Sometimes the titling of certain ARROW episodes is a bit strange; such as last year’s finale “Sacrifice”. Throughout the episode the word “sacrifice” was consistently used, which begs to question if it was intentional or perhaps sloppy (in terms of writing). I make this statement because of “Crucible”, the fourth episode for season two. This episode doesn’t necessarily deal with the subject of having a ‘crucible’, but the word is uttered quite frequently for a good 2 minutes. So, because of that, was this a proper title? Honestly…it doesn’t matter. “Crucible” was a fantastic episode of ARROW, and delivered more solid content.
Season one had easy episodes that could be wrote off as ‘filler’ due to the “list” gimmick. This allowed episodes to not necessarily be critical to the overall plot of the season, but could still stand as their own episodes. What helped season one though was the majority of filler episodes intertwined with a subplot (the Vertigo drug). Season two though seems to be skipping the ‘filler’ concept, and going straight for the main plot. What’s brilliant are the subplots intertwining with the main plot, instead of being separate. Let’s begin with the Canary character. We’ve seen a good amount of her at this point…and the episode opens with Oliver discovering her identity: Sara Lance. What would’ve been a real shocker is if this information wasn’t already released, especially due to the recasting of the character. To add to this, instead of explaining the recasting, they simply did a shot-for-shot remake of the pilot sequence. It was very well handled and completely understandable, especially because Jacqueline Wood (the initial actress of Sara) didn’t necessarily sign on for the whole show of ARROW. With the later explanation of Oliver knowing Sara Lance survived the boat sinking, but not necessarily surviving period was a very intriguing twist. The entire sequence of Oliver Queen being completely shaken up was riveting and very intense, leaving a sense of mystery as to what exactly happened.
Isabel Rochev’s character returned for a bit as well. Not a whole lot to gain from it…but on a similar note…”Pilot” showed a page of ‘The List’ with her name in it. Hmm…
The situation wasn’t necessarily resolved later, as Sara visits Oliver and questions him if he revealed her existence to the Lances. Oliver doesn’t (it’s not really his business to do so anyhow), and in that moment, Quentin shows up to tell him about Laurel. The cinematography throughout this was great, using a pull-focus with Sara reacting to her father being in the room. She doesn’t reveal her identity, and disappears. Quentin had to talk with Oliver about Laurel falling into a drinking problem. In another attempt to mirror season one with Quentin’s drinking problem, Laurel now seems to be resorting to it now…distraught after her realization of her being responsible for Tommy Merlyn’s death. Laurel’s character is very misguided at this point. Initially she had a somewhat (though unreasonable) role, but now it’s almost as if she doesn’t have a role. What will become of her character? Hopefully it’s something decent; not a ‘damsel-in-distress’ role or another unreasonable role.
Felicity and Diggle have been greatly underplayed the past two episodes. For being main cast members, I was expecting more of their presence. It’s there, but there’s not a whole lot of it. There are a lot of new characters in this season, and they’re going to need some screen time to develop. Let’s begin with Sebastian Blood, last seen in “Identities”. Blood’s role is expanding, as he works with Oliver Queen doing a “cash for guns” event to stop violence in The Glades. This upsets the villain of the week known as ‘The Mayor’. He’s another filler-type villain, but he posed much more of a threat than The Dollmaker last week. Literally invading the event and gunning down people added to the intensity that “Crucible” conveyed. Blood stood up to The Mayor, and would’ve been shot if not for Oliver. The issue is, Sin was…and this is where Roy and Thea’s role for the episode comes into play. Roy saves Sin’s life by taking her to a hospital…and that’s really it. She promises to keep his ‘secret’ that he’s working with The Arrow, but her role in this show already comes into question. Why is she necessarily here? Last episode was completely understandable, but now it just seems strange. I’m not going to fully-evaluate her character until we get a bit more of identity from her.
Oliver, as The Arrow, goes to Sara Lance for help in taking down ‘The Mayor’ (who is acquiring weapons from a military friend). The fight sequence at the end was fast-paced and had solid focus. Whether it was the trade-off of weapons between both The Arrow and The Canary, destroying a grenade from a grenade launcher, or just the solid teamwork from both characters…they were a solid team together. Now, incorporating Diggle and Roy eventually into this would just be pure gold. I for one am crossing my fingers. The episode concludes with The Major being stopped, Oliver questioning how Sara acquired her skills, and the revelation that Sebastian Blood is truly “Brother Blood”, the villain from the comics. Perhaps he’ll turn out to be the real threat for this season.
The flashback sequence this time around was a bit more condensed in terms of what happened. Oliver is imprisoned aboard the Amazo, and is shot, and removes the bullet himself. The two interesting notes here is first, the prisoner next to him being Russian (possibly involved with the Bravata? Are they covering that one so soon?) and Sara Lance being aboard. What’s good about this, is seeing some current-day characters in the flashbacks. Also, present-day Sara asking about Slade begins to spark more questions.
The real standout moment from this episode was (besides Oliver’s dialogue with Diggle/Felicity) Sara Lance. Caity Lotz’s portrayal of her was completely convincing. If her eventual fate is to NOT be the Black Canary…well, as of now, I would not like to see that day. “Crucible” was a very dark, intense episode for season two…and we’re four episodes in and still haven’t gotten a true ‘filler’ episode yet. Season two is on a fantastic roll so far…let’s hope it keeps going.
Also…did anyone else catch the mention of the S.T.A.R. Labs particle accelerator again?
