Sunday, February 16, 2014

Arrow Skycap: Pilot Episode

Well, hello. Been a LONG time since I've done or wanted to do episode recaps, breakdowns, whatever people are calling them these days. But Arrow is the first show in a long time I've been so hooked on from the beginning that I want to share the joy with peeps. And I know, I know, it's taken me a LONG time to get this going, but honestly? Life combined overdrive and overkill and left me a little frazzled for a while. Things are way better now, so why not have fun, yeah?

And speaking of fun, let's dust off the standard warnings… always keep drinks safely away from the computer/device/screen when reading. Be prepared for snarky commentary and foul language. When I get excited or upset about something, the four letter words fly. (And okay, sometimes more than four letters and occasionally completely made up to fit the mood words, too. LOL) I'm not always on the same page as the rest of the world so off the wall opinions, observations, and over the top ramblings are pretty much standard. Spoilers and speculation will abound. If you haven't seen the episode and want to stay spoiler free, please back away slowly and look the other way.

As always, keep your hands and feet inside the roller coaster at all times. Safety first, people.

And here we go…

Pilot (aka the Introduction to Oliver's Abs of Wonderment)

Ready…

Go…

First of all…the camera-work in the very opening scene? Reminded me so much of BSG I kind of decided I was a goner from the first frame. LOL And ouch… running through all that brush and then over the rocks had to be murder on Ollie's feet. And yeah, that has to be Oliver Queen buried underneath all that stringy, straggly hair and the green leather hood. What kind of animal is green? Wait… maybe I should just handwave the color, right? Yeah, let's focus on the wicked ass knife he just stuck in stone and the form he uses to launch the flaming arrow.


Ready…

Aim…

Fire!!


And BOOM!!! We're off to a flaming start…if you'll excuse the pun. :P

The voiceover goes like this:

The name of the island they found me on is Lian Yu. It's Mandarin for purgatory.

[Please note the mask with the arrow through it…it's gonna be important, methinks]

I've been stranded here for five years. I've dreamt of my rescue every cold, black night since then. For five years I've had only one thought. One goal. Survive. Survive and one day return home.

And wow… our castaway certainly looks worse for the wear. I can't wait to see what kind of battle he had to win (see above note about the mask) to be able to light that flaming arrow.

The island held many dangers. To live, I had to make myself more than what I was. To forge myself into a weapon. I am returning. Not the boy who was shipwrecked. But the man who will bring justice to those who have poisoned my city.

My name is Oliver Queen…



Cue intro music… with this cool shot:


Oliver Queen is alive.

Key factoids revealed by the newscaster:

—The fishermen in the North China Sea found Oliver five days ago
—Oliver's fashion sense sucked balls five years ago…according to the footage provided by the WEBG file footage.
—Acquitted of assault charges after a highly publicized drunken altercation with paparazzi.
—Wow… they chose a great actor to play Ollie's dad. Very similar looking.

Key factoids revealed by Dr. Lamb:

—20% of Ollie's body is covered in scar tissue.
—Second degree burns on his back and arms.
—At least 12 fractures that never properly healed.

Seriously… ouch. And let me take a moment to say, read over that list again, people. Think about the physical damage he suffered. Makes you wonder about the possible mental strain he lived with, yeah?

So damn right the Oliver his mom lost might not be the one they found. With that kind of damage how could he be, right? But what a lovely reunion…


And wow… what a gorgeous home. Then again, billionaires wouldn't have anything less, right?

And please… hands off the green case. Oliver's got it.

Heh… 'Oliver, it's damn good to see you.' Who else loved the whole vibe of that intro? Oliver greets the housekeeper, Raisa, with more warmth. And then he sees Thea and awww…

"You were with me the whole time." *sigh*

Here, have another pretty picture.


Brief pause for initial thoughts.

I'm sort of loving the tone and vibe of the show. Right now it's very quiet, which given the hardships I imagine Oliver faced makes all kinds of sense. But… there's an intensity to Oliver that hovers over everything. He's sort of withdrawn, but look at the contrast to how he greets his mom and Walter to when he sees the housekeeper and Thea. It's almost jarring. He's so subdued with Moira but with Thea his face lights up. I love it.

Back to recappage…

And change scene to introduce Laurel.

Key factoids:

—She's a lawyer (not a miracle worker)… but if they can't win a class action suit against a guy who's swindled a shit ton of people out of their homes and life savings, they suck at their jobs.
—Ohh, she's feisty. She and her BFF, legal aide attorneys, against an army of corporate lawyers ready to bury them are great odds. I like her already.
—Oops, she's a little less than thrilled to find out Oliver's alive… and her sister is… not. Hello awkward. (And very cool way to drop that little detail in).
—The guy she's trying to take down, Hunt, is the guy who played Agent Durham in Caprica… and a commander in Blood and Chrome. Dude gets around.

Sorry… need a moment. Ollie in a towel sorta just fried my brain. Here, have a look while I compose myself.


Okay… moment over. (For now.)

After five years, everything familiar is now unrecognizable. The face Ollie sees in the mirror belongs to a stranger.

Is it a stranger… or someone he's become very familiar with?


Ohhh. Flashback.

Random Factoids:

—Wicked ass storm. Category two according to the crewman, who is played by one of my geeky fandom connections. See end of recap. J
—Apparently a bottle opener takes importance over the raging storm. Bonus points for making it Buckets of Awkward when asking where it is clad only in a slinky robe in front of Ollie's dad.
—Hell no, it's not gonna finish well. Ollie's being a very bad boy. But kudos for dropping the Anvil of Obvious, right? LOL

Okay, before getting the next Buckets of Awkward moment during dinner, we get to meet Tommy Merlyn. Now this could be an interesting character if you follow the comics. Green Arrow has an arch enemy named Merlyn, a supremo archer. But... let's not get ahead of things, here. First, I get all the various versions of the comics all mixed up anyway, and second, I have no idea how the CW will interpret all the lore. So… moving on. (For now. :P)

Just prior to meeting Tommy… we see some subtle contrast in context from Oliver. He's not quite ready to be back yet, or maybe it's more he's waiting for something or someone to come at him.



Anyhoo… Awkward Dinner is Awkward

Random Factoids:

—Tommy definitely has his thumb on the pulse of pop culture. Then again, Oliver DID miss a lot while stuck on the island… we think. :P
—Thea asks a loaded question. I could like that about her. And who didn't love everyone's reactions?

Also… loved Oliver's response to 'What was it like there?' Cold. (And let's not forget lonely, even if he might not have been alone.)

—Oliver is not only super quick and coordinated; he apparently speaks Russian and proves to be a keen observer. The 'friend from the company' is sleeping with Moira. Sorry, dude, it's more than that… they happen to be married.

But you know what… crazypants as that moment is, I kind of love it. And the way Oliver asks to be excused afterwards is kind of great… mainly because it underscores the change he's undergone without being overt. Moira had a moment there… like his request caught her off guard. Very nice.

Ohhh. Another flashback. And I love the way it's superimposed with the present timeline. Oliver has some adjustment issues… serious ones. I mean he's sprawled on the floor in front of an open window in the middle of a raging storm. But, I digress, let's hit the key points of the flashback first.

—They found a bottle opener. LOL
—Oliver knows science… in particular, biology. *eye roll*
—Laurel is going to kill Sarah. Um, okay, if Sarah knows this… why is she on a boat with Oliver? See… I get that he's quite the specimen of manhood, but I can't wait to see what kind of relationship Laurel and Sarah actually had.
—Oh, Oliver. Not even you really believe Laurel will never know, right? I'd lay money you're hoping she'll deffo find out.

Okay, seriously, never, NEVER say 'we're going to be fine'. It's always the precursor to something truly horrible. In this case… the yacht breaks apart and Sarah gets sucked into the water. Ouch.

And kudos to Ollie for at least being freaked out and concerned. Maybe the start to or the reveal of a deeper guy?

But… coming back to present time, almost taking his mom out probably isn't going to earn him any points. I love the way Stephen plays this. The freak out is more profound and mortification over his instinctive reaction is all over his face.


Oliver might be home, but he's still back on the island, too.

Okay, the green box has my interest. Did Oliver take up woodshop on the island? Or metal forging? Looking forward to finding out how he came to possess the box.

Random factoids:

—Thea's got some secrets and looks to be dabbling with some drugs. Maybe the Speedy nickname will play very differently in the TV version.
—Heh, again with Oliver's keen observational skills.
—Aw. Nice moment with the hozen.
—Interesting side eye from Tommy to Thea. I'm liking the possibilities they might be keeping some secrets.
—Hmm. Okay, Tommy, probably a smart move to not notice how hot Thea is now. LOL If Tommy is snarktastic all the time, he'll soon be one of my fave characters.

Ohh. Music choice: C'mon Doll by My Goodness.

Okay… according to Tommy, the city has gone to hell. Maybe his super hero alter ego is going to be Exposition Man! Seriously, though, using Tommy to foreshadow isn't a bad choice because it does two things. Sets up the reunion between Oliver and Laurel AND it shows us what Oliver will use as his base of operations.

Speaking of reunions… when Tommy wonders what Oliver missed the most and his quick, definitive answer is Laurel… I may have had a heart stoppy moment. But Tommy kinda destroyed the sweet. I do love how Oliver just shrugged, still determined to see Laurel… even if she's the only person on the planet who's not happy Ollie's alive and well. (Which she isn't… but we'll get to that.)

Okay… blah, blah, change of venue, Hunt financed the new judge's campaign… I may work at the municipal level, but yeah, I hear enough of this stuff at work. But… there is an important bit here: We don't have to go outside the law to find justice. This is Laurel's dad's favorite jingle. It'll be important later…

Until then, bring on the angstfest.


Hello, Laurel

And angst-o-rama is probably a little harsh because there's an awful lot of poignancy in the scene, too. Yes, Laurel lets Oliver have it with both barrels, proving she can probably take Alan Hunt on without a problem, but she deserves to have that moment. And Oliver deserves to hear it, even if it's pretty clear he's probably said the same things to himself a million times over. But I kind of feel for her when she can't be angry at Sarah for doing the same thing Laurel did, but she can't grieve because she was so angry. How much would that suck?

Something else I love? The difference between the Oliver in the flashbacks with Sarah (and to an extent the one from the news file) and the one who's speaking to Laurel. The man who returned from the island is much more subdued and controlled, IMO.

Laurel's parting shot to Tommy about how he expected that to go piqued my interest. But only for a moment because holy shit things go fubar in a big hurry when Oliver and Tommy are attacked on the way back to Tommy's car. I guess the neighborhood really did go to shit.

Maybe next time, Tommy should consider not driving a Mercedes to the roughest part of town, yeah?

Anyhoo… on the way back to the car Oliver and Tommy feel the sting of being in the bad part of the city, complete with Creepy Mask Dudes, tranq darts and a barrage of gunfire. Fun times.

And we learn more interesting details about Oliver. First, it takes him quite a bit longer to go down so he witnesses the killing of the shop owner. It also gives us another…

FLASHBACK

With just a smidgen of insight. Robert didn't help build the city, he failed it. This is going to be important later.

Back to Present.

Creepy Mask Leader is all up in Ollie's face about whether Robert survived the accident. He asks the questions and Oliver answers them. I kind like how he looks to his Creepy Mask Henchmen when Oliver doesn't immediately spill his guts. And dude, seriously, methinks tasing Ollie is not gonna go well for you. Just saying.

Anyway, my point is proven beautifully when Ollie finally tells Creepy Mask Leader what his father said. (And please note how Oliver checks to make sure Tommy is still out cold. Nice touch) "He told me I'm gonna kill you."


And, hello! Kick Ass Oliver enters the scene and takes out Creepy Mask Leader and his two Henchmen with lots of awesome action. Interesting wrinkle with him deliberately killing the last one. I'm looking forward to seeing how that plays out.

So… did Tommy see anything or not? Please discuss.

Okay, I find it VERY interesting that Oliver is the one who gave the description of, well his alter ego, to the police. And again, I'm wondering if Tommy saw anything. There seems to be a moment between him and Oliver when the detective asks if Tommy saw the Hood Guy. I do have a quibble with the statement about Oliver being back one day and already someone is after him. He's been back longer than that… just not at home.

Anyway… since we don't know who the detective is yet, his buttloads of attitude is all we have to base opinions on. A parent would do anything to keep their child safe is a clue, but not fleshed out here. And the parting shot about Oliver's luck not running out hints at more, but again, no details. Just more kind of weird undertones with Tommy and Oliver instead.

I kind of question this. Why wait to reveal who the detective is? Eh… probably me overthinking shit as usual. LOL

Back to action.

Aww. Oliver is researching the Hunt guy. But did you notice what he has close at hand? Here…


You know what I find interesting? Look at Oliver's hair in the picture. Now, granted this could have been taken at any time, but in all the flashbacks and the news file footage, he's got longer hair with the floppy bang thing going on. Not so much in the photo with Laurel.

What? I notice weird things. What can I say. LOL

Aww. I hope we see more of Raisa interacting with Oliver. And there's some good stuff here mixed in with friendly chatter. Like how Oliver seems to be more himself with the housekeeper than anyone else. I love her saying he has a good heart and his very quiet response that he hopes so and he wants to be the person she always told him he could be. Will be sorely disappointed if we don't see more with them.

LOL. Oh, the next part is great. Way to go Walter… trying to sort of stick up for Oliver. But Moira squashes that idea. SHE needs Oliver to have someone with him. Intro John Diggle, body guard.

Key Factoids:

—Diggle's good. Digg if Oliver wants.
—Ex military. 105th Airborne. Private sector for a little over four years.
—His ability to keep Oliver from harm will outweigh his comfort. (I LOVE THAT LINE)
—Um, no… they do not have an agreement. LOL

Oh… I can already tell the relationship here will be fun to watch. :D

Hmm. Apparently Oliver had a bunch of stuff stashed to take to his dad's old factory. And he switched coats, too. Not a stupid move considering the attack in the same neighborhood earlier. :D

Nice. So, voice over exposition. The abduction forced Oliver to move up his plans. But the man in the green hood was in the warehouse… and he's just beginning.

OHHH. Picspam introduction to the Oliver's Lair.


 

 

 
Oliver's AOW... Swoon!

 

 


Whew. For those of us who watched BSG, we all knew arrows could be extremely hot, right? *fans self* Let's take a brief pause to cool down a little shall we?

Okay… everyone semi-normal now? Good.

So… it looks like Laurel is going to get some assistance from Oliver's alter ego. And bonus! Adam Hunt is in the book.


Two birds, one arrow. Convenient, no?

Pertinent Factoids:

—Hunt's crimes go deeper than fraud and theft.
—Hunt likes to bully, bribe, or kill anyone who gets in his way.
—He hasn't met Oliver yet.

Hunt better get ready for some serious ass kicking if the arsenal Ollie has is any indication.


And of course there's the Hood.


And look… Green Arrows. How awesome is that?


Hunt plans to turn the judge into a cautionary tale if he doesn't rule in his favor. Fun dialog is always a bonus for me when watching great shows. LOL

His meeting with his goons (nicely dressed ones, but still goons) is interrupted by Oliver. And dude… telling Goon One to handle the Laurel Lance dealio is not your smartest idea. Why? Here… I'll show you.




Seriously, the look on Hunt's face when Oliver takes his goons out is hilarious. And holy shit, I'd love to know how Ollie gets him to fly out of the car… but really? Who cares? It looks awesome. LOL


I also love how Hunt's all 'Wait, wait. What do you want?' Too bad he's not smart enough to actually listen to Oliver's demand for him to transfer $40 mil to a Starling bank account. And I'm pretty sure he doesn't like how Oliver takes it.

But… I'm getting ahead of myself. First, more Detective Lance snark. I love how much he's an equal opportunity snark specialist. Well, thank you for your statement. I'll be an ABP out on…Robin Hood. Bwhahahahahahahaha

Who else thinks Ollie and Drake Conley are gonna have a wicked cool battle? Head of security for Mr. I Go to the Front of the Line Hunt. Should be worth watching, no?

Hee. I think I'm gonna love Digg. Something tells me Oliver will still end up ditching him before the night is over.

Gotta say, love the music choices. Oliver's party is off to a rip roaring good time. Tommy is very good at the throwing celebrations thing, no? Lots going on, though, both behind the scenes and out in party central.

Pertinent Information:

—9:07. Shit is going down in the very near future. What? You don't really think Hunt is going to deposit that money, right?
—So, Oliver missed tequila. Doesn't seem to be having a hard time downing a shot. Interesting.
—9:25. Hunt is sucking down alcohol, too. And gearing up for… geez… a full on war it looks like. LOL
—HA! Oliver's party is conveniently right next door to Hunt's office. Oh, Oliver… not sure that's the smartest move you could make.

Love how pop culture references are thrown in. And the snark that goes with them. And yeah, so much going on. Miss Thea seems to have a wee tiny habit that doesn't make big bro very happy. This could prove very interesting down the road.

Gotta say, Thea has some interesting baggage. Big problems with Oliver judging her when she's acting just like him. I kinda love what she's saying. Hello… you were dead, now you're not, and I can't just forget that last five years. As a side note, this is one of those spots were I love how Stephen plays the scene. He's not really in Thea's face and so much of what he's feeling is subtle. Willa on the other hand, kinda goes over the top, IMO. But she is playing 17 so yeah, probably explains it.

—Score one for big bro! The stash is now in the trash. Nice exchange of glances with Digg.
—And hello, Laurel. Someplace quieter to talk? Sure… why not. (Ohh… is that a jealous glance from Tommy?)

This next scene hits a couple of high notes for me. Laurel's apology and almost reconnection with Oliver over talking about Sarah just worked, IMO. Laurel's vulnerability and reluctance came through and Oliver's genuine desire to right a wrong takes on a rough edge when his deadline is missed and his mission rears its ugly head. They're this close to having a meaningful moment and Oliver literally pauses to come up with a reason to shut Laurel down. And the stupid thing? (Okay, maybe it's kind of awesome, too) His mission directly affects Laurel. So the whole 'sorry, babe, the island didn't change me' bullshit is exactly that… but he can't (read won't) let her know. GAH! Remember the dealio about keeping your hands and feet inside the rollercoaster? Gonna be a requirement with this one I think. LOL

Seriously though, here are Ollie's exact words:

Laurel. (Nice long pause) You always saw the best in me. Right now, that's what you're doing. You're looking at me and you're wondering if that island changed me somehow, if it made me a better person. It didn't. Stay away from me. Otherwise, I'm just gonna hurt you again. This time it'll be worse.

GAH! OLLIE!!!

And of course, he turns the asshat on, but Laurel calls him on it. The time on the island did change him… at least now he's honest.

Oh, Laurel… if you only knew, sweetie. But… Oliver has important shit to take care of, so yeah…

But the poor guy has another brick wall in the form of John Diggle to get through. So far, I really, really love Digg. He'd believe Oliver if he wasn't so full of crap. Score!

Damn. Rule number one. Do NOT get in Oliver's way when he has a mission. Wonder how the hell Diggle will work around the latest escape move. Wounded pride can quickly turn into majorly pissed off, right?

Rule number two… never say Oliver isn't getting in somewhere. The man will prove you wrong. J In a really big way. And take out like half a dozen goons in the process.

But you know what's really kinda cool? He can still get his ass handed to him. I like that. At least the head of security is actually semi-competent. It always pisses me off when they're stupid, you know?

Important info:

—Oliver didn't miss. Pay close attention there people.
—For a TV show, the fight scenes kick ass. Major.
—As noted, Oliver isn't invincible, but he's damn smart. Exit plan rocks.

Ha! Wow. Lance doesn't like Tommy, yeah? Did you rufie anyone special tonight? Yeesh. And hello… the burns keep on coming. But Oliver is rather good at deflecting the insults by offering a reward for anyone who can find a nutbar in a green hood. Two million bucks. Not bad, right?

Side Note:

I really, really loved the way Stephen played the scene after Lance asks him if he even tried to save Sarah. Seeing the effect on him followed by his 'billionaire brat' routine makes him shine. Hard to pull off the many facets, but he does it.

Ohhh… I love the interplay between Tommy and Oliver. Does Tommy know more than he's letting on? It's like he's connecting the dots, noticing the coincidence of Oliver having his party right next door to Hunt's office and Hunt being attacked by the same guy who saved their lives.

"What happened to you on that island?"
"A lot"

No shit.

See… while Hunt is having a stroke over his missing forty million dollars and wondering how Oliver did it… we get to see his nifty techno arrow draining Hunt's account and loading up the ones of the people he bilked.

Nice!!

And strike one name from the list.

FLASHBACK

Remember when I said the dealio about failing the city would be important later… strap in, folks. This is a BIG BOFFO MOMENT…

The trio on the life boat is about to become a singular person, and here's why…

There's not enough for all of them. Oliver wants his dad to save his strength. But Robert has something else in mind. Oliver can survive. Make it home. Make it better. Right Robert's wrongs. But… he has to live first.

Definitely doesn't need to nod off and fall asleep.

Roberts persists. Can Oliver hear him? Just rest, Dad. Um, no. BAM!! Down goes the crew dude. Robert's got Oliver's attention now. DAD?? Survive. Gun to the head and NO!!!!

Back to present…

Somber moment for Oliver in his dad's old factory. Alone. But he survived.

Key information:

—if, hypothetically, fifty grand magically appears in a bank account, don't speak about it, yeah? To anyone. Ever.
—Starling City has a guardian angel… in the form of a vigilante. I like the contrast. J

Heh… Laurel's cute friend, Tommy, has a couple of concerns. No, she and Oliver didn't go mono y mono. There's nothing between them. But… and here's where things get really interesting… Tommy thought the only thing between Laurel and Oliver was THEM. Well, hello wrinkly plot twist. But it's one I kinda love, especially since Tommy acts very smitten, but guilty. I have a feeling he doesn't want Oliver to know.

Too bad Oliver is directly above them… and knows.

Voiceover (with FLASHBACK):

She said the island changed me. She has no idea how much. There are many more names on the list. Those who rule my city through intimidation and fear. Every last one of them will wish I had died on that island.


Cut scene:

Well holy shit. Another big wrinkly plot twist. Moira had Oliver kidnapped. But another abduction isn't necessary… there are other ways to find out what her son knows…


Fade to Arrow


Well, now. Can't wait for the next episode to see how all this stuff shakes out. J

Seriously, this show had me from the opening frame. It might be my former days as a diehard DC Comics fangirl, but honestly, I think it's just how much and how many of my personal kinks get pinged. Definitely on the must watch list for me.

Until next week… ponder the following…

Geeky Fan Connections

Walter: Doug Greer (LOUK), Dr. Moon from Doctor Who, David Tyrel (Hex), Charles Robinson (Bond Movies, Brosnan era)
Lamb: Cyrus Xander (Caprica) and geez, a million other genre shows
Hunt: Agent Durham (Caprica), Commander Nash (Blood & Chrome), Addison (Sanctuary)
Detective Lance: Harry Dresden (Dresden Files), Larry (Warehouse 13 Xmas ep)
Detective Hilton: Joshua (First Wave), Travis (Continuum)
Crewman: Coker (Blood & Chrome), Kavanaugh (Stargate: Atlantis), Herrick (Reise)

Know of any others? Fill me in!!

That's if fangirls and boys. Stay tuned!

Sky

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