Arrow S04 E05: Haunted

I've never been all that much of a big fan of the Hellblazer comic. I can acknowledge its quality, but it was never really my thing. In the comics John Constantine is many things - magician, con man, antihero, cynic, detective, punk - full of snark and sarcasm making him a poster child for not only the grim and gritty 1990s, but for DC Comics' mature line, Vertigo Comics, or as I like to call them, comics for folks who hate superhero comics.

Honestly I only really kind of started to dig John Constantine when he was swept fully into the DC Universe in the New 52. I know I'm in the minority with that, but there are a lot of folks, who like me, really loved the NBC television series "Constantine." I was sad when it was canceled, and sadder that I wouldn't see more of the Spectre or see Doctor Fate, hinted at so often. You can imagine how thrilled I was to hear John Constantine, as played by Matt Ryan, was coming to "Arrow." And apparently based on ratings, I wasn't alone there either.

As we open, Sara is stalking the streets of Star City while Oliver settles in for his run for mayor. Thea introduces him to an Alex Davis, a political strategist. The name Davis has meaning in the Green Arrow mythos, from the criminal inventor Dr. Davis from back in the Silver Age to a name on The List back in season one. I have to wonder if it's a coincidence. Davis is trying to protect Oliver from controversies that might ruin his campaign in an upcoming interview with Bethany Snow.

And yes, that's a recurring name as well. News anchor for Channel 52, she's appeared several times before starting in "City of Heroes." In the comics she was not only under Brother Blood's control but also his voice in the media. I am sure we haven't seen the last of her.

Finally something interesting is happening on Flashback Island, it's where Oliver first meets John Constantine. He apparently is on the island looking for something, and Oliver helps him find it, saving Constantine's life while he's at it - setting up the favor owed in the present day. We may also have discovered how Oliver knew about the prison under the island. And is that the Orb of Ra that transformed Rex Mason into Metamorpho (or here and here)? Nope, Horus, wrong Egyptian God and artifact.

While Team Arrow clashes with mad soulless Sara, there are other subplots afoot. In a seemingly desperate attempt to tie up loose ends, Diggle and Quentin Lance are working for Darhk to erase computer files of military who have worked for H.I.V.E. Weak or badly planned, this one isn't doing it for me. It's like Curtis Holt being a Bronze Medalist in the decathlon. It's too easy, too convenient. And Ray Palmer's message from beyond, is this whole season of "Arrow" (and "The Flash" as well) just one big set up for "Legends of Tomorrow"?

As expected, Oliver calls in that favor from Constantine and together with Laurel, they go rescue Sara's soul from the other side. It's a good sequence that I wouldn't mind seeing again, a Green Arrow/Black Canary/Hellblazer team up. I dug it, more please. Is there any way that the CW could pick up "Constantine" for another season? It would be an awesome addition to your growing DC TV Universe... please?

Next: The search for Ray Palmer!

Beware the Batman: "Nexus"

Regular readers of my work at Biff Bam Pop! know that I recently wrote an overview of the most recent Batman animated series - "Beware the Batman." The show continues to air at the ungodly hour of 2:30 AM on the Cartoon Network late Saturday nights/early Sunday mornings. Thank goodness for DVRs.

A couple weeks back Batman finished a large story arc where he faced off against Ras Al Ghul and an odd assemblage of his foes

from the series. Circumstances of the conflict caused Alfred to leave, so now Batman and Katana are on their own. Onto this relatively clean slate we get the introduction of a classic Batman character and future villain, District Attorney Harvey Dent, who in the comics, after an unfortunate encounter with acid, becomes the sinister split personality Two-Face.

Here, in what is possibly the best episode of the series so far, "Nexus," Dent is the adversary and the force behind capturing the masked vigilante Batman. So simple, so pure, and so back to basics, I liked this a lot. Batman and Katana are working well as partners, Gordon is finally in place as Police Commissioner, the Bat-Signal is in use, and Dent is anti-Batman.

Speaking of the anti-Batman, Anarky is also here to play. Originally, in the comics, Anarky was a potential Robin, but here in "Beware the Batman," he is more like a subtle version of the Joker, with a bit less insanity, and wearing a cross between Batman's traditional costume and Moon Knight's.

This is an awesome episode, and a great introduction to the series if you're coming in late. And of course, you'll have to be coming in late because that when Cartoon Network airs it. Good stuff is coming, Metamorpho returns this weekend, and then, the Paul Kirk Manhunter!

Arrow S02 E05: "League of Assassins"

We open on a Queen's Gambit flashback, this one surprisingly from Sarah's point of view, and turns out to be a nightmare. Girl has more PTSD and origin flashbacks in ten minutes than Oliver had all last season. Good thing an assassin in Dark Archer garb attacked to break the tension. Turns out he's a member of the League of Assassins, yeah, Ras al Ghul's League of Assassins, and in a fit of fashion faux pas, they all dress like John Barrowman in costume.

After the attack, in the Arrowcave with Diggle and Felicity, we get the lowdown. After the boat went down, Sarah was rescued and trained by the League of Assassins. The guy who attacked was called The First (who trained Merlyn), and was sent to take out Sarah. And, da da dum, the outfit of The Hood was first worn by Shado. I wonder where that little tidbit will go.

On the soap opera side of things, Moira is still coming up to trial, with Laurel prosecuting. It's life with possibility of parole or the death penalty. Wow. It sounds like Starling City has the same corrupt and ridiculous legal system as Gotham City. Is Moira Queen worse than the Joker? Everyone is suitably whiny about this.

To protect her father, Sara reveals herself. She brings him to her watchtower and tells him she took the name Canary. There Sarah, her dad, and Oliver, just a little bit take down the assassins come to kill them. Good fight, but really it's Sarah's fight, and Quentin's. Oliver just kinda watches, then shoots an arrow or two, like, "Hey, I thought this was my show."

As if that's not enough, Sarah's flashback reveals she was rescued by Professor Anthony Ivo on his ship, the Amazo, and he's going to save the human race. Oh boy. Time for a comics lesson. For the uninitiated, Ivo is a mad scientist, capital M mad with an immortality obsession. That's not his claim to fame however. That would be Amazo, and it's not a boat.

Amazo is a giant eight-foot tall android that Ivo created, super strong, near invulnerable, and a sociopath. As if that wasn't good enough, he has these energy absorption powers, which allowed him to gain the powers of the Justice League, all of them, even Superman. Armed with a replica of Green Lantern's power ring and Wonder Woman's golden lasso, and all those powers, Amazo has terrorized the Justice League for decades. Yeah, that's the legacy of Professor Ivo.

This kind of makes me wonder… how many big bads will we have this season? We have Brother Blood, possibly Ras al Ghul, possibly Suicide Squad coming, maybe Metamorpho, hell, maybe Trigon. And who knows what things will be like once the Flash shows up. One wonders how big this could be, will the rumored "Amazon" show, and the just announced "Hourman" series tie in as well?

I didn't know what to think of the special mini-adventure "Blood Rush" with Felicity and Roy. In the space I took to explain it, it's over, so at this point, it seemed a waste of time. Perhaps it would be better as a webseries?

Next week: The return of Deadshot, Amanda Waller, and maybe… the Suicide Squad??

Arrow S02 E03: "Broken Dolls"

Before I start with the review proper, I wanted to mention what an amazing and tireless promoter and marketer of the show that star Stephen Amell is. If you're looking for behind the scenes nuggets and goodies, insights and motivations, and especially what's to come, you really should be following him on Facebook and Twitter. Just a tip, folks.

Last episode we had one hell of a cliffhanger. Our as yet unofficially named hero was visiting Laurel, who has developed a serious hate for him, at the police station. She doesn't want to see him, so when he tries to pull his usual lights out getaway, he is set upon by cops. As they move in, Oliver is covered with red laser targeting sights. Cue credits. How will our hero get out of this one?

Shocker! How does he get away? A black leather clad blonde in a mask who moves just as fast, if not faster, as our ambushed archer, comes to his rescue. She smashes in through a window, disorients the cops with some sort of sonic device, then leads him outside to safety. Remember how I said sometimes the TV continuity is different from the comics? Well, whoever this Black Canary is, she ain't Laurel... Thea, maybe? Hell, with the reveal this episode that Laurel's father's middle name is Larry, maybe the Canary is Mom?

This episode's villain of the week is an intriguing one. The Dollmaker is another Batman foe, who many will recognize as the maniac who recently butchered, or caused the Joker to butcher, his own face. I don't know the facts as I don't like the more grisly Batman comics of the last two years. If I want a horror comic, I'll buy a horror comic, not Batman. Just my two cents. Oddly enough, the villain's origins may go back the old "Super Friends" cartoons where his more family friendly modus operandi was more similar the the Toyman, only with dolls.

The Dollmaker of the "Arrow" universe is more like the horror villain however. There's no face cutting but he does make his victims like dolls. Same name, similar past, Barton Mathis is a serial killer who had messed with Quentin Lance earlier in his career, much like he has done with the young James Gordon in the comics. The most disturbing thing is that The Undertaking that leveled most of The Glades also broke open Iron Heights. The police are keeping that fact a secret, even from their own, like Lance. The Dollmaker is one of the escapees. Gee, I wonder who else got out...?

Forbidden to interfere, Quentin turns to our emerald archer for help with the Dollmaker. His demotion has made him, like Oliver, try another way. Do we have the start of a Gordon/Batman relationship here? If it wasn't so convenient, I would like the idea. Speaking of new alliances, the former Hood is looking to Roy as almost a snitch, maybe an assistant. How mant steps up is sidekick?

Quentin Lance and Oliver make an interesting dynamic duo themselves as they hunt the Dollmaker. I'd rather see Oliver working with Diggle or Roy. I just wonder how the two of them can be so close without Quentin getting a look at Oliver's face. And isn't it dangerous him knowing that Felicity works for the Hood? And isn't it silly Felicity continuing to make herself a target. Perhaps she has a death wish?

The island flashbacks continue. Deathstroke is still there. Shado is still there. But not much else is going on. Knowing who these two are in the present day DC Comics universe, I really want to see what has become of them now, and when will the Hood meet Shado and Deathstroke in the here and now? The mother of Green Arrow's son, and one of his deadliest opponents are just too juicy to ignore. Unless... Shado is the Black Canary? The island might be getting interesting now however, but only because Oliver's leaving it. On a boat called Amazo!?!

Speak of the devil, Roy's search for the Black Canary leads him to a girl named Sin. For those following the Arrow digital comic, we know that Sin is the Canary's sidekick, and was once being groomed to become the next Lady Shiva. This is important because in theory, the digital comic is supposed to be in continuity with the TV show. Are Lady Shiva and the League of Assassins lurking in the background here? There's an awful lot of Bat in my Arrow lately. Also I liked that Roy's chasing Sin led to a watchtower, The Watchtower being the headquarters of the Birds of Prey, and the Justice League, of which both had the Black Canary as a major player.

Other namedrops this episode include channel 52, that number being so important, for multiple reasons too numerous and complicated to explain, to the DC Comics universe, and the Metamorpho Chemical Company, Metamorpho being the freakish superhero who can change his form into various chemicals and elements. We're getting Black Canary and the Flash… why not Metamorpho too?

So who is the Black Canary? The closing may offer more questions than answers. A man dressed as the Dark Archer meets with her, but we find it's not Malcolm Merlyn, but an emissary of Ras al Ghul. What did I say about too much Bat in my Arrow? Comics readers will remember that not only does Ras lead the League of Assassins, but that Merlyn the Magician was one of his operatives. This Black Canary kills the emissary, just as she did the Dollmaker earlier in the episode. Who is this woman??

Arrow: Burned

"Arrow" is back after several weeks of holiday hiatus and we find that Oliver has given up his double identity since his defeat at the hands of the Dark Archer, as played by John Barrowman, six weeks prior. Well, perhaps not given up, but his confidence has certainly been affected as has his performance. Oliver has put his stepfather's kidnapping ahead of acting out as Arrow. In other words, he's making excuses. We do get a good dose of Stephen Amell's bare chest in the opening sequence to make up for it however.

Island flashbacks return as well. More whiny poor list coward Oliver, more Yao Fei, more Deathstroke, and as usual some answers and more questions. Show of hands here, who'd like to see a whole episode on island? I would. Nothing could be wrong with more Deathstroke.

Meanwhile, in the case of the week, Laurel's best friend and co-worker Jo believes her firefighter brother was murdered by an arsonist, so she calls The Hood for help.

Our villain this week is the Firefly. In the comics the Firefly, alias Garfield Lynns, is a high tech Batman villain who dates back to the 1950s. Here he's a low tech realistic arsonist with a firefighter outfit, a tattoo, and a kerosene squirt gun. Kinda takes all the fun out of it, especially when you have guys like Deathstroke around in costume. And sadly, this version visually is more Two-Face than Firefly.

Starling City must be some sort of inside joke for the producers. In this episode there was no recognizable part of the Philly skyline used in the night time shots. Are they using different city skylines for day and night?

For the comics fans we got a nice shout out to Stagg Chemical. For the uninitiated, Simon Stagg was the billionaire arch-nemesis of Metamorpho, who could transform his body into any element or chemical substance.

The end was a bit disappointing however. After an entire episode of Oliver doubting himself, feeling sorry for himself, basically being a whiney little b- well, you get the picture. When the time comes to be the hero, fight the bad guy, he does nothing. Firefly takes himself out. Pointless.