Join us each week as we review the latest episode of ARROW. Warning: the following review contains major spoilers for the newest episode of the show.
Episode 6: "Lost Souls"
Synopsis: Felicity is frantic when she learns that Ray is alive and being held by Damien Darhk. Felicity's guilt over not finding Ray sooner causes tension between her and Oliver. Meanwhile, Sara joins Laurel, Theaand the team on a rescue mission for Ray. However, the effects of the Lazarus Pit take over and threaten to jeopardize the entire operation.Donna Smoak returns to Star City.
Review: Just as quickly as she returned, Sara Lance is once again saying goodbye to Star City. After last week's helpful visit from John Constantine restored her soul, Sara is back in the field with Team Arrow as they unite to rescue Ray Palmer. But, since nothing can be simple or standalone on this series, Palmer is in the clutches of none other than Damien Darhk. That's right, one of the developing Legends of Tomorrow is also an integral plot device for the Season Four bad guy. This hour also throws some temporary issues between Felicity and Oliver which temporarily gives the impression that their romance could be coming to an end.
The entire hour revolves around the planned rescue of Ray Palmer after Felicity is able to decode messages from Palmer that he has been sending since his accident six months prior. Felicity is happy to find her friend and former boyfriend alive but is upset at Oliver's lack of action in trying tor rescue him. Felicity blames herself for getting too caught up in her love affair to have gotten Ray's messages which forces her to step back from Oliver. Felicity's mother Donna also returns to Star City and further upsets the balance of things but also gives her daughter some much needed romantic advice as to why she should let herself be happy with Oliver.
The rescue of Ray begins with a heist at Kord Industries to steal a device to help Curtis build something that can restore the miniaturized Palmer to full size. During the break-in, Sara succumbs to the same bloodlust Thea has felt as a side effect of the Lazarus Pit, forcing Laurel to sideline her sister from future action. But, when it is revealed that Ray is being held in one of the most secure buildings in the city, Sara lobbies for another chance to join the fight. They also need to bring Curtis into the mix to assemble his device on the fly before Darhk can harm Ray. To infiltrate the building, Oliver allows himself to be captured by Darhk as a ploy to distract the villain as they break Palmer out. The face off between Darhk and Oliver is brief as the bad guy's magic once again is a force to be reckoned with, but with Ray rescued, they quickly get away.
Ultimately, the question remains as to why Darhk needed Ray's suit to begin with. For now, Oliver and Felicity reconnect romantically and Laurel says goodbye to Sara as she decides to visit her mother in Central City before leaving again to try and find peace with her second chance at life. Thea also decides to pursue a date with Oliver's campaign manager, Alex, in an effort to have a life of her own. We also see Quentin Lance sad at Sara's latest departure. But, the sadness is short-lived as Quentin strikes up a conversation with Donna Smoak. Could there be a romance in the mix for the two parents? I can only imagine what that relationship could do to the dynamic for Felicity, Laurel, and Oliver.
The closing scene of the episode gives us Damien Darhk discussing with an employee how they were able to harness some of the energy from Ray Palmer's A.T.O.M. suit as Darhk opens an ancient box, revealing an intricate microchip-like pattern on the interior. He instructs his subordinate to "switch it on" with a menacing smile on his face, likely hinting at the nefarious power the chip may hold as part of the master plan for Star City. In regards to the flashbacks, they once again did nothing to build on the episode. We see the useless half of the artifact recovered by Constantine last week being used by Reiter to read some heiroglyphics in a cave on Lian Yiu that leads to a hidden place. Oliver is also forced to kill a man, but the repercussions remain a mystery.
Making this episode more of a heist/rescue adventure definitely injected some thrills into what has been a mediocre batch of recent episodes, but it does not quite live up to what could have been. In the end, the rescue of Ray Palmer and the departure of Sara Lance still feel like stage setting for Legends of Tomorrow rather than an organic hour of Arrow. But, for what it was, I still found it better than several of the other origin hours on either Arrow or The Flash. The flashbacks still suck momentum out of this season but the relationship dynamic between Oliver and Felicity made this a worthwhile hour of programming. I would like Damien Darhk's plan to finally come to light so the team can spend the rest of the season trying to stop him and maybe that can happen with the origin tales almost complete.
Final Verdict:
Next on ARROW: "Brotherhood" airs November 18th: Team Green Arrow's ongoing battle with Damien Darhk is complicated by a shocking revelation. Thea's bloodlust returns and she loses control in front of Alex.