Arrow – Beyond Redemption Recap

I learned three things from Arrow last night: 1) Paul Blackthorne owned it in “Beyond Redemption.” 2) Oliver needs to become a billionaire again so as to stop Felicity’s uncomfortable usage of company funding. And 3) we need to cut back on the island flashbacks.

Captain Lance

This was definitely one of the finest of Blackthorne’s episodes, proving just how important he is to the show (when they don’t waste the character and actor going after vigilantes). He just needs to work with Team Arrow more (like in season 2).

Having a really bad day – Lance dealt with rogue cops who wanted to get out of the dying city and take some money with them, Oliver running for mayor, his daughter coming back from the dead as a soulless monster, Oliver calling Lance a hypocrite for working with Darhk, and more. Mostly, Lance had to face his own choices and he didn’t like what he saw.

But what really worked about this episode (much more than everything else) was Lance’s speech about hope, redemption, and saving the city. Really, the speech just reminded us that the fallen city isn’t beyond redemption and neither is the people living in it – humans who make mistakes like Oliver and Detective Lance. The city can be saved if people start saving themselves.

In fact, the confrontation and talks between Lance and Oliver were just amazing as a whole, Amell getting a chance to shine in his righteous anger almost as much as Blackthorne. This was really great characterization for both characters and I can’t wait to see where it goes from here. Hopefully, there will be more scenes working together as Lance becomes a spy against Damien Darhk.

And speaking of Damien Darhk, Damien had his own advice for Lance when it came to Sara and the Lazarus Pit: put her down because whatever came back isn’t Sara’s soul. Lance tried to kill the thing that looks like Sara, but he couldn’t do it. Honestly, I’m just waiting for the awesome introduction of Constantine to the show next week as he attempts to reunite Sara’s body with her soul…

Running for Mayor and Felicity’s Campaign Funding

While I love the idea of Oliver running for mayor, things did get a little strange in the writing when the writers had Felicity announce she was taking money from Palmer Tech to fund the campaign. Hmmm. Perhaps the writers should look up the legality of such a choice…

I don’t think they are intending on this being a bad thing, but it is, so they need to either find new funding or make Oliver a billionaire again ASAP. That being said, I love the new Arrow lair being below Blood’s old mayor headquarters.

By the end of the episode, it was nice to see the campaign up and running with Oliver giving his own ‘saving the city’ speech to launch his run.

Elsewhere…

Felicity kept getting those cryptic codes on her phone. Curtis realized it was a message from Ray right before he “died.” At first, Felicity didn’t want to hear Ray right before he died, not until Curtis gave his own speech about the importance of someone’s last words and what a gift it is. So, Felicity put in the password (which was Password) and listened to Ray’s last words that it was his fault. Can I just add that this plot needs to move forward? I really thought the message would reveal he’s still alive. Let’s stop dragging this out…

And speaking of dragging out, those flashbacks are painful. In the past, the flashbacks worked because we had Slade who was all kinds of awesome. Last season, while the flashbacks were jumpy, we also at least had Tatsu. This season we have a nameless girl in a cave Oliver saved and a jerk who likes killing people. Oh, and now this killer realizes Oliver is a spy….

Thoughts and Theories

I have to admit that I thought the person in the grave would be Detective Lance. This may still be possible; however, I believed the original scenario would be Lance going out as he sought redemption because of working with Damien Darhk. Since he’s already seeking redemption, I’m not sure I see it heading in this direction anymore. Anyone else have any theories on who is going to die? Right now, I feel the best bet would be Thea, dying so she doesn’t have to kill anymore. Hopefully, though, the writers haven’t dug their own grave with this impending death.

“I can give advice father to father. I can tell you if it were my daughter, I’d put her down.” –Damien Darhk

On a different note, did anyone else notice Darhk mention that he has a daughter? My first thought went to Felicity as who her father is has been rather cryptic thus far (and I would totally love this twist), but then when she saw his picture on the screen, she had zero reaction. Unless Felicity has never met her father this twist will be a hard one to sell. That being said, Darhk DOES have a child. Anyone have any guesses as to whom? It’s possible that it is the nameless girl in the past. Perhaps her connection to Darhk will introduce mystical powers to Oliver. He does already know about the supernatural and magic. I’m hoping it really isn’t that boring, though…

Favorite Quotes

Laurel: What did Thea think you were wearing?

Felicity: I have no idea. (Clearly, Thea thought there was going to be an engagement announcement.)

Lance: We’re all desperate. We’ve been made to do desperate things. Terrible things. But I’ve gotta believe that we are not beyond redemption. I’ve gotta believe that this city can still be saved cause once we stop believing that’s when this city really dies and us right along with it. Maybe, just maybe we start saving our home by saving ourselves first.

What did you think of Beyond Redemption? Sound off in the comments…

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