ARROW Rises From the Dead
_______________
Episode 312 “Uprising”
[Photos: Cate Cameron/The CW]
At this point, I’m ready for the Glades to die in a fire, just so the writers will stop setting it on fire and staging riots there. Come on. Enough already. This is the third time we’ve had this happen in the show. It’s done. To death.
This episode wraps up the Danny Brickwell scenario with plenty of fisticuffs, burning things, and rough-and-tumble action that involves pretty much everyone.
The Glades is falling into chaos (again) because of the lack of police, and Malcolm Merlyn figures out that it was Brickwell who actually murdered Rebecca Merlyn. So we spend a good deal of flashback time watching Malcolm slowly lose it, abandon his son Tommy, and head off to Nanda Parbat to learn how to kill the wrong guy.
Malcolm, of course, takes the news pretty well.
Naturally, he proposes an alliance with Team Arrow to take Brickwell down, an offer that Felicity flatly refuses in Oliver’s name. See, she’s convinced that Oliver would never team up with the likes of Malcolm Merlyn. And that sound you hear is Chekhov’s Gun being loaded…
And that’s about that.
Now, let’s think on the idea of Team Arrow recruiting citizens of the Glades to revolt against armed gangsters in the streets of Starling City. Uhm… what? This is inciting a riot against Very Bad People With Guns. Pretty sure this is not supposed to be in the Superhero Handbook. But it did give us a chance to see Ted Grant in his Wildcat costume, providing more support for the idea that a team is inevitable. I’d speculated that it could be a version of the Justice Society, but after Oliver’s invite to Tatsu, I’m thinking it’s likely to be the Outsiders instead.
Also, this episode really gave us a ham-fisted return for the Arrow, swooping in after most of the main battle had subsided. And the speech? erm…
Oliver even convinces Malcolm not to kill Brickwell, invoking Thea as a reason for Malcolm to become a man she can respect. And that means stepping back from killing people. Of course, then Ollie turns around and agrees to train with Malcolm in order to go kill Ra’s Al Ghul.
That sound? Chekhov’s Gun going off, aimed at Felicity’s heart. She’s devastated that Oliver would even consider a partnership with Malcolm, and she takes Oliver to task and tells him she was hoping he’d come back from the dead a changed man. She (and the #Olicity shippers) wanted some glimmer of hope for a future where Oliver realizes he loves her and can actually have a life with her. Only now he’s going to go get himself killed all over again…
Another heart that’s about to get additional stress: that of Quentin Lance. With the Glades on fire, Sin makes a welcome return (even if it was a little awkward of an arrival) and she flat out tells Lance that whoever is running around in the black leather, it isn’t Sara Lance. Sin recognizes that there’s someone else in the role of the Canary. And she can tell from a good distance and a fleeting glance, by the way. Of course, out of everyone in Starling City, Sin is the one who would probably know Sara best. But it still feels a little Hand of the Writer -ish to me.
Nice bit with Lance recognizing Roy as Arsenal. “I’ve seen you in a red hoodie. I’ve seen you shoot arrows at people. You think I don’t recognize you with a little extra leather and lace?” But he doesn’t recognize the Arrow as the guy who had a thing with both daughters…
And then there’s the thug who asks, “You that red streak I’ve been hearing about on TV?”
This episode felt like a muzzy mix of elements that didn’t quite gel, and I’m convinced more than ever that Oliver came back from the dead too soon. This should have been drawn out until almost the season finale, with things deteriorating at a steady clip, Ray Palmer and Ted Grant getting more opportunities to hero up, and more mystery into how Oliver was brought back.
Because Maseo says that’s why Tatsu is there: to bring Oliver back to life. Meaning he was dead. And Stephen Amell revealed at Dallas Comic Con Fan Days that the Lazarus Pit is indeed part of the story. So… yeah. Not the best episode of the season.
[Show web site at CW] [Previous Recap: “Midnight City”]
