Arrow 'Canaries' Review: In the Shadow of...

So this week’s Arrow opens with the greatest line in the history of the planet.

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“Dinah Laurel Lance you selfish bitch! You're not a hero! You're a liar, you're a fraud, and an addict!”

That’s a hell of a way to tackle the not-so-subtle fan backlash from Laurel as a character. It’s too bad the show doesn’t commit to any of these ideas as Laurel is ‘drugged.’ She can’t take the time to acclimate to this legacy because Arrow is moving too fast and not plotted tightly enough. Laurel should have taken a backseat to be more naturally integrated to the Lance Canary legacy.

Lance vs. Lance!
We get our Canary dual for the ages. Laurel gets her butt handed to her from a ghost version of Sara. Were pushed 48 hours back in time from the red herring. Ollie gives Laurel the same speech as Helena Bertinelli in the first season, with him saying she’s not qualified to be a vigilante. He covers that Laurel might be doing the right things for the wrong reasons and falling back into her alcoholic past. It’s hard to see exactly who’s on equal ground here as Oliver and Laurel are now virtually looking at mirrors of each other. None of the responses here are what you might expect from rational people, as each party insinuates something strong against the other.

Lance tells Lance about a dead Lance.
Captain Lance is having a really hard time listening to Laurel’s lies. He’s beginning to see through what actually happened to Sara at the start of the season. Laurel see’s some glimpses of her father on vertigo, she ends up with her hand forced to let Captain Lance in on the fact. He’s in denial about what really happened with Sara. Paul Blackthorne plays the scene really well. He’s shattered going back-and-forth with Laurel on what just happened. Tragedy is tied to the roots of the Lance family, and something that this show should continue to explore overtime. I wish I could be happier about Laurel and her legacy, but this is the best we have right now.

Felicity needs to stop with Laurel impression.
It’s unfortunate to see Felicity maintaining her spite against Oliver. At this point, she should know better and realize that the team absolutely needs Malcolm’s help. Felicity’s camera system gives her the ability to magically use the power of minority report. Can I borrow that camera system?

Ugh...the China flashbacks.
The flashbacks in China are really redundant at this point. Thankfully, he informs Oliver that he’s going to leave soon. It seems that it’s time for the next phase of whatever is happening with Oliver in China and how it’s going to lead into the League of Assassins. Amanda Waller gives Oliver a lecture, and continues to be his obstacle on the island. She keys Ollie in on Thea’s drug abuse a little early, in her attempt to get to manipulate him. This is all a lot less interesting, as the show is spinning it's wheel with this plot thread that we have all seen in cycles with this cat-and-mouse game over the past few weeks.

Thea say goodbye to your tuition, and stay on that Merlyn money!
Oliver finally plans on letting Thea into team Arrow cave. She’s probably not going to like what she see’s down there, as she discovers the last remains of the Queen fortune. Seriously though Thea, you're looking at your college tuition. “I lied all this time to protect you,” says a spiteful Oliver trying to cover up the fact that he just spend a stupid amount of money. Thea finally pieces the information together, and we watch her make a character choice–she chooses to welcome her brother with open arms. It’s a smart way to cast her as this sympathetic character now showing remorse.

You can’t handle the truth!
Hopefully this will end her crusade of madness. Oliver is finally trying to give Thea as much truth as she can possibly handle. It’s unsure now if Thea is going to take on the Speedy mantle full-time now, as there is just too massive a supporting cast at work here.

Seriously Thea?
WOAH! Stop making out with your DJ boyfriend Thea, nobody likes that. So, this show is absolutely hell-bent on making Ra’s Al Ghul the big bad for this season. Thea learns not mix business with pleasure, or DJ’s. Malcolm and Roy break up the party about an hour to late as Thea’s assassin/DJ/asshole succumbs to suicide.

Cliffhanger

-The last moments of the episode have a pretty new interesting spin for Ollie, Thea, and an old favorite.

Fun Stuff

-The Walter White reference is pretty damn great just so you know.

-Count Vertigo is the poor man’s Gus Fring

-Malcolm is really starting to make sense at this point.

-This cast has gotten absolutely unwieldy trying to judge all of these different characters is beyond frustrating.