Life is getting good (or bad) for Oliver. Prometheus has made first contact in a suitably dramatic way, and the senior members of Team Arrow decide to leave out the newer generation. With the twist of Batman included in the show, this is very Dark Knight of them all.
A New Foe
Things are heading up for Mayor Queen but down for Green Arrow. Thea has decided to hold a music festival to raise morale and money for the city. Club owner connections give her an edge and Quentin ‘knows a guy’. As for Prometheus, his first move against Oliver is a sad one – the murder of an innocent mother.
Thankfully, a string of stupidity is at an end – Billy Malone has finally become suspicious of Felicity. After her ‘neighbour’s maid’s rag’ story, the ‘friend of a friend… of a friend’ doesn’t wash. So the former cyber-criminal goes old school and simply steals the latest star. With another alert of the killer sounding, the full Team Arrow is finally pulled into action.
Back in Russia, Oliver is undergoing some unorthodox chemistry classes with Anatoly – bomb making. Although not strictly necessary to take down Kovar, his Bratva brother gives him some sound advice – always learn new skills. After almost blowing himself up, the Bratva are given a drive-by from Kovar – war is declared! A Bratva leader arrives with a plan centred around playboy Oliver Queen playing investor.
Panic
With the entire city terrified over a new serial killer, a suspected sighting turns into a mindless riot as people try to flee from an enemy that isn’t even around. After the panic is alleviated, the rest of the team is caught up on events.
Understandably, the junior team is less than pleased at being kept out of the loop. Risking life and limb is one thing, but a bit of trust wouldn’t have hurt. Speaking of trust, Thea is quick to betray Quentin after searching his desk for drinks. What she finds are not the soft kind. Back in the Arrow Cave, the past comes back to haunt Oliver. Prometheus has been choosing victims with anagrams of other names – names from The List.
Only those who were around for the first crusade knew about The List and the newer members aren’t pleased to find out. Despite being a genius, Curtis has only just now been clued in on the whole Hood/Arrow/Green Arrow evolution. Because bows and arrows are unusually common in Star City. Actually, I understand where he went wrong. In the continued run of bad news, Quentin has relapsed. Well, not relapsed. The drinking didn’t actually stop. Why not dump him on Lian Yu and let him detox for a few weeks?
With a delightfully civil war turn, the four junior heroes come together for a discussion. It appears they are more upset about working with a liar than a serial killer. A manly heart-to-heart between the Robin Hood and his Little John points out the difference between the Hood and Green Arrow – killing is a last resort instead of a first.
Encounter
In a slightly rushed part of the story, the team is split to protect the six potential targets Felicity found. Within seconds, Artemis encounters Prometheus. Only three things are odd about this. Firstly, Prometheus arrives on a moving train without warning. Secondly, empty train. Thirdly, clean train. And hero training didn’t include common sense as Artemis instructs the train driver – Prometheus’ target – to go and call the police. On a moving train.
In the world of Russia, things went sideways. During an attempt to bomb Kovar’s planned casino, Kovar captures Oliver. Then there’s your standard ‘bad guy monologue’ and a story about a turnip that made no sense. Generally, Oliver is captured, and Russian is spoken. All in all, not much.
In a long overdue revelation, Felicity reveals to Billy that she works with Green Arrow. Even for the seasoned detective, this was beyond any crazy theory he could concoct.
With the music festival in full swing, Felicity arrives with some unwelcome news for Oliver. She managed to trace DNA from the throwing star to victims of his previous crusades. It appears that the arrow he used was melted down and forged into new weaponry. Back in Lance’s apartment, he wakes up to find a cut on his arm identical to the one Prometheus took earlier. As if that wasn’t enough of a hint, he then finds a throwing star under some papers.
Observations
- The Bratva storyline is looking amazing right now. Seeing Oliver learn the tricks of the trade is his last step towards Lian Yu and eventual rescue.
- Flashbacks are half the Arrow story but having ramifications of the first season coming back is amazing. Apparently killing all those people will be having an effect after all.
- I’m not buying the Lance/Prometheus angle just yet. Talia Al Ghul – daughter of Ra’s and sister of Nyssa – is set to appear shortly. My money is on her being behind the whole plot.
- While Arrow is usually the most realistic show in the Arrowverse, the trusty parachute-arrow was a fun use of weirdness.