User Reviews

Rewind to October. As you sat down and watch the first episode of season 5. Did you see a bright season ahead? Or did you see a dark future? Not many of us would of seen the bright season, but that's what we got. Arrow is back to how it should be. I've said this for a while now but it is episodes like this which show why this show was a success to begin with. About mid way through this episode I wasn't to sure where it was heading. There was what seemed like probably a 60/40 split in screen time between the flash backs and present day, and flash backs was the 60. I couldn't see how they were relevant to each other and I was just waiting for that moment when it clicked. Then it did.We saw the birth of the killer. We knew Oliver had killed previously but it wasn't until now, nearly 5 years after landing on the island, did we see that Oliver and the monster under the hood is indeed the same person. I thought the way they did it by jumping back and forth between Oliver's confession and the hood killing Kovar was brilliant. It was impactful and intense and emotional, all thing you want in a moment like this.

I of course have to talk further on the flash backs. I'm not sure if it was because we spent so much time in them this episode but I really enjoyed them a lot more than I have in recent weeks. We got enough story in them that they were intriguing and I never felt the need for them to hurry back to the present day story. This is something I haven't felt about the flash backs since seasons 1 and 2. When the flash backs are good enough that they could be a show in themselves, then it's always a positive sign for Arrow as a show.

There wasn't much that really happened in the present day story, although what did happen is probably one of the biggest things in the show's history. We got Oliver's confession that it is he that is the killer. Prior to this I really liked the angle they took of how Oliver is not the killer, it is the hood that is, and because I enjoyed that concept so much, the emotion behind Oliver saying that he deep down knew the hood is him all along was amazing. I have to really give Stephen Amell some serious credit for his performance this episode, with not only his confession scene but everything else building up to it was amazing.

I need to touch on Prometheus/Chase for a moment. I think he might be my favourite villain of this show. Malcolm is always great but his anti-heroness of him discredits him as an outright villain. Deathstroke will always be up there because we saw the rise and fall of him as a teacher to a villain. Ras Al Ghul was entertaining for the most part and Darhk is a better villain in Legends then he was on Arrow. But there is something Prometheus has over the other villains and thats how he effects Oliver. Not one of those villains has challenged him on both a physical and emotional level like Prometheus has. Prometheus has made Oliver crack. There has been times where Oliver has thought about stopping but never to the extent he has this episode. While still talking about Prometheus/Chase, I have to give credit to Josh Segarra. While it's not actually him as the Prometheus side of the character, the way he portrays Chase, especially in this episode is amazing. He has a sense of darkness none of the other villains has abled to capture and it really stands out in his performance.

Overall, I loved this episode. I'd have to go back to see if this is my favourite episode of the season, but there's no doubt it is one of the best. Everything from writing to acting to overall story was amazing and it's hard to see how at this point Arrow can be heading back downhill anytime soon.

10/10

So after 6 days of being held captive by Adrian Chase (Prometheus) with constant, grueling torture, and repeated threats against his friends/family, Oliver Queen admits that he likes killing and wanted to kill the bad people of Star City. Specifically, these are the bad people on his father's list.

Has Oliver's perception of himself ever been totally accurate? He really only seems to notice the bad things that he has done rather than the good. Maybe it is true. Maybe he does like killing people. But, honestly, back in S1 specifically the people that he went after/the bad guys that he bullied - deserved it. And, it was enjoyable as a fan to watch those bad guys get bullied/sometimes killed. In the past, it has been hinted that Oliver is (sadly) better at killing people than saving people. Quentin Lance specifically said this to him in S3 Public Enemy, when he was transporting "The Arrow" to Iron Heights, reminding him of the family/friends he could not save. Back in S3, this statement was such a harsh slap in the face alone for all of the good that he has done and the many people that he has saved. Back in S1, Oliver even corrected Diggle when Diggle tried to refer to Oliver as a hero. Oliver just seems to have such a one-sided view of himself and his actions. These were critiques of his character/actions in the past, and these thoughts seemed to be somewhat accurate at times.

As much as I could see Oliver perception of himself is that he wanted to kill and that he liked it, honestly, I think he just enjoys the thrill, the chase, and the rush from being a superhero and crime fighting. When Oliver was a kid, he liked the rush of his playboy/bad boy antics. Now after the island, that has been transferred over to his superhero lifestyle. He just likes the rush, and at times, it results in killing. He truly is the Green Arrow moonlighting as the mayor. It is all about being the Green Arrow. He does become a different person when wearing that hood to an extent, but he still fails to see any of the good that he has done. This was Adrian Chase/Prometheus a.k.a. the psychopath judging him here and pushing him into a confession the entire time. Chase knew ahead of time that Oliver felt this way in the back of his mind, and he used this as a weapon against him. It is just incredible how defeated Oliver was at the end of the episode telling Curtis and the rest of OTA that it was over for him. It is just amazing how this confession could destroy Oliver's entire legacy? Hopefully, this is not truly the deconstruction of Oliver Queen. He went nearly three seasons without killing anyone. After Laurel's death, he did start killing again after Damien Darhk, and he even admitted this to Diggle that he has not stopped. In his mind, he seems to be comparing himself directly to Adrian Chase, which is terribly inaccurate.

This was a very powerful episode. And, for being such a flashback heavy episode, this really was well done and incredibly intense to watch. Stephen Amell did an incredible job across the board. He really put a lot of energy into this performance, he was in every single scene, and it had to be an incredibly challenging episode for him. Of course, the action scenes were amazing in the flashbacks. It was all Oliver with his archery skills and awesome hand-to-hand combat skills. It is my hope that now that this has been brought to Oliver's attention, that he/the show can move forward about the whole killing/not killing issue. It has been a factor in every season's storyline. It is best when Oliver shows restraint but does what he needs to do when necessary.

On a side note, the only disappointing part in this episode was that Evil Evelyn Sharp did not die after all. She is the first and only traitor to Team Arrow, she disgraced Laurel's memory, and stabbed Oliver in the back twice now. There is no redemption for her.

10/10 The Hood/Arrow/Green Arrow was born.

This episode specifically really got so much closer to the state of mind that Oliver was in - in the Pilot episode/leading back to his return to Star City in S1. The constant reminder/redirection back to S1 has been so amazing this season. There were so many neat components to this episode with Malcolm Merlyn's involvement, to so much focus on Oliver creating a second personality through this hood, and to the whole interaction between Oliver and Chase.

Although the words did come from Oliver's mouth, that confession was very forced under extreme/extreme duress. Adrian had been torturing Oliver non-stop for six days and there were constant threats against family/friends. Chase is an attorney (supposedly a real attorney) and that was not the first forced confession that we have seen him get. Oliver has never been in denial of who he is. He has made comments over the seasons that he is not a hero, that he is a killer, and that killing is done when it is only necessary. He hated being called a serial killer by Tommy and that put him on a path for seasons 2 thru 4 of not killing (killing when only necessary). So although he did say it, it almost seemed to come out like something he just said for Adrian's benefit. Oliver, in the past, has made references to the monster inside of him, but he usually sounds almost scared of the monster inside of him--to say that he "likes it" seemed like an extreme confession. Referring back to S2's episode Crucible, Oliver has been stuck in a crucible since he set foot on the island. He has never truly left or recovered or survived that island. This might have been a lesson for him to finally step out of this mode and truly become the Green Arrow as well as Oliver Queen. Hopefully, there is a true rebirth of the Green Arrow very soon. Prometheus is destroying everything that Oliver and Team Arrow have fought so hard for. It is time to turn the tables of Adrian the psychopath and all of the psychopath's recruits from Talia, Evelyn Sharp, and the corrupt police officer he enlisted.

The episode itself felt like the first step towards truly wrapping up the five years of flashbacks. There is more to come, but there does seem to be a clear direction for how the flashbacks will finally end.

Stephen Amell did such an amazing job, as well as Josh Segurra. Those were very emotionally charged scenes in that tight little cell together. These were very powerful moments in show history for Oliver.

10/10 --the cast, crew, and writers did an amazing job!

___________SPOILERS AHEAD___________

This episode was unreal, the flashbacks, the tone, seeing Oliver in utter psychological and physical pain.

The flashbacks were much to the style of season 2's 'The Promise' where Oliver, Sara, and Slade tried to take over the freighter from Ivo. The flashbacks took up the main portion of the episode and it was extremely well done.

+ Return of Artemis + Flashbacks that weren't rushed. + Brilliant performance by Josh Segarra. + Is Kovar the Vigilante? (I can't see him reappearing in the flashbacks as Oliver seems to be leaving Russia. It would make sense as to why Vigilante wants to kill Queen and he matches the body build also.)

• Oliver's super-growth shampoo and conditioner :)

Brilliant episode... Such a great performance by stephen amell. The lengths Adrian chase goes to break oliver down emotionally are absolutely brutal and amazing. He was the second person after Slade wilson who managed to do that.

This was one emotionally charged episode. There were actually scenes that I loved and other two selected scenes that I literally hated, which truly seems impossible but it is true.

Every moment that Chase had Oliver was intense, heart-pounding, and masterful. Such incredible acting from the both of them. Wow! The episode had me so hooked and so in awe of the acting, the directing, and the story. Oliver was truly at the mercy of a very vengeful psychopath. Even the flashbacks were thrilling and enjoyable, especially with the incredible twist of Kovar working with Malcolm Merlyn. Amazing! Although it was so painful to watch Oliver tortured in so many different and terrible ways, the most shocking parts were that he did not escape on his own, he did not get rescued by the team, and Chase really did break him. It is later revealed that he had been held captive for 6 days. That was six days of non-stop torture from physical torture, to threats against his family/team, and mind games. It was so hard to watch Oliver finally break. This was unbelievable to watch, and it was done so well.

Now to the parts that I actually hated--literally hated--in this episode. Oliver - The Hood (S1) was referred to as a serial killer and murderer and killer in the past/that is no secret to previous episodes. But at no point has Oliver ever showed pleasure in killing. He has referred to himself as a monster and that he is scared of the monster in the flashbacks, and that was the reason he did not come home sooner because he was ashamed of that monster. However, for Anatoly to first tell him in the flashbacks that Oliver likes killing and then Oliver to later admit (after Chase faked killing Evelyn) that Oliver wanted to kill/that he liked it - is a complete retcon of Arrow history. He is not Dexter -- slicing and skinning a man he was trying to interrogate for practice is not true to Arrow history. The other part was how Oliver began referring to the Hood as a second personality. Because of the PTSD, Oliver has shown some dissociation with past memories/trauma. He basically lied about everything that happened on that island, when he first returned back to Star City. However, Oliver Queen has always been capable of defending himself/acting as the Hood/Arrow/Green Arrow without actually putting the hood on. Referring to the Hood as another person as "the other guy" and "him" was also not true to Arrow history. The way that it was implied that Oliver had a dissociative disorder in this episode as far as to say that he can only act a certain way with the hood on was way out in left field.

There were other dark secrets that Oliver could have revealed here that have been true to Arrow history. Such as, Oliver is borderline suicidal. When he first started his crusade, I think it was always his plan to die during his crusade back in S1 and that is why killing when necessary was okay to him, for example.

If Adrian Chase is truly the mirror image of Oliver Queen, then they should not both like killing and want to kill. After this episode, I do not believe this was a big Oliver revelation, but this was a complete re-write of Oliver's purpose, personality, and character.

It is just amazing how an otherwise masterful episode with so many amazing qualities could have one small part like Oliver's confession, which he made under extreme duress and ongoing torture actually hurt the ending. This re-wrote/re-invented Oliver's character and Arrow history. The worst part is that this re-write was not to improve Oliver, not to improve the Arrow show, but I actually felt like it was insulting to me as a fan that I do not know who I have been watching these past five years. I almost feel like the writers hate Oliver Queen or at least hate writing for Oliver Queen, which might also be the reason why every second a new DC comic character is being added to Team Arrow so that the writers do not have to write for Oliver Queen. Really hoping that there is a follow-up and repair to this most recent development on Arrow.

Really? The villain's plan was to make the Green Arrow admit he likes to kill? Duh... C'mon, from episode one the Arrow was never meant to be the kind of hero who this secret would be surprising to admit. This was the best they've come up? Both Oliver and Adrian seemed uncharacteristic to men of their intelligence. That WAS pedestrian...

Not that I expect anything really exceptional from this series anymore, but I really can't see a real effort from the showrunners to even try...

I've watched Arrow now for two years and there were many good episodes, but this episode is awesome. The flashbacks are perfect and the scenes with Oliver and Adrian as well. When I saw the last episode I was really happy because that episode was really good as well and I thought maybe Arrow will become as good as it was before season three. But after this episode I realized it Arrow is back. Personally I didn't like this season 5 or 6 episodes ago because the story was going on so slowly but when we found out who Prometheus is, this season is much more interesting and after those two episodes I cant wait to see what happens next. If you ask me I would say this is the best episode Arrow that has ever been made. 10/10

+ + + SPOILER ALERT + + +

Whilst this season is arguably the most exciting one since the Slade Wilson one, I have to admit that I have problems to accept Adrian Chase as The Prometheus. It felt like the writers had been writing his character as The Vigilante until half-way of the season and then made a twist to surprise not just us but also themselves by making Chase The Prometheus.

The Prometheus has managed to bring Oliver Queen to the dead end, to lock him inside The Hood after cutting him all escape routes. In a game of chess, Queen is supposed to be the strongest piece but in their game, The Prometheus has managed to demote Queen to the pawn.

Let's just find out who is The Vigilante. I don't see much logic in Kovar being him.

Fantastic episode which I have to admit had me thinking is kovar the father of chase. Then I thought no because chase points out his father is dead. So kovar as vigilante could be a red herring. Josh Segarra as chase has been outstanding and has helped raise arrow back to the high standards of S2. Though I still think IMO that Manu Bennett cant be topped as Slade Wilson. Even Joe manginello wont surpass him. This is due to Manu's voice. Questions: Vigilante cant be kovar as he offered a partnership when he first meets team arrow. He could be an earth 2 or flashpoint person. 2. Where is kovar? Lets see what happens but I'm expecting an explosive finale.