Arrow 'Pilot': Unmistakably A Bulls-Eye

After all that raving about how amazing Arrow was, Arrow proved that it was worth all the hype with the airing of Pilot. Arrow has been on my must watch list for a long time now, and I was not disappointed with the results. CW has been for a while developing a superhero show to fill the void that Smallville left after its series finale, and Arrow is clearly that answer.

Pilot began Arrow off with Oliver Queen's rescue and return from the island where he was stranded on for five years. Oliver's time on the island had changed him both on the inside and outside as he returned to his city a different man. Oliver soon finds himself back in his old environment as his friends and family help him readjust. During his tour, Oliver stops in on his ex-girlfriend Dinah Laurel Lance, who is angry at him for cheating on her with her sister on the night that the ship went down. As Oliver and Tommy return to the car, they are jumped by masked men and taken presumably hostage. The men soon grill Oliver on what his father could have told Oliver before his death. Oliver soon breaks free and defeats all the men. Oliver realizes that he needs to move his plan ahead, and begins his work on creating his Arrow persona. Oliver escapes from his bodyguard/driver and creates his lair and goes after Adam Hunt. Thus beginning the hunt for the people who are hurting his city.

There was so many things done right in Arrow that I hope that will continue for the rest of the series. The story I summarized above severely lacking in the details department as I avoided giving spoilers out. Arrow is embodying the idea of superheroes need to have have motivation and a dark past to shape them into the person they need to be. This was started by the ever so popular Christopher Nolan Batman movies when it set the standard for super heroes (not that we complain). Oliver Queen was changed by witnessing the death of his father and surviving harsh conditions on the island he was stranded. To make Oliver even more darker, he doesn't let others know about what he can do, and we see this in the scene where he makes his escape attempt and chases down all the masked men and deals with them. This scene really sets the tone for the series as Oliver is willing to do harm to opponents and potentially kill them. This is Arrow proving it is not another Smallville but something else entirely.

Now the universe in Arrow is setting itself up for potential conflicts right off the bat. Arrow wants us to know there will be a big arc coming up, and we can expect more stories and character development from the coming episodes. Think about it. There is already a love triangle forming between Laurel, Tommy and Oliver. Will Tommy and Laurel continue to tip toe around Oliver hoping he doesn't find out even though he already does. We are also seeing that the mother, Moira Queen, is not innocent and has dark secrets of her own. How it will play out in the rest of the season, I don't know. I am looking forward to see how it plays out. The sister, Thea is looking like she might get into trouble herself with the drugs shes playing around with. Not to forget the fact that this season, Arrow will see flashbacks of Oliver's time on the island. There are probably a bunch of other points I missed, but the fact is that Arrow has so many plot lines set up that can play out through the season.

Much as I don't like to admit, there was a couple of things that I didn't get about Arrow. More specifically, the tech side of it. Like how Oliver knew how to hack computers. I am not sure whether Oliver was a computer whiz before or after the island. It surely can't be after since Oliver was on a island, you know, where there is no electricity or computers. And yet he is able to hack into Adam Hunt's computer and steal his money and give it to the poor. Love the sentiment, but how is it possible?

I highly recommend Arrow to viewers since it has a lot of potential to become a great show. It was certainly worth all the hype as Arrow meet the expectations of its viewers. With a good storyline, and fantastic cast, Arrow is heading in the right direction. Superhero fans can also be happy to see another superhero moonlighting on the television again. I know I sure will be tuning in when Arrow is on (also helps that its on the same say as Supernatural). Next week Honor Thy Father will air.