Arrow Season Three review

Arrow Season Three review 

Intro: Mr. Guggenheim ( One of the creators of this series), what made you think catering to the Olicity fans was a good idea? If it were up to me, I would tell them to go watch Twilight if they want to see two people talk about how much they love each other. Just because this show is on a network that caters to women doesn't mean it should be like every other series on that network.  

Arrow Season Three: This season takes place five months after Team Arrow stopped Slade Wilson/ Deathstroke and his army from destroying Starling City, and things have gotten better since then. I mean, crime has dropped to the point where Oliver is considering having a life outside of being the Arrow. Well, that fantasy turns into a nightmare when an ally of Team Arrow is murdered. So Team Arrow has to figure out who did it, plus deal with the aftermath of this character's death. 

Man O man, this season was a mess. I'm not that angry about it because two of the three creators left this series to work on The Flash. Now that's not a good reason for how this season turned out; however, I knew they were biting off more than they could chew. The problem with this season is the writing. I mean, for this season to justify itself, the writers have to make the characters stupid. For example, the killer and the main villain's plan makes no sense. Sorry, I can't elaborate on that. Team Arrow trying to figure out who killed their friend wasn't a good mystery because A there weren't a lot of suspects, and B the mystery only had red herrings. The Mystery in the Flash was better than this, but I digress. 

Another issue with this season is the plot holes. For example, at the end of season two, Oliver is broke, and he's still broke, but we see him travel in some episodes. What is he doing for money? Here are four other things about this season that bothered me. First of all, episode 9 plays with my emotions and insults my intelligence. Second, we lost two more characters this season we might lose another one next season. Third, episode 20 set up a plot point that could continue in the next season, but this season rushed it. Finally, the writers are playing the hokey pokey with the world this show sets up. This series is part of a world that has superpowers and supernatural elements in it, but they still want to keep the realistic tone. Are you kidding me? Also, the way this season ends feels like a series finale.     

I want to talk about the romance between Oliver and Felicity. This bugs me. No! It's not because I'm anti-romantic, which I'm not; it's because this romance came out of nowhere with no build-up. WOW! Just like Bruce and Natasha in Avengers: Age of Ultron. I know last season teased the idea of these two having feelings for each other; however, teasing a romance is not the same as setting one up. The reason why the creators did this is because they're wimps, I mean, they saw pictures and videos from Olicity fans wanting them to be together. Plus, they don't like Laurel, the love interest Oliver was suppose to be with, don't worry, I'll talk about her later. Look I don't mind the idea of Oliver and Felicity dating, however, I don't like that the writers are dragging out this romance by making it a will they won't they situation. Whenever these two are together, this is what I hear.  

Oliver: I love you! 

Felicity: Me too!

Oliver: But we can't be together. 

Felicity: You promise me forever!  

Oliver: I can't live without you. 

Felicity: I want your Bod. 

As far as the flashbacks goes I was outraged that Oliver didn't spend the whole five years on the island. I know the series drops hints that he wasn't always on the island; however, doing this undermines how dangerous Lian Yu is or suppose to be.  

I was hoping this show would borrow elements from the show Lost. People were already comparing this to Lost, plus this show borrows Batman stories and villains. The Flashbacks focus on how Oliver knows Amanda Waller, and they're trying to find a terrorist in Hong Kong. My grievances with the flashbacks (Besides the story being contrived) are the way most of them connected to what's going on in the present; it feels convenient. Also, the lessons he learned in those flashbacks contradict what he had learned before. 

Let's talk about the characters. 

Oliver Queen/The Arrow is an idiot this season; he does things to put people in danger. Also, this season would have ended sooner if ( My editor censored me for spoiling anything.) offer and ( Censor.) is down. I don't like the way he treats Laurel. For the most part, I understand why he acts this way towards her, but it makes him look like a hypocrite. The writers did something interesting with Oliver towards the end of the season; however, they didn't pull it off well. As far as Oliver being conflicted about being the Arrow and wanting a life is problematic because this makes him look disingenuous about fighting crime. I mean, why is he doing this if his heart is not in it?      

Speaking of Laurel, I have good news and bad news about her. The good news is that she's useful this season; the bad news is that she does things that make her unlikable. Come on, guys, this is the third season, and you still can't make Laurel likable? 

I don't like the idea of Diggle having a child because it turns him into a Mr. Mom. This also creates tension between Oliver and him about whether or not he should still be a part of his crusade now that he's a father? Plus, his subplot wasn't resolved or continued in this season. 

I was annoyed with what the creators have done with Thea. I mean, what's the point of her learning how to fight if she ends up being a damsel in distress? Also, Thea looks better with long hair.  

Malcolm Merlyn/ The Dark Archer is conniving. What bugs me about him, besides the fact that he's still alive, is that his focus episode ruined his backstory.  

Roy/Arsenal is now Oliver's/The Arrow's partner in crime; they have a big brother-little brother relationship. His subplot didn't have much of a payoff.   

Quentin Lance is this show's version of James Gordon now that he's captain of the Police department. Wait! How did that happen? I mean, how did he go from detective to captain in a few months? I'm not saying it's not possible; however, that's a big leap.  

Felicity is annoying this season, besides doing what she does best, all she does is cry, complain, and second-guess Oliver. Her focus episode was pointless; however, it made us question how she go from what she was to who she is now?  

Ray Palmer/The Atom is Mr. Sunshine. My gripe with him is that he doesn't add anything to the story, besides being in this series for world-building; he's just here to give Oliver and Felicity more drama. (To be fair, them arguing over Ray is justified; however, it's not for the right reason.) Also, I think it's funny that he wants to be a hero, but he does things that are not heroic. Also, I don't buy his motivation to become the Atom because it feels lame. What can I say about his Atom suit that's already been said?     

Amanda Waller is an ice queen who is the head of A.R.G.U.S. (Argus is DC's version of Shield.)

I'm not happy with how this series handled Ra's al Ghul because the writers turned him into Dr. Seuss. I'm not kidding about that; all he does is stand around and tell stories. One would think that a man who is known as the demon's head and has an army of assassins would be a bigger threat than he was in this season, but that's not the case. To be fair, there are two moments where Ra's is intimidating; one is a scene where he kills eight assassins by himself. I would have been impressed if he did it unarmed, but I digress. I'm also fond of how Ra's manipulates Oliver. It's hard for me to consider him the main villain because the Killer manipulated the conflict between Ra's and Oliver.  

OK, here are the things I liked about this season. I like that it starts off with a mystery because doing that gives us something different. I enjoy some of the episodes, especially the team-up episode. This episode is about The Arrow and The Flash trying to stop a renegade A.R.G.U.S. agent. This show continues the theme of family. The writers tried to make identity and responsibility themes, but that didn't work. The way this season ended left some things unresolved, doing that gives us something to look forward to next season.   

The bottom line is this is a bad season; hopefully, season four will bounce back.