The Flash may not be having a good Christmas, but somehow Arrow might be even worse.
Oliver finds himself presented with an ultimatum: turn over Sara’s killer in forty-eight hours, or the League of Assassins will start killing people in Starling City. This leads to what fans have been waiting for since he was name-dropped in season 2: Ra’s al Ghul. More specially in this case, a one-on-one duel between him and Oliver.
(We do briefly see a news article about a yellow blur in Central City, nice little tie-in there)
if the term ‘wham episode’ ever applied, this would be a good place to start. For starters, the whole plot of the episode hinges around us finally finding out who killed Sara. The answer may surprise you, but a lot of people on the internet have said it: Thea. It’s a bit of a cheat though. Turns out Malcolm had her do it whilst under a drug that makes her open to suggestion He filmed it to use as leverage so that Oliver will challenge Ra’s al Ghul to a duel. If Oliver wins, it settles any blood debts, namely Malcolm (and Thea’s but he seems to be focusing on himself here).
Meanwhile, Ray Palmer shows Felicity the designs for his super suit. We also get his can-has backstory that involves a dead loved one. I’m pretty sure it’s possible for a super hero to not have to have dead people in their lives to do what they do. Anywho, Felicity says it best: “Why does this keep happening to me?”. It’s a valid point for her to make. A little lampshade hanging can go a long way. Unfortunately that is all the plot on that point for the week so it seems a tad aimless.
Malcolm puts in an all too brief appearance to give Oliver the information regarding Thea. This comes off the heels of Oliver finding out that she lied to him (again) and knows kung fu. It would appear that Thea’s definition of not being open to being hurt anymore means having the ability to lie her socks off. Could call her on that hypocrisy but no one does.
Meanwhile, it turns out Laurel’s mother’s intuition is strong enough to tell her that Sara died. Laurel winds up telling both her and Thea the truth this week. Thea has no knowledge of her involvement, but given Laurel’s blind rage approach that likely won’t do her any favours when the time for vengeance comes.
A quick mention of a rather cool fight between China White and Tatsu, Maseo’s wife in flashback land. It leads to Maseo being the League, apparentl fulfilling Katanna’s role from the comics. Not sure where this one is going, but could be cool.
It’s all about the fight between Oliver and Ra’s al Ghul. It’s spectacular, to use one word. In many, it’s a tense tour-de-force. Even the dialogue just before they duke it out is brilliant. Ra’s tells Oliver about his first kill. “I had replaced evil, with death.” There’s no music in the background, only the sound of steel. The choreography does a great job of showing that no matter how good a fighter Oliver is, he’s out of his depth. It becomes even worse when you realise that Oliver can’t win. Then Ra’s kills him.
Yes, this episode ends with Oliver being stabbed and kicked off a cliff. We love Arrow, we think Oliver’s great, but most people don’t walk away from that one. Ra’s himself doesn’t seem to take pleasure in doing so, but he can’t turn down a challenge. It’s clear he doesn’t believe that Oliver killed Sara, in fact none of the League seem convinced. Does this mean they’ll be coming to Starling City? Malcolm might be off the hook but when team Arrow finds out what happened…
Of course Oliver will be back, he’s the main character in a show of a planned five seasons. With everything that’s happened so far, it would be strange to leave it there. Sure, Roy or Ray can take over vigilante duties for the time being, but what’s Arrow with Oliver? Fan theories are already spreading like wild fire on how his return will occur.
How do you think Oliver will come back? Will the famed Lazarus Pit make an appearance? Let us know what you think in the comments below…
