Night falls across the city, as the seedy criminal underground stirs to life. Frightened citizens lock themselves in their homes in fear. Gangs take to the street to fight their wars. Black markets deals see the exchange of everything from drugs to automatic weaponry. The corrupt bureaucrats set their thugs on the unwary, whether to collect debts or kill witnesses doesn’t matter.
Then, mysteriously from the shadows, emerges a lone warrior. Armed with skills not seen in normal men, he dispatches the villains with frightening efficiency. Gunmen flee as their bullets miss their mark; brawlers fall, unable to match the warrior in combat; and his target shrinks, frightened and broken by the picture of retribution before them. And as his veiled face stares the offenders into submission, he leaves an eerie message: “You have failed this city.”
No, he’s not Batman.
What he is, is the protagonist of series simply titled “Arrow,” which began syndication on The CW roughly one year ago. Based on the DC Comics hero Green Arrow, the series currently rests at 36 episodes aired over its — to this point — two season run. I decided to look into the series’ quality, and I was very pleasantly surprised with what I found.
The main protagonist of the series is Oliver Queen, heir to the billionaire Queen family of the fictional Star City. Young, wealthy and reckless, he is best known for his excessive partying, questionably legal antics and assaults on paparazzi.
However, his life is drastically undone when he sets out on a cruise on his private yacht with his father and Sarah, the younger sister of the woman Oliver is dating. In what seems like a critical mechanical failure, the yacht breaks apart at sea causing Sarah to drown. As Queen and his father drift on a lifeboat, Oliver’s father kills himself but not before telling Oliver a deadly secret: that the Queen family has failed his city and that Oliver must right his father’s wrongs. Receiving a book of names, Oliver shipwrecks on an uncharted island, where he remains for five years; after his final rescue, he returns to Star City, donning a green hood, taking up a bow and begins hunting down the men on his father’s list one at a time.
The plot is broken into two story segments. Chronologically, the series begins immediately following Oliver’s rescue from the island and focuses primarily on his exploits as the Green Arrow. However, the show frequently flashes back to his time on the island, showing just what happened in those five years to turn him into such a fierce warrior and explain why he chooses to use a bow.
Now, the story features a number of superhero clichés: the costumed hero, troubled past, conflicts between the vigilante and the police, and the like, are fairly common. Queen definitely falls into the category of the “Batman-style” superhero, relying on gadgets, planning and his character’s wealth to provide him the means to fight crime. Despite such cliches, however, where the show excels is in its very focused and consistent character growth. The main cast of characters is very small, composed of roughly eight main characters, all of whom feel real and who act in manners easy to empathize with. Each have their own issues, personalities and outlooks on the world, which influence how Oliver acts both overtly and subtly.
That’s not to say that everything is perfectly done. Oliver (Stephen Amell), for instance, has a few issues with his portrayal. He has three personae throughout the series: the spoiled Oliver, who matures during the island flashbacks, the billionaire he plays by day and the Arrow he plays by night. Two of these performances are very strong: His young self is very sympathetic and easily pitied, while his Arrow persona is intimidating and inspires a profound awe factor, dominating the camera whenever he’s on screen. Where Amell is weakest is when he plays billionaire Oliver; while the performance is acceptable, the writing for the series tends to keep the character quagmired in moral quandaries not befitting his determination, and it often changes his moral standpoints in order to best fit the tone of the episode. This makes him a bit inconsistent, which, as he is the main character, may bother some viewers.
The show is, in spirit, a crime drama. Crimes are committed, Queen investigates, Queen intervenes and engages the perpetrators. The setup is fairly formulaic; however, its formulaic nature does not detract from just how engaging the series can be. The plots themselves are consistently well done, with the antagonists consistently engaging in their own ways. The ruthlessness of their actions and, in turn, Oliver’s ruthless responses, all manage to create an atmosphere that is easy to fall into. Even Queen’s day-to-day affairs, ranging from reconnecting with his family and friends to creating an eccentric name for himself, are all just as enjoyable to watch as the scenes where he is leaping from rooftops. Audiences should expect just as many heartwarming moments as brutal fights.
But lets be honest, the biggest draw to series such as Arrow will always be those action scenes. What happened when Queen dons the hood? The series is about a vigilante superhero, so surely there are plenty of over-the-top chases, fights and high-tension moments to keep audiences on edge. And in this regard, the series certainly doesn’t disappoint. Fights are well choreographed and evolve as the series progresses. While the Arrow may be dancing circles around thugs at the start of the series, don’t expect that to last. And as the world rises up to meet the Arrow, his struggles will become that much easier to invest in and cheer for.
Despite some flaws with inconsistent characterization and a slightly clichéd setup and characters, Arrow stands as a solid series well worth a watch for any fan of the recent Superhero craze. Audiences fond of the Nolan Batman films should feel right at home following the story of Oliver Queen. While the series does require some suspension of disbelief (after all, it is based on a comic superhero), it comes with a strong enough story, enough drama and enough blood-pumping action to keep all audiences entertained. It is the series we deserve but not the one we need.
Overall rating: 4/5
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