Thursday, April 3, 2014

Arrow - Deathstroke


Slade Wilson (Manu Bennett) finally makes his move beginning with Thea (Willa Holland) abduction and using the traumatic series of events to steal Queen Consolidated away from Oliver (Stephen Amell), with the help of Isabel Rochev‘s (Summer Glau), and begin to drive wedges between Green Arrow and those closest to him by exposing one of Ollie's secrets to his sister and another to Laurel (Katie Cassidy). "Deathstroke" works on several levels, first showing how surgical the assassins strikes can be without ever picking a weapon and also in playing on a running theme of the series that despite his physical skills honed on the island Oliver isn't a brilliant strategist and is often his own worst enemy.

By the end of the episode Thea is returned unharmed but aware of her true parentage, Officer Lance (Paul Blackthorne) is arrested for arranging Wilson's arrest (even though its later proved he was the one behind Thea's abduction), and Roy Harper (Colton Haynes), blaming the entire incident on Oliver, decides to leave Starling City. Although the sympathy of the kidnpapping is likely to hand the election to Moira (Susanna Thompson), her family is in tatters and control of Queen Consolidated gives Wilson the resources to mass produce the super-solider serum and produce soldiers for Brother Blood‘s (Kevin Alejandro) army.

Loosing both Lance and Harper as allies (at least temporarily), and having Wilson further toy with his enemy's life by exposing his nightly activities to his ex-girlfriend, leaves Oliver with a shrinking number of those he can count on heading into the season's final four episodes. "Deathstroke" also offers a few more flashbacks to the island involving the assassin's original plan to strand Oliver and the others, and Sara (Caity Lotz) failed attempt to double-cross him. Although we still don't know much about the circumstances leading up to Oliver being left alone on the island, we do learn Wilson escaped by eventually swimming to safety with only the serum keeping him alive (adding another reason to hate Oliver and Sara).

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