ARROW (why not GREEN ARROW?)

Who's watching this one?

I'm enjoying it. It's like Nolan's-Batman-Lite. But that's not a bad thing.

One thing that surprises me is the violence behind the vigilante justice. There is a high body count in these first two episodes, although some of it is potential body count. He shoots, they fall, and we don't see the aftermath.

Anyway, it's like a mixture of the Nolan-verse, Lost, and Smallville.

The lead actor is decent. The supporting cast is pretty, although I'm not feeling much of a connection. There's a lot of dramatic, grim expressions after turning their back to the other characters. But it's the CW.

Anyway, I'm curious how long this thing is going to last.

I saw the premiere episode last week and I thought it was pretty good. I'll have to watch last night's episode on the CW's website, but I think I'll keep watching this show until it gives me a reason to stop watching.

Thank goodness the CW-teenage-angst is kept to a minimum!

This is the first traditional comic book hero series I've gotten into since....well, The Incredible Hulk and Wonder Woman. (I tried Lois & Clark and just got bored)

I'm interested in seeing where they go. As an aside, I think my non-geek wife is even a little interested in this one as well.

I've been swamped and haven't seen any of this show, but I'm hoping I can catch up online. In the meantime, if anyone's interested in doing a review of it (either "so far" or just the Pilot) for the podcast, I'd love to have one for the show!

I've been watching it on hulu (Wednesday's schedule isn't conducive to watching premier television). I like it. Although I know the animated Oliver Queen I'm used to is an adult character, I'd almost have to say this is another example of "Smallville 90210". I don't know enough of GA's character history to compare the live show against canon.

I don't know much about the character but I have enjoyed the show. Just wished it was at a time i could actually watch it

Drew.Rub wrote:Although I know the animated Oliver Queen I'm used to is an adult character, I'd almost have to say this is another example of "Smallville 90210". I don't know enough of GA's character history to compare the live show against canon.

I don't get quite the teen angst vibe from Arrow that I did from Smallville. Maybe it's because the setting is more urban, and I'm not expecting my hero to display traditional midwest moral values. (I hated Smallville with a passion.)

As for the relationship between Arrow (WB) and Green Arrow (DC)... It relates to the source material in the same way as Smallville and Birds of Prey - they share character names. So far, I'm taking this show on its own, kind of like The Cape, and so far I'm liking it.

Just watched the pilot. My girlfriend and I were laughing at times. It seems pretty formulaic, and it has a lot of Smallville roots (the office was almost EXACTLY the Luthor offices from Smallville, for example). I liked Smallville as a whole (though there were lots of elements I loathed in it and don't blame anyone for detesting it) so that's not necessarily a bad thing. I didn't get much of a sense of Oliver as a person, just as a role. This kind of reminded me of Batman meets Daredevil on the Metropolis sets of Smallville. Of course most shows vary wildly from their first few episodes (for good and for bad), so only time will tell.

Dunadwarf wrote: (the office was almost EXACTLY the Luthor offices from Smallville, for example).

I'm pretty sure the Queen mansion is alo the Luthor mansion from Smallville. could be wrong, but I don't think I am.

Does his friend become a bad guy?

Rickster wrote:Does his friend become a bad guy?

If by friend you mean Diggles, I have no idea. So far, Diggles is on Queen's side.

Sorry if this is opening a political can of worms, but the show's liberal agenda is starting to rub me the wrong way.

The idea of the bad guys being evil/greedy/corrupt corporations and CEOs is something straight from OWS. I'd really prefer to see a more classic bad guy, some evil genius or aliens, or anything other than "big corporations".

Just my humble $.02.

That has always been a staple of Green Arrow. One of hte best things (in theory, not always in practice) about the Green Arrow/Green Lantern classic team-up across America in the '70's was the right wing/left wing odd couple. But Green Arrow has always been a leftie.

I don't find it too bad, though, in ARROW. Oliver is on a quest to right his father's wrongs and "clean up the city" . . . and clean up the company. There's going to be echoes of OWS, anytime someone takes on big business there will be from now on.

But, for example, in the most recent episode, a family turns to a life of crime after being lied to by his father and losing their jobs. Oliver offers them a second chance, not in the form of a hand out, but in the form of a job.

I don't think it's meant to reflect OWS so much as both ARROW and OWS reflect our economic times. Businesses ARE corrupt, in as much as HUMANITY is corrupt. Oliver, in ARROW, is out to stop the corrupt people behind those corporations by using his own family's corporation to do it.

The one thing I would like to see, and something that is missing, is some good people in the corporations. There needs to be a balance.

I like this series very much!

Like the fight scenes, and of course the weekly "special workout" that Oliver does - a bit of fan service, yes, but I like that it is geared towards women for once.

I also enjoy all the easter eggs, I think there's one in every episode. Like the mask of Deathstroke on a stick near Oliver's campfire on the island, in literally the first minute of the first episode, wow! Wonder how that played out....

And I like him working through his father's list. It gives him a cause that is a bit more credible, I think, than just fighting petty crime. That is exactly why I didn't like episode 6 as much as the first five. I really hope he returns to his list right away from episode 7.

About his love interest (at least sort of), this Laurel Lance, full name Dinah Laurel Lance (another easter egg) - I don't get why they avoided the name Dinah. Perhaps because they wanted to be free to let both of them have other relationships than just marry eachother like in the comics. But it feels a bit forced to me; why not simply introduce a new character and call her Laurel something, instead of Dinah Laurel Lance.

Also, on a side note, everytime I see her in an episode, I think, "Carol Ferris". She just strikes me more as a Carol Ferris than as a Dinah Lance. Don't know why, she just does

I would give the series up until now a quality score of 9/10 and a relevance score of 8/10 - the high relevance score because:
1. themes like justice and righteousness run throughout the plot
2. the subject of pain and how humans deal with it is one of the plot threads that really strike home (characters deal with both physical and emotional pain, in both past and present, and each chooses their own way of dealing with that, and lets it influence their way of relating to the world and other people in different ways - and none of them flawless of course)
3. The scene in which Oliver's mother greets him when they see eachother again for the first time after five years, I found particularly touching however short it was. For to me it could serve as a metaphor for the unconditional love of our heavenly Father, who cannot wait to see us, his prodigal children, return to Him and to welcome us home.

So yeah, like this show!

Oh, and if you get the chance, read the comic as well, it ties in with the show, adding extra plot lines, giving background stories etc. Like it, and it's very cheap! I only pay like $0,99 per issue on my iPad.

Rickster wrote:Does his friend become a bad guy?

If you're talking about Tommy Merlyn, the Merlyn in the comics is a professional assassin who uses a bow and arrow and has a long standing rivalry with Green Arrow.

I like ComiKate's view of mythology references as Easter Eggs, totally unconnected to the comic book history. I've pretty much got to take the show as "inspired by" Green Arrow, rather than an interpretation of it. That worked out pretty well for Birds of Prey.

I could do with some more emphasis on story telling and a bit less on the character drama. I'm already fed up with Ollie and Laurel making moon eyes at each other while Harry Dresden gives them the stinkeye.

mindspike wrote:

Rickster wrote:Does his friend become a bad guy?

If you're talking about Tommy Merlyn, the Merlyn in the comics is a professional assassin who uses a bow and arrow and has a long standing rivalry with Green Arrow.

Yeah It's Tommy that I was talking about something about how they said his name in the pilot made me think he was going to become and TV Guide said something about Laurel eventually becomes a costume hero too. is that right?

Rickster wrote:TV Guide said something about Laurel eventually becomes a costume hero too. is that right?

In the comics, "Laurel" is Dinah Laurel Lance (possibly Drake, depending on which side of the silver age you're drawing). Either way, she is the costumed heroine called Black Canary.

The ratings keep going up -- the last episode they had ratings for (week of 11/13) was the highest-rated episode since the premiere.

Just got caught up on all the Eps last night on a whim. (Pilot is only on Hulu for 24 more hours!)

Much better than I thought it would be! Love the character driven aspect. (Wish the acting was a bit better to match, though it's pretty solid.)

Can't see myself willingly sitting through broadcast commercial breaks or giving my undivided attention to it, but it will probably be a "while I do the dishes" show.

Good stuff!

As for the title of this thread, I think the series title will stay the same, but predict that we are slowly building to Oliver Queen being called The Green Arrow. It's "The Hood" for now, but I think it's only a matter of time before his green arrow motif causes the transition.

I have to admit I felt sorry for the actor who played Oliver in last night’s episode. Having to do his work out scenes while delivering lines take after take must have been hard.

Stephen Amell is in phenomenal shape, to be sure. Want to know the secret of his ability to deliver lines while performing brutally intense Ninja Warrior workouts?

FX spoiler here:He works out on a harness rig with a counterbalance. He's only lifting a fraction of his body weight.

It's still impressive from this side of the screen.