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Starting In A Bad Place – Recapping Arrow 3.18: 'Public Enemies'

By Rich Epstein

This week's Arrow opens with Starling City in a bad place. The mayor is dead, it's wealthiest citizen, Ray Palmer (Brandon Routh) is critically injured, and the citizens and the police captain, Quentin Lance (Paul Blackthorne), think the Arrow, the only person who can save the city, is to blame. The Arrowteam is watching a news report of Quentin telling the city that he has reinstated the anti-vigilante task force with orders to shoot to kill if necessary. Isn't that kind of redundant? I mean, why do they carry guns if not to use them when necessary? Anyway, Oliver Queen (Stephen Amell) wonders if this is all his fault, after all, the only reason Ra's al Ghul (Matt Nable) is interested in Starling City is because of him. He's kind of right. When you look at all the people that Ra's al Ghul and Slade Wilson have killed because of Oliver, you kind of have to wonder just how much he has helped the city. Oliver knows who is really doing it, Maseo Yamashiro (Karl Yune). Luckily, he knows someone that can help find Maseo.

Flashback…Oliver bumps into Shado, or so he thinks. It's actually her twin sister. He asks for help hiding him and Akio.

Laurel Lance (Katie Cassidy) berates her father for his shoot to kill order. He tells her he saw the Arrow with his own eyes. She asks him to trust her, but he can't. He wants her to tell him who the Arrow is, but she can't.

Ray wakes up at the hospital with Felicity Smoak (Emily Bett Rickards) by his side. The doctor enters with bad news…Ray has a blood clot and surgery could kill him. Luckily, he invented some nano-robots that can take out the blood clot without harming him. Wait, how long has he had these things? Why doesn't he have a whole team of people working on this? How many people could he have saved? What a dick. Anyway, speaking of dicks, the doctor won't use the nanobots because the hospital has a strict policy against experimental procedures. He tells Felicity not to worry, they will figure something out. What? You're a frigging billionaire. Transfer to a hospital that will perform the procedure. Duh.

As Ray and Felicity talk, in walks Donna Smoak (Charlotte Ross), Felicity's mom, with suitcase in tow. She starts to flirt with Ray, when Felicity pulls her aside to ask what she is doing here. She came as soon as she heard about Ray. As Felicity breaks down and starts to cry, Momma Smoak says "At least you finally have a boyfriend." Nice.

Time for Oliver to have a conversation with Nyssa al Ghul (Katrina Law). I am guessing he is going to disagree with the whole training Laurel thing. I was wrong, he just wants her help with tracking down Maseo. She won't betray the League to help Oliver. He tells her that people are dying, then asks her what Sara would want her to do.

Sure enough, she tracks them down and it's time for the Arrowteam to suit up. Which basically means Roy, Laurel and Oliver, as Diggle will be on over-watch. Nyssa was willing to get information, but she isn't going to actually take arms against the League. So we have three against the entire League. I'm guessing they aren't going to win, seeing as how we aren't even ten minutes into the episode.

They arrive at the hideout, and Maseo gives the order to kill them all. Even Oliver? Roy takes one out with an arrow as the fight starts, and he and Laurel each take on a couple of Assassins as Oliver beats Maseo. They have the fight seemingly won, when out steps Ra's al Ghul sarcastically clapping. Oliver raises an arrow to Ra's, who points out that if Oliver kills him, he will only hasten becoming the next Ra's. He also mentions that there are legions of people who live only to see his will done. He promises that if Oliver does not agree to become his heir, he will live the rest of his life in a cage. And just then the police arrive. Like, all of the police. Our trio of heroes run, right off of the building. They shoot wired arrows onto the building to lower themselves down, as Diggle steers them to safety. Oliver causes a diversion,m and tries to let Roy and Laurel get away. Roy shoots a cop in the leg on the way out, as Lance corners Laurel. He is going to arrest her, when Nyssa comes to her aid. Diggle comes to Oliver's aid as Roy gets cornered in a warehouse. It's a pretty good fight and chase scene. It's interesting to see what the heroes are willing to do to get away. Roy shoots a cop in the leg, Oliver takes out a couple of cop cars. These are innocent people that they are hurting, in order to protect themselves.

Flashback…Oliver and Akio are with Mae, Shado's sister. Oliver doesn't tell her his name or how he knew Shado. Instead he says his name is Tommy, and he knows Shado from medical school. All Mae knows is that Shado and their father were kidnapped three years earlier. She is giving a lot of help for someone who she never met, is being chased, and has a story that obviously doesn't add up. Oliver goes to take a shower, and she notices his dragon tattoo, the same one that Shado had.

Back in Starling, Felicity is watching a press conference in which Quentin is railing against the Arrow. Momma Smoak arrives with some coffee. She tells Felicity to inject Ray with the nano-tech herself. Felicity is scared, but her mother points out that Ray is already in deadly peril.

Meanwhile, Ra's has an Assassin kidnap Quentin so they can have a word. He blames Ra's for his daughter's death. Ra's offers to give Quentin a name, but Quentin says he won't believe anything Ra's says. But, when Ra's offers the name Oliver Queen, suddenly a lot of things make sense.

Laurel goes to talk to her father. She accuses him of having a grudge against the Arrow only because he held Sara's death from Quentin. But he tells her she's wrong, he blames the Arrow because he is the reason Sara died. All the masks started with Oliver ("Oliver, the Arrow, same person"), and Sara got involved with that. Now she's dead. Laurel goes to make the call, but he tells her it's too late. Officers are already on route to Oliver's home, the club, everywhere. It will be really interesting to see where the show goes from here. I mean, not just Lance, but everyone on the force now knows that Oliver is the Arrow. I assume somehow they will have to undo that, but it won't be easy.

At the hospital, Momma Smoak distracts the doctor so that Felicity can give Ray the treatment. Ray points out to the Felicity that if it goes wrong, she could go to jail. She does it anyway and he goes into cardiac arrest.

Thea and Roy are having drinks, commiserating over what is happening. Roy says that there was a part of him that was relieved when the cops were chasing him, relieved that he would finally be going to jail. Foreshadowing? I've seen some theories that Roy is going to end up taking the fall for Oliver, clearing room for Thea to become the sidekick. Not really sure if I believe it, but….anyway, Thea tells him that the cop he killed wasn't his fault. Oliver steps in at that moment to apologize, he gave Roy the mask so that he can help the police, not run from them. Roy asks what is going to happen when the police show up. I have to ask…don't they have any security around the club? Their secret hideout really sucks. Oliver runs, right into a flashback.

Mei asks about the tattoo, she knows that Oliver is lying. She called the police, they will be there in a minute. Only it's not the police, it's gunmen shooting.

At the hospital, the doctor tracks down Felicity to tell her that the blood clot is gone. He asks her if she had anything to do with it. Who cares? First of all, he just disclosed a patient's medical information to someone. Not really supposed to do that. Then, there is the fact that he now knows that Ray's nano-tech worked. He cured an inoperable blood clot in his brain. Shouldn't the doctor be amazed by this? It seems like kind of a big deal. Felicity looks up in time to see Quentin giving another press conference. He announces that they have issued an arrest warrant for Oliver Queen. Oliver shows up at Diggle's apartment, as he has nowhere else to go.

Felicity, Roy and Laurel arrive at Diggle's. The first thing Oliver does is ask about Ray, which I think might actually be the nicest thing that he has ever done for Felicity. I mean, he's saved her life and stuff, but he does that for anyone. Here, in the middle of all of his problems, he stops to ask the woman he loves about her boyfriend. Laurel tells them that Quentin has men at all of the airports, bus stations and train stations and has frozen Thea's assets. Oliver says that Ra's "is using this city as a weapon. It's my city." Oliver leaves, to go to "the only place I can go."

The flashback picks up right where it left off, with Oliver, Mei and Akio ducking for cover. The gunnem enter the house, and Oliver gets the jump on them while Akio and Mei hide in the bedroom. He misses one, who is about to shoot Oliver when in come Maseo and Tatsu Yamashiro (Rila Fukushima). Mei comes out to find her apartment completely wrecked. That's pretty much what happens when you help Oliver Queen.

Meanwhile, Felicity arrives back at the hospital, in considerably worse spirits then before. Ray is doing pretty well, thanks to Felicity. He tells her he loves her. She can't say it back, and goes to get him some food. And that might just be the end of Felicity and Ray. As she walks out from the room, her mom knows something is up, and asks Felicity if she just had "hospital sex." Felicity is a little grossed out when her mom tells her she always wanted hospital sex, but tells her what actually happened. She asks what is wrong with her, why she couldn't say it back when he is practically the perfect man. Her mom tells her she doesn't love Ray because she is in love with Oliver.

Speaking of Oliver, he turns himself in.Laurel, Felicity, Roy and Diggle arrive at the police station. They go in to see Oliver. He wants to make a deal, he turns himself in and they all get immunity. Roy asks how they can all live with themselves if they let him do this. He asks them to trust him, the truth can be very powerful.

In the final flashback, Maseo has helped clean up the bodies, and wants to get out of there. Oliver stays behind, and tells Mei the truth about her sister and father. She thanks him for telling her, for three years all she has wanted was to know the truth. She tellshim that he has no idea how powerful the truth can be.

At the Arrowcave, Diggle tells Felicity and Roy that they have to go, it isn't safe there anymore. Roy wants to know what they are going to do to help Oliver, but Diggle has no idea. Roy points out that if it was any one of them, Oliver would do whatever it took to get them out, regardless of the consequences.

In the police transport truck, Oliver and Quentin have a heart to heart about Sara and the Island. Oliver tells Quentin that he loves Quentin's family, and Quentin backhands him across the face. Quentin asks Oliver if it was worth it, or if it would have been better if he had died on the Island. All the people that Slade Wilson killed, Tommy, Sara, his mom…When he mentions putting Laurel at risk, Oliver said that he never meant for her to be involved, he never meant for anyone to be involved. "But you involved me, you spent a year making me look like a fool, you spent a year making me your accomplice. Do you have any idea what you've done, what you've done to all of us, the people that you claim to care so much about? You've made us criminals, you've made us liars, you've made us victims. You, Mr. Queen are not a hero, you're a villain. But you know that, don't you?"

Just then, the truck is attacked, by the Arrow. It's Roy, turning himself in. He is immediately arrested, as Oliver looks on in shock.

So, I guess those theories were right. We'll see how long he spends in jail. I have a feeling that Oliver won't be going out dressed as the Arrow for the near future, as he needs to focus on Ra's rather than the small-time criminals. Speaking of which, you have to wonder what Ra's' next move will be. Will he go after those close to Oliver?

Paul Blackthorne was great in this episode. He really comes through as a tortured soul, someone who can't live with what he's done or what he's doing, but can't stop himself. Knowing that he lost Sara a second time because of Oliver is more than he can bear.

There has been a definite improvement in the show the past few weeks. There's a focus that was missing earlier in the season. The show works best when there is an overarching threat rather than just a villain of the week. Ra's is a real threat, someone who thus far has been able to outsmart Oliver at every turn and has the resources to do whatever he wants.

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