Last night’s episode of Arrow was underwhelming, but seeing as how that is the first time I’m saying that in 6 episodes, I’m not too worried about the future of the show. Hey, it’s hard to be perfect 100% of the time! And while I say “Legacies” was underwhelming, I do not mean that it was bad.
Quite the opposite, in fact. I still enjoyed the hour. It just wasn’t as shocking and intense and revealing as past episodes have been. In six episodes alone we’ve had Oliver arrested for being Arrow, we’ve had Diggle finding out Oliver’s secret identity, we’ve had Moira revealed to be in cahoots with The List in some way… where was the reveal this episode?
Answer: there wasn’t one. Unless you count the fact that Diggle emotionally manipulated Oliver to broaden his vendetta and add Starling City’s street crime to his mission of cleaning up Starling City. Arrow has become a full-blown hero now. Although in a neat and tidy turn of events, the street crime, aka the Royal Flush Gang, turned out to have been a family on hard times, a result of Oliver’s father’s actions, so in a way this still was a part of Oliver’s original mission.
One aside: I’m intrigued that Oliver insists on giving each of his targets a chance to redeem themselves before bringing the pain, whether that means turning themselves in to the authorities, or – in tonight’s case – giving up the bank robbing lifestyle. So far, no one has taken the olive branch extended by Arrow, and I hope that we get to see the alternative at some point in a future episode. I’m interested in seeing that option play out, even though it wouldn’t give Arrow the chance to kick some corrupt ass (I’m sure the writers would figure out a way to get that action in regardless. We need shirtless Stephen Amell! We need cool fight scenes! Hardcore parkour!). What would happen if someone on The List actually turned themselves in under the threat of Arrow? What would be the fallout, and how would that affect the city? It might even be better for the people of Starling City, having the corrupt people confess to their crimes. Hey, writers, let’s give this some thought!
Also worth noting, I really felt for Thea this hour. The poor girl developed a crush on Tommy, bolstered by the fact that he came to her for relationship advice that I have to say really sounded like he was talking to Thea about Thea in a cutesy, rom-com kind of way. Too bad he was oblivious to how his words sounded to Thea and was actually looking for advice on how to get back in Laurel’s pants, and kind of her heart, but really just her pants. Upon realizing that Tommy was talking about Laurel (and Tommy drove that point home by calling Thea his little sister… ouch) the crushed girl made a beeline for the bar in her pity party of one. Cue: vomming in the alleyway. Tommy sweetly rescued her and drove her home, and while he had a nice moment with Laurel, I think we’re paving the way for something to happen later on with Thea and Tommy. You know this will be explored at some point.
Meanwhile, Moira confronted Oliver about his habit of disappearing in the middle of family functions. It was bound to happen at some point! His flimsy excuse of opening a night club and all the perils that came with that line of work seemed to pacify Moira, and even though she was still upset about his disappearing acts she didn’t suspect anything. They also had a nice mother/son bonding session in a diner at the end of the hour, giving us a glimpse at the light at the end of the tunnel for Oliver’s family. When all is said and done and Oliver’s mission is complete, he really can go home again.
Follow Sydney on Twitter @SydneyBucksbaum
[Photo Credit: Jack Rowand/The CW]
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