Arrow S3 E2 - 'Sara' Review

More Out Of Life.

'Sara' was always going to struggle to top the series three premier, but episode two provided some powerful emotional arcs along with some major developments in Team Arrow.

The overriding plot of this episode centred on the fallout following the death of Sara at the end of 'The Calm'. The episode smartly began with the contrast between the blissfully unaware members of Team Arrow and the broken figure of Laurel quivering next to Sara's corpse, spread out on a table. From here, the episode developed into a cross between murder mystery and the pains of losing a loved one. The combination felt slightly unusual, but came together to create a solid instalment in the Arrowverse, even if the plot led to nothing in the end when it was revealed that Komodo hadn't killed Sara.

Speaking of, Simon Lacroix a.k.a. Komodo was criminally underused in his Arrowverse debut (which to this day sadly remains his only appearance in the shared universe). Sporting a bad-ass mask and some degree of archery talent, Komodo could've been a formidable foe for Oliver. Sadly, as he was used as a red herring in Laurel's desperate attempt to avenge her sister, he was ultimately nothing more than a plot device. Despite this, the action sequences involving the mercenary were very well done, with a stylish gladiatorial jousting contest on bikes being a notable highlight. I also have to give credit to whoever came up with the idea of the Arrow catching Komodo's arrow in midair to take him down - very cool.

The emotions were running high this episode, allowing all of our standout cast to vent their feelings following the traumatic death in the Arrow family. Laurel is evidently gradually moving towards becoming the Black Canary, as she interferes repeatedly in Oliver's investigation, even going as far as trying to kill Lacroix. These Laurel-centric moments were typically weak and reminded me how annoying her character can be. Felicity fared much better in this episode, with her and Oliver's heartfelt debate over what vigilante life could and should hold being a particularly strong moment for both herself and Amell's character. The only strange thing is how quickly she seemed to jump ship and join Ray Palmer, although considering recent events I suppose rash decisions can be considered acceptable under the circumstances. 

The flashback story also gained an injection of energy this week as Tommy featured in a well-written cameo. I loved seeing Colin Donnell return and my only quarrel is that it seems this is the only time we will spend with the character this season, since Tommy's arc was resolved fairly swiftly. I am intrigued by the twist nonetheless and given I can't remember much of season three, hopefully the Hong Kong story continues to become more interesting.

Overall, 'Sara' was a satisfying episode in terms of emotional resonance and action sequences, however it was hindered by yet another weak villain, a frustrating performance from Katie Cassidy and a red herring which rendered the events of the episode inconsequential. Thankfully, it seems we will be leaving Starling for the sun and sights of Corto Maltese next week, which will be a welcome change of direction for a series threatening to fall into bad habits.

STARRING: Arsenal, Komodo

AWESOME MOMENTS:

• That jousting match on motorbikes though!!!
• Komodo and the Arrow diving out of the window of QC was very, very cool
• The montage at the end, backed by Civil Twilight's The Courage or the Fall, was powerful and fitted perfectly as an epilogue to the episode's events!

EASTER EGGS:

- Tommy Merlyn makes his glorious return to the show.  Despite dying in the season one finale, Tommy has now managed to appear in at least one episode every season.  He previously appeared in Season 2's "Three Ghosts"

- Felicity compares Sara to an Amazonian warrior.  You know who else is an Amazonian warrior?  Wonder Woman

- Jeff Lemire, the former writer of Green Arrow, gets a shout out by the show, as the street in which Tim Kauffman is killed is located on the corner of 3rd and Lemire.  Lemire Avenue was first introduced as a street of Starling way back in Season 2's "Identity"

- Felicity explains to her work that she's taking the day off because of a death in the family.  While that's a pretty commonly used phrase, it's also the name of a famous 1988 Batman story about the death of Jason Todd

- Komodo makes his first appearance in the Arrowverse.  Komodo was one of the central villain of Jeff Lemire and Andrea Sorrentino's Green Arrow series. In the comics, Simon LaCroix was a business partner of Oliver's father, Robert, and helped him search for the totem of the Arrow Clan, which allegedly brought enlightenment to its wielder and granted its holder membership into the mysterious Outsiders.  LaCroix betrayed Robert and allegedly killed him, which directly led to the events that stranded Oliver on the island.  LaCroix later kidnapped Robert and Shado's daughter, Emiko, and raised her as his own. Oliver learned of LaCroix's connection to his father when LaCroix bought out Queen Industries and killed its CEO.  LaCroix unleashed a furious attack against Oliver and his allies under the Komodo alias, hoping to claim membership in the Outsiders by killing Oliver and finding the Arrow totem.  After a series of confrontations, Oliver managed to put an arrow through LaCroix's eye and he was ultimately killed by Emiko after she learned who her true father was. LaCroix's company, Stellmoor Holdings, was previously referenced in season 2 as the company Isabel Rochev worked for during her hostile takeover of Queen Industries

- AmerTek Industries, the company building an oil pipeline, is a DC comics corporation most often associated with the superhero Steel.  In the comics, AmerTek is a military industrial company that manufactures several weapons designed by John Henry Irons.  After Irons discovers that the company is selling weapons to gangs, he quits the company and takes his designs with him.  AmerTek later sends employees to attack Irons and his family several times, hoping to stop him from interfering with their illegal activities

- AmerTek is trying to drill in Qurac, a Middle Eastern country that only exists in the DC Universe.

- Komodo goes after AmerTek director Tom Weston.  In the comics, Col. Thomas Weston is the CEO of AmerTek, and a recurring foe of Steel.  He's played by Arrow stunt actor Gerald Paetz.  Paetz also did stunts for Watchmen, X-Men: The Last Stand and Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer

- Corto Maltese is another fictional DC country

RATING: 7.8/10