ARROW Isn't Quite Damaged Goods
Episode 104 “An Innocent Man”
Episode 105 “Damaged”
I’m still wondering where that list of names came from.
OK. I’m covering two episodes with this one. They were one leading into the other, so let’s call it the first two-parter of the season. We get a very limited exposure to Deadshot, and a couple of more hints at Black Canary.
SPOILERS AHEAD
This story is attempting to make Oliver out to be much more clever than he seems.
First, the part one. Oliver figures out that Peter Declan — a man on death row for killing his wife — may actually be innocent. Turns out Declan’s wife was working for Jason Brodeaur, one of the guys on Oliver’s list, and had information that said UberRich Guy was dumping toxic waste into the Glades (where exactly is Starling City, now?) and that information got her very dead.
Oliver goes through his usual Batman impersonation, beating up the bad guys until somebody confesses. In this case, it’s Brodeaur’s bodyguard, who confesses after Oliver ties him to the railroad tracks. Seriously, how are these confessions admissible in court?
Through his “Hood” persona, Ollie convinces Laurel to take Declan’s case, and she even manipulates her father into giving over information on the case, not acknowledging the Hood’s involvement. And of course, the information mounts up just enough in time for Declan to be cleared.
Meanwhile, in the flashbacks: Ollie in a cave with a Miyagi-type guy who doesn’t talk much. We don’t get much in the way of information, except that he’s not very nice to pretty boy Oliver. More on him in the next bit.
Laurel is starting to warm up to the Hood, seeing him as a righter of wrongs and disher of justice, except for that last part in the prison, when he shows up in a prison uniform and a ski mask to rescue Declan from being killed before anyone can spill the beans about the toxic dumping. As Laurel’s life is threatened, Ollie loses it, and he comes just this close to killing an inmate who’s trying to choke the life out of Laurel.
(Now, for those who rather snarkily observe that Laurel’s martial arts skills seem to come and go, may I remind the peanut gallery that so far, every time she’s used said skills, she’s had time to assess the situation and exercise some degree of control of her reaction and response time. She seems to have not yet mastered the skill of reflex response, which she would no doubt learn in her training as Black Canary. Patience, everyone. That’s coming.)
Now, at the end of part one, Detective Lance gets a brainstorm and looks through all the video footage from the night of the big blowout party across from Adam Hunt’s office, and lo and behold! He sees Oliver grabbing the duffel bag with the Hood gear in it. So Lance hits the Queen house and arrests Oliver for a laundry list of crimes, including murder!
Dun-dun-dunnnnn!
In part two, Oliver gets dragged into court, with a reluctant Laurel Lance as his lawyer. See, she’s still got a thing for him, and vice versa. It’s something they address when Ollie gets out on bail and decides to throw a party to show how un-worried he is about going to prison. And when they’re in Oliver’s bedroom, we get our first mention of the fishnet stockings. Laurel wore them to a Halloween party before Oliver disappeared. I’m sure they’re going to re-surface…
Oliver is also trying to get Dig to come back into the fold, persuading him with the chance to make a difference… and lots of cool gadgets. The soldier can’t resist, of course, and joins the Hood’s little band of merry men (which is going to have to include hot cyberhacker Felicity Smoak). Oliver needs Dig to wear the Hood costume so he can be across town breaking up a gun deal while Oliver’s having his big blowout.
Y’see, Oliver’s got it figured out that someone would put the pieces together and figure out that he and the Hood showed up about the same time, so he’s concocted this elaborate scheme to throw everyone off the track, even submitting to a polygraph test.
And we see why he can beat it in our flashbacks: he was tortured on the island by Deathstroke, who has both eyes and says nothing. Just tortures Ollie so he’ll tell Edward Fyers where the Korean(?) soldier, Yao Fei, is hiding. Ollie, of course, can’t take the heat, so the Korean nomad has to rescue Ollie before too much can happen to him. A well-choreographed fight ensues between Yao and Deathstroke; just shy of putting that arrow through the Terminator’s eye, however.
It was odd seeing Deathstroke in this fashion. Mainly because a) he said not a word, and b) he’s never been anyone’s thug lackey before. Granted, he’s a gun for hire, but is that enough to explain what he’s doing with Fyers?
Meanwhile, back at Stately Queen Manor That Used to be the Luthor Mansion, Moira has meetings with the as yet unnamed man in the suit (John “Captain Jack” Barrowman), who worries that Oliver knows more than he lets on about the Hood, especially since the Hood isn’t just taking out rich guys. He’s taking out rich guys with one thing in common: they’re all on the list.
Speaking of uberhot cyberhacker Felicity Smoak, Walter tasks her to track down $2.6 million that’s gone missing. Oopsie. She does, and Walter learns about Moira’s failed “investment” in a friend’s small business venture five years ago. Only it wasn’t. Mama Queen used the money for something called Tempest, which bought a warehouse, in which Walter finds the salvaged remains of the Queen’s Gambit
Dun-dun-dunnnnn.
(Felicity Smoak needs her own web series. Make it happen, CW.)
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