This is the worst episode I have seen all season and I watched the We are Men pilot and several episodes of Dracula. I haven't been this incensed at writers since Supernatural's Taxi Driver episode. Since the only 2 scenes without issues were the Thea and Roy boxing scene and Laurel and Moira at the prison, this is a fairly easy vote for me. Boxing wins, since that's what I felt like doing after seeing State v. Queen.
I voted for Oliver killed The Count. I loved that scene!!! UGH! But now i'm kicking myself, I did want to vote for Felicity stops Ollie, but him killing The Count to save Felicity got me more excited. My 3rd choice would have been Malcolm's return and Thea's his daughter. That definitely made me say WTF?!!?!? I thought this episode was great. The whole thing. It was even better watching it a second time. = )
I liked the Island flashbacks, too, which is why I voted for Shado and Slade freeing Oliver (I didn't want to vote for Thea and Roy again...they are so sweet currently). But man was the trial badly done. I think it would have done the show a lot of good if they had done the trial/flashback episode and another one with the Count. As it was, all the storylines were competing with each other and none of them really worked.
The episode was good but bringing Malcolm back from the dead was a little too much for me.... These type of resurrections make the show less Believable
Gonna have to disagree. It was the worst Arrow episodo of this season true but I saw many worse episodes this season in shows such as Grimm, TVD, Shield, etc.
I too wanted Malcolm to stay dead but we never actually saw him die, Diggle and Oliver had to rush back to the Glades to help the people there, and Malcolm had enough resources and influence to fake his death. This is not SPN and I doubt Arrow writers would use this trick again.
There were three good scenes that I thought could be contenders. Oliver fighting and killing the Count, Felicity stopping Oliver to apologize to him for getting into a position where he had to kill (nicely played and fodder for fanfic writers for months), and the fantastic reveal at the end of both Malcolm still alive and Thea's father.
Thea and Roy's boxing scene would have been better if she had been hitting a bag rather than him, because hitting your partner is never right no matter what the reason. Adam/Laurel's "ace" of Moira's affair with Malcolm 19 years ago is head-bangingly stupid because even if she did convince Malcolm not to kill Walter, it doesn't mean she wasn't afraid of him. The fact that Malcolm was holding her current husband hostage, after killing her first husband, supports the idea that she was coerced to go along with Malcolm in order to save Walter's life.
It was a little too much for me too, but they didn't bring him back from the dead. Instead, they revealed he faked his death and didn't really die. This isn't a supernatural show yet and he didn't escape from hell or was returned from the other side, etc. and we never saw his body.
I think Supernatural is getting back on track. Ok, it has had several filler episodes in a row - but they were no where near as bad as some of the 8th season's fillers. The myth arc episodes are fantastic. Ratings also are quite high in comparison to seasons 6, 7, and 8. I will admit that there are plot holes and OOC moments; but again, it is no where near as bad as before.
I think that the trial was plain bad because it was unbelievable. Moira supposedly had one of the best attorneys - but the defense did nothing, didn't object, allowed the ADA to testify, and didn't use all her resources. I don't think I could have watched an episode that focused just on the trial if that is what we would have seen.
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The prosecution wasn't very capable either. They didn't even take one day to present their case. We literally went from opening arguments to Thea testifying for the defense.
Thanks. It has been odd - the first time in years where I don't have SPN on the brain every day. I now work on 4 shows in the amount of time it used to take me to work on just Supernatural. If the brothers aren't out-of-character, the drama isn't contrived just to cause conflict between them, and they don't shoot canon all to hell, I will most definitely like this season better. However, even if I don't, I am going to be doing retro reviews of the earlier seasons. I can't imagine going a whole summer without writing about SPN.
I gave the ep a second watch and was able to articulate why I think this ep falls on the bottom of the list of this season's eps for me. I think the way they handled the court room scenes was horrible (and that's including the poor casting of the DA) It wsn't clear who was presenting the case at this point....defense or prosecution and the whole thing was over in two testimonies...what TV lawyer puts Thea on the sand and does get up on cross and make sue Thea says why she changed her mind and went to see her mother? It was lazy.
That said...liked the count's plan. His stroll through the prison with the keys was awesome. And I liked the scene where the count was killed is the scene I picked as a fav. The boxing scene would be number 3. I hope they don't let that death go to waste and have Oliver basically forget about it in the next episode.
I think part of the reason why the trial was so badly done was because they rushed it. With more time, I think they should have shown more of a fight...above all, they should have shown the redirect.
Even better was how they were skipping over the little fact that Malcolm nearly killed her son, too. Honestly, every competent lawyer would have been able to beware her from the dead penalty. When they said that they had found something, I thought it was about a more direct involvement on her site, something that she did...not the fact that she happened to have an affair years before the undertaking even started.
Makibg the trial longer would've mean adding it to more episodes. I'd rather they keep the previous episodes as they were than spending more time on the trial. This is not Law&Order.
I think Olivet will be more busy fighting for his own life than caring about the Count next seasin. It's interesting that he was the first he didn't kill last season and the first he did kill this season.
I hadn't realized the Count was the first Oliver let live. Cool.
I think fight to survive will make the question of whether Oliver can keep his pledge more critical. The show runners have said that this season is about him becoming a hero...for Oliver the choice he makes under pressure says the most about who he is.. Which is why I am looking forward to it.
I voted for Oliver killing The Count. While I hated Felicity's IQ plummeting so drastically to put her in DiD mode ("I have no self-defense skills, so it's a great idea to go scope out the bad guys' van alone, at night and unarmed!") , it was a well-done, exciting scene. Love how Oliver put 3 arrows in The Count, whose crazy, over-the-top ass I won't miss, how he fell out of the window and crashed on the cab (neat!), and that Moment between Ollie and Felicity afterwards. Other favs: - Felicity telling Oliver she's sorry she put him in a position where he had to kill again, because it really shows how sweet and kind she is, and cemented their bond. I'm not a shipper, but I think it's clear that they have strong feelings for each other (whether romantic or not) and enjoy their relationship a great deal. - Roy and Thea's boxing session, because he was a sweetheart to do that for her. - The FB's, because it's nice to see the island version of Team Arrow (Ollie/Slade/Shado) reunited. I just hope Sara doesn't double-cross them. Of course, things aren't going to go well because Oliver thought Sara was dead in the present before 2x04...
I'm going to have to disagree re Felicity being the DiD. Neither Felicity nor Diggle could've known that the Count was watching the van. For all we know, one of the Count's minions could've switched the flu shots with the Verigo shots without the knowledge of the van's crew. Also, the Count, if you remember from last season, wasn't the type of guy to visit his "business places." The police had no clue who he was then because he was always hiding, and I dount that changed after he escaped from jail. The only reason the Count was watching the van imo was that he was waiting for Arrow to arrive to kill him on Blood's orders, and Felicity accidentally went into that trap unknowingly, but neither her nor Diggle thought it'd be a trap.
I said the same thing about Thea and Roy, I don't like that he told her to hit him. It's easy enough to imagine that if the situation was gender-reversed, people would be screaming that the show is legitimizing abuse by having Roy hit Thea as an outlet for his anger (even if it was her idea). It shouldn't be okay for a girl to hit a boy for that reason, either. He should've gotten her a punching bag. The scene could have still played in much the same way, after hitting it harder and harder she would've started tearing up and he would've held her.
Regarding the trump card, that was definitely ridiculous. Undermining it even further is the fact that Moira DID, in fact, come clean about the Undertaking not too long after the vigilante found and rescued Walter. That proves that Walter was leverage to keep her from blowing the whistle, which wouldn't have worked if Malcolm had killed him. It's also an effective counterargument for Donner's "Moira's change of heart came way too late". She couldn't have gone public about Malcolm's plan before because he had Walter.
That's a good point, that Moira came clean about the Undertaking as soon as Walter was safe. Any good lawyer would have blown that 'trump card' to bits in the court.
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This is the worst episode I have seen all season and I watched the We are Men pilot and several episodes of Dracula. I haven't been this incensed at writers since Supernatural's Taxi Driver episode. Since the only 2 scenes without issues were the Thea and Roy boxing scene and Laurel and Moira at the prison, this is a fairly easy vote for me. Boxing wins, since that's what I felt like doing after seeing State v. Queen.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't disagree more, this was the first great episode of Arrow this season, and gets me excited for The Flash's appearance next episode.
ReplyDeleteI voted for Oliver killed The Count. I loved that scene!!! UGH! But now i'm kicking myself, I did want to vote for Felicity stops Ollie, but him killing The Count to save Felicity got me more excited. My 3rd choice would have been Malcolm's return and Thea's his daughter. That definitely made me say WTF?!!?!? I thought this episode was great. The whole thing. It was even better watching it a second time. = )
ReplyDeleteI liked the Island flashbacks, too, which is why I voted for Shado and Slade freeing Oliver (I didn't want to vote for Thea and Roy again...they are so sweet currently). But man was the trial badly done. I think it would have done the show a lot of good if they had done the trial/flashback episode and another one with the Count. As it was, all the storylines were competing with each other and none of them really worked.
ReplyDeleteThe episode was good but bringing Malcolm back from the dead was a little too much for me.... These type of resurrections make the show less Believable
ReplyDeleteGonna have to disagree. It was the worst Arrow episodo of this season true but I saw many worse episodes this season in shows such as Grimm, TVD, Shield, etc.
ReplyDeleteI too wanted Malcolm to stay dead but we never actually saw him die, Diggle and Oliver had to rush back to the Glades to help the people there, and Malcolm had enough resources and influence to fake his death. This is not SPN and I doubt Arrow writers would use this trick again.
My favorite scene was Felicity apologizing to Oliie. I thought they had good chemistry between them there.
ReplyDeleteHad to go with Malcom Merlin is back. Awesome surprise. I was not expecting it (I thought Barowman would be back in flashbacks)
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed this episode.
ReplyDeleteThere were three good scenes that I thought could be contenders. Oliver fighting and killing the Count, Felicity stopping Oliver to apologize to him for getting into a position where he had to kill (nicely played and fodder for fanfic writers for months), and the fantastic reveal at the end of both Malcolm still alive and Thea's father.
Thea and Roy's boxing scene would have been better if she had been hitting a bag rather than him, because hitting your partner is never right no matter what the reason. Adam/Laurel's "ace" of Moira's affair with Malcolm 19 years ago is head-bangingly stupid because even if she did convince Malcolm not to kill Walter, it doesn't mean she wasn't afraid of him. The fact that Malcolm was holding her current husband hostage, after killing her first husband, supports the idea that she was coerced to go along with Malcolm in order to save Walter's life.
It was a little too much for me too, but they didn't bring him back from the dead. Instead, they revealed he faked his death and didn't really die. This isn't a supernatural show yet and he didn't escape from hell or was returned from the other side, etc. and we never saw his body.
ReplyDeleteHE DIDNT DIE, is everybody bloody stupid
ReplyDeleteEvery episode of Supernatural this year has been worse,every ep
ReplyDeleteTotally disagree and your comparisons are laughable
ReplyDeleteI think Supernatural is getting back on track. Ok, it has had several filler episodes in a row - but they were no where near as bad as some of the 8th season's fillers. The myth arc episodes are fantastic. Ratings also are quite high in comparison to seasons 6, 7, and 8. I will admit that there are plot holes and OOC moments; but again, it is no where near as bad as before.
ReplyDeleteI think that the trial was plain bad because it was unbelievable. Moira supposedly had one of the best attorneys - but the defense did nothing, didn't object, allowed the ADA to testify, and didn't use all her resources. I don't think I could have watched an episode that focused just on the trial if that is what we would have seen.
ReplyDeleteYou may disagree but you cannot call people names on this site. It will get you banned. Please refrain from insulting people and simply comment on the episode. I have flagged this comment as inappropriate.
ReplyDeleteThat is good to hear. Season 8 was a complete disaster for me and I am nervous about watching season 9 in the summer.
ReplyDeleteThe prosecution wasn't very capable either. They didn't even take one day to present their case. We literally went from opening arguments to Thea testifying for the defense.
ReplyDeleteI am glad to hear you are going to watch season 9! I hope you like it. I miss your SPN reviews.
ReplyDeleteThanks. It has been odd - the first time in years where I don't have SPN on the brain every day. I now work on 4 shows in the amount of time it used to take me to work on just Supernatural. If the brothers aren't out-of-character, the drama isn't contrived just to cause conflict between them, and they don't shoot canon all to hell, I will most definitely like this season better. However, even if I don't, I am going to be doing retro reviews of the earlier seasons. I can't imagine going a whole summer without writing about SPN.
ReplyDeleteI dont agree that it was the first great ep its 7 from 7 for me
ReplyDeleteBut the case was rigged and the jury were basically blackmailed by Merlin so the length of the case becomes irrelevant
ReplyDeleteOk cool i apologise
ReplyDeleteApparently you are, oh dear
ReplyDeleteI gave the ep a second watch and was able to articulate why I think this ep falls on the bottom of the list of this season's eps for me. I think the way they handled the court room scenes was horrible (and that's including the poor casting of the DA) It wsn't clear who was presenting the case at this point....defense or prosecution and the whole thing was over in two testimonies...what TV lawyer puts Thea on the sand and does get up on cross and make sue Thea says why she changed her mind and went to see her mother? It was lazy.
ReplyDeleteThat said...liked the count's plan. His stroll through the prison with the keys was awesome. And I liked the scene where the count was killed is the scene I picked as a fav. The boxing scene would be number 3. I hope they don't let that death go to waste and have Oliver basically forget about it in the next episode.
I think part of the reason why the trial was so badly done was because they rushed it. With more time, I think they should have shown more of a fight...above all, they should have shown the redirect.
ReplyDeleteEven better was how they were skipping over the little fact that Malcolm nearly killed her son, too. Honestly, every competent lawyer would have been able to beware her from the dead penalty. When they said that they had found something, I thought it was about a more direct involvement on her site, something that she did...not the fact that she happened to have an affair years before the undertaking even started.
ReplyDeleteMakibg the trial longer would've mean adding it to more episodes. I'd rather they keep the previous episodes as they were than spending more time on the trial. This is not Law&Order.
ReplyDeleteNot just the jury. Malcolm said he also had a contact at the DA.
ReplyDeleteI think Olivet will be more busy fighting for his own life than caring about the Count next seasin. It's interesting that he was the first he didn't kill last season and the first he did kill this season.
ReplyDeleteI hadn't realized the Count was the first Oliver let live. Cool.
ReplyDeleteI think fight to survive will make the question of whether Oliver can keep his pledge more critical. The show runners have said that this season is about him becoming a hero...for Oliver the choice he makes under pressure says the most about who he is.. Which is why I am looking forward to it.
What else did we need to see from the trial? I think they used the right amount of time to present the trial on the show
ReplyDeleteI voted for Oliver killing The Count. While I hated Felicity's IQ plummeting so drastically to put her in DiD mode ("I have no self-defense skills, so it's a great idea to go scope out the bad guys' van alone, at night and unarmed!") , it was a well-done, exciting scene. Love how Oliver put 3 arrows in The Count, whose crazy, over-the-top ass I won't miss, how he fell out of the window and crashed on the cab (neat!), and that Moment between Ollie and Felicity afterwards.
ReplyDeleteOther favs:
- Felicity telling Oliver she's sorry she put him in a position where he had to kill again, because it really shows how sweet and kind she is, and cemented their bond. I'm not a shipper, but I think it's clear that they have strong feelings for each other (whether romantic or not) and enjoy their relationship a great deal.
- Roy and Thea's boxing session, because he was a sweetheart to do that for her.
- The FB's, because it's nice to see the island version of Team Arrow (Ollie/Slade/Shado) reunited. I just hope Sara doesn't double-cross them. Of course, things aren't going to go well because Oliver thought Sara was dead in the present before 2x04...
I'm going to have to disagree re Felicity being the DiD. Neither Felicity nor Diggle could've known that the Count was watching the van. For all we know, one of the Count's minions could've switched the flu shots with the Verigo shots without the knowledge of the van's crew. Also, the Count, if you remember from last season, wasn't the type of guy to visit his "business places." The police had no clue who he was then because he was always hiding, and I dount that changed after he escaped from jail.
ReplyDeleteThe only reason the Count was watching the van imo was that he was waiting for Arrow to arrive to kill him on Blood's orders, and Felicity accidentally went into that trap unknowingly, but neither her nor Diggle thought it'd be a trap.
Less believable? This show is an adaption from a DC comic. In that case, Malcolm being alive is not even a surprise.
ReplyDeleteI was surprised to discover how much I've been enjoying season 9. I'm hoping that when they get back to the arc story that I'll still be enjoying it.
ReplyDeleteWell different people, different views
ReplyDeleteGood to hear. I've been getting mixed reviews now although after the first couple of episodes it was mostly positive.
ReplyDeleteI said the same thing about Thea and Roy, I don't like that he told her to hit him. It's easy enough to imagine that if the situation was gender-reversed, people would be screaming that the show is legitimizing abuse by having Roy hit Thea as an outlet for his anger (even if it was her idea). It shouldn't be okay for a girl to hit a boy for that reason, either. He should've gotten her a punching bag. The scene could have still played in much the same way, after hitting it harder and harder she would've started tearing up and he would've held her.
ReplyDeleteRegarding the trump card, that was definitely ridiculous. Undermining it even further is the fact that Moira DID, in fact, come clean about the Undertaking not too long after the vigilante found and rescued Walter. That proves that Walter was leverage to keep her from blowing the whistle, which wouldn't have worked if Malcolm had killed him. It's also an effective counterargument for Donner's "Moira's change of heart came way too late". She couldn't have gone public about Malcolm's plan before because he had Walter.
That's a good point, that Moira came clean about the Undertaking as soon as Walter was safe. Any good lawyer would have blown that 'trump card' to bits in the court.
ReplyDelete