Arrow S5 Ep. 11 Thoughts

"Second Chances"

This week's episode of Arrow may just be the greatest entry in the entire current season so far. The character moments, action sequences, and overall storytelling were all delivered exceptionally well showing why fans of the series should definitely stay onboard. 

Talia Al Ghul/The Origins of The Hood

The flashback storyline introducing Talia Al Ghul was a highly engaging look into Oliver's initial steps in creating the Arrow persona while also giving us a new and interesting character to follow along with. The action sequence showing Oliver and Talia taking down one of Kovar's associates was beautifully directed displaying Oliver's combat skills with a gun (which is a rare site for the character). The flashbacks this season has been top notch in its overall quality, but the segments in this episode specifically were particularly brutal and intensely dramatic in all the best ways.

There's something about the visual direction here that resulted in the intentionally desolate color scheme profoundly invoking a strong sense of grittiness that I absolutely loved. This was a dark but significant moment in Oliver's life which transformed him into the man that we knew him to be in Season 1. The cinematography during his scenes with Talia here perfectly invoked that idea making this episode one of the most visually impressive of the series.

Having Talia essentially lay out Oliver's entire history as well as his father's book of names in front of him was an awesome moment for both the character and the hardcore fans to reflect on everything that has lead up to that point. It also showed her immense resourcefulness if she were to ever gain interest in an individual. This trait will most likely come into play significantly with her training and missions for Oliver moving forward. What I absolutely loved and geeked out over during their interaction was the big reveal that not only did Talia trained Yao Fei (Oliver's first mentor), but she was also instrumental in Oliver's transition into initially becoming a vigilante.

The conversation between the two regarding his inner monster being put to a better cause was one of my favorite dialogue driven scenes in the entire series. The performances by both Stephen Amell and Lexa Doig were unquestionably fantastic showing the motivational drive and emotional state of both characters. As icing on an already delicious cake, we see Talia giving Oliver his first suit and bow leading up to the classic superhero shot of him gearing up for the first time. This was an awesome scene for its callback imagery to Season 1 as well as getting to see Oliver Queen's first major steps into becoming the Green Arrow.

Dinah Drake: Finding A New Black Canary

Now, let's talk about what could've been a complete disaster of a character debut but ended up being a pretty amazing addition to our roster of vigilantes. In typical Arrow fashion, we're given a thematic parallel story within the past-present timeline, which in this case, centers around both Oliver and Dinah becoming heroes during a dark yet enlightened period in their life. What's interesting about Dinah that sets her apart from Oliver's team of vigilantes is her unique background being connected to the Star Labs Particle Accelerator explosion. I've always praised the writers for finding new and creative ways in keeping a strong sense of interconnectivity within this universe, so having Dinah's abilities stem from a Flash related event was a nice little nod to fans of that series.

It was interesting seeing Oliver first struggle with the idea of replacing Laurel right before Diggle and the rest of the team helps him to come to his senses. What's great about this segment is not only getting Oliver's perspective on ushering in a new Black Canary to the team but everyone else's thoughts considering Evelyn's recent betrayal. Although the group pitches in with possible candidates leading up to Tina (who was interestingly known as an urban legend), we're given several moments throughout that shows their apprehension over the idea. Because of this cautionary approach in hunting down this mysterious meta human vigilante with powers similiar to Laurel's, Tina became an even more intriguing character due to the stakes and anticipation leading up to her.

One of the things that I really appreciated about her character was the fact that she quickly rejected Oliver's offer to join the team immediately continuing with her personal solo mission. It was refreshing to see someone actually brushing off the idea of being a part of Oliver's team of heroes so swiftly without the need for a headquarters tour or lecture about life. She's a person that is strictly out for revenge (which her flashback scene perfectly set up), so having her see Oliver and his team's random appearance as an obstacle instead of a potential ally felt logical and realistic. Another thing that I loved about this episode was seeing Oliver, who was previously decisive about recruitment, deciding to pursue Dinah as a sign of redemption following the Black Siren incident as well as his own parallel background.

There were several aspects about her character that perfectly mirrored Oliver during the flashback segments adding weight to his reason for not giving up on her so easily. We're also introduced to Sean Sonus who, aside from being Dinah's target of revenge, is revealed to be a meta human kingpin dominating the drug scene after Church's demise. Again, I applaud the writers for inserting morsels of continuity as Sonus perfectly tied back to a former Arrow villain while also introducing a new meta for the show. Despite the show's rarely inserted display of superpowers, the scene where Dinah, Oliver, and Wild Dog is pitted against Sean's abilities was pretty well executed visually speaking.

One of the most powerful scenes in this episode, aside from the flashback story, was Dinah killing Sonus right after Oliver tries to stop her. This was the moment that truly spoke volumes of her character as Oliver talked about her having the redemption that he himself may never get only to see her choose vengeance instead. It's a pretty grim scene but one that perfectly displayed her morale compass after her life shattering background with Sonus.

Where such a dark moment gets perfectly balanced out however is the ending scene where she visits Oliver at his mayor's office in an attempt to start fresh. There's a great conversation between the two surrounding the idea of getting second chances in life which beautifully solidified the overall theme of the episode. Both characters are broken down from their own tragic history but one of them has more years of experience in handling the trauma. This is where the visual storytelling comes in strongly as the sun is shown brightly shining in on both characters alluding to a hopeful new beginning. With the episode's exceptionally delivered character development, I can actually say that I'm really looking forward to seeing this new character and dynamic get explored in the future.

The Perfect Episode

From amazing action sequences to hilarious restaurant hangouts, this episode was an absolute joyride from beginning to end. I kept thinking to myself "Why does this feel so refreshing in comparison to previous episodes?" until I realized that the obvious answer was staring right at me. Considering everything that was being juggled around story-wise, there was surprisingly never a dull moment to drag things down for the viewing experience. It's pretty crazy considering the several moments that could've easily come across as forgettable filler, but surely enough, everything here felt perfectly paced out and well executed for what they were going for.

What about Felicity's side plot involving her hacker past catching up to her? In another episode, this could've easily felt boring and possibly even unnecessary depending on what was taking place around it. However, due to the way everything came together thematically with characters experiencing a moment of self reflection, Felicity's story felt perfectly warranted. The same can be said for Diggle's release which was a pretty heartfelt moment for fans of the character as easily forgettable as it may have seemed. 

The amazingly written and performed character interaction scenes were the main driving force for what elevated this episode. The segments with Oliver, Curtis, and Rene hanging out at the restaurant in Hub City were some of my favorite moments of the entire series. Why? There's no action, explosions, costumes, or arrows flying around anywhere. It's simply three guys at a restaurant contemplating about their current dilemma in a mundane environment. This alone was a much welcomed change as we get to see these characters as normal human beings outside of their suits which is something that I've always felt was lacking from previous seasons. The comedic elements were also noteworthy with Rene's fixation on burgers making Oliver and Curtis hilariously react.

Overall Thoughts

Yes, there were no Prometheus appearances furthering the central plot of the season, but we did get two new interesting characters introduced that are definitely worth exploring in the future. The flashbacks were definitely at their peak of quality this time around perfectly setting the stage for Oliver's origin story while also thematically connecting to the present day narrative. The performances were solid all around as was the writing for each character in their individual spotlight moments. With a few scenes of well executed action and surprisingly decent comedy as a bonus, this week's Arrow turned out to be a major success from beginning to end.

Bonus Content

1. Particle Accelerator Explosion

During Dinah's flashback sequence, we get to witness the particle accelerator explosion through her perspective leading to the creation of her powers. 

2. The Flash's Brief Cameo 

In a hilarious "blink and you'll miss it" cameo, Oliver quickly texts Barry to encourage the CCPD captain that he is indeed the Green Arrow.

3. The Origin of Oliver's Opening Dialogue 

Aside from Talia giving Oliver his first suit and iconic weapon of choice, we also learn where Oliver gets his "Become something else" opening dialogue from.

4. Callback To Season 1 Imagery

5. Oliver & Dinah's Parallel Moment

One of the parallel moments between Oliver and Dinah is shown as both characters are told to be patient from their future mentors despite their hunger for vengeance. 

6. The List

Oliver's iconic kill list from the first season is spotlighted by Talia as a tool of motivation.

7. Oliver's Flashback Story History 

8. Talia Alludes To The Lazarus Pit

Fans of Legends of Tomorrow will remember a young Talia to be Ra's Al Ghul's daughter during an episode from Season 1. It is implied here that her slow aging is due to the effects of the Lazarus Pit.

9. Mr. Terrific's Tech

Although we rarely see Curtis on the field combat-wise, it should be noted that his tech and computer intellect is still being highly utilized by the team. This is actually pretty accurate to his comic book counterpart. 

10. Upgraded Arrow Tech?

It's uncommon for us to see Oliver using a new arrow type, but we have been seeing a couple  of new additions this season. In this episode, we have a non lethal impact bow and an explosive mod capable of taking down a chopper.

11. Big Belly Burger

Big Belly Burger is a staple of the CW DC universe. The popular restaurant makes a pretty big presence during this episode.

12. Hub City

Hub City makes a huge introduction during this episode acting as the central background for the present day story. What's in Hub City you ask? Well, it's more of a "Who" to which I'll eagerly suggest reading up on a character by the name of "The Question" and tell me that Arrow wouldn't be just a tad bit cooler with said character introduced.

Episode Rating: 10/10