Arrow: The Brave and the Bold

I never really thought that I’d review a specific episode of a TV series, but I felt the need to, so here we go! Please note that this post has a potential to contain spoilers, depending on how far you’ve watched in the shows, so be wary when reading it, but I tried not to include anything super spoiler-y. It is episode 8 of season 3 of Arrow.

A couple weeks ago, I saw about ten minutes of a random episode of the Flash, another CW show based on DC comics. I thought it was SO cheesy and lame, but at the same time I knew I couldn’t really judge the series based on watching ten minutes midway through an episode and midway through a season. Then a couple days later, I saw Barry Allen’s modern introduction to the cinematic DC universe on Arrow. The kid was adorable! (And I do mean personality although he is also a cutie. 😉 No surprise there…) It made me want to watch Flash. I haven’t gotten around to it yet, as I’d like to catch up with Arrow first, but after that, Flash is on the list.

Anyway, Arrow episode 8 of season 3 rolled around: The Brave and the Bold. It was a Arrow/Flash crossover! It probably would’ve been helpful to see the crossover contained in the beginning of Flash first for a bit of background information, but not seeing it didn’t hinder the viewing pleasure all that much. I loved it (I mean, I’m devoting a whole post specifically to this episode so…).

Barry and Oliver decide to work together to catch Digger Harkness, a mean killer whose weapon of choice is a psyched out boomerang. At first, they’re hindered by A.R.G.U.S’s involvement with the case, but soon the two are able to take over to try and catch this killer who seems to have something against Diggle’s love interest, his ex-wife, Lila.

This episode was so fun to watch. With Barry and his team on the scene, the mood of the show was a lot more light-hearted than most episodes of Arrow. They can have the tendency to be on the darker side (that includes the lighting on the show as well). Barry is younger than Oliver and hasn’t gone through all the darkness Oliver has faced. Yes, he did lose his parents, but he’s not turning a dark leaf. He’s still a peppy, positive soul. And his friends also bring some humor to the table. Cisco thinks everything going on with his friend’s new superpowers and then his friend’s epic friends is pretty amazing, and he’s not afraid to voice his awestruck opinions.

The action choreography, cinematography, acting, and storyline of this episode were all well-developed and well-executed (Plus there was no lame relationship drama in the entire episode!). I truly enjoyed watching this episode and seeing the two heroes’ teams working together and getting along. This episode makes me want to watch Flash all the more and made me a happy that I watch Arrow. 

Barry Allen, ladies and gentlemen.