‘Arrow’ episode 8 review: Oliver Queen hits his stride on The CW’s best show

We’re ready to call it now after eight episodes: “Arrow” is the strongest show on The CW, and we’re not just talking about the action sequences. While it does not necessarily follow the letter of the law for the DC Comics series, it does seem to obey the letter of the spirit. It feels faithful even when it is not, and it consistently feels like you watching a good summer movie every week.

What really intrigued us this week was just how much this hour made us genuinely care for the relationship between Oliver and Helena, even though you knew it was not going to last. Both of them were in a sense desperate souls, looking for something to desperately cling to after suffering loss. They were willing to an extent to change for each other, but when Helena realized that Oliver still held something in his heart for someone else (in Laurel), she simply could not adhere to Oliver’s way of doing things anymore. With that, she turned from yet another vigilante to a ruthless killer yet again.

We hope that we see more of the Huntress in the weeks ahead, as thus far she is truly the most complex villain the show has, and she helps to move it beyond just people written down inside of a book. For Oliver, she also now represents a mistake he must learn from: both he and Diggle are not even more at risk thanks to someone knowing their true nature, and she could ruin it for them whenever she chooses.

Even the stories that are not quite as eye-catching still at least make sense, especially Tommy now leaning on Oliver when it comes to a job. You know that this story pertaining to his father is building to something huge, in particular those of you who are comic fans. We like how they are handling this story slowly, and not just throwing everything at the screen at once.

What do you think about this episode, and does it make you even more excited for next week’s winter finale? Be sure to share what you think below, and you can read some more casting news over at the link here.

Photo: The CW