William Tell meets Batman....

3 Reasons to Watch ARROW Season 2

ARROW

The CW's season 2 of Arrow premieres on October 9th. I didn't start watching the first season till about halfway thru. I had just assumed that it would not be any good. I found out you could watch episodes on the CW website . Watched the first episode then fell in love with the show, and its concept. The show is based off the comic book Green Arrow by DC comics. The idea of the show is to be close to the source material, but not an exact representation. With that in mind I can let the writers have a little creative license with the characters. 

Here is the Synopsis:

After a violent shipwreck, billionaire playboy Oliver Queen was missing and presumed dead for five years before being discovered alive on a remote island in the Pacific. When he returns home to Starling City, his devoted mother Moira, much-beloved sister Thea, and best friend Tommy welcome him home, but they sense Oliver has been changed by his ordeal on the island. While Oliver hides the truth about the man he's become, he desperately wants to make amends for the actions he took as the boy he was. Most particularly, he seeks reconciliation with his former girlfriend, Laurel Lance. As Oliver reconnects with those closest to him, he secretly creates the persona of Arrow - a vigilante – to right the wrongs of his family, fight the ills of society, and restore Starling City to its former glory. By day, Oliver plays the role of a wealthy, carefree and careless philanderer he used to be - flanked by his devoted chauffeur/bodyguard, John Diggle - while carefully concealing the secret identity he turns to under cover of darkness. However, Laurel's father, Detective Quentin Lance, is determined to arrest the vigilante operating in his city. Meanwhile, Oliver's own mother, Moira, knows much more about the deadly shipwreck than she has let on – and is more ruthless than he could ever imagine.

The series stars Stephen Amell as Oliver Queen, Colin Donnell as Tommy, Katie Cassidy as Laurel Lance, David Ramsey as John Diggle, Willa Holland as Thea Queen, with Susanna Thompson as Moira Queen and Paul Blackthorne as Detective Quentin Lance.

Based on characters appearing in comic books and graphic novels published by DC Comics, ARROW is from Bonanza Productions Inc. in association with Berlanti Productions and Warner Bros. Television, with executive producers Greg Berlanti ("Green Lantern," "Brothers & Sisters"), Marc Guggenheim ("FlashForward," "Eli Stone"), Andrew Kreisberg ("Warehouse 13," "The Vampire Diaries") and David Nutter ("Smallville," "Supernatural," "Game of Thrones"). Melissa Kellner Berman ("Eli Stone," "Dirty Sexy Money") is co-executive producer. The pilot was directed by David Nutter from a teleplay by Andrew Kreisberg & Marc Guggenheim, story by Greg Berlanti & Marc Guggenheim.

#1 The Hero

As a kid up I would watch anything with superheroes. I loved Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends, the old Superman cartoons, The Incredible Hulk, and the Adam West Batman to name a few. It didn't matter how campy it was, if it was men in spandex fighting crime I was there to absorb it. It was not till I was older that I would start to care for the story. What makes the Hero, is it his superpowers, his backstory, or things unseen?

Arrow gives you little of everything. The show has flashbacks to the time Oliver was on the island. It gives you snippets of why he is making the decisions that he is making in the present. It also allows you to see how the hero has evolved and how he is continuing to develop.

#2 The Villains

I might have have forgotten to mention that I am bias to DC. Especially the villains. Deathstroke (pictured above) is one of my favorites. he shows up in the flashbacks to the island. The list is long, and the "Hood" vigilante has taken them down or thwarted their plans. He is not The Green Arrow just yet. Think of this as his Batman Begins. This allows you to see how he will become the hero, and not just a guy in a hood. Season one had the Big Bad be Malcolm Merlyn or The Dark Archer, played beautifully by John Barrowman of Doctor Who and Torchwood fame. He was also Oliver's best friends dad. That had to sting! This season it was announced that Firefly alum Summer Glau will be playing Isabel Rochev. It is not known how bad she will be, but she definitely wants Oliver Queens company.

#3 The Action

I know that pictures can't convey what video can show you, so I will leave you with some videos. 

The news of late is that the Hero The Flash will be appearing in 3 episodes. He will be the Barry Allen Flash played by Glee's Grant Gustin. That should add to the Action and drama.

The first video is one of my favorite fight scenes. It is taken from the episode The Undertaking.

This video was shown at Comic-Con 2013, and contains some spoilers.

It starts with a recap of season 1 and goes into season 2.

  

What do think? Did you see the first season? Will you see the next?