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For The Old Gods. Arrow Season 2.5  put the Suicide Squad in the spotlight in this issue, appropriately titled the 'Crisis in Khandaq Special'. I have been looking forward to some development in this arc and finally we got it - thankfully it doesn't disappoint. Feeling like a modern military movie, the Suicide Squad infiltrate Khandaq and hunt down the extremist leader Khem-Adam, kicking some serious ass along the way. I love the relationship between the members of the squad, particularly the banter between Floyd Lawton and Diggle. Eventually the group reach the caves where Khem-Adam is based, leading to a climactic showdown. It was an epic fight, leading to the dramatic death of Ben Turner a.k.a. Bronze Tiger! I really didn't think any major characters would die in this series so I was shocked how swiftly and easily the villain was dispatched! Rest in peace you over-the-top, leather wearing Wolverine knock-off. The big reveal in this one was that Nyssa Al-Ghul, S...

Miscellaneous Expenses. The Arrow: Season 2.5  comic series picked up the pace in #5 with it's continuation of the 'Blood' storyline; 'Transitions' sees Caleb Green escape from the Church of Blood in order to kill Oliver Queen, whilst in 'Gone' Oliver finally realises that Felicity has been taken and enlists the recently awoken Roy to help him rescue her. The 'Crisis in Khandaq' feels close to boiling over, as Diggle replaces pregnant Lyla on the mission and joins the crew at the helicopter. 'Transitions' is a particularly eventful chapter. In it, we see Oliver dreaming of Thea killing him, whilst at the same time Malcolm trains Thea in his house in Corto Maltese, further evidence that she is going to transform into Speedy in the coming seasons. Additionally, Sara enlists Quentin's help to track a target for the League of Assassins and Roy wakes from his coma. All-in-all, it was a great chapter which began a number of story-lines and...

The Fun Is About To Begin. Arrow's Season 2.5  comic series continues with two more chapters in the 'Blood' arc; 'Haunted' sees Oliver face off against figures from his past as he trips on vertigo, whilst in 'Awakenings' Sara returns to rescue Oliver and Team Arrow vow to fight back. In 'Crisis in Khandaq', Ravan Nassar is recruited to the Squad whilst Deadshot and Bronze Tiger train at ARGUS. 'Haunted' is an emotional chapter, where Oliver is forced to contend with his demons after Werner Zytle injects him with vertigo. I liked how Zytle popped up here as I know he is going to reappear as the first antagonist of season 3. Also, it was nice seeing the return of familiar faces including Robert, Moira, Tommy and Slade. We learn about Oliver's self doubts, as his ghosts speak his greatest fears and his failures. Whilst this emotion-driven chapter is interesting, it ultimately doesn't move the story forward in any meaningful way. In...

Blood is Risen. Arrow Season 2.5  brings revelations and mysteries in its two chapters: 'Acolyte' sees a member of the Church of Blood make a demonstration of his devotion to the new Brother Blood, whilst 'Ascension' explains just how Clinton Hogue became the new Brother Blood, answering a few lingering questions from season 2. In 'Acolyte', Oliver learns that the Church of Blood is back and led by another Brother Blood, who is revealed to be Sebastian Blood's old bodyguard Clinton Hogue! I'm glad the comic writers chose a character that was in the show, as it felt more dramatic revealing him to have been an ally of Blood's prior to his death. Additionally, we get to see where Team Arrow get all of their awesome gear - some shady nut job with a scarred face and a weird pair of goggles. Diggle gives this guy the plans for Roy's Arsenal costume, which is an awesome link back to the TV show! Following this, 'Ascension' explains that Ho...

What, OJ and Charles Manson Weren't Available? Arrow  brought back a number of villains in the Arrowverse's debut of the Suicide Squad, a fun episode with plenty of heart but lacking in execution despite its best endeavours.  Diggle once again took centre stage this week, as Amanda Waller recruited him into Task Force-X, alongside returning rogues Bronze Tiger, Shrapnel and Deadshot. I always love seeing Dig take the reigns and this week was no exception, with his relationship with Lyla being explored much more thoroughly and his complex friendship/rivalry with Deadshot becoming more amicable as we learned about Lawton's daughter. The assassin was in dire need of some humanising and 'Suicide Squad' provided this, giving the character much more depth and better dialogue to suit, which resulted in a fitting arc for the infamous sniper. The mission itself was dull however, using familiar tropes to frame a bad guy buying bad things but posing as a good man. Gholem...

Now You Know What It Feels Like. The sixth episode of Arrow season two takes its foot off the pedal slightly as Team Arrow take a detour to Russia. Diggle takes centre stage as he attempts to rescue Lyla, his ex-wife who went missing searching for Deadshot. The set up for this plot comes when ARGUS, who we see in action for the first time, take Dig in to brief him, which results in a debut appearance from Amanda Waller (previously seen as a pair of legs in the first season flashback story). Waller is underwhelming here and has few lines of dialogue, but it's nice to see larger aspects of the DC Universe coming into play. Speaking of, we get the return of Deadshot in this episode, one of my personal favourite characters in the series. The assassin is further fleshed out in this episode, revealing a humorous side which is undoubtedly setting up his inclusion in Task Force X later this season. He and Diggle have some great fight scenes in the prison which are also worthy of note...

Pleasant Dreams. Issue 10 out of 12 in the Arrow  comic series continues to tie up loose ends from the TV show and present new and exciting stories for our hero; 'Aftermath' explores Diggle's attempts to avenge his brother's death during Oliver's five years in hell; 'Shado of the Past' helps explain how Shado came to Lian Yu and also shows the flashback story from the point of view of Yao Fei; and 'Patient Zero' is a disease-driven present day adventure, in which the Hood travels to Coast City to prevent biological disaster. 'Aftermath' is the worst of the three stories, but it is still very good - an emotional ride in which we are shown how Carly and Diggle reacted to the death of Andy. Seeing Diggle's fury as her pursues the wrong man is effective in portraying his pain during this time and how he found outlets for his rage. The plot itself is straightforward and predictable, but the emotional implications of the story carry the re...

We All Have To Die Sometime. Issue #8 of Arrow  follows a similar pattern that I have noticed in recent issues - they all seem to include one great backstory, then two pretty empty stories revolving around the Hood's campaign. This issue contains the stories 'Back from the Deadshot', 'Hunters' and 'Diamond in the Rough'; 'Back from the Deadshot' fills in the blanks between Deadshot's appearances in season one whilst also showing how he escaped after his first showdown with the Hood; 'Hunters' takes a different approach and shows how Oliver would fare whilst being hunted by a wild beast; and 'Diamond in the Rough' puts Felicity front and centre as she becomes caught up with one of Oliver's targets. 'Back from the Deadshot' is by far the highlight of this issue, with the always brilliant Floyd Lawton shining in his solo adventure. We learn how he was abducted by a strange group after being shot in the eye. Unfortuna...

Your Time on this Island Is At An End. The twentieth episode of this first season of Arrow  drives a serious rift between Oliver and Diggle, after the former prioritises the List over Dig's own vengeance. It's nice to see these characters finally clashing, as there has been little friction between them so far in season one, so it will be interesting to see how bad the fallout is after this argument. Deadshot was criminally underused once again in this episode, which is a shame as the character is brilliant. The main plot revolved around a hired killer taking out his targets for Rasmus, this week's corporate baddie, which felt a bit clunky and weirdly focused on the paper thing performance of the assassin. The island scenes this week saw Shado and Oliver kiss, which felt a bit rushed and unnecessary. I mean they only met two episodes ago and they have barely got to know each other, so pushing the romance between the characters feels unnatural. In hindsight, I really th...

So... Who Needs Two Bullets in the Chest? 'Dead to Rights' is a solid episode in Arrow 's first season. The episode chooses to refocus upon the Undertaking and the overall running arc of the series, and it is all the better for it. We see fractures in the List organisation, as Moira and Frank turn on Malcolm. Similarly, we see Malcolm struggling to maintain the lie of his identity from his son Tommy, and this conflict plays out well across the 42 minute run time. He kills in front of Tommy and almost reveals his Dark Archer outfit to his son, before Lawton interrupts by shooting Malcolm. Lawton's reintroduction as Deadshot is another excellent move by the showrunners. Deadshot, now missing an eye thanks to his last encounter with the Hood, is a great foe and I'm glad he's back in action and likely to return in the future of the Arrowverse. His new robotic eye is bad-ass, as was the fight scenes between Oliver, the Triad and China White. In the past, little...

I Admire Your Work. 'Lone Gunmen' introduces Deadshot, a big name in DC comics and one that later reprises his role throughout the course of Arrow . A verified bad-ass and easily one of the best Green Arrow villains, it was great to see his introduction so early in the show's life. His brutal assassination of James Holder at the start is a good beginning and also establishes the darker tone of this psychopath.  Here is my short episode summary - Moira learns to be a better mother in the background and Tommy and Laurel go on a date. There is an epic battle near the end between the Hood and Deadshot and a good cliffhanger as Diggle learns Oliver's secret. Also Felicity is introduced in this episode and her chemistry with Stephen Amell is what earned her a permanent spot on the show the following season. Overall, the episode is solid and the best so far, continuing Arrow 's trend on improving on the previous week's instalment. Deadshot is always going to comma...