My Name is Oliver Queen - Full Review and Recap

And so season 3 of 'Arrow' comes to close. It's been a long, long slog, with a few 'Flash' crossovers tossed in. Which helped to muddle the finale of both shows. Since Arrow in his black League outfit showed up on 'Flash' the night before the 'Arrow' season finale. And he is all heroic and helps Barry and asks for a favor, which we see get paid off here.

When did Oliver show up in Central City to team up with Flash and Firestorm and ask this favor? Heck if I know. Apparently when he was in Central City a few weeks ago hunting Nyssa down. In the middle of a deep undercover operation to take down Ra's al Ghul from within, he snuck away from his assassin escorts to fight it out with Reverse Flash.

That's all I got folks. Sorry.

Some have argued that this season of 'Arrow' is the worst, and I'd tend to agree. The main problem has been Ra's. He's a primary antagonist who is all over the place. Is he good? Is he bad? Psychopath or sexy cad? Heck if I know. Ra's doesn't show up until halfway through the season. He's this little short guy who can't keep his shirt on and looks constipated half the time.



'Arrow''s Ra's looks nothing like the late middle-aged widow-peaked comic book guy.



Heck, he doesn't look anything like Liam Neeson. But credit to Matt Nable: he does what he can with what's he's given. And I suppose finding a 50--60 year-old actor who can do convincing sword work is hard.

But Ra's has been all over the place plot-wise as well. It's never been clear why he wants Oliver as a successor except for the "If someone survives my blade, they must replace me" prophecy. Oliver only told him no about 800 times. But then he flat-out lies to Oliver and says, "Hey, if you take over the League, you can do whatever you want with them." Leaving out the whole "I'm going to brainwash you into being just like me and have you kill a few million people" part. So it's hard to really sympathize with Ra's, although I think we're supposed to.

The finale doesn't pull things out of their nose dive. Some old rival of Ra's is in Central City, and the team takes five minutes out to try and capture him and trade him to Ra's. Except the rival isn't really there, he sent a cut-out in his place. So I guess we'll see Damien Darhk next season.

So Oliver and Ra's fight it out on top of a dam and Oliver seems even less enthused than at the last fight. Ra's sees his new dedication to life, gets stabbed, and dies. The end. Except the aforementioned prophecy has a loophole and Malcolm Merlyn takes over the League of Assassins. Ra's's daughter Nyssa sticks around for... some reason and kneels to him while swearing to kill him.

Ray Palmer blows himself up in a dwarf star experiment which will apparently turn him into Ant-Man instead of Iron Man. Felicity gets to take out the A.T.O.M. suit. Thea dons Roy's Arsenal costume after a lot of taking it in and she's the newest hero in town, Speedy. Diggle storms out, angry that Oliver lied to him like he doesn't understand how undercover missions work after his years with A.R.G.U.S.

And after a few more Hong Kong flashbacks, Oliver decides to wander the earth 'Kung Fu'-style for the two years until he ends up back on the island where he gets rescued, which is where we came in at the beginning of season 1. In the present day, Oliver's identity as The Arrow is blown so he drives off with Felicity to... umm, wander the earth 'Kung Fu'-style until season 4 begins.



So next year The CW will cross 'Arrow' over with both 'Flash' and the new 'DC Legends of Tomorrow'. And bring in a new villain. And bring Oliver and Felicity back. And put the band together after a pretty definitive ending this season. It's a pretty tall order, and we'll see how it plays out in four months or so. Have a good summer until then!

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Ra's and his men fly to Starling City with Oliver. Oliver wakes up and says that he was dreaming of rebirth as Ra's. He assures Ra's that he will annihilate Starling City to complete his ascension, and thanks Ra's for being there to help him. The plane shakes and Ra's realizes that something is wrong.

In the dungeon at Nanda Parbat, Felicity and the others wake up and are surprised to find themselves alive. Malcolm says that Oliver was forced to stand by and let Ra's kill them, and he tried to sell out Oliver so that Oliver could demonstrate his loyalty. He then explains that he was vaccinated against the Alpha Omega virus five years ago. An associate drew Oliver's blood and made a vaccine, and Malcolm placed it on a synthetic skin patch and inoculated them. Felicity points out that they're chained up, and Malcolm says that they need to wait.

The Flash speeds into the fortress as the assassins escort Tatsu down the hall. The speedster frees her and chains up the remaining assassins, then vibrates through the cell door. As they get their equipment, Flash admits that he has to get back to Central City and deal with Harrison. The speedster tells them that Oliver needs their help, even if he doesn't know it, and heads out. Tatsu tells Laurel that it's time that she return to her solitude.



Five Years Ago

At the pharmacy, Shrieve says that he's in direct contact with his men. Oliver tackles him and knocks him out, and the snipers open fire. The soldiers charge in and Maseo shoots them, and Oliver grabs his bow and shoots one of them and beats the remaining one unconscious. He then shoots Shrieve in the leg.

Now

Two of the engines burn out, and the pilot reports that someone sabotaged them. Ra's believes that Nyssa is responsible, but Oliver says that she had nothing to do with it. When Ra's reminds him that he is Wareeth Al Ghul, Oliver draws his sword and says that his name is Oliver Queen. He tosses Nyssa his sword and she fights the assassins, while Ra's fights Oliver. In the struggle someone hits the release on the ramp.

Ra's knocks Oliver down and then takes Nyssa down when she charges at him. He grabs the canister of the Alpha Omega virus and a parachute, promises Oliver that he will come for him until he's dead, and then leaps out over Starling City.

Oliver realizes that Ra's took the only parachute, and then goes to the cockpit with Nyssa. They try to bring the plane up and the cargo plane goes down in the forest.

Five Years Ago

On the second day of the outbreak, a merchant offers his condolences to Maseo and Tatsu, and provides them with the urns containing Akio's ashes. Oliver reluctantly takes one of them and goes back into the pharmacy. The tied-up Shrieve says that his people will find him, and Oliver prepares to shoot him. He says that Amanda thought he had a special talent for killing, and then shoots the general.


Now

The team gets back to Palmer Technologies and Malcolm takes command. The others hesitate until Diggle says that they follow his lead for now. A proximity alarm goes off just as Oliver and Nyssa drop in. Diggle punches Oliver and everyone leaves except Felicity and Diggle. Oliver says that he's kept Malcolm close because he had intel on the League and Ra's. The only way they could defeat the League was from the inside, but Diggle is furious that Oliver trusted Malcolm more than them. Oliver insists that he had to keep as few people as possible in the know, and admits that his plan to kill Ra's and destroy the virus didn't work.

Felicity wonders how he expected to survive the plane crash and realizes that Oliver didn't. He says that at least now he can apologize to them, but Diggle says that won't cut it. However, he says that they need to focus on the big problem, and Oliver says that Laurel needs to contact Quentin while Ray finds a way to counteract the virus.

Five Years Ago

Tatsu and Maseo come in and find Shreve, and Oliver says that he gave him the justice he deserves. Maseo confirms that Shrieve is alive but unconscious from the pain, and takes out a gun and shoots the general dead.

Now

Felicity tries to check the CCTVs but finds no sign of Ra's. Diggle suggests that they look for the unusual, and Felicity pinpoints the power outages throughout the city. One of them is a hotel that was cut shut down for Damien Darhk, Ra's's enemy. Oliver figures that Ra's plans to kill Damien and they can trade Damien for the virus.


Oliver scouts the hotel from the adjoining building and spots Damien's guards. Diggle is in the lobby doing internal surveillance. Malcolm and Nyssa take out more of the guards, and Oliver takes a line across the building. Diggle takes out the guards in the lobby and rides the elevator up.

Once he smashes through the window, Oliver the waiting man what Ra's has planned. The man says that Damien has already left the building. The man's phone rings and when he answers it, Ra's shoots him from across the street. When Oliver answers the phone, Ra's says that he has put the virus in four canisters and distributed them throughout Starling City. He is confident that Oliver and his team can't find them all in time.

Laurel visits Quentin at his office and tells him that the city is in danger. She explains about the biological attack but Quentin doesn't believe her. Laurel asks if he still has the bottle in his desk, and says that she loves Quentin no matter what. However, she tells him that his drinking is on him. Quentin says that he has it down to two drinks a day, but Laurel says that they're both alcoholics and he can make both his daughters proud by throwing away the bottle and helping them save the city.



Oliver returns to Palmer Technologies and tells Felicity and Ray what has happened. Ray says that he has a containment system if they can get the virus, and Oliver tells him that they'll need four. Felicity has checked Malcolm's files and confirmed that the virus gives off a radiation-like emission. She continues scanning and Oliver heads out.

Five Years Ago

Maseo tells Tatsu that he wasn't strong enough to save Akio or do what Oliver did. He says that he is without a soul, and when he looks into Tatsu's eyes he sees his failure. Maseo walks off into the night, and Tatsu tells Oliver that her husband is going somewhere that they can't follow.

Now

As Oliver waits, Felicity brings him coffee and says that they should talk about Oliver's plan to kill himself. He says that he's been dreaming of Felicity trying to convince him not to fight Ra's. Most of the time they escape and they drive away. Oliver admits that he can't defeat Ra's, and Felicity says that Oliver Queen can't and the Arrow can't. However, she says that he's no longer either of those men: he's become someone else who feels. Felicity says that it's his key to beating Ra's, and tells Oliver to fight to live. The satellite traces comes back with the four locations, and Oliver thanks Felicity before they go.

Felicity relays the four locations to Quentin, who sends his men to the areas in question.

Oliver, Merlin, Black Canary and Nyssa, and Diggle go to the four locations. An assassin finds Oliver and tells him that Ra's is at the Starling City dam and wants Oliver to be with him as Starling City dies. Ra's figures that Oliver will try to fight him, knowing that Ra's will keep coming if he doesn't.

Diggle is at a plaza and spots a man with a metal briefcase. He gives chase but the man doubles back and attacks him, and then picks up his gun. However, Thea arrives in the Arsenal costume and takes the man down. Diggle opens the case but discovers that it's empty. He questions the man, but realizes that he's infected. The man cuts his throat to expose his blood to the air.


At the dam, Oliver confronts Ra's. Ra's says that he wins whether Oliver kills him or not.

Diggle orders everyone out of the plaza. As the crowd panics and runs, some of the pedestrians collapse. Thea tells Diggle that Malcolm inoculated her. At Palmer Technology, Felicity realizes that the virus spreads when infected blood is exposed to air. She tells Nyssa and Laurel to get the men off the street without letting them cut themselves. Black Canary warns Nyssa that she hasn't been inoculated, but Nyssa refuses to leave the fight against her father.

Oliver draws his sword and Ra's draws the sword that he used to kill Oliver before.

Malcolm breaks the neck of one of Ra's's men.

Felicity realizes that they have to use Ray's nanotech to distribute the inoculant around the plaza.

Black Canary knocks out another of Ra's's men.

Two officers call Quentin to the dam and show him Oliver and Ra's fighting at the top. One of the officers explains that the chief told him to take them out as soon as he has a clear shot.

On the dam, Ra's backs Oliver against the railing and says that his opponent is fighting for life. Oliver says that what Ra's offered him wasn't living, and Ra's disarms him.



Quentin calls Felicity and tells her that Oliver is there and the chief's men will fire. As Diggle catches the fourth men, Felicity tells Ray to fly to the dam. He says that he has to rewrite the nanite code and asks Felicity what Oliver to do.

Oliver stands up and grabs Ra's's sword, disarms him, and then stabs him through the chest. He then says the League's traditional prayer over Ra's, who gives him the ring of Ra's and says that he chose well... and dies. The officers open fire and hit Oliver, who plummets over the edge into the water below. However, the Atom arrives and grabs him, and flies back to Palmer Technologies. They land on the roof and Oliver realizes that it's Felicity in the suit.

Later, the team regroups at Palmer Technologies after Ray successfully inoculates the infected. Nyssa tells Oliver that she wanted to kill Ra's, and points out that he'd be dead if he wasn't wearing League armor. Oliver tells the others that they won because he wasn't alone. There are other heroes protecting Starling City, which means he doesn't have to be one. Oliver says that Ra's took the Arrow from him, and he doesn't want to be the Arrow anymore. He tells Felicity that he wants to be with her, and asks her to come with him. Thea wonders where, and Oliver says somewhere far away. Diggle turns and walks out without a word. Oliver goes after him, and Ray asks Felicity if he's going to have to find a new vice president. She thinks so and says that she hopes he will find someone who makes him happy.

In the hallway, Diggle tells Oliver that he deserves to be happy. However, he admits that he's no superhero. Oliver says that Diggle has been his rock and the city's for three years, and he's still counting on him. Diggle warns that he can't get past what happened to them, and says that he'll think on it and he shakes Oliver's hand. As he goes, Oliver suggests that he find a way to conceal his identity when he's out there.


Five Years Ago

Oliver and Tatsu go to the docks and Tatsu says that she is going to go to a monastery near her village in Japan. She asks where Oliver will go, and he says that he doesn't want his darkness around Thea and Moira. Tatsu wonders about Robert's request to save Starling City, and Oliver says that he's not the man that his father thought he was. Even if he is, he needs to be alone. They hug and Oliver then boards a tramp freighter.

Now

Malcolm goes to the apartment and tells Thea that he's leaving soon. He says that he loves Thea and will always be there for her no matter what. Thea admits that he taught her to be strong. Oliver comes down and tells Thea to be safe on the streets. She suggests that she call herself Red Arrow, but Oliver admits that he already told everyone to call her Speedy. They hug and then  Oliver secretly hands Malcolm something. Malcolm says that he always considered Oliver a son and he's glad that they worked together. Oliver says that he'll never forgive Malcolm for what he did to Sara and Thea, and warns that whether they'll be enemies depends on if Malcolm fulfills his end of their bargain.

At his lab, Ray is working on his suit and has realized that he can miniaturize components of the suit. He begins the first test and the entire top of the building blows out.

Malcolm and Nyssa return to Nanda Parbat, and Malcolm takes control of the League. He reminds Nyssa that Ra's tortured him with his blade but he survived, fulfilling the prophecy. Nyssa promises to get revenge for Malcolm killing Sara. Malcolm invites her to try and then orders the League to kneel before him. The others kneel and then Nyssa finally does so as well.

At the old lair, Oliver packs up his gear. He and Felicity drive out of Starling City, and Oliver admits that he's happy.