After one of the show’s most intense episodes ever last week, Arrow sadly didn’t have a strong follow-up with last night’s episode, as the resurrection of Thea Queen was not as well-executed as one could have had hoped, and Oliver was forced to pay a big price to Ra’s al Ghul.
I have said this repeatedly and will happily bring this up again: I have never been a fan of the Felicity and Oliver romance at all. Do Stephen Amell and Emily Bett Rickards have terrific chemistry? Absolutely. I love their characters together as allies and friends, 100%. But the romance has never been something I have gotten behind and probably never will because it feels that this love story is at the expense of other characters and story elements. We see the tragic and incredibly unnecessary break-up between Ray and Felicity, so that it could pave the way to Felicity being able to sleep with Oliver in Nanda Parbat. If I could put myself in the position of someone that admires this romance story, I can see the payoff of it all, and I give the writers credit for that.
But sadly, romance is not what this show should be about; it’s should be about this terrific hero from the world of DC Comics. Yet 80% of Arrow this season has felt so much about this particular storyline, and it’s overwhelming to imagine what will happen next and how exactly the Felicity/Oliver love story will play out in these three remaining episodes. One can only hope that it won’t have a large effect, because right now, we need to get our favorite emerald archer back from Ra’s al Ghul. Once again, the characters of Oliver Queen and Felicity Smoak are terrific, and when together as friends or allies, it’s a joy to watch. But their romance can’t nor should it be the number one focus of Arrow. I will commend Felicity, though, for trying to get Oliver away from Nanda Parbat by drugging him, as she attempted to escape with the rest of Team Arrow.
Let’s back up for a minute to what was supposed to be the main point of “The Fallen”: the resurrection of Thea after Ra’s brutal attack last week. As Oliver is forced to finally give in to Ra’s demands, they bring Thea’s body to the Lazarus Pit, which honestly was something exciting to look forward to because of what we have seen of the Pit in comics, TV shows, and films. Sadly, this was poorly executed, with incredibly low build-up towards Thea rising from the water; it all felt goofy. To put on my comic book hat for a minute, it’s not supposed to go that fast and not be as painless as it was. Obviously, Thea was suffering, but visually it looked like she just jumped out of a tub with some really warm water.
I will say that everything before they took her to the Pit, with Oliver and Malcolm grieving and crying at the hospital, was perfect and painful in the right ways. John Barrowman broke my heart with those crying eyes, because for a minute, I only saw a father grieving the loss of his daughter, not a man who killed 503 people three years ago. But then everything got so rushed once Thea got out of of the Pit. Am I happy that Thea is alive and now somewhat changed because of the Lazarus Pit? Of course; Thea is a terrific character that has been greatly developed this year, and the Pit is supposed to have that effect of changing you in several ways. However, the writers didn’t execute it well in this episode, as it felt very rushed and, once again, so easy.
The ceremony was good though and just getting the Lazarus Pit in some form was nice, but it would have been more memorable if the scene had gone on for a little longer. Similar to how they did Jason Todd’s resurrection in the animated film Batman: Under the Red Hood, where Supernatural’s Jenson Ackles voiced Jason/Red Hood. I can’t recommend that film enough.
Another reason why “The Fallen” was a weak episode was the flashbacks, which, for the past few weeks, haven’t really served any good purpose or caught any new interest from me. Quite frankly, I want Oliver back on that island after the Honk Kong flashbacks are over. I would have been fine if the episode had been 100% set in the present, because we didn’t need any of the Omega nonsense. The only thing that I love about the flashbacks are Maseo and Tatsu, who I really hope will show up in the present soon, because I want to see the arrival of Katana already!
Last, but not least, Oliver gives in to Ra’s by joining the League of Assassins as Al-Saheem. Was it just me, but didn’t it feel like one of those classic scenes where the villains have successfully brainwashed the hero or something like that? In the final moment, when Oliver suits up in his Al-Saheem get-up, I just got that vibe, even though that was (hopefully) not what they were trying to convey. Oliver is in full control of everything he is doing, and he is allowing Ra’s to do whatever he wants now, since he got his sister back to life. It’s tough to even imagine how this season of Arrow is going to end, and with this being Episode 20, it’s going to be three very intense episodes coming up.
Overall, other than a few positive and emotional moments, “The Fallen” wasn’t an enjoyable episode, as the Felicity/Oliver romance got way too much focus. I’m getting to the point where I’m just dying to get to Season 4, because the League of Assassins arc needs to end (and I mean this in both good and bad ways), even though I have enjoyed some parts of it.
Arrow airs on Wednesday nights, 8/7c on The CW.
[Photo via The CW]
Follow Us
