With the traditional 2013-2014 TV season coming to an end
(I'm still not on board with the whole new programming airing in the summer
thing… although that’s not stopping me from watching FX’s The Strain next
month!), it’s the perfect time to do a little binge-watching, and get caught up
on those shows that you've been putting off. Of course, you could also do
things like go outside and enjoy the weather or spend time with family and
friends and stuff, but, seriously, who wants to do that? What you really need
to be doing is catching up on The CW’s superb show, Arrow. (I'm looking at you
Alex Welch and Mark Reilly!)
Now, I am a self-proclaimed Marvel fan-girl, and I make no
apologies for it. I've always been drawn towards Marvel properties and usually
prefer them to DC. Does this mean that I think all DC properties suck and they
need to be wiped off the face of the Earth? Absolutely not! Good is good… and
while I don’t cut DC/The WB a lot of slack when it comes to their movie
universe, the one thing that they do extremely well is television. Both their
live action and animated properties are fantastic.
I will admit, I knew nothing about The Green Arrow before
the pilot episode. What I did know, however, was that the show was based on a
comic-book (which always peaks my interest) and that Stephen Amell looked
pretty damn hot doing those salmon-ladder pull-ups, half naked, in the promos.
How could I not watch?
Image courtesy of The CW
I'm sorry… What was I saying? I got a little distracted…
hmmm, abs… Where was I again? Oh yeah… I think I remember now…
So, right from the get go, I admit, I was hooked. Having no
previous knowledge of the character or his story, I found the pilot engaging
and the characters extremely interesting. The episodes move swiftly along,
never really stopping long enough to get bogged down by the sometimes serious
subject matter. The overall story arc of the season is interspersed with
stand-alone episodes, giving the heavy plot a much needed break. The
show-runners do a fantastic job of seamlessly blending the current timeline
with a set of flashbacks, meant to give insight and some exposition into Oliver
Queen’s transformation into The Arrow. They also do a great job of preventing
the story from becoming predictable. Often times, when you think they’re going
to zig, they actually zag, completely throwing off the viewer’s perceptions.
They also have no problem changing the game part way through or irrevocably
altering the landscape. There are plenty of Easter eggs scattered throughout,
as well, and many nods and introductions of other famous characters in the DC
universe. You’ll actually be quite surprised by who shows up in Starling City.
The action is top-notch, especially once you get to some of the later episodes
in season two. The overall production value of the series is amazing, and I
have to give props to The CW for allowing the show-runners to go for it. It is
definitely paying off.
While I do love the show, there is one thing that I have a
serious issue with. My main problem is with Katie Cassidy’s Laurel Lance. While
Cassidy kicked ass as the original Ruby on The CW’s Supernatural, her Laurel
Lance is a serious dud. It’s almost as if the writers had a plan for her but
changed their minds part way through, and then just kind of let her character
fall by the wayside. I know that in the comic books, Laurel is the Black
Canary, and while I fear that that is the direction that the show is heading, I
really hope that they change their minds. They have introduced other, more
interesting characters into the mix and I would prefer that they explore those
characters and their story arcs. But, this is really just a me thing, because I
really think that, overall, this is a fantastic series.
It will definitely be interesting to see what happens with
the addition of The Flash to this universe. Up until now, the series has been
pretty reality based (well, as much as a TV series based on a comic book can
be!), so the addition of people with “super-powers” is going to change things
significantly, I think. If nothing else, it opens up the world to many other
possibilities. I'm excited to see where they take us.
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