HOLLYWOOD—I will admit the first half of season two of “Arrow” was a bit dismal in my opinion. It didn’t contain the hefty firepower that the previous season did. The introduction of Sara Lance definitely changed that direction and I will admit the past two months have been explosive. Not only did the series go there by eliminating a main character, RIP, Moira Queen (Susana Thompson), but it amped up the factor that almost anyone in Oliver Queen’s (Stephen Amell) corner was expendable.
So inquiring minds would have never expected the bombshell that was delivered with the season two finale when Oliver unveiled his true feelings to: FELICITY! But not so fast, there’s much more to the revelation than fans have suspected.
Oli, Felicity (Emily Bett Rickards), Diggle (David Ramsey) and Roy (Colton Haynes) escaped Slade’s (Manu Bennett) assassins in a nick of time as Starling City found itself under siege. Thea (Willa Holland) recovered from putting a bullet into her father, Malcolm Meryln (John Barrowman).
The bond between sisters Laurel (Katie Cassidy) and Sara (Caity Loitz) took a turn for the worst as Laurel was drugged when she attempted to find out what her younger sister was up to. Don’t worry fans; it was just a ploy as Black Canary put together a secret army, the League of Assassins to assist Arrow in taking out Slade and his superhuman army. Oliver continued to grapple with returning to his vigilante roots of killing or portraying the hero. Oliver is in a tough spot, but his mother’s death is indeed eating at his soul.
Isabel met an untimely death that was well worth the wait, I just wished Sara or Oliver would have made the final blow, that much more satisfying. Slade had threatened Oliver that one more person would have to pay for them to be even after he murdered his mother, the obvious choice would be Laurel who was kidnapped by one of Slade’s henchman. Both Sara and Felicity are close to Oliver, so the death of one of these ladies would definitely stun the viewer.
Felicity did her best to reason with Oliver to not travel down that dark path again. It was an emotional reunion for Thea and Roy, as he wore his heart on his sleeve to profess his love. The moment audiences had waited for arrived when Oliver professed his love to Felicity, the woman who truly owns his heart is her, not Laurel. Game-changer people, game-changer! It was interesting to see him profess his love to her, but considering Felicity already did it, it was epic. A flashback to the Island days revealed an explosion that led to an epic fight between Oliver and Slade that resulted in Sara being lost at sea a second time. Wow, that woman just can’t catch a break. While snooping at Roy’s place, Thea located a mask and arrows; looks like Roy’s secret identity is over.
Diggle was stunned to discover that he is about to be a father. Whoa, didn’t see that one coming, just as the finale dropped another bomb when Slade revealed to Oliver that he had taken Felicity, not Laurel. Looks like these friends turned foes know each other better than they suspect. The writers wouldn’t do this to the audience would they?
It was so tense to see Slade hold both Felicity and Laurel captive and forcing Oliver to make a choice. Oliver used psychology to get the best of his opponent by using Shado’s memory to haunt his opponent and getting the edge. Wait, did that just happen, did Oliver lie to Felicity in an effort to set-up Slade and rescue his true love Laurel? My mind has just been twisted a trillion times.
It was a clever ploy for the episode to transition back to the island and the present as Slade and Oliver did battle for survival. It was revealed on the island, that Oliver chose to take out Slade’s eye versus giving him the cure. He didn’t have the courage to kill his foe, just as Amanda called back the drones, after Oliver captured his opponent. Sara shared a bittersweet goodbye with Laurel and her father and all seemed well until Mr. Lance begin suffering side effects from his injuries with Slade’s henchman, but is Detective Lance dead?
Thea shattered Roy’s heart by leaving Starling City with her father in tow. Let’s just say when Thea does return home she won’t be the same person, I have a feeling she will be quite vindictive. Oliver confronted Slade behind bars acknowledging that he is only alive because of what his mentor has taught him. Deathstroke made promises to come back after the ones Oliver cares for most. The dynamic trio joked about where things are headed, just as Felicity and Oliver shared a tender moment, but no KISS. Jeez, the chemistry between these two is explosive.
The final moment of the episode revealed that Amanda Waller had a role in rescuing Oliver from the island long before he returned home, that’s a twist that I did not see coming. This has my mind going crazy with the direction season three will take for the series. Until the fall “Arrow” diehards!
By LaDale Anderson
