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Arrow: The Thanatos Guild

“You cannot run from this.”

Just when Thea thought she was out, they pulled her back in. Diggle won't let the hood go without a fight. Dinah's search for crooked cops leads to unexpected places. Curtis has a date. And Arrow is two for two.

It appears that Malcolm Merlyn doesn't need to be alive to wreak havoc in Thea's life. His love for his daughter is without question, but that has never stopped him from putting her in harm's way to further his interests. So the idea that he would create a following out of members of the League still loyal to him and bind them to him through his and his family's blood should come as no surprise. How he discovered the location of the other Lazarus Pits and managed to encode it in a cutting-edge map while traipsing around in time on Legends may strain credulity but is anyone surprised that he would make an attempt? Malcolm's machinations force Thea to answer the question she's been asking since the premiere of the series. What is her place in this world?

Thea has gone from teenaged drug addict to club owner, to an assassin trained vigilante to mayoral chief of staff in the space of six years which included frequent departures to "find herself." A task she never completed because Oliver would inevitably drag Thea back and the cycle would continue. This time feels different. For once she is making the proactive choice to right her father's wrongs instead of backing away from a challenge she no longer feels equal to. I was completely on board with her final decision. However, I could understand the whiplash that Roy and Oliver seemed to be dealing with. Her change of heart came awfully fast and didn’t seem completely justified. And I didn’t love Oliver and Nyssa arguing over what Thea may or may not owe to Merlyn.

Hello. Thea’s decision.

It also gave short shrift to Roy. Why bring back a fan favorite only to make him play second fiddle to Thea’s story arc? Her decision was made in his absence. Not only that, she assumed he would not want to go with her and was prepared to leave without him. This is not how you treat the person you want to spend your life with. Lucky for her, and all the Thea and Roy shippers out there, he decided to go with her. So the question remains, is this another turn of the wheel? Are the other potential Lazarus Pits seeds for next season a la Ra's al Ghul, Damien Darhk and Cayden James or is this an excuse for Roy and Thea to drive off into the sunset?

I finally got my answer to the question that was bugging me for two years now in what was possibly my favorite storyline of the episode. How can Oliver be married to both Nyssa and Felicity? Deliberately goading Felicity was the closest Nyssa has come to displaying a sense of humor. I laughed out loud when she called Felicity "Sister Wife" although I'm not entirely sure she was joking. Nyssa was aware of Oliver's feelings for Felicity when she was forced to marry him three years ago.  Considering Nyssa and Oliver's occasional antagonistic relationship bringing the Horchis Dagger to annul their marriage was a thoughtful wedding gift.

Dig continues to call Oliver out on his promise to relinquish the hood. Oliver continues to give him excuses as to why this is not the right time. Oliver manages to come clean to Thea but whether that is a case of him having time to interrogate his feelings or his unwillingness to admit the truth to Dig is anyone’s guess. Now that he has William's acceptance why would he? Oliver's identity is wrapped up in being the Green Arrow. He has sacrificed almost every other aspect of his life in service to it. Either way, it doesn’t look like Diggle is letting this go anytime soon. My question is what is Diggle prepared to do about it. It was only a couple of weeks ago that he said he would always back Oliver's play. Will he quietly go back to being number two? It certainly doesn't appear so.

Dinah and Curtis continue the search for dirty cops within the SCPD. The more cops they discover, the more Dinah suspects that the newly appointed Captain Hill may be involved. Captain Hill's appearance at a routine homicide sends Dinah’s spider-sense into overdrive. I just want to throw this out there. Diaz is aware of the identities of both the OTA and the NTA, so you have to assume Captain Hill knows as well. Is this all part of Diaz's plan?

This search for corrupt cops also brings Curtis’s love life, or lack thereof, back to the fore. Curtis's research did not reveal any ties to Diaz or anything remotely shady. If that's true, then I'm afraid Nick might get caught in the crossfire between Diaz and our heroes. If not, then Nick has been deliberately placed in Curtis’s path the same way Laurel has been placed in Quentin’s. At this point, I'm not sure which would be worse.

This episode felt like they were clearing out all the old business in preparation for the final stretch, but it was a solid episode, nonetheless. More, please!

4 out of 5 Horchis Daggers

Parting Thoughts:

Curtis is taking care of Zoe. I’m so relieved.

I’m so glad that someone, in this case, Quentin, realizes that Diaz might be up to more than undermining the SCPD.

How are Felicity and Curtis still business partners? He specifically told her that he was done with the three of them and would not be communicating with them anymore, ever. How do you not communicate with your business partner?

I have a question. Does this mean there are three additional Lazarus Pits or three Pits including Nanda Parbat?

Diaz is pushing Vertigo. When has that ever worked out for anybody?

Quotes:

Thea: “You know, before he was the Green Arrow, he actually used to be afraid of the dark, and needed a night light in his bedroom till he was, like, what, 16?”
Oliver: “It was not a night light.”

Diggle: “How’s your new roommate?”
Quentin: “She’s just as messy as my Laurel but surprisingly a better cook.”

Diggle: “I thought we were clear. You wanted out, and I wanted in. Or has something changed?”
Oliver: “Yeah.”

Curtis: “Who’s next?”
Dinah: “Nick Anastas.”
Curtis: “More like Hotnastas.”

Felicity: “They weren’t even at the city limits, and they got attacked.”
Roy: (looking at Thea) “Because she jinxed it.”

Nyssa: “I hear you’ve taken my husband as your own.”
Felicity: “Yeah. Well, we can talk about that later.”
Nyssa: “In the League, such talk would take the form of mortal combat.”

Tigressa: “She’s not the leader your father desired. You are.”
Thea: “Yeah. Well, I’m sure death has cured him of his disappointment.”

Felicity: “What kind of traps are we talking here? Are we talking Raiders or Temple of Doom kind of traps?”

Roy: “Does it need a code?”
Thea: “Try my birthday.”
Nyssa: “There are 18 digits across three alphabets.”
Thea: “OK. So it’s not my birthday.”

Thea: “Felicity. I know you were wondering. It’s from Raiders.”

Dinah: “How long is this gonna take?”
Curtis: “My worry is 25 to life.”

Oliver: “Nyssa.”
Nyssa: “Husband.”
Oliver: “You’ve got to stop doing that. I do have a wife now and…she doesn’t like it.”

Nyssa: “I didn’t start using a computer till I was 25.”
Felicity: “That explains a lot.”

Thea: “Roy only thinks I’m gonna leave him, and a bunch of crazy assassins my dead dad organized are trying to kill me, so my life is just…great.”

Oliver: “I gave it up because I wanted to be a better father, but William accepts the idea that I’m the Green Arrow. Plus, I don’t want to give it up.”

Felicity: “Don’t forget, guys, we still have a bomb situation.”
Roy: “There’s always a bomb situation.”

Oliver: “I thought I was the one who gave the wise sibling advice.”
Thea: “Nope. That has never been the case.”

Shari loves sci-fi, fantasy, supernatural, and anything with a cape.

3 comments:

  1. I liked this episode, but I'm sad Thea and Roy are out of the show! I'm gonna miss them! :(

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  2. It means there are 2 additional Lazarus Pits which of course might be also important for Sara and the Legends.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I enjoyed watching this episode. It's always nice to see Nyssa again, and Roy. Although I'm kinda worried about him, he doesn't look good. But Byssa goading Felicity was fun!

    ReplyDelete

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