Hello Again,
I appreciated enough of the comments on my last installment to convince me I should continue. I would have done so sooner, but I just now got a chance to watch some more episodes.
First off I just want to state one of my most profound realizations about the show. This realization completely contradicts my most fundamental problem with the show when I first tried to watch it. The idea that Stephen Amell was NOT playing the Oliver Queen I know and love. I briefly stated in my last installment that I was beginning to see the social crusader that the comics Green Arrow was first and foremost. Thanks to the writing/art team of Neal Adams and Denny O’Neil, the character of Green Arrow found the one defining trait that made him different from all the other heroes out there. He fought for his city. He fought for the little man. Not because he saw the world in terms of good and evil. He saw right and wrong. His crusade was not born of vengeance or some deep psychological trauma but instead from a life-changing experience that made him stronger, better, and more worldly. Arrow has at least begun to explore this and show great potential.
My change of heart aside, there are still tremendously big problems for me with the show. The narration and one-dimensional supporting characters still irk me to no end. I’m not going to preach about them in this segment, as they are largely points of pure opinion and little else. We all know the value of opinion and what they are like…that thing we all have and primarily used for dispensing waste.
Instead I will focus on the casting decisions on the show; some good, some still…just…terrible.
Once again, I’ll point out that David Ramsey’s John Diggle is a truly great character and I’m excited to see DC’s plans with him in the comics. In the show aside from some clever banter, there is no indication that he is some cookie-cutter made-up sidekick for Ollie. He is a true partner and his motivations and complexities are believable and entertaining. I’d also like to point out another character I’m really enjoying; Colin Salmon’s Walter Steele. I’ve always enjoyed Salmon even in really bad movies like Resident Evil and AvP (note: I do enjoy those movies, but let’s be honest, they’re pretty terrible.) At this point in my viewing I see some fun potential for the character of Felicity Smoak. Who knew a Firestorm character could fit so well into a television show about Green Arrow so sensibly. Then there’s John Barrowman, quite frankly, that guy could read the dictionary and his charm would make you sit though letters A-G without asking yourself what the hell you are doing with your life.
I’ll go a little in depth into my views on the less valuable cast members. I am, admittedly getting back into the realm of negative opinion. I hate to say this but the females in this cast are just entirely uninteresting to me. Oliver Queen will always be an orphan for me. Not all heroes need to be orphans and I despise DC’s current trend of turning ALL of their heroes into one. But Ollie has always worked best for me as a truly independent man. He is unburdened by family. Even his relationship with Black Canary is constantly cursed by his staunch independent spirit. Susanna Thompson play Moira Queen well, but I think her characters failings are the fault of the writers and not the actress. Speaking of Black Canary, Katie Cassidy’s Laurel Lance is just too far of a departure from the comic counterpart to be anything but an insult for a long-time fan of the character like me. I don’t find anything about her character to be believable. She’s all over the place and I just don’t buy any of it. Laurel is single-handedly what makes this show just another CW melodrama. The same goes for Willa Holland’s Thea Queen. As a character she is bringing Ollie down and distracting from the good story telling that is going on. She’s just another pretty face and nothing more. At least at this point for me.
Switching gears, I’d like to finish this with another high point of the show. Its use of other DC characters is very well handled. I am and always will be a fan of Smallville, but I think it's safe to say that when it comes to introduces established characters, Arrow does have more devotion to the source material than Smallville did. Where Smallville always insisted on creating their own image of all things, Arrow know when to pick it's battles, take risks, and when to play it safe. At this point, I’ve seen only an awesome fight scene with Deathstroke. But…he IS Deathtroke, no doubt about it. Even an episode appearance from The Royal Flush Gang, while possibly just fan-service, is a nice touch and well…a fan service that makes me giggle a wee bit.
Seven episodes into the first season, I am ready to admit that I have reached the point of actually enjoying this show. I can admit when I'm wrong and unless my opinion strays from the populace as the show continues, I think its safe to say I will continue to find out I was wrong all along.
Thus concludes my second reevaluation of The CW’s Arrow.