Movies / Comics Movie Reviews

Arrow Trust But Verify Review


By Alexander Jones
January 24, 2013 - 04:19

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This week’s episode of Arrow was a marked improvement over the last week's Burned. Everything you need to know about the episode can be found within the title Trust but verify. Almost every character was deceived by another outside person. Week in and week out the best part about Arrow are the flashbacks. It's where Arrow sheds it's slightly silly tone and pretty looking people and comes a far more concentrated character study. In the flashback Oliver is betrayed by Yao Fei his mentor. With Oliver not being a typical action hero the stakes are very high in these flashbacks. Ollie's guise of being a soldier is is eliminated after talking to the leader of the mercenary unit. Yao Fei’s betrayal is one that really lingers and hurts because the show is gritty in these flashbacks and you really get a great and consuming sense of loss.

This episode’s A storyline was slightly better than that of an average episode. Fleshing out the backstory of Diggle is never a bad idea. However the real problem lies in the fact these people on the list are guilty every single time. There is no suspense in any of these main plots because there are virtually no stakes set in the scene. Diggle walks away from the episode slightly traumatized but there are no lasting scars. The Blackhawks themselves were also not especially interesting and just exist on a dull space. The scenes where Diggle and Ollie were fighting was where things got interesting. Whenever the two bicker the difference in philosophies and ideology fascinate me as a viewer of the show. This space is never really expanded but hints to deeper meanings are given. In the Justice League which the Green Arrow was a part of Batman has a complex fear that makes others respect him and really fleshes out the character in a new way. While Arrow may never deliver in exactly that department hints to the audience are there.

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The subplots also carried the episode in an interesting way. Thea catching on to Moira is a welcomed change of pace. Whatever Moira is really up too it is no good and probably just as bad if not worse than an affair. Moira truly is an ice queen in the scene where she tries to tell Ollie that Robert cheated on her. This likely never happened and hearing her lie like that makes her even easier to hate. Thea also was not shining star this week. Using her mom’s poor behavior to justify her own is beneath the character and awful. Driving while under the influence of narcotics drags her character down a few miles. Malcom and Moira’s motivation’s as character’s need to be fleshed out eventually. Arrow has many logic bombs that negate certain characters and examining the show this intensely exposes holes in sloppy writing. In slightly better news Laurel treated Tommy like a normal human being should be treated in this episode. Arrow has some work over to do over the next few weeks in order to truly live up to it’s clear potential.

Rating: 6.5 /10


Last Updated: August 31, 2023 - 08:12

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