Arrow: The Complete Second Season
Starring Stephen Amell, Katie Cassidy, David Ramsey, Emily Bett Rickards, Willa Holland, Paul Blackthorne, Colton Haynes, Susanna Thompson, Caity Lotz and Manu Bennett.
SYNOPSIS:
Starling City has been torn apart by the Undertaking, so the need for the hooded vigilante, now known as The Arrow, is more urgent than ever – especially as the city finds itself caught in the grip of a former friend, who has now become one of the mightiest adversaries The Arrow has ever encountered.
The second season of The CW’s DC Comics series Arrow picks up several months after the conclusion to the first season, with billionaire playboy turned masked vigilante Oliver Queen (Stephen Amell) having retreated to Lian Yu e following the events of The Undertaking, and the death of his best friend Tommy Merlyn (Colin Donnell). Tracked down by his ‘Team Arrow’ buddies John Diggle (David Ramsey) and Felicity Smoak (Emily Bett Rickards), Ollie is convined to return to Starling City in order to resume his mission to save the city – not to mention trying to salvage what’s left of his family following the arrest of his mother Moira (Susanna Thompson) for her part in Malcolm Merlyn’s (John Barrowman) scheme to destroy the glades.
As Oliver once again dons the hood, he sets out on a journey to become a true hero, putting his former killing ways behind him in an effort to honour the memory of Tommy. However, he soon finds himself pushed to the very limit as former friend Slade Wilson (Manu Bennett) – now going by the name Deathstroke – arrives in Starling, hell bent on destroying everything dear to Ollie. Juiced up on a miracle drug known as Mirakuru, a Japanese super soldier serum that causes enhanced strength and agility, at the cost of warping one’s mind, Slade seeks to build an army of superhuman villains to aid him in his vendetta against The Arrow.
While the first season of Arrow borrowed heavily from Batman Begins and took some time to fully find its feet, season two sees the show stepping out of the shadow of its inspiration to firmly establish its own identity, and in doing so, it cements its place as must-see TV, especially for fans of the superhero genre. Aside from the central story arc between Ollie and Slade, the main focus of this second season seems to be situating Arrow as part of a much wider DC universe, and one where superhumans exist. The Mirakuru drug handily deals with the latter, while the former is accomplished through the introduction of characters such as the Black Canary (Caity Lotz), Isabel Rochev (Summer Glau), Sebastian Blood (Kevin Alejandro), Bronze Tiger (Michael Jai White) and Amanda Waller (Cynthia Addai-Robinson), along with the Suicide Squad and the League of Assassins. Oh, and there’s also Barry Allen, played by Grant Gustin, who is set to lead his own spin-off show The Flash starting next month.
Of the 23 episodes of season two, there are only a handful that come across as filler, with the entire season managing to deliver a consistently high level of quality, particularly as things come to a head between The Arrow and Deathstroke, leading to a thrilling, action-packed climax that spans the last few episodes (the penultimate episode ‘Streets of Fire’ stands out as a particular highlight, and would not have looked out of place on the big screen). In addition the 23 episodes, the set comes with the obligatory behind-the-scenes featurettes, gag reel and deleted scenes, along with a handy catch-up episode that summarises the first season for anyone new to the world of Starling City.
It goes without saying that for fans of Green Arrow and DC Comics in general, Arrow is must-see TV, and with its superb second season, the show has a legitimate claim to being the best superhero series of all time. Of course, with the likes of Gotham, Constantine and The Flash all incoming from DC Entertainment – along with Marvel’s Agent Carter and the rival comic book company’s various Netflix offerings – it remains to be seen whether it can hold on to that crown, or if the producers can match the quality of this season when Arrow returns to TV for its third season next month. Still, season two is an exceptional season, and I highly recommend it.
Gary Collinson is a writer and lecturer from the North East of England. He is the editor-in-chief of FlickeringMyth.com and the author of Holy Franchise, Batman! Bringing the Caped Crusader to the Screen.
