Letās get the little things out of the way first, shall we?
The episode in itself, wasnāt so much a disappointment as it was more of a bit of a let-down. Like you got all ready for a big ass storm but it turned out to be just a short drizzle that didnāt even really do a good job of watering the garden and you still have that chore to go and do. Or maybe I had high hopes about it. The point is, the episode was fine but it left me feeling unsatisfied with the whole thing.
I think that Diggle sitting in while Roy & Laurel go out in the field is highly ludicrous. Iām not sure what I was expecting with Sin coming back, but her only role was inadvertently clueing Quentin about Sara. I feel slightly cheated by the producers on that one ācos they sure talked up her involvement in Saraās storyline. Laurel is always a sticky subject but Iām not sure what Ted was doing in this episode. It was fun to see him kick Brickās ass but I would rather have had Diggle get a rematch. Just saying.
I loved that Felicity and Diggle shot down Merlynās offer to team up. Diggle, ever the wise one, makes that critical line about the ends not justifying the means. Roy, ever the realist, is willing to give the man a chance after hearing that he saved Thea in the siege.Ā
But, I find it difficult to believe in Merlynās alleged care for Thea. Or that he cares for the city. He is āThe Magicianā, doing something completely innocuous with his right hand, while his left is poised to drive a dagger through your heart. The fact that there is nothing he is not willing to do, even using Thea or Tommy, for that matter, makes me sceptical of his whole make a different choice routine.
Even if he did trust that Oliver was capable of beating Raās, the whole thing is just twisted. Malcolm knows how to manipulate while trying to appear wholly justified in his reasoning.Ā
Story-wise - For Oliver, I think they did a pretty good job. Iām most looking forward to Oliverās direction this season, aside from Felicity. This episode just added yet another obstacle in Oliverās quest of defining his identity.
I was of the opinion that during "The Climb", Oliver left āThe Arrowā behind. It was all Oliver Queen in that episode. There was hardly a scene in that episode with The Arrow, save for the start of the episode and when he went to question Thea. During that stretch of time, Oliver was in a different headspace altogether. He admitted to Diggle that he didnāt want to die down in the Arrow Cave. He may have chosen to be Arrow in the premiere, but the episodes after that were clearly about him struggling to find middle ground. While he still hadnāt found his answer, he kept Felicity away, reiterating each time through his choices that nothing had changed between them.
But he was making little changes. He brought back Thea to Starling. He didnāt let Nyssa kill Malcolm. He stood by Roy. He agreed (after much hocking) to help Barry and got some much needed words of encouragement from Barry.
Then, time just ran out.Ā
Thea was now unwittingly the perfect pawn in Malcolmās war with Raās, and Oliver put her first, before the city. Just in the previous episode, Maseo told Oliver that there was nothing he wouldnāt do for his wife, at the cost of milion others. Oliver made the same decision.Ā
It wasnāt enough. Oliver may have battled for all the right reasons, but in the end, he was still stabbed and pushed off a cliff.
Now, he has a second chance. But now, the stakes are even higher. Fighting Raās as Oliver Queen isnāt getting it done. In this episode, Tatsu tells him that to defeat Raās, he would have to think like him and be like him.Ā
"Only a student can defeat the master."
Maseo was not available for some handy lessons. So whoās the next best thing? Malcolm Merlyn.
I had mistakenly thought that Oliver had changed his opinion about his life choices from his whole interaction with Maseo/Sarab and Tatsu, but it seems I was clearly wrong.
The Arrow comes back and declares to the people that he wasnāt going to leave them again.Ā
Translation: The city comes first.
In his bid to save his sister, the city was falling apart in his absence. That was not something he could accept. Raās was coming soon and he needed to be ready. That is his mission now. He is willing to do anything for that mission, even make a deal with the devil.
So, cue the Olicity scene. Everything has changed, but some things were still the same.Ā
Emily Bett Rickards is truly capable of standing toe-to-toe with the best of actors, her simmering anger, abject disappointment and crushed hope are delivered with such a raw intensity; it definitely ropes you in. Whether you are a fan or not of Felicity, Iāll bet everyone would agree that performance was beyond magnificent.Ā
Stephenās quiet performance in this scene deserves some merit too. His decision is made and itās set in the way he holds himself. He doesnāt raise his voice. He knows exactly what made her truly angry.Ā
Felicity isnāt mad, sheās enraged! She used to know Oliver so well, she could finish his sentences, she could translate his looks, she could understand his choices. But now, suddenly, there is a stranger in front of her.
His choices are baffling her. To her, he has gone and done something completely out of character. He was siding himself with a man who forced a woman he loves to kill a woman he loved. Was this the way he was going to treat her?
If being a woman loved by Oliver meant that he would forget all the ideals that he had stood by all this while, that the only lesson a close death had to teach him was to lose himself even further, if only the ends justified the means now, then,
"I donāt want to be a woman you love."
