Arrow "A.W.O.L." Review: Big Belly Burger tastes better Behind Bars
Arrow is towing the line into complete silliness with a mean spirited tone -- the show is inching ever closer into becoming the lesser man's superhero alternative. With lousy writing on supporting cast members, shooting the most important female lead on the show and having a plot barely tied together with a few sticks and twigs, it's hard to wonder if the show is able to sustain a massive fanbase this season. Let's see what the damage is in this week's episode entitled "A.W.O.L.."
Spoilers for Arrow season four below:
As per the episode title, we start things out with a solemn, delicious bite of Big Belly Burger eaten behind bars -- while I wish I could say things get better from here... they don't.
This is a Diggle episode... at least in theory.
The show really has been spinning it's wheels in regards to the idea of John Diggle's brother Andy who is secretly working for an ominous terrorist group. Andy is finally seen as an asset to the Diggle family, but not until the end of the episode.
Paying the ultimate price.
Felicity has lost a lot in working with Oliver and the rest of team Arrow. She's jeopardized what should have been a solid career in electronics to go play superhero and shatter her spinal cord. The worst part about this scenes is that they are barely even being played for drama.
...the helmet....
We all know this, it's not news... but yes... Diggle's helmet is still 100% atrocious.
Back to the most damaged character in all of Arrow -- wait what?
Felicity's Death hallucination feels really highly uncalled for here, Emily Bett Rickard's isn't able to sustain the Death performance to keep her subplot interesting. Felicity is debating getting back on the team and all I can think about is how she gave up her legs for her relationship with Oliver. Why she wouldn't split town and hedge her bets in order to move on with her life I don't really know.
The Fall of the wall.
This is the kind of episode that really feels like Arrow is dragging the heels in order to expand the episode count. Felicity is awkwardly dubbed Overwatch, stating that the Oracle persona is taken. It's cute, but not anything that has any ounce of dramatic weight or tonal direction in the show. One of the other very important moments in the hour is the death of Amanda Waller -- the character was never as important or as interesting as she should have been.
Felicity Smoak.
Arrow isn't dealing with Felicity's loss of a spinal cord in the most dynamic manner. This episode isn't hitting some of the correct emotional beats, almost taking the loss of her movement as a minor distraction from some of the more dramatic aspects that are hidden in the show.
Last bits and pieces...
- Shouldn't somebody care about the death of Waller a little more?
- The flashbacks with the Diggle family in war time is a wonderful reversal of the awful, terrible flashbacks from other episodes this season.
- John finally lets Andy back in his life.
Why season four of Arrow is the worst yet...
I never wanted to watch the Arrow that turned Felicity Smoak into a cripple -- I always expected better from this show that glosses over the dramatic storyline in piss poor effort to ratchet up the tension for the show. How on earth am I going to make it to the end of the season?
