And just like that, my Arrow journey has come to end.
The chances of me reviewing Arrow in season five are pretty slim, and that’s because it just won’t be fair to the show to have me hate on it for a weekly basis. I’ve simply lost all interest and investment, and after two subpar seasons (it’s really starting to feel like season two was a fluke), I think it’s time I focus my energy on shows that I actually enjoy.
All things considered, Schism wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. After weeks of utterly horrendous episodes, the season four finale at least kept things moving. Although I was never on the edge of my seat, I was never bored either. The war between Oliver and Damien Darhk came to a predictable conclusion as the latter’s powers were subdued in the most contrived manner possible (so all that Ollie needed was the “hope” of the people?), culminating in Ollie taking the baddie’s life. It’s funny that this season of Arrow tried to have its cake and eat it too with regards to Star City’s political landscape. It barely scraped the surface in past episodes with Ollie’s mayoral run and the notion of hope in a dying city. Had the writers actually committed to bringing this concept to life throughout the entire season, then perhaps this climax would have felt earned and satisfying.
In addition, as much as I loved Laurel Lance, I did not buy the show suddenly committing to how integral she was a character and placing so much emphasis on her legacy and how much it shaped the rest of the team. The writers never gave The Black Canary her due, and it’s cheap of them to try and shift the narrative now after disposing of her in the most idiotic manner possible.
As promising as it is to have Ollie finally become mayor (and Team Arrow breaking up with everyone going off on their own), it’s just not enough to make me want to watch season five. I might watch the premiere out of curiosity, but I seriously doubt I can muster up the will to continue to write about Oliver Queen’s adventures. And considering how much I freakin’ adored the show in season two, that’s a pity in more ways than one.
Bits & Arrows
– Awesome moment with Darhk choking Donna and blowing up Ollie’s arrow in slow motion.
– It drives me absolutely NUTS that Darhk’s gun-toting minions continuously fail against Ollie and his measly arrows. I get that this isn’t a realistic show but you can’t be this frustrating.
– Pretty evil of Thea to threaten Darhk’s daughter!
– Flashbacks: Reiter blowing up the plane with his hands. Tiana going crazy with telekentic powers and then getting her neck snapped. Ollie promising to go to Russia. Oh joy. Also, Amanda Waller came back for like a second.
– Did anyone find the notion of 15,000 nukes suspenseful in any way? It’s not like the show would ever go there. Or maybe they would and just have Felicity handle it all with a throwaway monologue.
– Great sequence with the Arrow cave under attack. Naturally Malcolm saved Thea AGAIN and Felicity took out a highly trained agent AGAIN!
– Ollie’s speech to the people was so random; I felt nothing!
– Felicity and Curtis re-routing the nuke just before it hit the city – so easy it made me roll my eyes.
– I wish Damien flung Ollie around the city a bit more. God knows he deserved it for nagging so much all year long.
– I get what the writers were going for with the people standing up for Ollie against Darhk, but Spiderman 2 did this years ago.
– And this week on The Felicity Show, the tech-whiz gives yet another admirer (Coop) a pep talk before successfully saving the world. Is there anyone on this show who isn’t in love with her?
– How convenient of Darhk’s forces to arrive just in time and not use their big-ass weapons (instead choosing hand-to-hand combat and losing).
– Where did Quentin and Donna go? Do we even care?
– What is “the slab”?
– Ollie at Laurel’s grave didn’t move me in the slightest.
– The final scene with Felicity telling Ollie she’d never leave his side felt like a meta-moment with the brainy blonde facing off with all her haters and telling them she’d never leave the show. Olicity forever! God help us!
Quips & Canaries
Felicity: Oh, my God. It’s here.
Curtis: That’s terrifying… And also kind of great.
Conclusion
It wasn’t atrocious, but it was the final nail in the coffin in Arrow’s downward spiral. Goodbye show.
Nad Rating
B-
“it's really starting to feel like season two was a fluke”
You know, this is EXACTLY what came to my mind while watching this! So true and sad.
I definitely hated the episode more than you though. The theme of the finale, at least for me, felt like “is there anything Felicity CAN'T do?” which is just so goddamn irritating. That final scene made me want to cry.
I would love it if The Flash messing with the timeline meant Arrow goes through a reboot next season (with Laurel back!). But that seems unlikely, in which case goodbye show!
After The Flash's review, I was expecting a worse score for this episode!! A B- is pretty generous of you! 😀
I'm not as exasperated with the show as you are, but yeah it's starting to get old. What I hated the most about this episode (and previous ones too) was just how easy things were. Like you said, Oliver just suddenly deactivated Dhark's magic. Felicity just figured out how to deactivate 15,000 nukes that are IN AIR in a second, etc etc. Dhark's strong army decided to arm wrestle with the city people instead of shooting 'em all! This kills the quality of the show!
Great review… as always!
So true. It's just exhausting. I really hope I can NOT watch season five! 😀 Thanks Tarek!
Fingers crossed for the reboot but we all know it won't happen 🙁 The writers really seem to hate Laurel. What a shame!