Review: Arrow 3.22 - This Is Your Sword

Oliver is a big faker and I’m mad about it. Al Sah-him isn’t real and Oliver isn’t really gone. He and Merlyn have planned this since the beginning; Merlyn told Oliver what to expect with his transformation into the Heir, and Oliver used that information to trick Ra’s al Ghul, which is apparently a thing people are able to do. I personally was a bit disappointed by this. During the last episode I had the fleeting thought that Ollie was faking, but I dismissed it, thinking it was too easy. But I’ve been wrong before and I was wrong now. Merlyn’s got to convince Team Arrow that Oliver is still Oliver, and get them to stop Ra’s and Al Sah-him from unleashing the bioweapon. He enlists Tatsu’s help in convincing Team Arrow, which makes total sense, seeing as they have no idea who she is or what she means to Oliver. Merlyn, Felicity, Diggle, Laurel, Tatsu, and Ray make up an interesting but ineffective team; the episode ends with them imprisoned in Nanda Parbat and in capital t Trouble.

Thea goes to see Roy which is only worth mentioning because it looks like she’ll be taking on the Arsenal suit. So I guess this is goodbye to Roy for real? And maybe I’ll finally get that Thea action I’ve been waiting on for this entire season.

Al Sah-him and Nyssa get officially married and Oliver’s now Ibn al Ghul. I still have no idea what they’re aiming for here but I hope that when Oliver inevitably returns to Team Arrow, Nyssa goes with him. Another woman in the field would be great, plus she and Laurel supposedly have a strong friendship we’ve seen very little of, and she’d certainly bring a different perspective to the team. While we’re at it, I’m also cool with having Ray around a bit more. He brings some light-heartedness that the team could really use. I love Ollie but he can be a downer.

The season finale is next week and I’m looking forward to it, despite the messiness of the past couple of episodes. There’s a lot to be resolved and not all of it can be done in one episode. Diggle and Oliver’s friendship is shattered, and that won’t be easily mended. Felicity and Oliver have been will-they-won’t-they for far too long, and I can’t imagine the writers dragging that out any further than they already have, so hopefully that one will be resolved. And speaking of dragging things out, this episode was a prime example - I feel like I spent the entire episode waiting for it to start.

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Score: 3/5

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Arrow 3.22 – “This Is Your Sword” Watch Arrow on the CW, Wednesdays at 8/7c.

Group Review: Daredevil 1.13 – Daredevil

Well we were supposed to have this final review for Daredevil up a little bit ago, but things happen, schedules get busy and here we are. This is it, the final episode of Daredevil titled “Daredevil” so that things could be real confusing. Unlike our first episode review we only have a few reviewers that have had the time to blaze through the series so check out what they thought about the season one finale.

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NINA: 5/5

The Daredevil finale involved a lot of yelling on my end. And the faux-wrapping things up with twenty minutes left on the episode- solid way to stress out your viewers. There was so much I loved about this episode, and I had a really hard time coming up with things I didn’t like. When Leland died I knew we were in for a great finale, but this exceed my expectations.

The firefight on the bridge was the main source of my yelling uselessly at the screen. When Fisk started telling the Samaritan story I knew there’d be a rescue, but I didn’t expect it to be so bold or so blatant. Fisk managed to surprise me there.

I particularly loved that moment when Matt catches up to Fisk and it’s just Fisk darting away into the alley. Fisk was very much the cornered, wounded animal, and there was nothing intimidating about the way he ran. This big, hulking man looked a bit like a bug scurrying away. Fisk’s final, desperate attempts at beating Matt and getting out of there were reminiscent of Wesley’s “do you really think I’d put a loaded gun on the table.” They both got too cocky, they both underestimated the opponent, and they both put that loaded gun on the table within reach.

I don’t really have any negative comments about the episode. I got easily caught up in the action and drama of it, and I felt they wrapped up everything they needed to.

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NICK: 4/5

Marvel’s Daredevil certainly does go out with the bang that it’s been promising for the first twelve episodes. Villains are defeated, but at what cost to the heroes?

There’s a lot that happens in the finale, plot-wise, but thematically, there are only a few big sequences. Foggy, Matt and Karen finally mend fences (which feels a little too “Oh, look how easy that was, we’re all friends again” after a couple episodes of Foggy and Matt being super petty); Fisk finally finds out the traitor in his organization all along was actually the asshole with a snarky retort at every turn; and the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen gets a costume to become a symbol for the city.

I don’t think I need to say anything about how amazing Fisk and Vanessa’s storyline was in the show. They decided to come at Fisk from a whole different direction than he’s usually treated to in the comics, and they made him not only surprisingly evil and brutal, but surprisingly innocent and damaged. There were so many opportunities for him to die from his injuries or commit suicide by cop (or, for a real shakeup, the devil in Matt Murdock could have won him over and he could have killed Fisk), but putting him in front of a white wall to think about how alone he is... amazing.

The suit was the most polarizing aspect of the series, it seems. I personally dig it, even if it is couched in a sort of lazy Dark Knight-ish back half of the finale. From the moment Fisk starts biblically monologuing, he becomes more Kingpin and less Fisk, while Matt finally becomes a superhero. It’s the moment where the “realistic” world of the show touches the membrane where it meets the comics, and it definitely worked for me. I’m not huge on biblical monologues from villains, but D’Onofrio kills it.

I don’t think anyone’s surprised that I am 1000% psyched for next season. Now if I can just wait a whole year for it.

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DUSTIN: 3/5

I wanted to like this episode more. There’s a lot going on in the episode and I think there’s a decent amount of payoff for the overall season, but some of it comes too easily. The way they finally snag Fisk is extremely convenient and it all leads to a ridiculous mafia movie style montage with classic music playing over the imagery.

There is one really, really, bright spot in the entire episode and it’s not the final fight between Fisk and Daredevil. In fact that fight was the least satisfying battle of the entire season. No it was the bridge scene and Fisk’s monologue about himself. It was a bit long winded and I wish that they hadn’t cut to the goofy fuckers riding in the truck with him, but otherwise it was fantastic and completed his character development and journey. Everything about that bridge scene was baller as fuck.

My favorite thing had to be when Foggy completely moved on from Karen after saying one dickish thing and not attending a funeral because he was winning the fucking case against Fisk! It was kind of ridiculous that they even bothered building his interest in her just to throw it out the window the minute they could. Seriously they built it for ten episodes and killed it in two.

I did enjoy the last scene with Matt and Karen as it continued to give Karen’s character a lot of realism as she lived with her own actions. That was definitely one of the best things to come from the season. Oh and I hate the costume. It looked stupid and frankly the Ben Affleck suit looked way fucking better. In fact I’ve seen cosplay that looked better, but hey… I’m sure it’ll change by the next season.

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Daredevil 1.13 “Daredevil” Director/Writer: Steven S. DeKnight Distributor: Netflix, ABC Films, Marvel Studios Runtime: 60 Minutes Exclusively on Netflix

Review: The Flash 1.21 – Grodd Lives

I knew I was in for a long episode when Iris was narrating. Slate that, I actually thought I was watching an episode of Grey’s Anatomy which isn’t much better. I knew Grodd (which thankfully you can’t hear me say wrong over and over) was going to be in this episode, I just didn’t know they were going to make it all about Iris at the same time. Here’s why… Iris is a terrible character.

I have yet to find anyone that disagrees with this. In fact my house hold which consists of me and two women all groaned at the sound of Iris’ voice and took turns telling Iris “fuck you” when she would say anything remotely selfish and stupid. Which is basically her throughout the entire episode.

I’m going to get the Grodd shit out of the way quick and hey spoilers if you care.

If you know anything about Grodd then you know his power set which made this episode actually pretty fucking boring for me. I knew that he was mind controlling General Eiling the minute I saw the character and while I don’t remember why he needs gold, I wasn’t surprised that he was going for it either. Grodd fucks with Barry and the team has to overcome the fact that they don’t have Dr. Wells and figure out how to beat Grodd… which they don’t really do. The CG on Grodd is actually pretty fucking good for a TV show which is why they’ll basically only use him in very small doses and we’re likely to see the same animation over and over. Basically Grodd has been sent to distract them so Wells/Reverse Flash can finish his shit and talk to Eddie a lot about how he’s a fucking failure and what was all that about knowing too much of the future again?

Really the bulk of the episode is spent with Iris who has figured out on her own that Barry is the Flash… finally. Which means that all of the main characters on the show now know his identity. Four or five sub-characters know his identity. All the main characters on Arrow know his identity and basically all the villains locked in the prison know his identity… so good for her.

She tests Barry to see if he’ll break and tell her, but when he doesn’t she shows up to STAR labs which still just lets anyone in and finds Cisco, Caitlin and Barry talking about their first Grodd encounter with Barry in the suit. After that is a series of selfish conversations on her part in which she asks why they lied to her, why they haven’t gotten back her boyfriend, why everyone knew but her and blah, blah, blah.

Again… fuck you Iris.

It really isn’t that she’s whinny, it’s that she sucks. The writers have butchered this character and actress Candice Patton really doesn’t do anything to spice up the role. She gives the same emotion the entire episode and it’s just very in-line with a lot of acting on the CW. And that sucks because other than Iris and Barry the rest of the cast can actually act… okay Eddie too, but I always forget to count that guy. I mean Caitlin definitely has a limited range, but when she’s in the range she does just fine. Iris has no range. She’s basically just fake happy or annoyingly stupid and selfish which the writer’s think means “upset.”

If you haven’t watched the episode yet pay close attention to how many times Iris walks into the main room at STAR labs and just finishes everyone’s sentence like she was listen to everything. One of the times she does this it’s impossible for her to even know what the fuck they’re talking about because she knows nothing about their operation which was extremely annoying.

But hey… at least she’s not the damsel right? I’m mean her boyfriend and father are damsels and then she’s pissed at everyone for not doing more to get them back and save them. It’s funny because she disses on her father for throwing himself into danger and yet she doesn’t say shit about Barry doing it because he’s fast… what? Again, everything she says or does in this episode is about her and how she’s hurt or has been wronged. Even when she gets her dad back she reminds Barry that they still need to get Eddie… Fuck you Iris.

Overall I called every twist about this episode. The General being a puppet. Grodd not doing anything and Barry and the team not actually stopping him. And the worst one, the worst one that I called was that Wells was actually right underneath them… because why wouldn’t he be. I’m scoring this episode a little higher just due to the CG on that gorilla, but otherwise it was a terrible episode that made me lose all faith in the show, especially now that they’ve adapted the system of the triple ending and added Iris to the team instead of just letting her be the annoying sub-character she was before. Lastly… when is someone going to stop them from using STAR labs? I mean… Wells technically owns it so… huh…

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Score: 2/5

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The Flash 1.21 – "Grodd Lives" The Flash airs Tuesdays 8/7 C

Review: Arrow 3.21 - Al Sah-Him

Oliver is gone, Al Sah-him is in training, and Team Arrow is left reeling. Lyla gets some screentime, and Nyssa actually works with them this time. When Nyssa finds out Oliver’s gone to Nanda Parbat, she knows her time is up. We open with Al Sah-him’s training, and one of his first big tests. Diggle is brought before him and Al Sah-him must kill him, which he does easily. But it turns out it’s not Diggle, just some poor random guy; he’d seen Diggle because he’d been given a hallucinogen. This all makes perfect sense. Ra’s is such a character. Next up, Al Sah-him goes back to Starling to kill Nyssa, and Team Arrow is forced to accept that Oliver has truly been brainwashed. He is unrecognizable, and fairly terrifying.

After Al Sah-him’s first confrontation with Nyssa, he decides to “draw her out” by kidnapping Lyla. This is the point where Diggle knows Oliver is truly gone; they exchange Nyssa for Lyla, but they don’t go down without a fight. Before we find out whether Al Sah-him/Oliver was actually going to kill Diggle, he’s shot in the arm by Thea, of all people, and decides to quit while he’s ahead. The League has Nyssa, and that’s all they needed.

I haven’t talked much about the flashbacks because I think we’re all pretty sick of them, but they’re been building up to this episode. In the flashbacks we learn about the “alpha omega,” a bioweapon which can wreak havoc upon entire cities. Nyssa had it, Ra’s wanted it, and he got it. Now Al Sah-him’s next task is to unleash it on Starling City. There’s also the matter of Nyssa and Al Sah-him’s arranged marriage, meant to unite the families.

This episode was kind of a mess, and while I enjoyed Al Sah-him (evil Stephen Amell) well enough, it was lacking. The transition from Oliver to Al Sah-him was abrupt and made it hard for viewers to jump on board. It wasn’t even a transition so much as a switch. There’s a quick montage, but again, abrupt. Similarly, Nyssa and Laurel’s relationship has changed, and it also feels abrupt to the viewer because we didn’t see it progress. We didn’t necessarily need to check in with them every episode, but we could have used something to make that transition. Laurel’s grown fiercely attached to Nyssa in a very short amount of time, and it seems out of place.

This was a good episode for Diggle, not only as he got good screentime, but he carried a lot of the emotional weight. He and Felicity hold Team Arrow together, and when Lyla is taken he’s forced to acknowledge that his friend is really gone. I also loved the moment when Nyssa called out Laurel on her need to keep secrets from people, specifically secrets pertaining to them. I’ve said it before, I can’t stand that plot device, and since Lance is still freezing Laurel out, you’d think she had learned her lesson.

I was excited to see Thea in the field (finally!) but now that she knows Roy is still alive, it looks like she’s going after him, so it seems she won’t be joining Team Arrow just yet. And as ridiculous as it is, I’m looking forward to seeing the arranged marriage play out.

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Score: 3/5

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Arrow 3.21 – “Al Sah-Him” Watch Arrow on the CW, Wednesdays at 8/7c.

Review: Daredevil 1.12 - The Ones We Leave Behind

Well, we thought we were in the darkness before, True Believers. Hell’s Kitchen was beating down our heroes relentlessly and there was nowhere to go but up, right? Right?

Clearly, if you’re still reading and keeping up with the series: very, very wrong. There’s plenty more down to go. We start by catching up with Karen, shaken by her actions at the end of the last episode, and going through some pretty typical behavior for a person who is clearly in shock. When she’s finally drunk herself to sleep, she has nightmares of Fisk in her apartment, attacking her for what she’s done. As she tries to come to terms with her own demons, she has to play middleman to the “mom and dad are fighting” dynamic of Matt and Foggy from the past couple episodes.

In the hospital, Vanessa wakes up (thank christ--she’s too good an actress to waste as a character in a coma for long), and tells Fisk he won’t be moving her; she’s happy right here. Fisk goes after the people who killed Wesley while Foggy tries to get his ex to look over evidence that her firm’s client, a one Mr. Wilson Fisk, might actually be an evil monster, and Matt manages to follow one of Madame Gao’s delivery guys to the warehouse where the heroin is packaged. He also manages to burn it down--score one for the good guys. Meanwhile, Ben Urich tries to get his piece about Fisk’s childhood published, and is let go from the Bulletin in the process. We get a brief moment to hope he will get whisked away to the Daily Bugle (because Spider-Man rights, guys), but instead, once again, all of our hopes and dreams come crashing down around us.

This episode is the first time that Matt gets to be Daredevil in a tangible way, as well. In previous episodes, he’s dangled men from rooftop edges, he’s gotten in awesome fights, and he’s been super Catholic. In this episode, he finally gets a sequence where he tracks someone by sound, runs over the rooftops to track them down, and then comes back to fuck their shit up. The technical aspects of the chase are incredibly well done, from the camera moves on the rooftops, to the way they chose to represent his super-hearing (soft focus with one man in sharp focus instead of the CGI radar sense is the way to go), and it’s just fun to see the guy jumping all over rooftops on the chase. It’s just this side of old-school, swashbuckling adventurer Daredevil.

The highlight of this episode is the really clever structural twist it plays on the audience. In the pre-credits scenes, we see Karen attacked in her home by Fisk. He shows up behind her, in the dark, waxes philosophic about the things she has taken from him, and just as he begins to assault her, she wakes up. It was all a dream, we laugh, as we sigh a little in relief. Fast forward forty-five minutes. Ben comes home from being fired from his job, intending to write a tell-all expose about Fisk. He pops open his bottle of whiskey and begins to type, just before Fisk shows up behind him, in the dark, waxes philosophic about the things Ben Urich has taken from him, and then he, in a fit of rage, strangles Ben Urich to death. Up until the end of this episode, I was waiting for the camera to cut back to Ben, asleep on his keyboard, or asleep in the chair in his wife’s hospital room.

Marvel’s Daredevil is not afraid to kill the characters who have been around for decades when it’s what the story calls for, and that is something that gives me great faith in it as a new television property. It is also the number one reason it breaks my heart. See you back here with all the rest of the gang for the final episode group review. Stay alive, kids.

Stray Observations:

• “It gets easier the more you do it” is a line that could have gotten laughs, but D’Onofrio’s delivery is haunting.
• “I think they call that loyalty, or something.” God bless you, Leland Owlsley.
• I am thoroughly humbled and disappointed with myself for not realizing until this episode that the symbol they stamped on the heroin at the end of the first episode was the Steel Serpent symbol--one of several Iron Fist teases in this episode.
• People apparently learn how to sneak up on each other professionally in Hell’s Kitchen.
• “Hardcore parkour!”
• Matt must go through like, at least 2 canes a day if he’s just throwing them away in alleys.
• “You sound like a whore.” “Well, I learned how to be one from you...dad!” is how that line should have played. Luckily, I’m not writing for this show.
• Madame Gao thoroughly does not play--apparently even Brubaker thinks she might be Crane Mother?

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Score: 5/5

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Daredevil 1.12 – “The Ones We Leave Behind” Director: Euros Lyn Writer: Douglas Petrie Distributor: Netflix, ABC Films, Marvel Studios Runtime: 60 Minutes Exclusively on Netflix