Ratings: ‘Arrow’ season 2 nails a season high; why the numbers could keep increasing

Mark it down now: By the end of this season, we believe that “Arrow” will be the highest-rated show on The CW. Sure, it has some competition from “The Vampire Diaries” and its former night companion in “Supernatural,” but when you look at a number of factors, from dropping ratings on Wednesday night to an increased amount of critical acclaim for the show, all of this has a feel of something that is still waiting to break out into even more of a hit, and the superhero show that the network needs to lift it up into relevance after years of slipping.

Just last night, the show had arguably its best night since its series premiere, bringing in over 3 million viewers along with a 1.2 rating in the 18-49 demographic. There are probably shows on NBC tonight that wills truggle to match that rating; even as it was, “Arrow” was only .3 away from “Revolution” in the demo, and .5 away form “The X Factor.” Before the start of the 2012 fall season, this was a night where the network was routinely demolished.

The reason why there is more potential here than some of the other shows is simply that “Arrow” has made an effort to both honor and twist its comic legacy, and it reminds itself along the way of why viewers love it. Unlike “Agents of SHIELD,” which has to be labeled right now the fall’s biggest letdown, it knows when to stop and take a laugh. It also listens to the fans (giving Olicity some love), and responds to what is happening with the actors on the show.

Even though “Arrow” is coming off of its weakest episode this season, there is no reason to believe that the numbers still will not go up now that you have the Canary storyline going full steam ahead, there are some villains returning like Vertigo, and you also have The Flash appearing soon in what will be an introduction to this character. There is a certain amount of terror in the introduction of superpowers to this world (mostly because we don’t want them to become commonplace), but for the time being we’re trying to trust the judgment of those working hard on this story.

Photo: The CW