Arrow S01E06 - As average as it gets

First of all, I want to explain to you why this review is so short: It's because after five full reviews, three of those done by me, you should already have decided whether to continue watching Arrow or to look for something different. I will only do short reviews for season one from now on, except when there is an especially good or bad episode. The posts that I feel come closest to a prognosis about what Arrow might have in store then is my episode three review and this one, I can't speak for my colleague though. Enough said, let's begin!

Episode six is probably the first 'filler', no major plot development at all. I don't have a problem with that, actually some filler episodes can turn out to be really exciting, strengthen the protagonists' characteristics and do not feel like a waste of time at all. Castle is a good example for a show made up almost completely out of filler episodes, or, if you will, no filler episodes at all: Every week they advanced the season plot just a tiny inch forward, sometimes without using a single word. It worked rather well in my opinion. What brakes or makes this kind of episode then is only the plot, nothing else. Without major character development, there is no room for praise or criticism in that category.

As the title suggests, I wasn't impressed by Arrow's performance. I wasn't too disappointed either though. Episode six makes all the mistakes I mentioned in earlier reviews, but the plot is somewhat creative and unexpected, which is always a good thing. I don't want to go too much into detail about things I said before, but nonetheless I feel they need to be mentioned: They plot suffers from the same illogical developments as in the previous episodes: Oliver can magically acquire information about his target, right down to the exact location - But only sometimes, when the narration requires it. This feels like they are cheating their way around conclusive writing by just randomly giving Oliver knowledge he couldn't have and then at other times just withholding it. In this case, he is able to identify a bank robber the police couldn't find by stealing a picture out of the evidence files. He then uses the typical unexplainable computer magic to locate him. Whatever, moving on.

Or wait, one last matter I want to nitpick about: If Oliver has, as it has been established numerous times, extensive knowledge about computers and the internet, why is he not able to dig up basic information about the bank robbers past. He has to ask the pretty IT-lady we saw before to do that. Isn't it dangerous to involve outsiders in your operations? Especially when you have no excuse whatsoever for your requests? He can track the guys location down to a pub somewhere in the city but can't do a Google search about him? And one last thing: If Oliver was really a hero, he should maybe give the police access to the incredibly powerful tracking system he build in his cave.

Enough with the details: Let's talk about the major problems of this episode and Arrow in general, once again: The plots are centered around convenience, feel unrealistic and forced and lack real excitement. They are used as an excuse to show us some action scenes that don't really work either. That isn't even the biggest issue I have with the series. What I honestly dislike the most is how blatantly forced every dialogue and action seems. It looks like the gave the actors zero room to do what they are supposed to do: Act! They just read line after line in a monotonous voice, sometimes sporting watery eyes or looking out of the window dramatically. Conversations don't have a 'flow', it doesn't feel like they would take place like that in real life. Most of the time, people just talk to each other face to face in this series. There's no dynamics to it, they don't talk while doing something, they just stop in the middle of the room and babble on and on and on. And that's the last main issue I have with Arrow: There is so much talking that could have been avoided so easily. The most basic rule of storytelling is probably 'Show, don't tell'. And yet Arrow repeatedly fails to do that and I don't get how that happens. Are the writers not paid enough, do they not enjoy their work? It's not only Arrow, the most famous example for this might be the Star Wars prequels. How can such a basic and simple rule be ignored over and over? It's probably because most of the audience just doesn't care - and that's a sad thing. You rarely see any emotional display without having to watch two minutes of talking before: Thea feels isolated and helpless? The audience is too stupid to notice, just make Thea say it directly to their faces. Laurel still has feelings for Oliver? Make her say it! It's alright to make a relatively simple plot, not every episode need to be a work of art, but that doesn't justify labeling the viewers as stupid. We don't need to be fed every single piece of information. Show, don't tell.