (accidentally voicing the thoughts of most of the audience during this episode.)

Black Siren: And what would you have done if they'd shot you in the head?
Diaz: I'd be dead. probably.


Continuity

Black Siren is capable of picking locks.

Ricardo Diaz has been working on his plan to take over Star City for five years.

Black Siren has heard of The Quadrant but thought they were an urban legend.

The Quadrant have control of a bar in Bludhaven called Hogan's Alley.

Rene is still in the hospital.

Diaz offers The Quadrant free access through Star City's ports and airports in exchange for a seat at the table.

Diaz is instructed by Cartier to retrieve information on where the FBI is holding Robert Baylor - a Quadrant agent who was captured.

Diaz gets the information from Former D.A. Sam Armand.

Felicity has been fired from Team Arrow by Oliver.

Cartier asks Diaz to capture Baylor for debriefing. Diaz objects but when Cartier threatens to end the deal, Diaz agrees but insists he be allowed to meet Cartier's father later.

Cartier double-crosses Diaz and shoots him an Baylor. Diaz is saved only because he had body armor.

Diaz claims to have fought for every scrap of food he ate as a kid.

Diaz tells Cartier about Jesse - a bully in the orphanage who burned his arm.

Cartier reveals that he and his father never gave The Quadrant Diaz's proposal. They just planned to use him to take Star City for themselves.

Black Siren compares Diaz to Zoom, saying that they are both controlled by their hatred.

Cartier is turned into a suicide bomber by Diaz, clearing the path into the meeting of The Quadrant leaders.

Diaz kills the older Cartier, taking his seat on the board of The Quadrant.

Oliver survived the explosion in The Glades.

Diaz tracks down and kills Jesse, his childhood bully, soaking him in lighter fluid and setting him on fire.

Diaz reveals that he tried to save the only picture that he had of his father after Jesse burned it.


Location

Zandia Orphanage, Star City - 1986
Bludhaven - 2018


Untelevised Adventures

Green Arrow is seen in the background as Felicity is watching the news, dealing with an explosion in The Glades.


The Bottom Line

Easily one of the worst episodes ever. Quite possibly the worst of this season.

Too little, too late, in terms of trying to develop Diaz and make him a compelling villain. Instead, this episode makes him seem whiny and weak, which makes it all the more aggravating that he's being set up as some kind of criminal mastermind capable of taking down Team Arrow.

Worse yet, it seems like the Black Siren redemption arc has been resurrected yet again as Black Siren - a psychotic maniac who we'll remind you worked with Zoom, Prometheus and Cayden James without complaint and spent most of this episode complaining about waiting, planning and NOT mindlessly killing people - being disturbed by Diaz's savoring the death of his childhood bully.

Arrow Episode Guide: Season 6, Episode 18 - Fundamentals

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.




Plot

With all of his allies having abandoned him except Quentin Lance, Oliver begins to question his failings as a father, a husband, a mayor and a hero.


Influences

The Green Arrow comics of Judd Winick (The heroes are complete idiots, at the mercy of villains, who don't kill the heroes despite being given ample opportunity to do so.)


Goofs

Granting that it is in Oliver's nature to blame himself for everything, Laurel's becoming Black Canary was not his fault. She did it while Oliver was recovering from falling off a mountain and he did his damnedest to stop her from trying to replace Sara.

Felicity runs to SCPD HQ from her and Oliver's apartment?

All of this episode is devoted towards Ricardo Diaz pushing Green Arrow into a death trap. At the end of the episode, he declares that he isn't going to kill Green Arrow because that would be too easy.

Also - how could Diaz be sure that the strung out Oliver Queen would be coherent enough to go into the trap in the first place?


Performances

The main saving grace of this episode is Stephen Amell's performance.

A close second is Amell's chemistry with Emily Bett Rickards and the scene in which Felicity has to convince Oliver that she is real.

Paul Blackthorne gets the episode's MVP trophy, however. He hasn't always had a lot to do as Quentin this season and he doesn't really have much to work with here either. What he does have, however, he nails.


Artistry

The opening sequence of Green Arrow fighting his way through the mob of crooked cops looks fantastic - lighting, fight choreography and direction.


Trivia

The Arrow logo at the start of this episode does not include the usual swoop of symbols for the other heroes of Star City.


Technobabble

Felicity makes a isotonic concoction, with oranges, almonds, avocados and fermented fish oil  (Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Omega 3s and salt) as a hangover cure/Vertigo recovery tonic for Oliver.


Dialogue Triumphs

Felicity: We need to stop Diaz! (To John) And we have some pretty good intel.
Oliver: Good intel tends to fall apart in the hands of bad leadership, don't you think?
John: Oliver, come on. It doesn't have to be that way.
Oliver: How would you like it to be?

Oliver: On the bright side, if I get impeached, you get promoted.
Quentin: (chuckling) I'm not much of a politician, Oliver.
Oliver: Well, with Diaz running the city, it's not really politics, is it?

Oliver: Why does everyone keep leaving me?
Quentin: That's the thing about change, right? You hope you're doing the right thing, by becoming a better person. But you're also becoming a different person. Some people, they just, I guess like John, they react badly.
Oliver: That's one possibility.
Quentin: What's the other?
Oliver: That I haven't really changed at all.

Prometheus: Hey. What's Vertigo do? Does it show you your worst fear?
Oliver: (smirking) You aren't my worst fear, Adrian. You're nowhere close.
Prometheus: Oh, I know. Your worst fear is yourself. Your worst enemy is yourself. Guys like me? Ricardo Diaz? Damien Darhk? Ra's Al Ghul? When it comes to destroying you, Oliver? We all come in second place. You're the one enemy you can't defeat.

(Oliver puts down his phone. He looks up and sees himself in his first costume, standing in the shadows.)
The Hood: You have failed this city! And you know why.
Oliver: Because I got away from you.
The Hood: You were never supposed to have partners.There was never supposed to be a John Diggle. A Felicity Smoak. A Team Arrow! There was never supposed to be a Green Arrow! There was only The Mission!
Oliver: ...  I lost sight of that.
The Hood: You lost your city! And now... you know what you have to do to get it back.

Oliver: You're not here!
Felicity: Yes, I am. It's me, Okay? The real me? Do not go through that door!
Oliver: I have to. I have to stop Diaz.
Felicity: And you will! But not like this. Not tonight.
Oliver: He is right on the other side of that door!
Felicity: So are a bunch of angry cops just waiting for you! You go through the door, what happens to William?!
Oliver: William has you.
Felicity: Well, what happens to me?
Oliver: (pauses) You left.
Felicity: No, I didn't! That was not me, Oliver. The real me is standing right here. And I'm not going anywhere. I'm glue, baby. Please.


Dialogue Disasters

Felicity: How you lost it on William? That is crossing a line. I know that you have a lot on your plate with Diaz and John and the impeachment, but that is no excuse. It can't be an excuse. He is your son. And you just showed him the man that his father really is! (pauses) That is not the man that I married.


Continuity

Felicity determines that the security feed at SCPD HQ shuts off for 45 minutes at 10:13 pm each night when Diaz is checking up on his minions.

Quentin says that Oliver visibly does not look good.

Felicity's high-school science fair projected involved hacking Napster.

William has no idea what Napster is.

William's project involves cloning a cabbage. He's worried about beating Sarah Epstein's solar-powered hot-dog cooker.

Felicity finds the proof that Diaz threatened Captain Hill's family and paid for D.A. Armand's surgery. Unfortunately, there's no way for Ollie to claim he got this information from a legitimate source.

Oliver loses his temper and accidentally destroys William's science project.

Felicity kicks Oliver out of their apartment.

Later, Felicity appears at The Bunker and asks for a separation.

Quentin suggests taking the evidence to FBI Agent Samanda Watson, since she's more concerned with justice than proving Oliver Queen is Green Arrow.

Oliver hallucinates being attacked by Prometheus in The Bunker.

Oliver determines that he was dosed with Vertigo by his handshake with Councilman Kullens. This is what caused him to lose his temper and start hallucinating.

Oliver hallucinates being back in Queen Manor with Laurel, just before he left to sail on The Queen's Gambit.

Oliver hallucinates being back in the hospital room where Laurel died, with Laurel taunting him with the idea that he was responsible for her death.

Oliver hallucinates Rene taunting him from his hospital bed about Oliver being responsible for his injuries in 614. Dinah and Curtis, in costume, torment him as well.

Oliver hallucinates Rissa being murdered by Diaz in his apartment and Diaz stabbing Oliver in the stomach. 

Oliver continues to hallucinate Prometheus during the city council meeting. The hallucination tells Oliver the only way to win is to take Diaz down that night.

William wins second place at the Science Fair. The girl with the solar hot dog cooker won first, but Felicity swears she saw her project for sale on Amazon.com.

It is revealed that Oliver hallucinated Felicity chewing him out and kicking him out when she showed up at The Bunker.

Oliver attacks SCPD HQ in his original Hood costume.

Felicity is able to talk sense into Oliver. They escape SCPD HQ before Diaz and the cops emerge from the trap.

Oliver Queen is impeached from office.

Quentin Lance becomes the new mayor of Star City.

Oliver decides that he needs to get back to basics and go it alone as Green Arrow to take down Diaz.

Diaz tells Black Siren that the next step is to send out the word to other criminal enterprises that Star City is now open for business.


The Winick Factor

Even though it it is blatantly obvious that Diaz is attempting to divide and conquer his way into controlling Star City, the big lesson Oliver takes from his vision quest in this episode is that he has to go it alone even though his entire heroes' journey is devoted to his NOT being a crazed loner.

Ricardo Diaz's reasons for not killing Green Arrow don't make a lick of sense. Especially given that all of this episode was devoted to setting up a death trap for him!


The Bottom Line

This episode has no right to work as well as it does, given the idiotic plan of the villains and Oliver ultimately taking the wrong lesson from recent events before he inevitably realizes The Power Of Friendship. The primary reason it does work is because of some effective direction and the strength of Stephen Amell, Emily Bett Rickards and Paul Blackthorne's performances.

That said, there's some effective dialogue and psychodrama here but the whole thing seems really derivative of Three Ghosts from Season 2. That may be intentional as that was one of the first episodes that set Oliver on the path to becoming The Green Arrow and trusting other people, with this episode having Oliver learning the opposite lesson.

Arrow Episode Guide: Season 6, Episode 17 - Brothers In Arms

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.



Plot

Oliver and John come to blows when Oliver reveals his reluctance to surrender the mantle of Green Arrow as planned. Meanwhile, Black Siren continues to manipulate Quentin Lance while working for Ricardo Diaz and Curtis's new romance hits a snag when he discovers his new cop boyfriend is strongly against vigilantism.


Influences

The Green Arrow comics of Judd Winick (heroes fighting each other, the villains being three steps ahead of the heroes at all times...)


Goofs

The idea of Quentin home-law-schooling Black Siren to the point where she can pass herself off as a lawyer is perhaps the most idiotic development yet in the Black Siren story arc. (Then again, given what a crappy lawyer Laurel was, it might not require much acting or studying.)

Black Siren - apparent career criminal all her life - keeps the name of Ricardo Diaz saved on her cell phone as "Ricardo Diaz".

John's sudden change in attitude does not make one lick of sense. He says it himself in his conversation with Lyla - he has no idea why he is acting the way he is.

Stephen Amell and David Ramsey have given some wonderful, understated performances during their time on Arrow. Then there's their Shatner-esque shouting match in this episode building up to their fight.

Apparently having Oliver Queen impeached was not part of Diaz's plan, as the impeachment plot is all Black Siren's idea. What then, was the point of everything they've been setting up involving having Oliver Queen put on trial for being The Green Arrow?


Performances

Emily Bett Rickards does a great job going into "mom mode" and reading Oliver and John the riot act when they are fighting.


Artistry

The sequence in which Green Arrow and Spartan destroy the Vertigo lab is good.


Trivia

There are elements of Dennis O'Neil's run on Green Arrow here, with John's drug use driving a wedge between himself and Oliver in much the same way that Roy Harper's drug use drove a wedge between himself and Oliver Queen.


Technobabble

Oliver makes use of a new explosive trick arrow that breaks when shot, releasing several small explosive balls like buckshot, that spread out, creating a series of small explosions.

Vertigo is flammable in its liquid state.

Dinah's Canary Cry is revealed to be strong enough to break through a solid wall, as she clears a path for herself and the cops to escape from Diaz' ambush.


Dialogue Triumphs

John: The city needs the mayor now more than it ever did!
Oliver: (clearing his throat) It also needs The Green Arrow.
(There is a long pause.)
John: And that's not me anymore?
Oliver: I've been waiting for the right moment... the appropriate moment to tell you. I'm not giving up the hood.
John: I guess I should have taken the hint the way you kept putting me off, right?
Oliver: You know, John - this team? This mission? It's all of us. You helped build it. I don't understand why it matters what somebody is wearing.
John: ... I guess it doesn't.
(John exits the room.)
Felicity: That's the moment you were waiting for? That one?
Oliver: At least now he knows. (sighs) John's an adult, Felicity. He'll be fine.
Felicity: I hope so.

(Anatoly kills the cop to whom Diaz is talking. The shots are precise, killing him instantly.)
Diaz: You didn't want to torture him a bit? Maybe slit his throat? Whatever happened to all that Russian vengeance I've heard so much about?
Anatoly: (gestures to his clothing) Is new suit!

Oliver: John is not going to get bent out of shape over a uniform.
Felicity: ... he's a soldier, Oliver!

Oliver: Thank you both for coming.
D.A. Armand: I have to say, Mr. Mayor, I'm more than a little uncomfortable meeting with you without your attorney present.
Oliver: (grinning wickedly) Well, it's not about the case, Sam. It's about the two of you working for Ricardo Diaz.

(Oliver offers to help Diaz and Hill with their families.)
D.A. Armand: The idea of you protecting anyone is a joke! The whole force is under Diaz's thumb!  (sarcastically) Or were you offering your protection as The Green Arrow?
Oliver: (quietly) If I was The Green Arrow, I don't think you'd want to be in this room right now.

John: Truth is, Oliver, you have become a better man, but with your focus split, a worse leader. The Green Arrow allows you to become the best version of yourself, and I respect that. I respect you. But if I'm gonna be the best version of myself... Oliver... it can't be with you.


Dialogue Disasters

(In which Oliver speaks on behalf of the viewers.)
Ollie: John, what's going on with you?  First you were mad at me because you're not The Green Arrow.  And that is - that is - that is WAY out of character for you, my friend.

(On Black Siren's studying Laurel Lance's law books.)
Diaz: Don't waste your time. People like us don't learn the law. People like us - we are the law.


Continuity

The Orchid Bay Night Market runs three-blocks, east-west, along Arguelo Street. Anatoly has being using an alley there as a drop point.

Dinah only knows seven cops in all of the SCPD she is certain aren't dirty.

Anatoly is arrested for Possession of Narcotics with Intent To Distribute

Curtis is still taking care of Zoe.

D.A. Armand dismisses the charges against Anatoly due to their not being a warrant for his arrest issued when Dinah's team of cops caught him. This causes Dinah and Oliver to figure out that Armand is also working for Ricardo Diaz.

The first cop Diaz and Anatoly kill personally is Martain Hurst - a six-year veteran of the SCPD.

Curtis determined that Diaz's Vertigo operation is making over one million dollars a day.

Curtis has been on three dates with Nick Anastas since 616.

Captain Hill reveals that she got an e-mail showing that her family was under surveillance the day after she was promoted.

D.A. Armand's son has Stage IV leukemia and even with the city's health insurance plan,he can't afford the treatments without Diaz's money.

Oliver fires both Captain Hill and D.A. Armand.

Black Siren has never had a real job in her life and isn't even sure how to write a resume.

Quentin has kept a hold of all of Laurel's textbooks when she went to law school.

Black Siren is still keeping in touch with Ricardo Diaz by text.

One of Ricardo Diaz's suppliers is a man named Marshall Katz.

Katz is killed by his lady friend, who it turns out is in the employ of Diaz.

Black Siren is fully recovered from her injuries 614.

Lyla just now found the gift John brought to her office back in 609. She also found how he hacked her computer in order to steal the nano-aluminum amplifier.

Lyla suggests that the reason John is upset about not being Green Arrow is that he thinks that all the bad things that happened wouldn't have happened if he hadn't had to step down due to his nerve trouble.

One of Dinah's clean cops turns out to be dirty and shoots Curtis. He also told Diaz about where Dinah was hiding the clean cops.

Nick Anastas discovers that Curtis is Mister Terrific after he opens Curtis' shirt to find he's wearing his Mister Terrific armor underneath... and when the T-spheres move to help protect them.

John quits Team Arrow.

Captain Hill fired Dinah, Nick and every cop that wasn't on Diaz's payroll before clearing out her desk.

Nick is unsure how he feels about vigilantes but does know how he feels about Curtis.

Lyla offers John a job working with ARGUS.

Armanda and Hill call a press conference claiming to have been fired by Oliver Queen as an effort to stonewall the investigation into his being Green Arrow. They say that this is an impeachable offense that can drive him from office.

Black Siren apparently had the idea to try and get Oliver impeached from studying Laurel's law books.

It is confirmed that Diaz and Black Siren are lovers and that she is done pretending to be Laurel Lance.


The Winick Factor

Diggle is taken for a ride on the plot railroad so that they can continue to force this narrative that Oliver Queen drives everyone away from him


The Bottom Line

You know we're in for a bad time when half the dialogue seems to be the actors complaining about how terrible the writing is. I honestly don't know how this show got renewed for a seventh season at this point.

The trailer for next week looks even worse, somehow, with Felicity - who ended this episode telling Oliver she'll stay with him forever, suddenly saying they need some time apart.

Arrow Episode Guide: Season 6, Episode 16 - The Thanatos Guild

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.



Plot

Nyssa Al Ghul returns to Star City to warn Thea that a League of Assassins splinter group is coming to kill her. This new faction, The Thanatos Guild, also seeks a mysterious box that was created by Malcolm Merlyn. Meanwhile, Oliver comes to a realization about his life.


Influences

Raiders of the Lost Ark (the traps in Merlyn's hideout) The Benjamin Percy run on Green Arrow (evil group seeking to recruit or kill Oliver Queen's half sister) and the New 52 Batman books (heroes warring with League of Assassins splinter group)


Performances

Katrina Law is as amazing as always.

As far as final bows go, Willa Holland gives a good one. The only downside is there's no final moment with Quentin, who has been more of a daughter to him than anyone else the past two seasons.


Artistry

The fight sequences are well-choreographed, even by the usually high standards of this show.


Trivia

The Thanatos Guild is named for Thanatos, the Greek God of Death.

The plot of this episode borrows somewhat from the recent Batman comics, which have seen the heroes contending with Leviathan - a new secretive group of assassins that employs many former League of Assassins members, including Talia Al Ghul.

The plot also vaguely resembles a plot thread from the Green Arrow comics of Benjamin Percy. There, Emiko Queen was head-hunted by The Ninth Circle - a cabal of Satanic bankers with a long association with The Queen Family, who employed Emiko's mother Shado.

The ball-cap worn by Roy Harper in this episode has a distinctive crown-shape icon on the front. This resembles the ball-cap worn by Roy Harper as part of his Arsenal costume in the DC Comics Rebirth universe.


Technobabble

Spartan has thermal imaging scanners built into his new helmet.

Iodine Dixonium is a component that is magnetically attracted to the same type of steel Ra's Al Ghul used to encase relics.

The League of Assassins cipher is based on The Fibonacci Sequence - a mathematical pattern dating back to Pingala's Formula in 450 BC. The Fibonacci Sequence is that every number is the sum of the two starting numbers.

Felicity attempts to scan the map to create a 3-D voxel-based re-creation of the original parchment. This might reveal some hidden markers.

Felicity is able to locate a bomb by tracking the frequency root of the detonator.

The bomb has a collapsible circuit. Since it has a mercury switch, it cannot be frozen. It can be short-circuited with an electricity arrow.

Merlyn's map was made with nanolithography - printed with bacteria. When the enzymes in it are exposed to Thea's DNA, the map reveals itself. This is, according to Felicity, cutting edge science requiring an atomic force microscope to create.


Dialogue Triumphs

Nyssa: I would so relish slitting your throat, Athena.
Athena: One thing we have in common.
Nyssa: Except I've grown a taste for the contemporary...
(Nyssa holds up a detonator and grins.) 
Nyssa: Such as plastic explosives.

(Roy and Thea are driving away through the streets of Star City.)
Thea: I can't believe we're actually doing it.
Roy: Yeah. I can't believe it either.
Thea: (purring) Happily ever after.
Roy: Yeah. (hesitatingly) Ever after.
Thea: Okay. That wasn't so convincing.
Roy: Look, Thea - I'm thrilled. I just don't want to jinx it.
Thea: Okay. And since when do you believe in superstitions?
Roy: Well, ever since I met your brother, there's not a lot I don't believe in.
(Thea scoffs as suddenly one of their tires blows out.  We cut away to see Roy struggling to control the car as it spins out. Close-up on the front passenger tire, which has been shot by an arrow.)
Thea: Okay. Now I may believe it too.

Tigressa: Your father had much faith in you.
Thea: Yeah, well... with that new league he created running around, I can't say the same for him.
Tigressa: So you've met Athena. She's not the leader your father desired. You are.
Thea: Yeah, well, I'm sure death has cured him of his disappointment.

(Athena and her men are standing above a dropped Roy and Thea.)
Athena: Make your father proud! Come with us!
Thea: (weakly) Felicity? I know you were wondering...(suddenly stronger) it's from Raiders. (To Roy) Kiss the floor.
(Roy and Thea both lie flat as Thea hits the trigger panel next to her. The darts in the hallway go shooting into Athena and her soldiers. most of them dropping dead instantly.)

Oliver: Nyssa.
Nyssa: Husband.
Oliver: (forced chuckle) You've got to stop doing that. I... I do have a wife now and...uh... she doesn't like it.
Nyssa: But that's the fun of it.
Oliver: Thea may want you to stay. Doesn't mean you have to.
Nyssa: Her point about Felicity's utility was well taken.
Oliver: So was her point about wanting nothing to do with Malcolm.
Nyssa: It is her life and she must find her own truth.
Oliver: I think her truth is a new life. That she's earned.
Nyssa: She's earned your support for her actions. Whatever those may be.
Oliver: I can understand why she would be conflicted with Malcolm. He was her father. I am not conflicted. He was evil. And Thea should not be charged with writing his wrongs.
Nyssa: My father was also evil. And I've dedicated the rest of my life to righting his wrongs. From what I understand, you have done the same.
Oliver: But my father asked me to! With his dying wish, he asked me to!
Nyssa: Back on Lian Yu, Merlyn gave up his life for Thea. Just as your father did for you. I believe Thea owes him the same debt!
Oliver: Well, it is convenient for you to believe that. Because Thea gets you closer to what you want, so do not pretend that you are selflessly supporting her. And never, ever lecture me on what I owe my sister.

(Felicity explains the code for the League of Assassins' Puzzle Box and The Fibonacci Sequence)
Roy: Wow.
Felicity: Yeah.
Roy (To Nyssa) When you said ancient, you were not kidding.
Nyssa: I never kid.
Felicity: Except where my marriage is concerned, apparently.

(Felicity explains the horribly technical thing she is trying to do to an oblivious Nyssa. She is clearly reveling in Nyssa being unsure of something for the first time since she's ever known her.)
Nyssa: That sounds... complicated.
Felicity: It is. Very.
(Felicity turns back to her computer, still smiling.)
Felicity: So it would be really great to not be distracted. You know?
Nyssa: Very true. (pause) I'll stay here to make sure you remain uninterrupted. Sister-Wife.
Felicity: ... okay.

(Thea asks Oliver why he's still The Green Arrow when John wants to take the mantle from him.)
Oliver: I don't know. I - I - I gave it up because I wanted to be a better father. But... William accepts the idea that I'm The Green Arrow. Plus, I don't want to give it up. I don't know why.
Thea: I do. Because being The Green Arrow is what makes you feel complete. For some reason when you... you put that hood on, it enables you to become the best version of yourself.
Oliver: We're supposed to be talking about you.
Thea: Maybe we are. I don't know...  Maybe that's the reason why I can't seem to give this... life up. I... (sighs) I dunno maybe I'm hoping that maybe I'll get the same thing... and find the best version of myself. Whoever she is.

Felicity: Don't forget guys - we have a bomb situation.
Roy: There's always a bomb situation!

Thea: One more piece of advice?
Oliver: Sure.
Thea: If you're going to wear that hood, you shouldn't string John along anymore.
Oliver: I thought I was the one who gave the wise sibling advice?
Thea: Nope. That has never been the case.


Continuity

The opening flashback from Four Years Ago with Thea talking to Merlyn took place in 223.

Nyssa Al Ghul is confirmed to still be alive following the events of Lian Yu's destruction. The last mention of her was in 601, where Slade Wilson said he saw her heading towards the cages to see if Artemis had survived the bombing.

Thea and Roy are planning to run off together, though they don't know where just yet.

According to Thea, Oliver was afraid of the dark and couldn't sleep without a light on until he was 16. Ollie says he just had a problem with pitch blackness.

Oliver makes reference to the two times he shot Roy Harper with an arrow in 208 and 220.

According to Quentin, Black Siren is as messy as Laurel but is a better cook.

Dinah and Curtis are working on figuring out which cops in the SCPD are working for Diaz, but Quentin fears that other parts of the city government might be under his control as well.

Quentin confirms that the Star City District Attorney is still going forward with the case against Oliver Queen being Green Arrow, even without Roy Harper as a witness.

One of the dirty cops working for Diaz is named J. Hester. Dinah recognizes him by sight from the fight to rescue Roy in 615.  He is the tenth dirty cop Dinah has identififed.

Nick Anastas is an SCPD officer Curtis thinks is cute. He has no blackmail pressure points and hasn't had any odd deposits into his accounts that Curtis can track.

Curtis has been taking care of Zoe since 615. He cooks Macaroni and Cheese far too much for her liking.

Rene is supposed to be starting physical therapy soon.

The licene plate on Roy Harper's car is JJV-467.

The Thantos Guild was Malcolm Merlyn's attempt to reform The League of Assassins following Nyssa's disbanding them in 413. His second in command was a woman named Athena.

Athena was a rival of Nyssa's in The League of Assassins.

Merlyn found a map to something he wanted to unearth with Thea. The Thanatos Guild wrongly believe Thea to have the map or knowledge of where it is.

Merlyn had one female associate in Star City with whom he confided - Tigressa. She is an assassin with over 200 confirmed kills, including her own brother, whom she killed because he had matched her record. She claims to have rejected the path of The League of Assassins. 

Captain Hill takes over a drug-related homicide which Dinah is investigating. This tips Dinah off that something strange might be going on, beyond her suspicion there's no way there can be this many dirty cops in the SCPD without the Captain being dirty as well.

The map is contained within a puzzle box made with an ancient cipher used by The League of Assassins. It utilizes 18 characters from three different alphabets.

Curtis is able to bluff his way into a tour with Officer Nick Anastas when he catches him standing watch outside the evidence room while Dinah is breaking into it.

The League of Assassins cipher is based on The Fibonacci Sequence - a mathematical pattern dating back to Pingala's Formula in 450 BC. The Fibonacci Sequence is that every number is the sum of the two starting numbers.

The starting numbers are 10 and 13. 1013 was the year The League of Assassins was founded. It is also, according to Thea, Malcolm Merlyn's birthday (October 13).

Roy Harper was always good at math.

Felicity holds the map close to a fire, hoping there is invisible ink in much the same way as utilized in other League of Assassins documents, such as The List from 106.

Nyssa was 25 when she first used a computer.

Curtis determines that the drugs Hill took from Dinah at the crime scene were Vertigo - not something Diaz manufactures. This suggests that Hill is clean.

Athena is able to escape despite an apparently fatal wound dealt by Thea.

The map requires Thea's blood as an agent to make the invisible ink visible.

The map shows a series of ley lines spanning the globe. There are three points which have the same confluence of ley lines as Nanda Parbat, suggesting that Merlyn discovered the location of three more Lazarus Pits.

Curtis asks Nick Anastas out to dinner. He says yes.

Dinah determines there are no cases involving Vertigo being handled. This means that Diaz is now selling Vertigo and that Captain Hill is working with him.

Thea decides to go with Nyssa to destroy The Lazarus Pits. Roy decides to go with them.

Nyssa gives Oliver a dagger that symbolizes the cutting of marital bonds among The League Of Assassins members. This officially annuls their marriage.


Location

An unnamed castle run by The Thanatos Guild.


The Bottom Line

A marked improvement over most of the episodes of the second half of Season Six, but that's likely due to the fact that it has nothing to do with the on-going story of Season Six. Even the bits with Dinah and Curtis investigating the SCPD seem far removed from the on-going story since it doesn't involve them butting heads with the Original Team Arrow and there's no Black Siren getting in the way.

This episode is almost entirely devoted to giving Thea Queen a proper send off . It does the same for Roy Harper and Nyssa Al Ghul to a lesser degree, but this is honestly Willa Holland's swan song and she makes it clear just why she was so essential to this show's success. Of course the show hasn't given her much to do in recent episodes but at least she's been given a good send off with a chance of coming back later.

Unfortunately, the preview for next week indicates more stupid bickering and heroes fighting heroes while the villains get away with murder.  For this week, however, Arrow was good.

Arrow Episode Guide: Season 6, Episode 15 - Doppelgänger

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.




Plot

Thea comes out of retirement as Speedy to save Roy Harper, who is now in the clutches of Ricardo Diaz. Meanwhile, Black Siren reveals herself to the world, claiming to be the deceased Laurel Lance!


Influences

The Green Arrow comics of Judd Winick. (Insane plot twists, villains doing things just to mess with the heroes, the villains having convoluted plans that put them three steps ahead of the heroes at all times, and even when the heroes win, it doesn't gain them any ground.)


Goofs

Katie Cassidy's ham-fisted over-acting as Black Siren tries to play what she thinks Laurel was like is almost as painful as her previous under-acted attempts to play Laurel seriously.

Zoe says her babysitter left her two hours earlier when Curtis comes over to tell her that her dad is in the hospital. What the hell kind of babysitter abandons their charge?  (A very bad one, clearly.)

It's awfully convenient that the grate to the vent which Thea uses to access the hotel is not bolted down and seems to swing on a hinge!

The police officers in Diaz' employ say they can torture Roy without leaving a mark, yet Roy already has a bloody nose and clear bruises on his forehead.

Black Siren says that all she ever wanted was to go somewhere she wouldn't have to spend the rest of her life looking over her shoulder. If that's the case, as was asked last week, why did she come back to Star City after withdrawing the money from the bank in Corto Maltese?

The episode goes out of its way to tell us that nothing has really changed and that Oliver is still in trouble legally, even though the DA's Office no longer has their star witness in the "Green Arrow is Oliver Queen" trial.

Granting that we don't know the full details of Diaz' plan, wouldn't revealing Roy Harper is alive to the press be just as damning to Oliver as trying to get Roy to testify against Oliver and a hell of a lot easier? Roy is supposed to be legally dead, after being publicly exposed and arrested for being The Arrow.


Performances

Willa Holland steals the show as Thea this time.

The only thing lending the Black Siren storyline any credibility at this point is Paul Blackthorne's gravitas.


Trivia

Roy says that he was living in St. Roche when the Star City police found him. St. Roche was the hometown of Hawkman during the James Robinson/Geoff Johns run on the book.


Technobabble

Brady v. Maryland is the court case which determined that Defense Attorneys have to be allowed to see all the evidence that a Prosecuting Attorney has against their client.

Oliver makes use of a Fireworks Arrow to distract the balcony guards so Thea can enter the hotel where Roy is being held captive.


Dialogue Triumphs

Black Siren: Look, this is a lot simpler than you're making it. You're going to protect me. And you're going to help protect me by going along with this story that (changes her tone to sound overly sweet) I'm the real Laurel Lance.
Oliver: Yeah? Why would we do that?
Black Siren: I don't know. Maybe because of all the reporters that are just in the next room? (stepping close to Oliver and playing with his tie.) You know it's only a matter of time before they ask me who The Green Arrow is again. (mockingly) What would you like me to tell them?

Quentin: Look, I know what you're doing here, all right? You're going after Laurel because of what happened to your friend. And I get that, okay? It's what I would do if someone I loved was dead.
Dinah: You mean, it's what you'd do with a criminal, Quentin. Which, by the way, is what she is.
Quentin: Yeah, well, you and I both know that. But, you know, she's turned herself into a beloved public figure. She's also said that she's got no compunctions about outing Oliver and... (sighs) ... I don't think she'll stop with him.
Dinah: (sarcastically) Oh, so you're doing this for my sake?
Quentin: No. For all of our sakes. I've been making progress with her, Dinah, ok? I'm not finished, but if she lives as my Laurel...
Dinah: She is not your Laurel! Your Laurel wouldn't have murdered Vince or anyone else. She did. And you are delusional if you think you can change her.

Oliver: John, he's in there because of me. He's been on the run for three years.
John: Oliver, that's his choice.
Oliver: (sighs) I know, but did I learn anything from it? Roy put on the hood. He sacrificed himself. For me. And I asked you to do the same thing. At the expense of your safety. And your family.
John: Difference was I wanted to put on the hood, Oliver. Listen, I've been good for the past two months. Good! But instead of giving me back the hood, you had Cisco make me a new suit.
Oliver: (ignoring John as he points to the guards he's been watching) There it is! A 15 second opening.  That is our window!
(Oliver turns around and walks off. Diggle shakes his head, looks to the guards, then follows after Oliver.)

Anatoly: Is it Laurel or Laurel these days? So confusing this Doppelgänger business, but you seem to figure it out.
Black Siren: Diaz killed Cayden.
Anatoly: He told me. (shrugs) No honor among thieves. Or crime lords, I guess. Oh well.
Black Siren: Diaz manipulated the both of us. Lied to the both of us. The whole time, he's had his own agenda. That doesn't bother you?
Anatoly: I'm not sentimental. I'm Russian. I am in this city for two reasons only. One is revenge. Against Oliver Queen. And two is money. I'm happy to work with whoever can get me either.
Black Siren: You're in this city because the Bratva cast you out.
Anatoly: Well, there's that too.

Roy: Is that my hood?  It looks good on you.
(Thea leans in and kisses Roy passionately. Suddenly she breaks the kiss.)
Thea: I'm - I'm sorry. If you're seeing someone -
Roy: I'm not. I didn't take your advice. No kids, no wife and I really, really hate minivans.

Thea: You know, there are times that I feel like my life completely fell apart when Roy left? From my blood lust to Malcolm to the coma... knowing he was out there? That he was okay? It made my life just a little bit easier. Ever since Mom died, I haven't known much if anything, other than the fact that I want to make sure he is safe and I will do whatever it takes to make sure that happens!


Continuity

Jean Loring - Oliver's lawyer - was last seen in 607. She informs Oliver that she thinks she can get the Green Arrow case dropped since the FBI's case depended on leveraging Rene, with information that was obtained illegally from Cayden James, which can't be collaborated now.

That chance is blown out of water when Black Siren speaks to the press, claiming to be Laurel Lance and to have been held captive and for the past two years by people working for Damian Darhk.

Oliver confirms that Laurel Lance was the Black Canary, saying that he was told by Green Arrow, again denying that he is Green Arrow to the press.

Black Siren says the money she stole from Cayden James has been stolen.

Black Siren says she has no idea who was responsible for killing Cayden James and his son, but notes that it couldn't have been her who did the second killing since James' son died while she was being held by ARGUS, who took her into custody in 510.

Black Siren says that there is a Thea Queen on Earth Two, only she isn't as "pathetically naive" (i.e. idealistic) as Earth One Thea. It's been established before that Robert Queen was Green Arrow on Earth Two and that Oliver Queen honestly did die at sea on Earth Two.

Star City can't afford to pay it's police officers as of this week.

Captain Hill suggests auctioning off seized assets to cover the city's bills, saying the police lock-up has $30 million dollars in property.

Dinah asks to be assigned to investigate "Laurel's" kidnapping.

Rene's nickname for Curtis, according to Zoe, is C-Dawg.

DA Armand reveals that Roy Harper has been called as a new witness against Oliver Queen in the court case that he is Green Arrow.

Roy Harper was last seen in 412, where he returned to Star City after being blackmailed into committing a series of burglaries by The Calculator.

Thea notes she wasn't able to locate Roy and she tried to do so, to send him an invitation to Felicity and Oliver's wedding in 609.

Quentin makes reference to his ex-wife, Dinah, and says that while he did not give her the details, he told her to hold off on making a visit to Star City to see "Laurel".

Dinah questions Dr. Schwarz, Team Arrow's physician, about "Laurel". Dr. Schwarz confirms that she performed the autopsy on the real Laurel Lance personally and saw her die, but says that in a world full of metahumans, she thinks almost anything is possible. She says they are conducting a DNA test to see if "Laurel" is real.

The cop assigned to watch "Laurel" in the hospital is in Diaz' employ. He takes Black Siren to see Diaz.

Anatoly is now working with Diaz.

Anatoly confirms that he has been cast out of the Bratva and is only working with Diaz so he can get revenge on Oliver and/or make money.

Roy makes reference to his last conversation with Thea, from 412, where she told him to find a wife, have kids, buy a minivan and live a good life.

Roy was hiding out in St. Roche when the Star City police found him.

Felicity determines that two of the cops torturing Roy were on duty when Cayden James died and that they, and several other cops, have gotten payments from a shell corporation in Corto Maltese. This same corporation was responsible for financing the development of the drug that treated John's nerve condition.

Oliver tasks Quentin and Dinah with figuring out how badly the SCPD has been compromised, though he suspects the corruption is far worse than it was than even a year ago.

Ricardo Diaz is using an abandon casino as one of his hideaways.

Diaz is personally fighting every man who wishes to be part of his gang, saying he wants to build a family rather than a gang.

It is revealed that Black Siren is now working with Diaz, integrating herself into Team Arrow as she tries to make an honest go of being their Laurel - Oliver does not trust her but agrees to give her the space to try.

Roy and Thea seem to have reconciled.

The episode ends with a woman in the garb of The League Of Assassins, watching Thea and Roy make out, messaging her master that she has found the Heir of Ra's Al Ghul.


The Winick Factor

Diaz's working with Cayden James doesn't make a lick of sense. Anatoly, whose always had something of a code of honor suddenly going bandit in the name of getting revenge on Oliver when he had lines he would not cross in the past doesn't make any sense. Dinah, the only person who seems to consistently remember that Black Siren is a multiple-murderer who didn't show any signs of wanting redemption until she became a target of her fellow criminals, is still painted as being a vengeful hose-beast. Oliver says he doesn't trust Black Siren at all, but agrees to back off of her if she makes an honest effort at pretending to be Laurel.


The Bottom Line

A step up from last week, but only in so far as the Thea and Roy romance redeems a lot. The plot is still as stupid as ever but there are individual moments of sanity - Dinah and Quentin agreeing to work to clean up the police department despite their mutual distrust, Oliver making it clear he does not trust Black Siren at all - that make it work. I suspect the fact that Rene isn't in the episode and Curtis is barely in it help matters as well.

We know Black Siren is playing somebody - quite likely everyone - and if there's any justice, Diaz will kill her before her sudden but inevitable betrayal since she betrayed Cayden James by stealing from him and he's allegedly smart enough to realize that fact.

Arrow Episode Guide: Season 6, Episode 14 - Collision Course

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.




Plot

The conflict between Original Team Arrow and Black Canary, Wild Dog and Mister Terrific finally comes to blows when the two teams disagree about how to handle the murderous Black Siren.


Influences

The Green Arrow comics of Judd Winick. (Superheroes fighting each other while the villains give them the run around.)


Goofs

The entire episode is built around a faulty premise. Original Team Arrow is desperate to find Black Siren because of the footage that shows her withdrawing Cayden James' ransom from a bank in Corto Maltese. Black Siren couldn't have gone to get the money on a day's notice because there was no way out of the city thanks to Cayden James sealing every way out of the city, including the airport. Even if she did manage this to escape the city, why on Earth One would she have come back to Star City, even if she could have made it back in a day or two? And how did she accomplish this in the first place when she's been in Quentin's cabin since the end of the last episode?

Somehow, Rene is written as the smart one on "New Team Arrow", spotting tire-tracks that can be analyzed and being the one to come up with a plan to spy on Team Arrow. While the character is less of an idiot and more of a hothead depending on the writer, it's just out of character for him to be a strategist. Then again, since Dinah has been derailed into the team hot-head, someone had to be the strategist and it can't be Curtis because he's too busy being the comic relief.

Why does Dinah stomp on the listening device after they find it in the street once John ditched it?  They can reuse it again!

Oliver and John stopping Curtis and Dinah from chasing after Black Siren - who just proved she's fit enough to use her powers and run - doesn't make a damn bit of sense. They should have been close enough to hear Black Siren use her sonic scream.

How the frell does Black Siren - wounded and hobbled and tired - escape from Green Arrow, apart from Ollie being more concerned about taking down Curtis and Dinah than dealing with the escaping murderer who is holding the city funds hostage?  It's not like all of them were needed to get Rene to the hospital and it's not like Curtis and Dinah would have taken his help with an evac anyway.


Performances

The only reason Dinah's transformation is at all credible is because Juliana Harkavy treats the script with far more respect than it deserves.


Trivia

The alias "Siu Jerk Jai" is a reference to Gail Simone's run on Birds of Prey. It was the pet name given to Dinah Lance by one of her martial arts instructors. It means "little bird" in Japanese.


Technobabble

Cayden James died from a severed subclavian artery.

Mr. Terrific's Supersonic Spectrograph is a new function Curtis built into his T-Spheres. It uses Earth-2 sonic frequencies emitted by Black Siren's sonic scream and combines them with light imaging to create a holographic replication of her position during her fight with Dinah. This is able to determine that someone dragged her from the crime scene while she was unconscious.

Team Arrow uses a luminol to follow Black Siren's blood trail.

Felicity performs a triple-worm blue-cobalt IP hack on Curtis' system.

Curtis hack's John's implant to use it as a tracking device.

John identifies one of Ollie's trick arrows as the Sonic Dampener Arrow.

Rene suffered a traumatic hemothorax.


Dialogue Triumphs

Dinah: I'm guessing Felicity had something to do with this?
Oliver: Yes. She did. Thank you for inserting yourself into this, by the way.
Dinah: Oh, yeah. Sure. Well, you never would have shared the information otherwise.
Oliver: No, I wouldn't have. Because I don't trust you to do the right thing.
Dinah: And what is that? Politely ask Laurel to give the money back?
Oliver: Not kill her.

Oliver: Dinah, I understand that you're hurting. I also know that I don't have the most credibility when it comes to telling people not to commit murder. But the city is on the verge of economic collapse, and we just found the key to fixing that!
Dinah: Laurel is never giving you that money.
Oliver: You don't know that.
Dinah: Yeah. I actually do. Because I know that when you look at her, you see the Laurel that you lost. And that's why you'll never be able to do what is necessary to get that money back.
Oliver: And you will?
(Dinah just glares at him.)
Oliver: Understand something. I will never let you cross that line.
Dinah: If you're going to threaten me, Oliver, you'd better be damn sure that you can deliver.

Oliver: Having second thoughts?
John: Best case scenario, man - Laurel avoids punishment for what she's done. And we put a hurting on the people who used to be our friends.
Oliver: But we keep the city from dying!
John: But at what cost?
Oliver: (pauses) If the people going after her didn't look like Curtis, Dinah and Rene, would you even be asking this question?
John: No. No. (bites lip) But I can't help but wonder - would we be doing this is the person they were after didn't look like Laurel?

(Black Canary is in the middle of strangling Black Siren.)
Mister Terrific: Dinah! We lose her, we lose the money. But even if we had the money, you can't do this.
Black Canary: Oh God... I have to, Curtis! You know I have to! I have to get justice for Vince!
Mister Terrific: Dinah, look around! Look at what we're doing to each other! Does this look like justice?
Black Canary: It's nobody's fault but theirs.
(There is a long pause as Mister Terrific just stares at her.)
Mister Terrific: Then you sound just like Oliver. We formed this team so we wouldn't be like that! Like him! (quietly) Dinah, I don't want to start today.
(Black Canary hesitates before releasing her grip on Black Siren.)


Dialogue Disasters

The entire exchange when Team Arrow storms the other team's bunker.


Continuity

Black Siren cleaned out Cayden James' account and withdrew all the money as bearer bonds.

Dinah and Sara Lance both loved noodle cups.

Black Siren also likes hot and sour noodle soup.

Thea immediately senses something is up with Quentin and follows him to the cabin, making her the first to see him with Black Siren.

Rene's wound from five months earlier reopens during the fight between the two teams and he has to be hospitalized.

The new D.A. of Star City is a man named Sam Armand. He is also in the employ of Ricardo Diaz.

The wedge between the two teams is officially confirmed with no more communication or cooperation between them.

The episode ends with Black Siren, still wounded, going to a trucker playing that she's confused and claiming that she has been a captive somewhere for two years.


The Fridge Factor

It is incredibly glib and disrespectful to Black Siren as a villain (such as she is) to suggest that all of her villainous tendencies are due to her daddy issues and need to have a man tell her what to do.

Dinah becomes an unthinking, overly emotional nightmare until Curtis gives her a pep-talk about how she needs to be better than that.


The Winick Factor

The entire plot is based around heroes fighting heroes while being totally oblivious to the villain's scheming until it is too late. Classic Winickian plotting.


The Bottom Line

Somehow manages to be even worse than the previous episode. Everyone is written as an idiot and completely out of character so that Black Siren can suddenly turn into some criminal mastermind despite never having been portrayed as that smart. More than likely she's in Diaz's employ and this is all part of is scheme but we''ll have another three episode of our heroes fighting each other in filler episodes before they reveal that.

Arrow Episode Guide: Season 6, Episode 11 - We Fall

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.




Plot

With Team Arrow split in two, Cayden James launches an attack on Star City's infrastructure. Though the hacking attacks are seemingly random, one directly places Oliver's son and a bus full of other children in danger, drawing Green Arrow and the rest of Star City's heroes out into the open.


Influences

The Green Arrow comics of Judd Winick. (Oliver Queen balancing being mayor and a superhero, a city under siege by super-villains storyline, the heroes being portrayed as dumber than the villains, reference to The Outsiders - a team he revitalized in the 2000s.)


Goofs

It appears to be awfully bright outside for almost 7:00 am in January for an American city (which would presumably be observing Daylight Savings Time) in the opening scene. (Sunrise usually doesn't come until around 7:45 am at this time of year in Seattle.)

Why aren't there any parent chaperones or teachers on the bus with William's class if they were going on a field trip? There should have been more adults than the bus driver.


Performances

Juliana Harkavy steals the show as Black Canary, once again. Another few episodes like this and I may think her a worthy successor to Caity Lotz.


Artistry

The new Spartan costume is a definite improvement on the old one.

The entirety of the fifth segment, with the fight choreography, the editing between Felicity's talk with William, the writing on Felicity's speech and whole scene as both teams (and Vigilante) fight to defend the safe zone.


Trivia

Dinah's Canary Cry is shown to be "more powerful than a locomotive" as she uses her voice to literally stop a train's velocity. This has become a standard metric of measuring the strength of super powers. It comes from the 1941 Superman radio show, which included the lines "Faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, able to leap tall buildings in a single bound" as part of its opening narration.

Curtis suggests that "New Team Arrow' call themselves The Outsiders. In The DC Comics Universe, The Outsiders is a superhero name that has been used by several different teams.

The first Outsiders team was formed by Batman following a falling-out with The Justice League over what the team's focus should be. Batman left the team, but it continued on without him for several years. The team included Black Lightning and Katana in its membership.

Years later, Dick "Nightwing" Grayson and Roy "Arsenal" Harper would form a new Outsiders in the wake of the collapse of The Titans and Young Justice. Judd Winick - the Green Arrow writer who wrote all the stories where Oliver Queen tried to continue being Green Arrow while serving as Mayor of Star City - also was responsible for the creation of the second Outsiders team. This team included Black Lightning's daughter Anissa, who fought crime under the codename Thunder.

In The New 52 reality, The Outsiders were a covert-ops branch of Bruce Wayne's Batman Inc.

In The New 52 Green Arrow comics, The Outsiders was also the name of a collective of clans based around various ancient weapons. The Queen family was tied to The Arrow Clan and the vigilante Katana's family was tied to The Sword Clan.

In The Rebirth reality, reference was also made in Dark Knights: Metal to The Outsiders being a team Batman established in secret to research the properties of various strange metals to The Multiverse.

When Curtis suggests the name Outsiders, Dinah says that she really liked that book. This is a reference to The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton - a classic coming-of-age young adult novel about gang violence.


Technobabble

One of the extra credit questions on William's prep sheet for his field trip involves a math problem about Hyperbolic Geometry in marine organisms like coral. Felicity says that it's a high-dimension math problem most people don't get until 12th Grade AP Math.

Vigilante is able to block New Team Arrow's communications system.

Vigilante uses the connection between Curtis' T-Sphere and his visor to send a message in Morse Code.


Dialogue Triumphs

(William is talking to Oliver and Felicity about his homework.)
William: Will you take a look at it?
Oliver: Yeah. Of course!
William: (sheepishly) I meant Felicity.
Oliver: (clearly disappointed) Sure you did. Yep.
William: I'm sorry. It's a math problem about Hyperbolic Geometry in marine organisms like coral.
Oliver: I do know what coral is. But that's okay.

(Dinah, Curtis and Rene are in their new base when Curtis' phone starts ringing. Curtis checks it.)
Curtis: It's Felicity.
Rene: She isn't bugging us again, is she?
Curtis: No.
(Rene and Dinah both look at Curtis skeptically.)
Curtis: ... I'll do a sweep.

Vigilante: I'm on your side. Cayden James is my target too. I'm undercover in his organization.
Mister Terrific: Do you think this 'T' on my face stands for gullible? (pauses) You know what I mean.

Oliver: What do you want?
Cayden James: I've already told you. Vengeance for my son. (He walks to the window overlooking the city.) I cared for him, protected him... loved him. Just as you do this city. But now... your city's entire infrastructure is under my control. Buildings. Institutions. Even people. All under my dominion.
Oliver: These are innocent people-
Cayden James: - and you can save then. (He places a piece of paper on the desk) By wiring $10 million into that off-shore account. No later than 11:30 tonight. (pauses) And every night. Until further notice.
Oliver: (barely maintaining control) That will bankrupt us!
Cayden James: Well, I certainly hope so. Please don't imagine I've gone through these lengths for money. No. This is for you. So that you'll suffer.
Oliver: I didn't kill your son.
Cayden James: Yes, you did. One year ago, this very day, right here in Star City. You missed your intended target, but your arrow found its way into my boy.
Oliver: Well, if you're seeking vengeance, if you want revenge... why haven't you just outed me as The Green Arrow?
Cayden James: If my understanding is correct, that's already been done.
Oliver: Star City will not negotiate with a terrorist!
Cayden James: Oh, spare me the political claptrap, Mr. Queen. By tonight that will sound hollow, even to you.

(Wild Dog and Mister Terrific are frantically pulling wires on the train controls trying to change the switches that are set to cause a collision. Black Canary is staring down the trains as they approach the intersection, clearly worried.) 
Wild Dog: Hey, what's Plan D?
Mister Terrific: There is no Plan D!
Wild Dog: What?!
Black Canary: Yes, there is!
(Black Canary stands in the middle of the train track, facing the oncoming train and lets loose with a Canary Cry.  The train begins to stop, eventually coming to a full stop right in front of her as the other train passes safely.)

Rene: Hey, man - New Team Arrow is kicking ass!
Curtis: You know what? I really have to say that I think we should change our name. What do you guys think about "The Outsiders"?
Dinah: Oooh. Ummm... I think it was a really awesome book?

(Felicity wants Oliver to talk to William right away about his broken promise.)
Oliver: Well, I've learned, several times, the hard way, that sometimes kids just want to be left alone. I know I have to talk to him. I'm just trying to respect that.
Felicity: Okay. And I might totally be projecting here, because my dad was a - you know - Super-villain Evil Hacktivist. He did a lot of things that I didn't like. Or approve of. And the way he chose to live his life? That's not the part that bugged me.
Oliver: Okay. What bugged you?
Felicity: The Lie.

(Wild Dog, Black Canary and Mister Terrific watch the crowd at the safe zone.) 
Wild Dog: Officers marching. Guns out. City under siege. It's like "Escape From Detroit"!
Mister Terrific: I don't know whether to correct you or to just embrace your attempt at referencing one of my favorite John Carpenter films.
Wild Dog: Huh?

Felicity: You know, I've loved your dad from the first time he brought me a bullet-ridden computer. Remind me to tell you about that one. That was a long time ago, which means I've loved him for a long time. Which means I've worried about him for a long time. And he... he hasn't always been truthful. He's lied. He's kept secrets. He's not perfect. This life... it's not ideal. But he makes his sacrifices so we have to make ours. I sometimes think to myself that's what makes this love deeper than other kinds of love. You know, it sounds cheesy, but... it does because we can't take things for granted. We have to live with the fear and the uncertainty that everything can be taken from us in an instant.
(As Felicity speaks, we see the two teams fighting Cayden James' men. As Wild Dog is taking down one man, he fails to see Sheck coming up behind him, aiming a gun at his head. Suddenly Vigilante, who is on the roof, shoots the man in the leg. He falls to the ground and looks up.)
Sheck: Traitor! (reaching for his dropped gun) I'm taking you to hell with-
(Vigilante shoots the man. Black Canary, who was fighting two thugs on the other side of the courtyard spins and sees this, smirking slightly as she sees Vigilante run off.)
Felicity: Because that's the price we pay for choosing the people that we love. Everything that he does, he does for a good reason. Or what he thinks is a good reason. You can worry about your dad, but you have to believe that he's going to be okay. Because that's the only way that this works. Okay?
William: Okay.


Continuity

William is practicing archery indoors with a toy archery set.

Oliver is hiding his return as Green Arrow from William.

William is going on a field trip to the Coastal Biology Center.

William has a Flash backpack.

Councilman Harold Grovner was the victim of the car hacking.

Six people were killed by Cayden James' cutting the power to the hospital.

Five people were killed by Cayden James' elevator hack.

One of the victims of the electrocuting elevator was Captain Frank Pike of the SCPD - Quentin Lance's former superior when Quentin was a Detective with the SCPD.

John refers to the bomb Cayden James stole in 607 and the amplifier he stole in 609.

Felicity refers to Cayden James taking over the port in 610.

Cayden James crashes a plane on State Street.

For the first time since 605, Curtis' T-Spheres are able to trace Vigilante's visor. Dinah immediately concludes this is meant to draw them into a trap.

Quentin and Thea take over running the SCPD and start setting up safe-zones around Star City.

Vigilante claims to be working with Cayden James to bring him down from the inside. He gives Curtis a tip on a future attack New Team Arrow might be able to stop where the Red Line and Yellow Line subways meet.

Star City has three councilmen named Gattis, McCaskill and Kullens.

Cayden James uses the alias Ben Gale to visit Oliver in his office.

Cayden James claims that The Green Arrow killed his son in Star City in January 2017. Oliver says this isn't possible since, on the day in question, he was in Hub City trying to recruit Dinah Drake (as seen in 511.)

Cayden James' son, Owen Post, was first mentioned in 607.

Felicity refers to the events of 604 and how Cayden James' actions there trying to break into The Internet Vault were a trick to set up the code that would let him hack Star City.

James' attacks are revealed to be blocking off all the ways in and out of the city.

Oliver had Cisco Ramon build John a new and improved Spartan costume.

Dinah is shown to have enough power and fine control of her Canary Cry that she can use it to stop a train without damaging it.

William learns that Oliver has become Green Arrow again.

Dinah learns where Curtis got the intel about stopping the train collision. She refuses to work with Vigilante. Rene says they need his help.

Alena says that Cayden James got a package from Corto Maltese in May 2017 which she thinks had a USB with fake evidence that Green Arrow killed Cayden James' son.

Felicity refers to Oliver bringing her a computer full of bullet holes in 103.

Vigilante kills Sheck before he can kill Wild Dog.

Dinah approaches Vigilante after he saves Rene's life. He asks where they stand now but the scene ends before she answers.

William says he understands why Oliver has to be Green Arrow now but that he isn't scared because he has Felicity as a step-mom now.

Alena is unable to find any record of the USB drive being used in a computer in Corto Maltese.

The episode ends with Oliver instructing Thea to wire the money to Cayden James' account.


Untelevised Adventures

Felicity makes reference to a Cayden James taking control of a crane when listing "hack-cidents" that are happening around Star City to John.

Off-camera, Felicity does what she assures Oliver was some very cool and exciting hacking to track the package containing the USB that she thinks holds the fake evidence that Oliver killed Cayden James' son.


The Bottom Line

A fantastic episode, which does much to take the taint off of the previous two episodes, if only because we have an explanation for why Vigilante has been working with Cayden James all this time. The episode also does a lot to make William into more of a character than a plot device, at least up until the end with his dickish remark about how Ollie can be Green Arrow because if he dies William will have Felicity to take care of him. Then again, that kind of thoughtless remark is proof that he is Ollie's son if nothing else does.

Strangely enough, the best bits of the episode involve New Team Arrow (who I am totally hip to being called The Outsiders) and Black Canary. If nothing else, I like that I'm still not sure where things are going with the Black Canary/Vigilante relationship and that sense of surprise is something novel that this series has lacked for a long time. It may be a coincidence that this episode is completely free of Black Siren and seems like the best episode in some time, but I doubt it.