Okay, so I was wrong about who Sara's killer really was. I don't think there were very many fans out there who would have guessed that it was Thea, though the murder should come with an asterisk attached to it. Thea was apparently under the influence of a mind-wiping drug called "votura" that leaves those dosed heavily suggestible without any memory of their actions. Yes, it's very convenient that the drug doesn't leave any memories so that it can add to the shock factor of young Thea killing Sara, thus kickstarting the events in this episode.




Looking past that rather disturbing issue (Thea joins her ex-boyfriend Roy as another young person on this series who has been drugged against their will) means that Arrow wants to bring Malcolm Merlyn back to main supervillain status. Manipulating his biological daughter to murder is all a power play, as all of his actions are, designed to get him out from under the League's gaze and throwing it squarely on Oliver. Remember, this is a man who mourned his long-dead wife by building a couple of earthquake machines designed to level a city to the ground. Was it really such a good thing that Thea latched herself to this guy?



And that's a fair question that Oliver ends up asking himself as the episode goes along. He understandably doesn't want to accept the fact that Thea is a trained killer and that she can defend herself due to Malcolm's training in Corto Maltese (even if her "fighting" against the Arrow looked rather ridiculous as a whole). Everyone can objectively see the situation for what it is: The League of Assassins wants payment for Sara's death, and Oliver can't sacrifice his sister to the League (nor, I think, would they believe that a child killed Sara, at least not more than they could accept that Oliver killed her) so there's only one option left.




That brings us to the other shocker for the episode. Oliver has to go to Ra's al Ghul in Thea's place to endure a trial by combat. Malcolm is, in essence, holding Oliver hostage in order to get the League to drop any blood feuds and debts they hold against "The Magician." Judging by the end of the episode, there is the suggestion that the League will still go after Malcolm on Ra's al Ghul's order.



Oliver's "death" is sold really well by the show. The sword battle against Ra's al Ghul, set against the cold mountaintop with both really buff men shirtless has the same kinds of rhythms that played in Oliver's battle with Raging Flash in Central City. It's much more brutal than that fight, though, and Oliver looks outmatched most of the time. At the end, there was the potential for either a draw or Oliver getting the best of Ra's al Ghul, but that only last a time before Oliver is disarmed, then stabbed in the gut!


If the show ever had the guts to kill its titular hero, they covered nearly all of their bases. Oliver said his goodbyes to his comrades, told Felicity that he loved her, then went off into his death knowing that he did everything he could to protect the family that he has left. That isn't just Thea, who is his only biological family, but everyone else around him. The Lances, Team Arrow, and most of Starling City.




I paused for a second out of shock, and then realized that this is a comic book show. And so that means the hero will get resurrected at some point. The Green Arrow mythology has the exact kind of tool to make this possible: The Lazarus Pits. There has been no indication either on or off the show that the Pits will be introduced but it is the most sensible plot point to bring up in the future. The Pits could possibly resurrect Sara. Laurel assuming the Black Canary mantel has already been confirmed and Ray Palmer has already shown Felicity his ATOM suit designed to defend Starling City from any threat. The show is going deeper into the comic book mythology, with the pieces slowly coming together.




If Oliver/the Arrow is out for an extended period of time (my guess would be two episodes, maybe), then ATOM and Black Canary can certainly be the heroes that Starling City temporarily needs. The complication is whether (or rather, when) Laurel finds out that Thea was the person who killed Sara. That is going to pit Laurel against Thea, and that's probably going to look awkward if the writers dive into that plot point early. Malcolm should definitely be the target, and it's unlikely that Laurel would beat Malcolm one-on-one. But that's for the future. Things look rather dire right now with Oliver's plunge down the mountain.