ARROW - Season 7.12

REVIEW:  ARROW – SEASON 7, EP. 12 – “Emerald Archer”

Ollie and the gang get some tag-alongs as they do what they can to protect Star City while being filmed by a documentary crew, who want to know about the team’s life as vigilantes and what the Green Arrow means to Star City.

We open up the 150^th edition of Arrow with a movie style opening as we see this documentary going on, we get a clip of Quentin Lance from 2014 talking about how much he hates vigilantism.  We see clips of the police and Team Arrow battling the bad guys.  We get views from Thea, Diaz, and Sara Lance about their views on vigilantes.  The documentary goes on to talk about the role in vigilantism.  From Star City to Central City, to Gotham.  We see more opinions from Cindy Simone, and we finally see Oliver talking about his role as the Green Arrow.  He says he feels happy he doesn’t have to wear a mask.  He finally gets to see William as he gets to come home.  William is wondering what this is all about, and Oliver and Felicity say that the SCPD wanted to have a documentary on Oliver to help public relations.  They also interview Felicity, who says she hates the word “vigilante” and says they should be called “heroes”.  Diggle’s old interview about vigilantes is show, then they cut to Diggle in current time, who feels humiliated about that clip, and says Oliver has changed in the last 7 years.  Dinah also gives her thoughts on the subject. 

A call comes in and Dinah and Oliver go to check it out about a vigilante attack---since vigilantism is still illegal in Star City.  They come upon Rene, who’s been hurt.  When they ask who attack him, he says they took the new Green Arrow.  Ollie asks the documentary crew to turn the camera off.

Ollie walks through the precinct, wanting the cameras off.  Him and Dinah talk to Rene, and told him that he shouldn’t be out doing anything vigilante like.  They discuss what happened to the new Green Arrow.  Rene says another mask took her…one with an exo-suit.  The Mayor comes in, and puts her foot down, wanting Oliver to answer to the city for his time as the Green Arrow.  Dinah shows resistance, but makes sure the documentary team gets that info.

Felicity is working at home, when William barges in and demands the security measures be taken off his pad.  Felicity talks to him about what’s bothering him, and also commends him on finding her firewall, and he wonders why he didn’t get to come home during Christmas Break, because HE was the only one left at boarding school.  Felicity says it was for his own good, but he isn’t happy about it.

Oliver heads to ARGUS to get access to their black ops satellites.  He and Diggle talk, and he admits to Dig that he has another sister.  Curtis comes in to help out locating her.  They come across a building that apparently someone…this mask…has been using as an HQ.  Ollie and Dig discover one of Huntresses’ masks, and Emiko’s.  This person is hunting vigilantes.

We see the doc crew talking to Laurel, who talks about her own experiences as a “vigilante”.  She says if what they did was right…they wouldn’t hide behind a mask.  They talk to a kid named Rory…who said he put up the mask, but continued to help people.   They talk to Rene, and says that politicians may care about the city, but not the people living in it.  They talk to Curtis, who says that while he and Oliver haven’t seen eye to eye, he sees him as a hero.  Then we see them talking to Barry Allen, who says that Oliver is damaged but doesn’t want anyone else to suffer his fate. 

Curtis comes through, and gets the location to where Emiko might be.  100 Ferro St.  Apparently that’s the place owned by Adam Hunt.  They crew and Team Arrow head there, and suddenly, they are attacked by the Chimera…which they’ve named him…and he gets the upper hand on Oliver and starts wailing on him, until Dinah and Diggle plug him with bullets, and he falls out the window.  They find Emiko, and she says he’s coming for Oliver.

Rene is at home with Zoey, when the door knocks, and it’s William, who’s come over to work with Zoe on her homework.  Rene pulls his father act, and William and Zoey talk about how things are with him and his parents, and he’s reluctant to give up info.  He just wanted to get away from home.

At the hospital, the team talks about trying to locate Chimera, and they get an update on Emiko’s condition.   Mayor Pollard shows up, and tries to look for the new Green Arrow, but, she’s gone.  Back at her lair, her and Rene talk, and Emiko admits that she is Oliver’s half-sister.  Rene gets it, and she says she didn’t want that to change their dynamic, which Rene says it won’t.  At the station, Ollie talks to Dinah, and admits to her that Emiko is the Green Arrow.  She understands why he didn’t come forth with it sooner.  The Mayor wants Ollie at the town meeting tonight, but he refuses, because he doesn’t want to put people in danger.  Dinah tells him it’s the Mayor’s one chance to have the city publicly crucify Ollie for his actions as the Green Arrow.  Ollie and Diggle have a private chat, and offers his help, but Ollie says he doesn’t want Diggle and the others to cross the line and get arrested.  There is no more Team Arrow, according to him.  Diggle reminds him otherwise…there was ALWAYS a Team Arrow…even when he was in Slabside.  That never sat well with Dig.  He goes on to say that Ollie took the hit for them, but now it’s time for them to pay HIM back for watching THEIR back, by watching HIS.

The city shuffles into the Town Hall meeting, as the team prepares for any attack.  Felicity is running point.  The boys are suited up and ready to go, while Dinah is inside holding down the fort.  Ollie and the Mayor go at it in their debate when Chimera kills the power, and bursts into the building. The fight ensues, Chimera gets the upper hand on Ollie, and is bummed he doesn’t have the mask anymore.  Just then, the Team attacks, and the battle continues.  Just as more people are escaping the fight, the documentary people almost get crushed by a wall, but Dinah saves them and the Mayor with her sonic scream.  They then manage to work together and take down Chimera.  But now they’re all arrested because of the vigilante law still being in place. 

Back to the police station, they find out that Chimera was a fan of Ollie’s who saved him some time ago, and was obsessed.  Laurel knows that she can’t help them legally outside of not pressing charges.  Dinah comes into the Mayor’s office to resign, and then Ollie shows up to offer himself up to the authorities, and to say that if they arrest his friends, they arrest him as well.  The Mayor admires the fact that they all stick together.  She says the Vigilante Act is still in place, but tomorrow, all of them will be deputized.  She says she believes in Dinah and her friends, and this is their chance to prove her wrong. 

Felicity finally confronts William about school...saying that he faked his school's website, and that he's not been at school, and wants to know what's going on.  He says he was expelled from school.

We see Ollie back at the old Arrow lair, and the doc crew, and they ask him why they’re here, and he said they’re going to rebuild, and be better.  We then pan back to see a female watching the documentary, which is supposedly banned in the future.  The girl—as we find out is Mia Durden--- and a boy named Connor hunt for the location of the old Arrow lair and find it.  Connor comments about the vigilantes using it, and she says that they got what they deserved, because she hates vigilantes.  

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Not a bad installment to celebrate 150 episodes of our Emerald Archer, by giving us a show shot in a completely different style, and giving us something we've been wanting since last season...or at least the BEGINNING of THIS one:  The reunion of Team Arrow.

I dug the documentary style shooting, with the interviews talking about the role of vigilantism in Star City (as well as Central City and Gotham---though it would've been REALLY cool to at least MENTION the Flash and Batman by name, but I guess I'd be asking for too much).  It was exceptionally cool to see Thea return, as well as past interviews from Diggle, Quentin Lance, and getting comments from Cindy and Sara Lance. Hell...even got some remarks from Diaz lol. It shows a lot of people's stances on the vigilante issue, but the documentary never really resolves the answer to whether it's a help or a problem...which is by design I guess.  But I liked the WB movie intro thing that happened at the beginning...giving it an actual "film" feel.  To find out in the future that this documentary has been banned, is interesting.  Nothing was resolved for US with it, so what was there about it that made it such "illegal material".  

I see that the two youths who stumble upon the Arrow Lair are Mia Durden and Connor Hawke. Mia obviously has a serious anti-vigilante thing going on.  Hoping we get more background on THESE two later on----and I have to wonder if either Mia, Connor, or BOTH MIGHT be behind the attacks on Star City in the future, thus bringing the old crew out of Mothballs?  Do they even TIE into William's story in this future reality.  Time will tell, but it's a different arc to the future we weren't privvy to before.

Out of all the interviews given by our special guest stars....Barry Allen was the best.  Knowing what we know as viewers, it comes off as amusing for Barry to play completely dumb in regards to Ollie being the Green Arrow,  THAT is what you call a friend good at keeping a secret (since, well---you know---he keeps one himself).  But also awesome to get Grant Gustin into the show's 150th episode.

Dinah had to walk the fine line so long, but when push came to shove---she showed the Mayor that she was a vigilante herself at one time, but a metahuman as well.  Dianh, to her credit, was ready to resign and take her punishment, but I'll give the bitchy Mayor credit---she believes in Dinah.  NOW...what with all of Team Arrow now deputized by the Mayor...what will this mean going forward?  Will this deal last long?  And how long before the citizens either protest, riot, or cheer them on?

William's issues really come to light.  What in the hell did that kid do to get expelled?  And just what have he and Zoey been talking about?  I wonder if his isolation from his family, plus all the issues he's had to deal with when Ollie came out as Green Arrow, manifested themselves into some not-so-great behavior.  

Chimera as a kid obsessed with masks, and wanted to collect them...crazy.  It served the purpose to give the episode an action sequence, and see Ollie at work first hand dealing with a villain threatening others...including his own sister.  Not like Emiko to be taken down so easily, but the kid obviously did his homework in creating a super suit.  

Curtis needs to learn to keep his trap shut when talking about ARGUS related methods...yeesh, man, why don't you just wave a flag saying "Hey!  We're a super secret spy type organization that uses unethical means to get the job done!".

All in all, was a good episode that gave us some set up for what's down the road, and we get the team back at capacity.  William's issues are worth keeping an eye on, as well as how we can tie them into the future storyline.  Mia and Connor's appearance make for an interesting arc to it.  

Thanks for stopping by and checking this space out---I appreciate it!  As always, please subscribe, pass the word around, and don't be afraid to leave a comment!  

Until next week....keep your sights on the bullseye!