Arrow Season 5 Episode 11 Review: Second Chances
Paul Dailly
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Dinah Drake has made her way from the comics to the mean streets of Star City, and I couldn't be more excited.
On Arrow Season 5 Episode 11, the prospect of a new Black Canary was pondered, and I didn't give a damn... until Tina revealed that she was actually the Dinah Drake.
That twist came out of nowhere and made me thankful for her introduction.
At first glance, Dinah's entrance was less than stellar. I mean, it seemed like she didn't give a damn about joining any team.
Her revenge mission was predictable, but it was fun watching Oliver and the gang trying to get through to her. Oliver was relentless.
It's crazy how obsessive he was about keeping his identity a secret.
Tina: Does the name Dinah mean something to you?
Oliver: I had a friend named Dinah. I never called her that, but it means something to me.
Now, he doesn't care who knows about him. It's pretty crazy. Dinah could have been a villain, so it was silly, but still, she's DINAH DRAKE.
So... Dinah was the original Black Canary from the comics.
That's surely going to make for some intriguing developments down the line. As soon as Oliver heard "Dinah," he knew she was the one for the job.
Now there is a really interesting Black Canary storyline going. Let's just hope this one is not ruined.
But unfortunately, Black Siren's appearance on Arrow Season 5 Episode 10 seems like nothing more than a publicity stunt.
Maybe I'm wrong, and Black Siren will emerge as a prominent character, but it seems unlikely.
Oliver will give Dinah the same training Talia al Ghul gave him all those years ago.
Tina: Hey, Sean. Been a while.
Sean: Detective Boland. A little outside your jurisdiction, aren't you?
Tina: I'm not a cop tonight.
He will show her that her purpose can be to keep the streets safe. That will be good for her. Killing Sonus wasn't enough to quench her thirst for revenge.
The flashbacks were a great way to show off just how Oliver Queen became the Green Arrow.
Talia was straight to the point, and I loved that wicked smile she flashed when Oliver murdered Kovar's associate.
The flashbacks throughout Arrow Season 5 have been the best of the series. They've given us a lot of answers. I can't wait to see what comes next on them.
Felicity's storyline this evening featured an odd turn of events and it was great. Meeting someone who was fangirling over her hacktivist ways was certainly out of left field.
Poor Felicity was scared she was meeting someone who could potentially be linked to Prometheus. Instead, it was someone who was so inspired by Felicity in her college days that she, too, became a hacker.
The girl knew how to get Felicity on her side. That came in the form of the file to make Diggle a free man. However, I'm cautious about what Felicity will have to do in return.
Dark Felicity was an arc that didn't get enough time to flourish, so it would be interesting to get to explore that more in depth.
The Helix group are essentially a WikiLeaks wannabe. You could tell Felicity was happy about it.
Being idolized probably felt great because she had become so accustomed to being Overwatch.
Now she might want to quench the Dark Felicity thirst, but will she keep her team members in the dark about it?
Diggle finally being set free really needed to happen.
A lot of the characters have been sidelined this season, and I don't think I can get on board with it.
Obviously, Lance's absence has been explained and for storyline purposes it works, but Thea just disappearing is noticeable. It's time to bring all of the characters back into the fold.
As much as I now like, Rene, Curtis and Rory, I do like the characters who have been pushed to the side much more.
"Second Chances" was an appropriate title for this episode. Curtis and Rene's chat really summed up the hour and we're leaving things in an interesting place to be expanded on.
Other tidbits from the episode:
- Rene's one-liners tonight were on point. Seriously, I hated this due just a few episodes ago.
- Is anyone else starting to think there's something odd about Adrian?
- Was it just me, or were some of the fight scenes a little too over the top? Oliver attaching himself to the helicopter seemed like a bit much.
- What age is Talia al Ghul? She said something about it being an old family secret, but it seems like one of those things we'll never get a solid answer about.
Remember you can watch Arrow online right here on TV Fanatic. Get caught up on the latest developments!
Over to you, Arrow fanatics. What did you think of the episode? Sound off below!
Note: Arrow Season 5 Episode 12 airs February 8 on The CW.
Paul Dailly was an Associate Editor for TV Fanatic.Follow him on X.
