A quick guide that shows you were the show most likely is going, what you may have missed, and the important things you could have glossed over from the SPECTACULAR SEASON PREMIERE .... #CALLEDTHATENDING
Easter Eggs & Key Points:
1) The Unfolding/Collapsable Bow - Marc Guggenheim, executive producer, told fans that we would see Oliver get new toys, some of which mentioned below, but also that "One of them (the new gadgets) is a new bow that looks identical to the old bow, but it does something that you've never seen before". Although technically we did see Oliver's bow collapse on Smallville, that WAS a crossbow, and Arrow's bow collapsing seems a lot cleaner and all around looks cooler, AND it collapses into the size of his palm (essentially). In the end we don't know if this the feature is what Guggenheim was talking about.
2) Trick Arrows! - Not many used throughout the episode, but I felt as if last season at most one trick arrow was used, in this episode we not only saw a "net"/trapping arrow, but also the zip-line arrow, and even before that, in an issue of Season 2.5 we see a modified version of the boxing glove arrow referenced. Lastly, again at the end of the episode we see an Arrow that holds its captive steadfast and won't allow him to move. Glad to see we will be getting more trick arrows this season. This is another sign that we are moving towards, as the producers promised, the more traditional trick arrow using Oliver.
3) You Have Failed This City! - I'm sure we all noticed Oliver, in both the premiere clips, and the episode itself, Oliver has brought back his Season 1 catchphrase "You Have Failed This City". Personally I defiantly missed this, and I am curious to see his motivation why he brought it back.
4) New Logo! - The new logo looks significantly better than the old one (although I loved both).
5) Ray Palmer - Ah, what good signs to come just from what episode, we finally see a cool headed, funny, but brilliant character, who seems childish and ironically seems to fit Brandon Rouch. For those who DIDNT catch it, Felicity essentially helped him hack Queen Consolidates information leading to an awkward moment at the board meeting where we see Ray Palmer pitch the idea of Star City. BUT can we gloss over this? It has been speculated that show runners wanted Ted Kord aka Blue Beetle II rather than Ray Palmer initially, so this Season 1 Easter Egg may need to be ignored, especially seeing as Jean Loring appeared last season, wasn't really acknowledged to be the same Jean, and is significantly older than Ray. For those who don't know Jean Loring is/was Ray Palmers wife in the comics.
But back in season 1 (a flashback)....
I'm really hoping that the introduction of two science based heroes, Atom and Firestorm leads to something more.
6) Star City - A huge issue that many people had when the show began was that the creators decided to change a small detail like the city's name, from Star City, to Starling City, now, the producers seem to have seen the fan backlash, or planned it all along, and found a way to execute logically change the name of an entire city.
7) The Felicity Dress-Anyone ever notice Felicity wears the same type of dress when heroes Arrow introduced? Barry and Ray?
8) Oliver "The Player" - Another step towards Oliver becoming who is in the comics, a cocky, brash, a**hole, who many see as a player, although in more recent (Pre New52) times, we did see him settle down with Dinah Laurel Lance aka the Black Canary. We finally get to see Oliver acknowledge something that both the fans and Oliver find kind of weird, that he seems to date every girl who appears on the show. (Yes I chose a photo that shows him as an anti-player haha)
9) Laurel's New Blonder and Stronger Look - Another common complaint from last season and even the season before was in general, Laurel. What people do not understand is that Laurel was, up until this point written to be a character that we as fans were NOT supposed to like. People didn't like her performance last season because they found it to be to emotional, but that is what it was supposed to be, and she was supposed to become the person no one could route for. This allowed for the writers to split her path in two, and bring Sara back as the Canary and prolong the inclusion of 3+ real comic vigilantes. Finally, I am glad to say that I think the fans will like the new Laurel and where she is going, set photos from Season 3 Episode 3 show Laurel beaten up and going to a gym for help, where she seems to meet another DC Comics character, Ted Grant aka Wildcat. And Katie Cassidy isn't exactly hiding the fact that her character is changing either, whether it be set photos, or Instagram photos, we can see Ms.Cassidy has been hitting the gym AND adding a little more blond to her hair color.
10) The COUNT Vertigo - WOW, I actually would like to say that I called this one prior to them announcing the casting of a new Vertigo, it seemed to make sense that Vertigo being set up as a drug ring allowed for a new leader to assume the mantle. However this Vertigo seems to be VERY VERY different then then the Seth Gabel iteration, he has insane fighting skills, as presented although vaguely, because it seemed like Oliver was fighting himself, in the scene where Oliver initially encounters the new Vertigo. As for his serum, I know people are going to start saying it is like Scarecrow's from Batman Begins, but it really isn't, yes to some degree they both display something the other person fears most, but the effects and degrees of the toxin seem to vary quiet a bit, AND given the fact that he has been "captured" at the end of the episode, and he now know Oliver is immune to said toxin, it would make sense that we see yet another upgraded version appear when Vertigo reappears. Lastly, to touch on his fighting style again, we can guarantee that is something that will be explained, he is referred to as a "low level drug dealer" at the outset of the episode, but WOW did he prove to be so much more, his speed, tactics (the tracker), and fighting skills are something the fans should expect to see explained, as well as his ability to seemingly not feel some degree of pain.
11) Run down Verdant Club- Quick note, it would seem that with the departure of Thea from Starling City not only has no one taken over Verdant, but they have allowed it to return to its original rundown state. This definatley helps disprove the theory that Oliver's "other hideout" would become his main hideout this season.
12) The TRUE Green Arrow- So...I few months ago Marc Guggenheim and Greg Berlanti told us that we would be seeing a more traditional Oliver in seasons to come, starting with Season 3. As stated above, I think we definitely begin to see the immersion of a newer, brasher, cockier Oliver ten Arrow has shown us in past seasons. Even the increase in the amount of smiling was obvious and made a difference. (PS we can guarantee this suit,below, is way to corny for Movies or TV)
13) Hong Kong - Hong Kong seems to have jumped right into the action, unlike other flashbacks, we jump into Hong Kong after Oliver has been there for awhile. When Oliver confronts Amanda Waller and asks her why she saved him, she tells him this information is "need to know". Personally I see this all tying back to H.I.V.E, which stands for the Hierarchy of International Vengeance and Extermination, who were hinted at last season for being the reason that Andy Diggle was killed, but have not been mentioned since. It should however be mentioned, that Isabel Roschev's comic book counterpart, The Red Queen, at one point did lead the H.I.V.E organization. Hong Kong's first set of flashbacks introduce us to the long awaited first appearance of Katana, although not mentioned by that name, and her husband, Maseo Yamashiro.
14) A CW Shirtless Joke - A long running joke made on and about the CW is that all the main male leads need to look good shirtless, something that Felicity seemed to joke about on her date with Oliver.
15) A CW Shirtless Joke - A long running joke made on and about the CW is that all the main male leads need to look good shirtless, something that Felicity seemed to joke about on her date with Oliver.
16) "Decided to come home" - Not sure if this is a stretch or not, but on the date Oliver uses the phrase, "Decided to come home", which implies he had other options, and was considering NOT returning to Starling City.
17) Amell's Acting - A complaint I could never agree with is that Stephen Amell is not a good actor, I would just like to point out, that even I, someone who loved his acting before, could see a huge jump in his ability to portray multiple sides of Oliver in just one episode. His acting seems to have yet again improved colossally between seasons.
18) Wildcat Allusion - As most of us know, J.R. Ramirez was cast as Ted Grant aka Wildcat for the third season of Arrow, although not mentioned by name, Oliver and Roy do go to the Heavy Weight Boxing Center, which is significant because Wildcat is and was a Heavy Weight World Class Boxing Champion.
19) Roy the PARTNER - Just a simple and easy nod to show Roy's evolution, but also the fact that the Speedy stage is completely being jumped, which I personally think works best at this stage in Arrow. By the time Roy calls himself Arsenal in the comics, Ollie recognizes him as more of a partner and less of a sidekick, so it is nice to see that Oliver refers to Roy directly as his partner.
20) Sara's Death!!!!!! - Something that really just, not only made me happy, but also showed that the show runners WANT to move this show forward, Sara Lance died at the end of the episode, and I think we can all expect this to be the first step in a journey for Laurel to becoming the Black Canary. Just a side-note, Sara was either killed by Komodo or Ra's Al Ghul, that much is unclear, it could be Komodo seeing as he is the main villain of next weeks episode, but at the same time we don't know if Sarah has ties to him or if he has ties to the League. On the other hand it could be Ra's because we all know that Ra's was mentioned as being unhappy that Sara simply left him. #FallenAngelIllusionBelow
21) Bye Felicity? The end of the episode saw Felicity leave, a change I think will come to fruition permanently with her AND Diggle, but as of now it doesn't seem permanent. I mean...I can't be 100% sure, but the team is getting to big, I think she will 100% be returning, especially considering the fact that she was in the flash promo for later this season. Will she end up with Ollie...will she end up with Barry? Realistically there isn't a point in her being with either...in the end if they decide to keep her I think she would end up with Robbie Amell's Firestorm...seeing as Caitlin Snow is most likely becoming Killer Frost. Felicity ending up with Robbie Amell's Firestorm would pay nice homage to her original characters, as Firestorm's (Ronnie Raymond) step mom.
22) Merged Perspective - Final quick note, I REALLY enjoyed seeing how the Arrow and Flash timelines are meshing together in such a beautiful way. In the Flash we have Barry returning from Starling and acknowledging it, and then when he awakens, going back to Starling to see Ollie. Then we have Arrow, which acknowledges Barry's coma, and then tonight acknowledges a phone call that draws Oliver to the rooftop scene in the Flash.
From the Fans: Easter Eggs I missed!
1) Ferris Air!
For those who don't know Ferris Aircraft is not only the place where Hal Jordan worked as a test pilot prior to and after becoming Green Lantern, it is also owned by his love interest, Carol Ferris.
To see how the CW (or TNT) could, should, and most likely will execute a CW GL Show check the link here: