First Thoughts on 'Arrow' Season 6 (Episodes 5-9)

After a strong, if slightly underplayed Deathstroke two-parter, Arrow regained some narrative focus as Oliver returned to his vigilante role as the Green Arrow, leaving Diggle temporarily out of field action. This return to the status quo may have been predictable, but it's difficult to see Diggle being much more than Oliver's conscience in the series. Whilst he's helped out in the past, his superhero alias as Spartan never felt quite natural, so seeing him fall more into a less violent role feels a bit more comfortable. I'm sure Diggle will get back into the action, but I'd rather he stayed as a straight man for Oliver for the time being.

The mid-season finale was certainly an interesting specimen though. Whilst the episode itself was very strong, I felt that the ending was a little too...familiar. The whole team leaves Oliver alone with just Felicity and Diggle to help out, because of Oliver's slightly self-centered actions...although this time Oliver was somewhat justified in his reasoning. This leaves him in a bit of a grey area: given that what he did was for the right reasons, was it simply the wrong way of going about things? Perhaps. It's difficult to really make-up one's mind on the subject, because both sides have justifiable arguments. Rene's betrayal seemed a little obvious as a twist though, which I found somewhat disappointing, especially given how clearly labelled it was at the start of the episode. In fact, the start of Episode 9 screamed "calm before the storm" so much that each character's departure felt quite predictable.

Of course, it turns out that all of our recurring villains this season have been working together in an alliance all along...just like the Legion of Doom from the second season of DC's Legends of Tomorrow. This was an admittedly very cheesy reveal, and certainly felt a bit too forced. Perhaps this wasn't the best mid-season cliffhanger, but at least we now have a firm threat established. That being said, Vigilante's involvement feels detrimental to his whole character in the first place. Wasn't he meant to be an Anti-Hero antagonist and not a straight-up villain? Seems a little odd to me.

In fact, Season 6 so far has felt like its been treading water, trying to appease the different fans: those who want "Olicity" get an Oliver and Felicity wedding, those who want the gritty action get more of that, those wanted more Slade Wilson get their fix...it all feels quite safe. Safe is by no means a bad direction to go in, especially given the disappointing response to Seasons 3 and 4, but those seasons suffered from weak writing, poorly-thought out story-lines and a lack of respect for the show's main audience. The series is at its least popular in its entire run ratings-wise, and while this isn't down to the fan response to the recent episodes, part of this is down to the show's very safe approach. Those who wanted Arrow to develop beyond its first two seasons were disappointed with the middle two seasons, and these latter two seasons have been a return to the show's origins, which likewise wasn't what some fans wanted. This season is trying to appeal across the board, but lacks a singular focus at the moment.

Overall, it's difficult to know what to think of this season so far. There's been so little to really talk about, with even the Deathstroke two-parter feeling quite...underwhelming to an extent. What could have been an amazing story was simply a good one, albeit with plenty of highlights. Any future Slade episodes could perhaps benefit from more violence (I mean, the guy does have a sword) and maybe a proper Green Arrow/Deathstroke team-up, which was sorely missing in those episodes. The mid-season finale doesn't break any new ground, and the whole show just feels like it's reached a comfortable stride that it doesn't want to break, even if it might make it more interesting.