| "Green Arrow" | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Arrow episode | |||
.jpg){kind=icon} Promotional image of the season four Green Arrow costume, introduced in this episode | |||
| Episodeno. | Season 4 Episode 1 | ||
| Directed by | Thor Freudenthal | ||
| Story by | |||
| Teleplay by | |||
| Featured music | "All Eyes on You" bySt. Lucia | ||
| Cinematography by | Gordon Verheul | ||
| Editing by | Thomas Wallerstein | ||
| Production code | 3J5801[1] | ||
| Original air date | October 7, 2015 (2015-10-07) | ||
| Running time | 41 minutes | ||
| Guest appearances | |||
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| Episode chronology | |||
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| Arrowseason 4 | |||
| List of episodes | |||
"Green Arrow" is the premiere of thefourth season and seventieth overall episode, of the American television seriesArrow, originally broadcast onThe CW. Based on theDC Comics characterGreen Arrow, the series follows the story of billionaire vigilanteOliver Queen (Stephen Amell) who returns home after five years supposedly stranded on a Pacific island, featuring flashback sequences to his time away. The series is part of theArrowverse franchise, alongside spin-off showsThe Flash,Legends of Tomorrow,Supergirl,Batwoman and other associated media. At the start of the fourth season, the character is attempting to start a new life away from vigilantism inIvy Town, alongside girlfriendFelicity Smoak (Emily Bett Rickards). The episode marks the first time that the vigilante persona of Oliver Queen is referred to by his comic book alias of "Green Arrow". It is also the first episode in the series to feature a flash forward sequence as well as the established flashback sequences. The episode was written by season four showrunnersMarc Guggenheim andWendy Mericle, developed from a story written byGreg Berlanti andBeth Schwartz and directed byThor Freudenthal. It was first broadcast in the United States on October 7, 2015, on The CW.
The episode takes place several months after thefinale ofseason three. When a new threat is revealed in the newly renamedStar City, in the form of season antagonistDamien Darhk (Neal McDonough) Oliver returns to aid the team, taking up the mantle of "Green Arrow". In flashback sequences he is recruited, against his will, byA.R.G.U.S. and forced to return to the island of Lian Yu. The episode ends with a flash forward six months into the future, with Oliver grieving at a newly laid grave. The episode marks the first appearance by McDonough as Darhk and stars Stephen Amell as Oliver Queen alongsideKatie Cassidy asLaurel Lance,David Ramsey asJohn Diggle,Willa Holland asThea Queen, Emily Bett Rickards as Felicity Smoak andPaul Blackthorne asQuentin Lance, withGrant Gustin guest starring asBarry Allen.
The episode was watched live by 2.67 million viewers, a slight fall from the previous season premiere. Critics had a generally positive response to the episode, with many considering it a potential 'return to form' for the series. McDonough's introduction in particular met with a favorable reception, as did the perceived change of tone. However, many critics expressed caution with regard to the series' ability to maintain that tone throughout the season, particularly in light of the graveside flash forward. The episode holds a critics' approval rating of 94% onreview aggregator siteRotten Tomatoes.
Still recovering from events in Hong Kong, Oliver has been inCoast City, acting as a vigilante. He is approached in a bar by head ofA.R.G.U.S. Amanda Waller when he realizes that he has been drugged. He awakens to find himself on a plane, where he is given instructions to infiltrate a base on the island of Lian Yu before being thrown out of the plane. Landing on the island, he is held at gunpoint by a man in military uniform.
Five years later, Oliver and Felicity are shown to have been living a suburban life inIvy Town for a time, until the arrival of Laurel Lance and Thea Queen asking for their help in combating an emerging threat in the newly namedStar City. A terrorist group, known as 'Ghosts' and led by Damien Darhk are murdering the city leadership, including the District Attorney. The pair agree and once back in Star City aid the team in tracking the Ghosts, discovering that Darhk has apparent magical powers. Oliver reveals that Ra's told him that Darhk was the leader of an organization calledH.I.V.E. Diggle recognizes the name as the organisation which hiredFloyd Lawton to kill his brother, Andy, but keeps the information to himself. Meanwhile, Darhk performs a blood ritual in his hideout and is visited by an employee, who turns out to be Quentin Lance. After consideration, Oliver decides to stay in Star City and broadcasts an announcement to the city, calling himself the 'Green Arrow'.
Six months later, Oliver is seen standing in a cemetery by an unseen tombstone. When Barry Allen arrives, Oliver states that the death is not his responsibility, but gaining revenge for it is.
Arrow was developed for television byGreg Berlanti,Andrew Kreisberg andMarc Guggenheim in 2012, and premiered onThe CW in October of the same year.[2][3] The series is loosely based on theDC Comics characterGreen Arrow, telling the story of Oliver Queen, a former-billionaire turned vigilante. The show would go on to be the progenitor of a franchise of television series and other associated media based around adaptations of a variety of DC Comics characters, set within a shared universe, collectively known as the 'Arrowverse'.[4]
Arrow'sseason three finale ended on an optimistic note for Oliver Queen seeing him 'drive off into the sunset' with girlfriend Felicity Smoak.[5] However, theseason as a whole carried a darker tone, and was met with a mixed critical response.[6] Ahead of the premiere, co-showrunner Marc Guggenheim discussed how season four would lead on from the season three finale, stating that Oliver would have "a new outlook on life", and that the series as a whole would be aiming to shift to a lighter tone.[7] He also indicated that the writers intended to introduce season antagonist Damien Darhk early on in the season, confirming that this would be in episode one prior to the premiere.[8][9]
In July 2015, Guggenheim revealed that the fourth season premiere would be titled "Green Arrow" and that he would be writing the episode alongside co-showrunnerWendy Mericle. The script was developed from a story written byBeth Schwartz and executive producerGreg Berlanti, with the episode directed byThor Freudenthal.[1]
The episode sees the fictional Starling City where the series is set renamed to match itscomic counterpart, Star City.[10] It is also the first episode to name series protagonist Oliver Queen by his comics monikerGreen Arrow. Regarding this change, Wendy Mericle stated that, "it felt right for the natural evolution of Oliver's character to become what we know in the comics".[11] Discussing the flash forward grave-side scene after the show aired, Mericle explained that the producers "want[ed] to bring stakes back to the show" confirming that the intention was for the character in the grave to remain dead.[12]
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The episode stars the main cast ofArrow's fourth season; Stephen Amell as Oliver Queen, Katie Cassidy as Laurel Lance, David Ramsey as John Diggle, Willa Holland as Thea Queen, Emily Bett Rickards as Felicity Smoak and Paul Blackthorne as Quentin Lance. Season antagonist Damien Darhk is introduced in the episode, with Neil McDonough cast in the role in July 2015.[13] The episode sees the return ofCynthia Addai-Robinson asA.R.G.U.S. chiefAmanda Waller in a guest role andAudrey Marie Anderson asLyla Michaels, an A.R.G.U.S. agent married to John Diggle, in a recurring capacity.[14]Grant Gustin also features in a guest role, asBarry Allen, the lead character on spin-off showThe Flash.[15]John Barrowman, who portraysMalcolm Merlyn, is credited in the opening credits of the episode, but does not feature.[14]
The episode was filmed between July 13 and July 23, 2015, inVancouver,British Columbia, Canada.[1][16]
The episode was watched live by 2.67 million viewers with a 1.1/4 share among adults aged 18 to 49, a slight decrease from the previous season premiere.[17][18] It was watched by a further 1.43 million viewers inLive+7 viewing.[19]
Onreview aggregator websiteRotten Tomatoes, the episode holds an approval rating of 94% based on 18 reviews, with an average rating of 7.9/10. The critics' consensus reads "Arrow returns with aplomb, promising that the series can deftly navigate a more aspirational tonal shift and the introduction of more fantastical elements."[20]
Jesse Schedeen ofIGN gave the episode a "great" 8.5 out of 10 and welcomed the promise of the season's premiere, stating that "Arrow is showing every sign of addressing the flaws that bogged down Season 3." He particularly welcomed both the introduction of McDonough's Damien Dhark, and the lighter tone of Oliver Queen's character. Whilst he praisedDavid Ramsey's performance in portraying the fractured nature of the relationship betweenJohn Diggle and Oliver, and the rapport betweenStephen Amell andEmily Bett Rickards as Oliver andFelicity Smoak respectively, Scheeden felt that the characters ofLaurel Lance (Katie Cassidy) andThea Queen (Willa Holland) "failed to impress" in the season premiere. Overall, he felt that the episode laid solid groundwork for the rest of the season.[21]
Green Arrow provides a thrilling dive back into the Arrow world. Between an exciting new villain and a whole new batch of mysteries, the season already looks to be on a positive trajectory. Here's hoping, unlike Oliver's arrows, it doesn't get stuck and fall midway through.
The A.V. Club's Alasdair Wilkins gave the episode a "B+" grade and called it "an exciting opening for this season of Arrow". He also welcomed the introduction of McDonough and felt the season premiere delivered a promise that the series was "ready to live up to the entire Green Arrow legacy" calling the episode "a promising opening statement".[23] Writing forPaste, Mark Rozeman also praised McDonough's introduction, stating he "bleeds menace and charisma" and that he was "just the shot in the arm the series needs after last season" feeling overall that the premiere set the season on a "positive trajectory".[22] Kevin Yeoman, in his review forScreen Rant, praised not only Dahrk's introduction, but the manner in which he is introduced, highlighting how "allowing the opposing characters to interact propels the hour in a way that might have been lost had their threads not intertwined." Overall, he called the episode "confident and fast-paced", feeling it was "a return to form".[24] Writing forTV Overmind, Andy Behbakht described the series as returning "with the type of great quality that fans originally fell in love". He welcomed the change in Oliver's character, as well as the potential of the flashbacks and of Dahrk, and in particular the introduction of the "Green Arrow" moniker to the series.[25]
Carissa Pavlica ofTV Fanatic described the episode as a "satisfying return" following a disappointing season three and gave it a rating of 4.0 out of 5.0. She welcomed Oliver returning as a member of the team as opposed to its leader. However she expressed skepticism at the promised lighter tone of the season, particularly with the shadow of a character death, and of Oliver's declaration of deadly revenge, looming over it.[26] Noel Kirkpatrick ofTV.com welcomed the promise of the first episode, although was similarly cautious regarding the forecasted death, and the implications for the tone of the season. He praised the interplay between Amell and Rickards in "couple mode", but expressed some concerns over the development of the relationship, questioning if the show was "coasting on the chemistry of its couple".[27] Writing forUproxx, Alan Sepinwall described attempts to introduce a lighter tone to the series as "superficial at best", and that the episode had a mix of both interesting and frustrating moments.[28] Writing forCollider, Dave Trumbore welcomed Dahrk, but felt that tension between the characters was "treading over old ground" and that the flash-forward scene as a narrative device was a disappointing way to try and create tension.[29] Mike Cecchini, forDen of Geek, described the episode as "tough to get a read on". Whilst he considered it "funniest episode of Arrow I can remember" and again welcomed McDonough's Dahrk, he expressed concern that set up for the season, with an antagonist set on bringing down the city with an army of henchmen, felt "a little rote by now".[30]
