Post — Aaron Ngo

Going into this episode, I had low expectations. Unfortunately, this episode met those expectations with a nice hit of Tommy Merlyn in the mix. I'm not over how desperate Arrow has become to spoil the surprise in their own promo for the episode. Like, viewership must be declining because usually they hide the return of Tommy quite well.

But let's get into why this episode felt uneven and boring.

Spoilers ahead:

Picking up where last week's episode left off, Oliver is arrested and being charged for being the Green Arrow. A crime he is 100% guilty of. Dinah, John Diggle, Felicity, and Rene each take the stand to defend Oliver and to state for the record that he is not the Green Arrow. Curtis is not summoned to speak, which is a good thing, but he is hurt about getting left out.

This is all rehashing what we already knew about their history (Dinah's murder spree in Hub City, Diggle's employment under Oliver, and Rene's previous betrayal which lead to Arrow Civil War). For the record, Rene did stand out in this episode because it reminded us how he was one of the best additions to the show during its fifth season.

Rene feels guilty about the role he played in Oliver's situation. He is the one who convinces New Team Arrow that they have to help Oliver despite their animosity. They owe him that much, and while I agree they do, I think they are trying to discard the tension to have everyone reunite in the fight against Diaz.

When Diaz walks into the courtroom with Zoe (Rene's daughter), Rene confesses to the court that Oliver is the Green Arrow and everything else. He does not want to risk his daughter's life and gives everything up, including himself. This leads to John and Dinah confronting Diaz outside the courthouse, but his police forces stop them from hurting him.

When Oliver takes the stand, where he is destroyed on his countless lies about his five-year desertion on Lian Yu (they found the Russia photo), and how he claims to know the Green Arrow, but he isn't the Green Arrow. But before the lawyer can get at him more, someone crashes through the skylight.

Green Arrow came to take the stand. What an entrance. I'm surprised they allowed this to happen. Diaz really wanted this hearing to go through no matter the strange hiccups.

This man under the hood is Tommy Merlyn. What a shocker. Color me shocked. I cannot believe this. I'm being super sarcastic here. "Tommy" (we all know he's Human Target) explained he "faked" his death, went into hiding as the Green Arrow, and like Roy Harper, Oliver has been protecting his identity.

The judge sentences Tommy to prison, but he simply says his team will extract him before he even gets there. Which is what happens. Wild Dog and Spartan help him escape, which does not reflect well on Oliver's trial.

To correct this mess, Diaz forces Laurel to take the stand and to reveal everything about Human Target. This will be the final nail in the coffin, to put Oliver away for good, so Diaz can control the city for himself without the Green Arrow's interference.

I hated how Diaz put his hands on Laurel. He started choking her to make sure she couldn't use her Canary Cry. What I hate more is how scared she is of him. She has been with worse people like Zoom and Prometheus. They're way more threatening than Diaz, hell Zoom had a literal demon voice.

But she wants out of his grasp. So, with some encouragement from Quentin, who tells her that "his Laurel" would've never submit to a man like him, or any man at all, let's be real here, Laurel E2 tells the court the truth: "Tommy Merlyn is the Green Arrow".

Diaz is pissed that Laurel betrayed him, but it was a long time coming.

After the jury talks, Oliver warns Felicity and William that his chances aren't good. If he goes to jail, he wants William and Felicity to go into ARGUS protection. He wants William to grow up to be a great man, probably the next Green Arrow, and to stay safe. His father mode is on point, but his kid needs work and more screentime.

The jury finds Oliver guilty. I figured this would happen. But then the judge declares some law term that ignores the jury's verdict and lets him go free. I was genuinely shocked here because everyone assumed the judge was on Diaz's side.

Turns out the judge is on Diaz's side. Because Human Target fooled us, or maybe just me! What an interesting approach, ambushing the judge in his summons and taking his place. Okay cool!

But having Oliver and Rene resolve their differences did indeed feel right, I just don't think it was earned. Oliver and Rene both acknowledged their mistakes here, but we all know Rene was the one who messed up the most. This is just fact, but let's finally put this silly conflict behind us.

I think we're supposed to pretend Diggle and Oliver are good again too. Because their conflict is not addressed at all in this episode. Remember that fight they had about his leadership and keeping the Green Arrow mantle? My review on that is here if you need a refresher.

The episode's closing shows Diaz execute the judge for failing him. Damn Human Target and Team Arrow screwed that guy over.

Laurel shows up to confront Diaz because there's no point in running. She screams at him and shoots a bunch of his men. I was rooting for Laurel E2 all the way but knew she wasn't going to kill him.

He needed to stay alive for the "epic" finale. I put that word in quotes for a reason. Diaz came prepared with a device that negated her powers. He has his men take her away, probably to be dealt with later, and goes with Plan B that should've been Plan A.

Kill Oliver Queen and everyone he loves. That sounds familiar...

Calling this episode "rough" would be an understatement. It seemed slow and boring, lackluster in substance, even Laurel E2 fell kind of flat. Her redemption started to pick up, but it's too late in the season to do anything about it.

That's next season's problem I suppose.

Let me know in the comments how we're feeling about the episode and the remaining last two episodes of the season. I know right? There are only two more... I think Oliver should go to jail but that's my opinion.

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