Arrow Round Table: Did Thea Go Too Far?

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Did Thea do what needed to be done?

That was a key question after Arrow Season 5 Episode 14 in which she went all-out in her mission to take down Susan. 

TV Fanatics, Jim Garner, Kathleen Wiedel, Steve Ford and Robin Harry discuss the many returns, Thea's decision, and Oliver revealing the truth. 

What did you think of the ladies returning to wreak havoc?

Jim: Kelly Hu's wig was horrible. Other than that best I can say is "meh." Seemed like a convenient "bad guy of the week" didn't really add anything to the overall story.

Kathleen: It came across as a "designated girls team-up" story. Cupid always struck me as a rather silly character; then there were over-wrought rogue cop Liza Warner and stone-hearted Triad hit-woman China White. The idea that these three would stick together longer than it took to effect a jailbreak was... unlikely.

Steve: I agree with Jim, that wig was awful and very distracting. I did enjoy seeing Amy Gumenick return as Cupid again, though.

Robin: I'm with Kathleen. I don't know if they were going for a "Harley & Ivy" vibe, but it fell short. It would have been more interesting if they had given a little more back story or motivation as to how these three women bonded. I will say that I enjoyed Rutina Wesley, who did the best she could with the material she got.

In Search of Revenge - Arrow

Did Thea go too far?

Jim: Yes and no. She should have spoken to Oliver before taking any action and given him a chance to chime in on the solution. At the same time, I understood her rationale. I hope Oliver can help restore Susan's credibility somehow.

Kathleen: I agree with Jim. Thea really, really should have talked to Oliver before making a move, since it was, essentially, *Oliver's* life at stake should Susan have outed him as Green Arrow. Not to mention the fact that Susan was Oliver's girlfriend (no matter how much Thea disliked her).

On the other hand, Susan got off easier than some of the other people Team Arrow has gone up against... Bluntly, though, it really could have been handled better.

Steve: I don't think she went too far. Thea was doing what she thought was protecting her brother but did not take Oliver's feelings for Susan into account. Perhaps the way Thea went about it was wrong, but when it comes to protecting her family she did what she had to do.

Robin: I think it was an impractical and dumb move in general. How could it not occur to Thea that discrediting Susan at that moment, right after her confrontation, would only solidify her suspicions? Thea made things worse.

I don't really care about Susan's credibility or Oliver's romantic life, but this is just going to fuel an intrepid reporter's drive to prove what she knows. Nice job breaking it, hero.

What did you think about Oliver revealing the truth about Malone's murder?

Jim: He should have done it sooner. Cover-ups never end well. I was glad to see the ACU go after the bad guys er... girls.

Kathleen: It's not fair to say that cover-ups *never* end well. They certainly *rarely* end well (especially on TV!). And in some cases, the cover-up ends up being more damaging than what was being covered up in the first place!

Ollie was hamstrung in his ability to get the truth out; as the Green Arrow, he's a vigilante operating outside the law and can't exactly come in to give a statement on what happened.

That left it wide open for the ACU to make its own assumptions about what happened. While Oliver's arguments may have changed some of this, it might also end up revealing Oliver's identity as Green Arrow...

Steve: It was a gamble for sure, but it worked in his favor in persuading the ACU to get off Green Arrow's back.

Robin: Man, Oliver's all about the truth these days, isn't he? I think that was a good call on his part. It's fascinating how he's intersecting Mayor Queen and Green Arrow, and how he's trying to get them to complement each other. This is one of those cases where the Mayor suffers for the Arrow's cause, but I think it's worth it. 

Is Susan gone for good?

Jim: I hope not. This would be a pretty crappy way to end her story, and so abruptly. As mentioned above, I'm hoping Ollie and Felicity can figure out how to restore her reputation. They could use a journalist on Team Arrow!

Kathleen: Hah. Bad publicity has always been a problem with Team Arrow, hasn't it? If they could get Susan on their side, that would be quite a coup, wouldn't it? Though first off they'd need to fix the whole "destroyed reputation" thing.

Steve: I think she will be back one way or another. Now that her credibility is tarnished, could she end up taking up a guise to seek revenge? It's a stretch but is just a thought I had.

Robin: Well, in the Green Lantern comics, she marries the guy she thinks is the Green Lantern (it's his brother), so no, I don't think we've seen the last of Susan Williams. I'm pretty sure she'll cause a bit more trouble first.

React to the media getting wind of the big scandal.

Jim: Calling it now. DA Chase is going to take the fall and say it was all his idea to cover it up. He will then step-down and BOOM we will find out he's Prometheus and has been playing Ollie/Arrow from right under his nose.

Kathleen: Gee, that would wrap everything up in a nice, tidy little bow, wouldn't it, wouldn't it, Jim? Just to be contrary, I'm going to say that Prometheus is actually Roy Harper! But to the question at hand: either it's going to blow over, or it will result in Oliver having an "I am Iron Man" moment.

Which would be a gutsy move from a storytelling perspective, but really, really dumb for a person in real life.

Steve: (In Dr. Leonard McCoy voice) "Damn it, Jim!" Haha, you took the words right out of my mouth! I'd be very surprised at this point if it goes down any other way.

Robin: I agree that Chase will take the fall, but since I am absolutely positive he's Vigilante (and not Prometheus), I think this latest injustice will just give him more fuel to work outside of the system. I think he's gonna end up working with the Green Arrow to take down Prometheus, whoever he is.

Remember you can watch Arrow online right here on TV Fanatic. Get caught up now.

Over to you, Arrow fanatics. What did you think of all the developments?

Note: Arrow Season 5 Episode 15 airs March 1 on The CW!

Paul Dailly was an Associate Editor for TV Fanatic.Follow him on X.

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Arrow Season 5 Episode 14 Quotes

Thea: Is everything okay with Susan?
Oliver: Yeah, why?
Thea: Your assistant was clocking some tension.

Susan: What was that for?
Oliver: That was I'm sorry.
Susan: For canceling dinner on me last night?
Oliver: And the previous two times.