Arrow Season 1 Countdown Kickoff: Ranking Episodes 19-23

As we (finally) approach the heavily-anticipated kickoff to Season 2 of Arrow next week, and keyed to tonight’s CW “Year One” retrospective of the first season, we thought we’d offer fun little coverage of the freshman year in recap. Over the next week, GATV reviewer Matt Tucker offers his countdown ranking of each of the 23 episodes of Season 1 in the run-up to the new season premiere, “City of Heroes,” on October 9th.

Your “Arrow: Year One” countdown:

• Wed 10/2 – Episodes 23-19
• Thurs 10/3 – Episodes 18-14
• Fri 10/4 – Episodes 13-9
• Mon 10/7 – Episodes 8-4
• Tues 10/8 – Season 1 Top 3 Episodes

Agree or disagree? Have your own rankings? As always, we welcome your feedback and discussion. Tell us what you think in the comment section below or over on the forums.

Number 23: “Honor Thy Father”

Episode: 1.2
Original Airdate: October 17, 2012
Synopsis: At court to have the declaration of his death in absentia repealed, Oliver awkwardly runs into Laurel, who is trying a case against Martin Somers. Somers, a shipping magnate involved with drug trade and the Chinese Triad mafia, is accused of hiring for the murder of the father of the family Laurel represents. Discovering Somers’ name on his father’s list, Oliver gears up as the vigilante to coerce a confession out of him and runs afoul of Triad enforcer China White (guest star Kelly Hu). Meanwhile, Moira and Walter want Oliver to take an active role in the family business, something that runs counter to Oliver’s quest for vengeance.

“Honor Thy Father” draws the short straw here. Not the there is anything wrong with the episode itself, aside from some letdowns in direction and cinematography, especially following David Nutter’s solid series premiere. It’s a serviceable episode that offers some nice character coloring, and if anything brings the Chinese mafia into the series, which turned China White into a recurring foil. The issue here is that there’s nothing exceptionally memorable about the episode aside from the moment where Oliver speaks to his father’s ceremonial grave and has his own headstone removed. In the context of the whole first season, you could pull this episode out and really not miss any beats. Even with the the final sting of Oliver finding the list book on his father’s body and the introduction of Yao Fei are basically covered in other episodes.

For more on “Honor Thy Father”: Matt’s Review • Episode Guide

Number 22: “Muse of Fire”

Episode: 1.7
Original Airdate: November 28, 2012
Synopsis: A man working for crime boss Frank Bertinelli is killed by a mysterious motorcycle rider, nearly harming Moira in the process. Oliver tries to find out more about the Bertinelli family by meeting with Frank under the guise of Queen Consolidated business. Frank introduces Oliver to his daughter Helena and the two go to dinner to discuss a deal between QC and Bertinelli’s construction company front. At the restaurant, Bertinelli’s second in command attempts a hit on the restaurant owner under orders. The masked motorcycle rider attempts to stop the hit and take out Bertinelli’s man. When Oliver intervenes as the vigilante, it’s revealed that the motorcyclist is Helena, who is attacking her own father’s business in revenge for the murder of her fiancee ordered by her father. The two are eventually captured by Bertinelli’s lieutenant, who admits to being the one who killed her fiancee. Helena and Oliver both get free and take out the men, Helena killing the lieutenant. Oliver’s secret exposed, the two embark on a relationship.

Ah, the lightning rod character of Helena Bertinelli, aka the Huntress. For many, her arrival brought interest in the show that they were previously leery of approaching. For others of us, it was a well-meaning attempt thoroughly brought down in execution. Performances range from average to outright comic book over-the-top. In particular, guest star Jessica De Gouw as Helena left a lot to be desired in her first outing, even though there was a solid chemistry to work with between her and Stephen Amell’s Oliver. The hubris of Oliver to think he could mentor someone so early on in his own process was an intriguing idea, but one wishes it played out better. And though all knew it was coming, that final scene that brought Oliver and Helena into each other’s arms felt decidedly forced as a way to end the episode with a punch and bring everyone back next week.

For more on “Muse of Fire”: Derek B. Gayle’s Review • Episode Guide

Number 21: “Trust But Verify”

Episode: 1.11
Original Airdate: January 23, 2013
Synopsis: Oliver tracks the high-profile robbing of a number of armored cars to a security organization called Blackhawk Squad Protection Group, and a man named Ted Gaynor, an old army colleague of Diggle’s. Diggle refuses to believe Gaynor is involved, putting he and Oliver at odds, until files stolen from Blackhawk prove the case. When the vigilante goes after the group and gets into trouble, Diggle is forced to confront his friend at gunpoint. During his time on the island, Oliver infiltrates Fyers’ camp to find Yao Fei, only to be captured and discover that Yao Fei is actually working with Fyers.

“Trust But Verify” is an odd duck of an episode in that it feels like a lull and somewhat of a letdown coming off the high of “Year’s End” at the winter hiatus and the solid return in “Burned.” It’s great to get some backstory on John Diggle when we can, and this really starts to establish friction between Oliver and Diggle that will play a bigger role later in the season. Even the island flashbacks tied into the central theme of the episode — trust — something that had often been tangential at best through earlier episodes. The tension between Tommy and his father also plays nice as Tommy tries to introduce Laurel and we find out about his mother’s murder. The issue is that the main story is rather blah and charismatic guest star Ben Browder is given nothing of any significant interest to do with Gaynor. It serves to offer less insight into Diggle than was hoped and overall just kind of lays there.

For more on “Trust But Verify”: Derek’s Review • Episode Guide

Number 20: “Damaged”

Episode: 1.5
Original Airdate: November 6, 2012 (Canada); November 7, 2012 (U.S.)
Synopsis: Oliver is arrested on suspicion of being the vigilante, and Lance is committed to proving his guilt. Though initially reluctant, Laurel agrees to represent Oliver in his defense. Oliver takes a polygraph test to prove his innocence and passes, though Laurel later questions some of his responses that she knows to be untrue. Oliver insists he’s too damaged, physically and emotionally, from this time on the island to be the vigilante. Meanwhile, under house arrest, he hosts a big prison-themed party so that people will see him while Diggle reluctantly dresses as the vigilante to pursue an arms dealer and his gang. Oliver reveals to Diggle that he was behind the evidence used by Lance to arrest him to put to rest any suspicions about what he is doing. A waiter at the party attempts to kill Oliver, but Lance saves him. With the Hood spotted elsewhere, Oliver is freed and no charges are filed. On the island, Oliver is captured and interrogated by Fyers masked henchman before Yao Fei rescues him.

“Damaged” was one of the highlights of the early days of the show, a testament to its brashness and blistering pace that we weren’t sure was going to be sustainable. As the show got significantly stronger and better focused in the latter half of the season, the effectiveness of the episode diminished in some fashion. Picking right up from the perfect sting of Oliver’s arrest at the end of the previous episode, “An Innocent Man,” it was hard to fathom that his identity would be blown so early on in the run. Turns out, through some convenience, it’s not and that ultimately Oliver is behind the whole thing to throw the scent off of himself. It’s an impressive idea, but there’s a disconnected quality to this episode that doesn’t let it fully live and breathe, especially between Oliver and Laurel. The introduction of “Deathstroke” — really Slade Wilson’s partner, Bill Wintergreen — as Oliver’s torturer on the island, and Diggle’s quick dalliance in the hood are the particular items of note, but the performances are a tad iffy at points and the episode itself falters as the show was still finding itself during its first run.

For more on “Damaged”: Derek’s Review • Episode Guide

Number 19: “Pilot”

Episode: 1.1
Original Airdate: October 10, 2012
Synopsis: Oliver Queen is rescued after five years shipwrecked on an island off the coast of China. He is reintegrated into his life, and has to face up to his ex Laurel, for the death of her sister, who was cheating with Oliver and believed killed when the ship sank. Though a rich party boy reputation proceeds him, Oliver is back with a mission. Dressed as a hooded vigilante, he intends to rid his city of a list of evildoers compiled by his late father. His relationship with his best friend, his family, a new bodyguard, and Laurel’s police detective father all serve as impediments to that pursuit.

It might seem nearly sacrilegious to rank the pilot episode so low. In fact, David Nutter’s exceptional work on a solid pilot is a true highlight of the series and it does some strong lifting to put pieces into place. The pilot, though, is subject to the same issue that all the best pilots are: it’s a beginning and episodes later in the season get better and richer. If they didn’t and the pilot was the best thing about a season or an entire series, something has gone wrong. This first chapter can be praised for many things but it is but a prototype for what is to come.

For more on “Pilot”: Derek’s Review • Matt’s Review • Episode Guide

Join us tomorrow as we tackle the next five episodes in our countdown. And make sure to stay tuned with GreenArrowTV as we bring you more goodies in this week running up to the new season!