Arrow Arrow Season 2 Episode 18: "Deathstroke" Rate and Review Thread

[combocaz]

I liked sarah when she was on and off the show but shes pretty much a regular now and its starting to make her character uninteresting. Cant stand laurel, nearly every episode she has to

.

 

[godisawesome]

Seriously. Slade and Oliver's beef pre-dates Merlyn. Ya I know Merlyn blew up the boat but that stuff wasn't revealed until long after the Oliver/Slade thing went down. It's a personal blood feud between them.

Slade is to Oliver what Joker is to Batman.

Eh, I think it's still Merlyn as the guy Ollie hates the most. Both are series mega-villains, but Merlyn's "legacy" is still the most malignant in the show.

He seems to have an equal mix of sorrow and fear when confronting Slade, and again, I'd like to point out that Slade's actions seem more far less malevolent than Merlyn's. I think Slade is less Oliver's archenemy and more the superior opponent who the hero is quite blatantly outclassed by, like Darkseid to Superman or Ra's Al Ghul. He's the villain on whom the hero gets to eventually showcase ingenuity and perseverance in overwhelming odds. Merlyn's more of the Joker type character; loathed by the hero, and close enough in terms of skills that the badguy showcases his ingenuity and perseverance to steal a few victories. Ollie can't expect any mercy from Merlyn, and has lost a father, a best friend, five years of his life, and over 500 people to the Dark Archer.

Every. Single. Person. Slade has killed thus far has been armed and classified as an active enemy combatant in his mind. Merlyn, meanwhile, introduced his Drak Archer persona by murdering a defenseless loose end, and is now basically heralded by the deaths of unarmed civilians. Slade also admits in this last episode that he was trying to move past the island even after his hellish escape, and implies his renewed feud with Oliver is a self-acknowledged mania even he doesn't quite enjoy. Slade still seems openly pitied by Oliver in a lot of ways (they did an awesome job building their friendship over two seasons before Deathstroke arrived), while even an association with Merlyn's genetics angers Oliver.

Merlyn explicitly threatened to murder Thea and Moira during the Undertaking just out of raw spite for Oliver messing with his plans, and only seems fettered now by his blood ties to the girl, and he's already proven those ties won't protect you. Slade, on the other hand, is so confident in his superiority, invincibility, and overall power that he doesn't feel any desire to hurt either Queen except in terms of maximizing emotional damage to Oliver, and even then he seems convinced that estrangement is more powerful than death.

And right now, the "score" still heavily favors Merlyn in terms of personal damage inflicted upon Oliver. And I wouldn't be surprised if Thea finds herself threatened by the sociopathic sonuvagun before the season's out.

 

[Boy Scout]

Every. Single. Person. Slade has killed thus far has been armed and classified as an active enemy combatant in his mind.

Not quite. He murdered three of Sebastian's personal bodyguards just to prove a point.

 

[Human Torch]

Eh, I think it's still Merlyn as the guy Ollie hates the most. Both are series mega-villains, but Merlyn's "legacy" is still the most malignant in the show.

He seems to have an equal mix of sorrow and fear when confronting Slade, and again, I'd like to point out that Slade's actions seem more far less malevolent than Merlyn's. I think Slade is less Oliver's archenemy and more the superior opponent who the hero is quite blatantly outclassed by, like Darkseid to Superman or Ra's Al Ghul. He's the villain on whom the hero gets to eventually showcase ingenuity and perseverance in overwhelming odds. Merlyn's more of the Joker type character; loathed by the hero, and close enough in terms of skills that the badguy showcases his ingenuity and perseverance to steal a few victories. Ollie can't expect any mercy from Merlyn, and has lost a father, a best friend, five years of his life, and over 500 people to the Dark Archer.

Every. Single. Person. Slade has killed thus far has been armed and classified as an active enemy combatant in his mind. Merlyn, meanwhile, introduced his Drak Archer persona by murdering a defenseless loose end, and is now basically heralded by the deaths of unarmed civilians. Slade also admits in this last episode that he was trying to move past the island even after his hellish escape, and implies his renewed feud with Oliver is a self-acknowledged mania even he doesn't quite enjoy. Slade still seems openly pitied by Oliver in a lot of ways (they did an awesome job building their friendship over two seasons before Deathstroke arrived), while even an association with Merlyn's genetics angers Oliver.

Merlyn explicitly threatened to murder Thea and Moira during the Undertaking just out of raw spite for Oliver messing with his plans, and only seems fettered now by his blood ties to the girl, and he's already proven those ties won't protect you. Slade, on the other hand, is so confident in his superiority, invincibility, and overall power that he doesn't feel any desire to hurt either Queen except in terms of maximizing emotional damage to Oliver, and even then he seems convinced that estrangement is more powerful than death.

And right now, the "score" still heavily favors Merlyn in terms of personal damage inflicted upon Oliver. And I wouldn't be surprised if Thea finds herself threatened by the sociopathic sonuvagun before the season's out.

 

[Herolee10]

On another note, I think they must have gotten a new actor to play the priest that was on the ship during the breakout episode for this one since it didn't look like the same guy.

 

[Human Torch]

That's right!I meant to bring that up.

BTW,after a second viewing,I'm not sure I get Sara's plan.If Hendricks blows up and takes Slade with him,what good will it do to "take the ship" since she'll have sacrificed the one guy that could fix the ship?

 

[gohei_]

That's right!I meant to bring that up.

BTW,after a second viewing,I'm not sure I get Sara's plan.If Hendricks blows up and takes Slade with him,what good will it do to "take the ship" since she'll have sacrificed the one guy that could fix the ship?

Did she even say anything about taking the ship though? I thought she only wanted Slade dead.

 

[mr. peasant]

On another note, I think they must have gotten a new actor to play the priest that was on the ship during the breakout episode for this one since it didn't look like the same guy.

That's right!I meant to bring that up.

According to IMDb, it's a different character named "Peter".

 

[godisawesome]

Not quite. He murdered three of Sebastian's personal bodyguards just to prove a point.

Well, they were armed and associated with Blood enough to be present when he talked to his boss. So even then, he's killing characters who if they die "nobody panics, because it's all part of the plan..."

And I'm still holding out hope that Blood has Solomon Grundy waiting in the wings for an attempted coup-de-tat. A bad guy civil war is a rare thing to see on any medium, and it would be the most appropriate way for Oliver to regain the initiative.

 

[Boy Scout]

Well, they were armed and associated with Blood enough to be present when he talked to his boss.

They worked for Blood, who works for Slade. He murdered his own allies.

 

[mjdiddy1]

So is Isabella just working for Slade or is she

Spoiler

Rose Wilson/Ravager

I guess she is

Spoiler

 

[Human Torch]

Did she even say anything about taking the ship though? I thought she only wanted Slade dead.

I remember her saying "We'll take the ship" so it sounded like sailing the ship was the goal after getting rid of Slade.

 

[Human Torch]

They worked for Blood, who works for Slade. He murdered his own allies.

I think the point is Slade has (what he thinks are) "justifiable" kills,while Merlin was responsible for killing "civilians".Up to now,Slade hasn't killed a young family of four or something.t:

 

[The_Manhunter]

Trollstroke was awesome. Great episode.

Trollstroke

And yes this ep was great, it's up there with the Flash ones for best of the season.

 

[Golgo-13]

When Slade said to Ollie, "…..they're calling me Death stroke..it's a bit flamboyant.." - who was he talking about?

And i love the ep, but after all the crap Laurel has been through, you would think she would look through the peep hole before opening the door!

 

[Snow Queen]

When Slade said to Ollie, "…..they're calling me Death stroke..it's a bit flamboyant.." - who was he talking about?

Oliver said "They're calling you Deathstroke." Slade said "It's a bit flamboyant. I like it." Waller in the Suicide Squad episode said that was what they were calling the mercenary who they didn't know was Slade.

 

[Golgo-13]

Gotcha..

 

[gohei_]

I remember her saying "We'll take the ship" so it sounded like sailing the ship was the goal after getting rid of Slade.

Yes you are right. I guess they had getting Slade killed higher up in priority than fixing the ship. Maybe they had lifeboats or stuff on the ship?

 

[godisawesome]

Trollstroke

And yes this ep was great, it's up there with the Flash ones for best of the season.

I myself prefer "Deathstroke the Troll-minator."

And anybody else satisfied that they had Slade explicitly state that he tried to move on from the island upon reaching shore? It does a nice job of clarifying why Slade didn't move against Oliver in Season One, and it keeps him from being completely consumed by his feud with Oliver.

 

[The_Manhunter]

I myself prefer "Deathstroke the Troll-minator."

And anybody else satisfied that they had Slade explicitly state that he tried to move on from the island upon reaching shore? It does a nice job of clarifying why Slade didn't move against Oliver in Season One, and it keeps him from being completely consumed by his feud with Oliver.

It was a nice touch.

 

[Golgo-13]

I'm very curious to know how Sarah ends up getting off the island…or presumed dead, leaving Ollie behind and ending up with the league. Slade already mentioned that at some point the boat sinks dragging him under….

Another question is that when Sarah first encounters Ollie/Arrow in present day Starling City, she asks what happened to Slade and inquires saying something to the effect of "did he make it out". Her delivery sounded almost as though she was concerned about him, as in, he was an ally. I'm wondering if at some point Slade comes back around...

 

[Loki882]

Eh, I think it's still Merlyn as the guy Ollie hates the most. Both are series mega-villains, but Merlyn's "legacy" is still the most malignant in the show.

He seems to have an equal mix of sorrow and fear when confronting Slade, and again, I'd like to point out that Slade's actions seem more far less malevolent than Merlyn's. I think Slade is less Oliver's archenemy and more the superior opponent who the hero is quite blatantly outclassed by, like Darkseid to Superman or Ra's Al Ghul. He's the villain on whom the hero gets to eventually showcase ingenuity and perseverance in overwhelming odds. Merlyn's more of the Joker type character; loathed by the hero, and close enough in terms of skills that the badguy showcases his ingenuity and perseverance to steal a few victories. Ollie can't expect any mercy from Merlyn, and has lost a father, a best friend, five years of his life, and over 500 people to the Dark Archer.

Every. Single. Person. Slade has killed thus far has been armed and classified as an active enemy combatant in his mind. Merlyn, meanwhile, introduced his Drak Archer persona by murdering a defenseless loose end, and is now basically heralded by the deaths of unarmed civilians. Slade also admits in this last episode that he was trying to move past the island even after his hellish escape, and implies his renewed feud with Oliver is a self-acknowledged mania even he doesn't quite enjoy. Slade still seems openly pitied by Oliver in a lot of ways (they did an awesome job building their friendship over two seasons before Deathstroke arrived), while even an association with Merlyn's genetics angers Oliver.

Merlyn explicitly threatened to murder Thea and Moira during the Undertaking just out of raw spite for Oliver messing with his plans, and only seems fettered now by his blood ties to the girl, and he's already proven those ties won't protect you. Slade, on the other hand, is so confident in his superiority, invincibility, and overall power that he doesn't feel any desire to hurt either Queen except in terms of maximizing emotional damage to Oliver, and even then he seems convinced that estrangement is more powerful than death.

And right now, the "score" still heavily favors Merlyn in terms of personal damage inflicted upon Oliver. And I wouldn't be surprised if Thea finds herself threatened by the sociopathic sonuvagun before the season's out.

Slade's already made it clear that he wants to take away everything and everyone that Oliver cares about. He already threatened Oliver's family to his face repeatedly and kidnapped his sister. And he's building an army of super-soldier's to either conquer the city, or destroy it. It doesn't get much more personal than that.

 

[godisawesome]

Agreed, but Slade's still the overwhelming foe holding onto the Villain Ball as opposed to the gritty rivalry between Oliver and Malcolm. I'm not saying Slade isn't the bigger threat, or that Oliver isn't more afraid of him. But I would say that the two-way loathing between Oliver and Malcolm, with all the spite and irreparable personal injuries between the two, is much more stereotypical of an archenemy than the status quo with Slade. Oliver still seems not to hate Slade as much as you'd expect, and most of the anger and bitterness is one-sided from Deathstroke himself, and he's still showing more restraint than Malcolm.

 

[Silver Surfer]

Slade's already made it clear that he wants to take away everything and everyone that Oliver cares about. He already threatened Oliver's family to his face repeatedly and kidnapped his sister. And he's building an army of super-soldier's to either conquer the city, or destroy it. It doesn't get much more personal than that.

Merlyn killed his father and his best friend, banged his mom behind his dad's back, fathered his sister, destroyed half his city and was the reason he was stranded on the Island. So yes, it does get much more personal than that.

 

[Herolee10]

After seeing this episode, I feel like THIS should be Slade's personal theme song.lol


[YT]GZvjwfx1Wlo[/YT]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZvjwfx1Wlo