Sara’s back! Ok, it’s not really Sara, but the actress is around in costume and getting in on the action. Straight away, Arrow shows Laurel fighting against her dead sister, but how is it possible?
Backtrack 48 hours earlier, where we see Werner Zytle managing to escape police custody with the use of vertigo. All I can say is thank God that Laurel spends about 80% of their encounters seeing her sister as opposed to this guy. The original Count Vertigo was a ham, this one’s no different.
Vertigo itself is becoming more like Scarecrow’s toxins. There is something very Nolan Batman about this particular drug. Not to mention that several key scenes in the episode take place on a dimly lit dock. Not that these are bad things, but the pedantic side of me is still noticing the similarities.
Oliver finds himself being challenged more frequently by the team on how to proceed. Right there is one reason this show rocks. The dynamic has changed again, this time the team is more able-bodied and less dependent on Oliver to get the job done. Similarly, Malcolm insists that Oliver reveal his secret to Thea. She takes it remarkably well, which is also refreshing considering her previous character traits when finding out she’s been lied to. Even Roy takes a stand against Oliver when it concerns his sister’s choices.
The plot revolves mostly around catching the new Count Vertigo. Flashback land concerns Oliver being hunted down by Amanda Waller as Maseo and his family escape.
The main emotional weight comes from Laurel accepting that she will never be her sister and that she should stop trying to be. What’s even better is that by the end of the episode, Oliver is already fine with her taking part in the gang’s crusade after initially being against it. Another aspect is Laurel’s inner demons surfai
Chase, Thea’s irritatingly arrogant DJ’s story finally comes to a conclusion. After audiences were shown he was in fact from the League of Assassins; this week saw him attempting to kill Thea after a romantic encounter. Unfortunately, all of Thea’s training doesn’t appear to have her wholly prepared for someone trying to kill her for real. Luckily a suitably awesome intervention from Roy and Merlyn saves her life. Thea no longer trusts her father after finding out he kept plenty of secrets about Arrow from her, so it would her usually Ollie anger is on him now.
Ironically, action beats aside, the best scene in this episode is mere dialogue. After one of the vertigo induced hallucinations of her father, Laurel realises she has to tell him the truth. What makes the scene even more heartbreaking is Lance’s admission that he’s figured out Laurel is the new Canary. This is followed by her having to explain that Sara isn’t simply out of Starling City. The father and daughter grieving here is a raw emotional gut punch,
With Malcolm poised to train Oliver and Thea, Arrow finds himself leaving Starling once again. Lian Yu may not be a nice place, but it should certainly be interesting to see what awaits our heroes next time. Of course, the island is still under A.R.G.U.S control.
Also, when we were last here, Oliver was leaving Slade Wilson imprisoned here. The possibilities that this turn of events opens up are too numerous to list here. With Thea now in the fold, could she potentially join Oliver’s quest to save Starling City.
Who do you think would win in a real fight between Sara and Laurel? What’s going to happen on Lian Yu? Let us know what you think in the comments below…
