Arrow “Underneath” was written by Wendy Mericle and Beth Schwartz and was directed by Wendey Stanzler. I think we know who to thank for the women being front and center in this epidose! I really like how the title of this episode resonated not only with the physical peril of Oliver (Stephen Amell) and Felicity (Emily Bett Rickards) but also with the emotional peril of Oliver and Felicity and Diggle (David Ramsey) and Lyla (Audrey Marie Anderson). This is the first episode that I’ve really enjoyed for some time.
The action picks up right where we left off last week with the explosion in the lair. It turns out that the explosion was actually an EMP blast that not only knocked out all the equipment in the lair and communication with the outside world, but also the implant in Felicity’s spine that allows her to walk. Oliver and Felicity are trapped as all the doors are welded shut – and so are the air vents. The good news is that being trapped ultimately forces them to finally talk.
The flashbacks also provide some very much needed context. My major issue with this season is the time jump. It didn’t allow us to watch how the relationships between people had unfolded – this included Felicity’s relationship to Officer Malone – but also to how she and Oliver had come to a working relationship. We are reminded again of the trust issue that William brought up.
The flashbacks show that Felicity was still very much attracted to Oliver and vice versa. Curtis (Echo Kellum) arranges for them to be alone in the lair with access to Chinese food and rather a lot of wine. It was fun to watch the two back in a “good place” – and especially, Oliver trying to teach Felicity how to do the salmon ladder! And then there was that very steamy sex scene between the two. Afterwards, Felicity tells Oliver again that they can’t be together because he doesn’t trust her – or anyone. If she knew why, things might be different between them, but she doesn’t. She does apologize for not talking before, but she also says she’s not ready to have the talk, and she’ll never accept less than full trust… flash forward.
There were, of course, lots of great stunts and action as Oliver and Felicity attempt to get out. Oliver insists on trying his way by climbing the elevator shaft ands up falling and getting injured. As she patches him up, Felicity tells Oliver that she always backs his play, even when she doesn’t agree because she trusts him. Oliver is finally ready to listen and takes her point, asking if she’s got plan – he’s willing to follow her.
Felicity’s plan ends in disaster too, but the two scratch more at their issues. Oliver points out that he didn’t like her helping James because he’s a criminal. Felicity points out that he’s definitely no worse than the Bratva! Good point! Once again, Oliver insists that he doesn’t want her to be like him. The two have to trust each other in order to get out of the methane gas filled chamber.
Oliver ends up passing out from blood loss, leading them to another moment to dig beneath the surface. Oliver admits that he didn’t have Felicity’s back, but he insists it wasn’t because he doesn’t trust her. He insists that he’s not the man they all think he is and his crusade is based on a lie. He’s not a hero. He confesses that he liked killing. Oliver insists that he will always trust her, but he doesn’t trust himself.
When Oliver wakes up again, Felicity takes the moment to state the obvious. She tells him that it’s simply crazy that he likes killing. She assures him that she knows exactly the man he is or she’d never have agreed to marry him. She also points out that he’s spent ten years – five before his return and now five back in Star City – dealing with the worst things imaginable. On top of that, Chase (Josh Segarra) tortured him for a week! Anyone would have agreed to anything at that point. Well… d’uh. But I’m just glad that someone finally said it!
Back up top, Quentin (Paul Blackthorne) is dealing with the fallout from the revelation that the DA is serial killer. Of course, this is going to create a lot of chaos going forward as most of his cases are going to get overturned. Quentin is also concerned about where Oliver is, and that gets Rene (Rick Gonzalez) and the team onto the case. They turn to Diggle for leadership.
Diggle is still angry with Lyla, and I was thrilled when she pointed out the obvious to him. And as an aside – yeah women for being the voices of reason and wisdom! Lyla points out that while she’s had to do some possibly questionable things with Argus, he and Oliver have been playing judge and jury – with NO government sanction – for years! Touche!
Lyla puts Argus at their disposal to help find and rescue Oliver and Felicity. I was not thrilled to see Dinah (Juliana Harkavy) step further into being a clone of Laurel by offering to be a sounding board for Diggle. She does give him good advice when she tells him about her relationship with Vinnie. She points out that they had to keep information from each other because of their jobs. It’s not just a matter of national security, but often a matter of life and death.
Diggle seems to be coming to terms when Lyla shows up with a T-sphere! Argus “appropriated” the technology! Diggle is a lot more disturbed by the theft in the end than Curtis, who quickly comes to terms with it when he sees how they’ve improved his own technology. They use the T-sphere to send a shot of adrenaline to Felicity to give to Oliver so that he can get them out.
I loved Felicity freaking out that it looked like Death Star interrogation drone from
Star Wars! And I loved that the adrenaline mostly worked on Oliver in the same way it worked on Uma Thurman in
Pulp Fiction!
Lyla presents Diggle with an audit of all she’s done while she’s been at Argus – full disclosure. But she also points out that no matter what Oliver does, Diggle stands behind him. She wants to know why he can’t do the same for her. She tells him that she deserves the same kind of trust she’s always given him – and the penny finally drops for Diggle. He ultimately apologizes – as he should have!
Oliver must carry Felicity on his back and jump to catch Diggle’s hand to get them out. It’s another nice moment of trust between the team – and of course, there was never any question that Oliver would let go of Felicity!
Once Oliver is out of surgery, Felicity goes to him. Oliver tells her that he really appreciates what she said to him. And Felicity apologizes for being a hypocrite. She feels like her quest for revenge only gave her the teeniest glimpse of what Oliver has been through. She tells him that she understands now why he lied, and she’s sorry for judging him. But she also tells him that he needs to figure out what kind of person he is. So, while Lyla and Diggle may be alright, Felicity and Oliver aren’t quite there yet. I’m expecting Oliver to have to go off on a soul-searching quest now at the end of the season…
The episode ends rather predictably with Chase going after William – the one thing that Oliver has left to lose. My hope is that the progress we’ve seen in the characters emotionally will stick. Please let’s not re-visit these issues again – let’s keep them sensibly sorted out as they are now! What did you think of the episode? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!
