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If it was destiny what brought them together, they where the ones to choose each other every step of the way. "Love is too small a word, and no matter who you are or what you become, no matter who I am or what I become... You will always be the love of my life. People change. That never will."
Itâs officially 1 year today since Arrow went off the air and I thought what better way to mark the moment than by chatting about the show we all love with a review!
We have begun the slow and steady climb to more Felicity Smoak contentÂ
and âVertigoâ is a monumentally HUGE moment in Oliver and Felicityâs relationship. One little meet up at Big Belly Burger is what tips the dominoes over for Oliver Queen.
Letâs dig in...
Olicity
Letâs get right to the good stuff. Of course, thereâs other stuff that happened in this episode, but do we care? Only a little. Oliver is on the hunt for The Count â the man responsible for the Vertigo epidemic and Theaâs looming drug trial. The Count is in my Top 5 of best Arrow villains. Of course his first episode coincides with an Olicity milestone. That rat bastard worked the hardest for our ship.
The judge has decided to make an example out of Ms. Queen in hopes of deterring others from trying Vertigo. Seriously, does that ever work?Â
So, he chucked Theaâs plea agreement right out the window. Big Bro in The Hood is hoping to serve up a bigger fish â THE FISH â to help get his sister off the hook. Oliver is generally anti innocent people dying from illicit drugs, so there are unselfish reasons at play too.
No one knows the identity of The Count, so after roughing up the streets and getting nowhere, Oliver reaches out to Alexi Leonov. We met Leonov in 1x03, but for those who need a refresher - he leads the Starling City chapter of the Bratva. This is the first time Diggle meets Leonov, discovers Oliver speaks Russian, is a captain in the Russian mob, and can fake kill someone.Â
It was a big day for John.
Leonov sets up the meet with The Count and Oliver attempts to buy some Vertigo off him, sans mask and arrow. The cops show up and Oliver tries to run down The Count as he escapes, but is stabbed in the chest with two syringes full of Vertigo.Â
Never fear, Oliver has his magic herbs from Lian Yu which apparently can cure drug overdose. (Maybe share with the rest of the world?) Vertigo makes him momentarily murderous (more than usual) and he screams a lot.
THE POINT OF ALL THIS EXPOSITION IS ALL ROADS LEAD TO FELICITY SMOAK. Â
Diggle and Oliver think it would be wise to have someone analyze the Vertigo⌠for some reason. This leads our dynamic duo to Queen Consolidated and to our favorite blonde hacker.Â
Felicity rambles about Oliverâs haggard appearance (re: see drug overdose) and a cat being tased (she connects those disparate dots, I assure you). He offers yet another ridiculous lie and we embark on one of the funniest scenes in Arrowâs history. Â
Arrow struggled to find its footing for a long time, but âVertigoâ is the beginning of the writers settling on to solid ground. If you ever have to wonder why the show focused on Oliver, Diggle and Felicity as the core characters you only need to watch this scene for the answer.Â
The chemistry between all the actors is amazing. Arrow is not known for its humor (especially in Season 1), but between Emily Bett Rickardâs perfect delivery of another one of Felicityâs awkward and inadvertent sexual slip ups,
Stephen Amellâs inability to stay in character as he laughs right along with us,
and David Ramseyâs stone cold straight man reaction â
this entire scene is comedy gold.Â
I vividly remember watching it live, laughing my ass off, and wanting more of EVERYTHING these three have to offer. And thatâs exactly what weâre going get.Â
âI ran out of sports bottlesâ reigned as Arrowâs funniest scene for a solid two years (until this episode), but it also marks the worst of Oliverâs terrible lies to Felicity. Itâs so bad even Diggle has to remark on it in the elevator. Oliverâs lies are horrible, everyone knows Felicity doesnât buy a word of it, and their need for her help is increasing with every day. Something has to change.
As we discussed in 1x11, Oliver is prone to distrust and very reticent to change his mind â ever. Heâs been burned so many times in the past itâs difficult for him to view anyone through a trusting lens.Â
And yet, Oliver told his deepest and darkest secret to a man heâd only known for a few weeks. Yes, Diggle had soldier skills Oliver would find useful as a partner. He knew John could hold his own in the field, but itâs not just about his abilities. It was also about the person Diggle is. Oliver did his homework and realized he needed John to survive. There was a wellspring of humanity in John that Oliver wasnât able to access inside himself. He was subconsciously reaching out for help - like a moth to a flame.
It is the same with Felicity. Yes, Oliver needs her abilities â perhaps even more than what Diggle has to offer. (Itâs not like Oliver Queen canât handle himself in the field). But he is also drawn to Felicityâs warmth, kindness, humor, compassion and openness. Oliverâs heart is encased in iron and welded shut. He doesnât know how to open it back up. Itâs been dark and alone for so long. And yet, Oliver returns again and again to this brightly shining light and why? Because he craves it. Â
Something has to change. We need that final push, the first domino to fall, so Oliver can make that final step and tell Felicity who he really is. Diggle was easier. Heâd fought a war before. Oliver also knew about Andyâs death. Remember â Oliver brought Diggle onboard when he needed help with Deadshot. Manipulative? Yes, but it worked.
Felicity is trickier. Iâm sure Oliver has done his research.Â
Well, yes that kind of research, but also into her background. Thereâs no dead family member requiring retribution. No war zone sheâs recently returned from. Sheâs an MIT graduate with a penchant for hacking working at a global conglomerate as a wildly overqualified IT tech. The girl doesnât have so much as a parking ticket. The leap to vigilantism would be rather big.
I also think a fair amount of his hesitancy to involve her in anything related to The Hood is the danger. Diggle can handle himself. Felicity is a different story. Oliver is constantly battling the need for Felicityâs help versus the risk heâs putting her at by asking for it. The lies are to protest Oliverâs secret identity, but also to shield Felicity from it.
Whether it is Oliverâs own distrustfulness, his inability to see an angle to reel Felicity in, his desire to protect her or all three â it doesnât matter. He continues to lie to her. Oliver isnât ready to make that big leap either.
Source:Â yet-i-remain-quiet
Until⌠Felicity asks to meet him at Big Belly Burger. Oliver waits for her, looking out the window on a rainy night, thinking of Yao Fei.
Oliver feared Yao Fei betrayed him and was really working for Fyers, but neither was true. He convinced Fyers of his loyalty by pretending to kill Oliver. (So thatâs who Oliver learned it from!) Yao Fei wakes Oliver just as he rolls his âdeadâ body into the waterfall. He also slips Oliver a map with a location marked with the words âSurvive.âÂ
Oliver doubted his trust in Yao Fei, but in the end was shocked to find out he had it right all along. Yao Fei was exactly who Oliver thought he was â a good man. That final and literal push cemented Oliverâs belief in his friend and to trust his gut.
There will probably always be a debate as to when the writers began the shift towards Olicity. âWe DiDnâT dEcIdE uNtIL sEaSoN 2,â is the standard story, but Iâm a firm believer it began in Season 1 and often include this scene in my massive pile of evidence. The last scene in the episode either tees up the next or contains a lot of emotional significance. Felicity beings to carve out a lot of final scene time as the series progresses.
The last scene in âVertigoâ is romantically lit with rain drops shimmering on the window. Oliver and Felicity are meeting outside the office and ALONE. Â Soft instrumental music plays in the background. It feels more intimate than any scene theyâve shared before.
Source: andjustforthismomentÂ
I still cannot get over Oliver âThe Sex Godâ Queen waving at Felicity Smoak like a giddy school boy and then shaking his head over how completely uncool he looked. We watched this man leave a criminal suspended in the air with an arrow through his hand in the first scene and in the last he acts like a puppy. THE RANGE.
Itâs clear Felicity is a little nervous as she exhales walking in. Is she nervous to be meeting with Oliver or nervous about what she has to say? Both. She tips her hand a bit by thanking Oliver for meeting her at Big Belly Burger. She did not want to have this discussion at the Queen mansion. (THE PLOT THICKENS).
It seems Oliver and Felicity are having similar conundrums about each other. Felicity is uncertain if she can trust Oliver and has been debating for weeks whether or not to tell him the full truth. SOUND FAMILIAR? Felicity has far more evidence of Oliverâs untrustworthiness. Thereâs no rambling this time. She lays out the cold hard facts which is Oliver Queen is a big, fat liar and she knows it. He knows it. They both know it. Felicity Smoak is nobodyâs fool.
And yet, she trusts him. Even though Oliver has given her no reason to. Even though there are clearly things heâs not telling her. Even though Oliver has yet to show her the same trust. There is something Felicity sees in him which tells her Oliver is worthy of it. It is an unsubstantiated truth. Felicity is going with her gut and her gut says Oliver Queen is a good man.
This doesnât stop her from asking him the simple question though. Felicity needs that little bit of reassurance before she makes the final leap.Â
At first, Oliver plays it off in his smarmy, smart ass and flippant way. Itâs the Ollie Queen façade that always works with L*urel, Tommy, Lance, Moira and Thea.
Itâs an act thatâs never worked on Felicity. She sees through it now just like sheâs always has. Her smile fades. Felicity breaks eye contact with Oliver and doesnât hide her disappointment. She is tired of the games and lies. Felicity wants to talk to the real Oliver Queen. Thatâs the only man she will share this secret with.
All it takes is five seconds of Felicityâs disappointment for Oliver to drop the façade like a hot potato.Â
He even apologizes and promises Felicity he is worthy of her trust. Then, Felicity lowers the boom and hands him The List.
It is difficult to surprise Oliver Queen, but this one has him reeling. She hands the book to Oliver, the same book Robert gave him, but he hesitates taking it. He has no idea where this is going, so he defaults to his standard operating procedure and lies.
Oliver is not doing a stellar job covering his âmy world is upside downâ reaction, so I highly doubt Felicity believes him, but she lets it slide for now.Â
The more information she shares with Oliver the worse it gets. Felicity begins to fill in all the missing pieces to Walterâs disappearance and the guilt is pointing directly at Moira.
This is not the first time Oliver has reason to doubt his mother, but every time heâs able to reason away her involvement in anything nefarious. If he canât do that on his own then Moira provides very plausible explanations (LIES), which allow Oliver to continuing looking at his family with a blind eye. But this? This is impossible to easily explain away. Particularly since WALTER was beginning to suspect his own wife.
Source: green-arrows-of-karamel
If The List cost Walter his life then Felicity is risking her own by showing it to anyone, particularly a Queen. She is literally putting her life in Oliverâs hands when she handed him that book. The first domino falls, but itâs not Oliver who pushes it over. Itâs Felicity. She gives Oliver the truth when heâs given nothing but lies. Felicity trusts him absolutely when heâs done nothing to show heâs deserving of it. She risks everything while Oliver continues to hide everything.
Felicity shocks Oliver no differently than Yao Fei shocked him. Â Weâve been waiting all this time for Oliver to make that final step and in the end it is Felicity who gives their relationship the necessary push over the waterfall. Itâs a cold awakening, but he can see things clearly now. She is like a flashlight illuminating all the answers clouded by his distrustfulness and hesitancy.Â
Felicity reveals so much of herself in this moment. First, she is willing to take risks if the cause is worth it. Giving Oliver that book took real courage. Second, the girl can keep a secret. She never said boo about anything related to Moira or Walter during Oliverâs little visits. Not even a hint! Three, Felicity Smoak sees clearly all the things Oliver is blind to.Â
This serves as an important lesson for Oliver. Felicity knows so much more than he ever gave her credit for. Most importantly, his gut was right about her and he was wrong to ever question it. Two mistakes he will never make again.
And now everything will change.
Thea and Moira
Iâm not gonna sugar coat this for you guys. I was one hundred percent okay with Thea going to jail. Season 1 Thea is a pain in the ass. A couple episodes with her sitting in the slammer would be a welcomed break from the teenage âtude.
L*urel and Lance work out a sweetheart deal for Thea after the judge basically said he would throw the book at her. Thea will serve 500 hours of community service under the watchful gaze of L*urel Lance at CRNI. And Thea flat out refuses.
Now, typically I am a fan of anyone who tells L*urel Lance to go screw herself, but even this was too much for me. Thea wants to go to jail to stick it to her mother because sheâs still convinced Moira cheated on Walter.Â
She didnât cheat on Walter, Thea! Your mom just kidnapped him. So itâs fine.
Oliver decides to drop the Robert âIâm not the man you think I amâ Queen bomb on Thea and tells her their father was a big hoe. Thea refuses to believe him and Moira is ticked because Oliver told the truth. Queens donât do that EVER.Â
Moira: He loved you. No matter his faults. He loved you.
Thea wants to know why Moira took all the punishment for Robertâs sins and her answer is very simple. She was trying to protect Theaâs memory of her father. Moira Queen is as shady as they come, but her desire to protect her children is always the driving force of any decisions she makes â good, bad and the ugly.
Moira: One day I hope youâre lucky enough to have a daughter and then youâll know why.
This is the essence of motherhood. We will serve ourselves up on a platter and take the brunt of their hurt and anger if we believe it protect or help our children in the long run. Right or wrong - itâs just the gig.
Source: queensarrow.
L*urel and Lance
L*urel and Detective Lance are really Theaâs only hope of avoiding significant jail time and, despite their history, Oliver has no problem groveling at their feet if it means protecting his sister. Luckily for Oliver, this week L*urel likes him, so sheâs willing to do Thea a favor.
But her reason for wanting to help Thea turns out have very little to do with Oliver. Itâs about Sara. When L*urel looks at Thea she sees all the wild abandon of Sara with all the red flags.
L*urel: For so long you and I have blamed Oliver for Sara's death, but Sara is to blame too.
Detective Lance isnât too keen on helping Oliver or Thea, but L*urel calls out her father on his hypocrisy. He had no qualms about bailing Sara out after she shop lifted. The youngest Lance daughter seemed to get herself in to trouble long before she ever stepped onto the Queenâs Gambit and her father always helped her avoid the consequences of her actions. Until those consequences finally caught up with her.
This is the first time L*urel lays any blame at Saraâs feet. I find it wildly disturbing whenever I agree with L*urel, but damn it she has this one right. Oliver wasnât the only one who cheated. Oliver wasnât the only one who lied. Oliver wasnât the only one who was selfish. Sara was all of those things too. Just because she paid for those mistakes with her life doesnât erase the choices she made and the pain she caused. If someone held Sara responsible without destroying her life, like L*urel is trying to do with Thea just maybe she would have never gotten on the boat. Maybe.
The game of âWhat if?â is a torturous one. It never gives any definitive answers. But Detective Lance refusing to help Thea to stick it to Oliver isnât fair. L*urel is right. Sure, it may hurt Oliver, but it wonât bring Sara back.
More importantly, it doesnât hold Sara responsible in any way. Detective Lance is treating Sara the same in death as he did in life. She wasnât a saint anymore than Thea is â no matter how much Lance romanticizes his memory of his daughter. L*urel and her father donât resolve the Sara issue, but Lance helping Thea is an important step towards his acknowledgement of the truth and putting some of the blame where it belongs.
Stray Thoughts
Oliver is shirtless and handcuffed in the bunker is an absolutely wasted opportunity for an Olicity sex scene. Pretty sure I read a fic that started like it though. Source: @olivergifsâ
Bratva Oliver is cold, calculating and stylish. I donât know what it is about that jacket you guys. It doesnât things to me.
I say this as a person who was very anti murder throughout the show, but sometimes itâs great to watch Oliver do a little violence.
âWhoever you fear, fear me more!â As vigilante lines go this was a damn good one.
âIâm not the one going to prison.â Give it time, Moira. Give it time.
McKenna Hall makes her first episode appearance as the rotation of female guest stars continues while show desperately searches for a love interest Stephen has chemistry because it ainât Katie Cassidy. Â (Psst! You found THE ONE already!!! Call off the search!)
Just for you multifandom folks out there McKenna is also Qetsiyah on The Vampire Diaries.
Why doesnât Oliver give a sketch to the police of The Count? That could be helpful.
âI donât need the bow.â Yeah, but you need to walk straight!
Musings of the Kiddo
Kiddo: How many times does he do this to her?
Me: Lie? A lot. She was very patient with him.
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Anya is live and ready to show you everything. Watch her strip, dance, and perform exclusive shows just for you. Interact in real-time and make your fantasies come true.
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This is the scene where my feelings went from 'Aw they're cute' to 'I will ship these two with my dying breath.'
First of all, did Oliver meet her there thinking this was a date?
Secondly, the dork smiles and waves at her when she arrives. Then shakes his head catching himself in the moment. It's like he's thinking 'what am i doing? Scary vigilantes don't smile and wave at cute, blonde IT girls.'
I think Oliver always just found something so disarming about Felicity. She was never what he expected her to be, and it threw him off his 'lone wolf' agenda.
I love how at first we think she's going to tell him that she likes him, then she goes in an entirely different direction.
She asks if she can trust him. She tells him that she knows he's been lying to her, but that she still feels that she can trust him.
Then we get the moment that just sold their entire relationship to me. Oliver adopts his 'Ollie' persona and tries to charm her. It works with everyone else in his life, but Felicity sees through it. She has always seen through him. She has always seen him. Go back to the head tilt in 1x03. And Oliver knows it. He drops the schtick immediately and is honest with her.
I love that Felicity brings him the book. She has always been forthright with him. And as much as Oliver tries to hide his reaction, she can see how it affects him. The scene becomes so much more emotional than it was probably ever intended to be and that is because of the chemistry between them. They just create layers and layers between them. I'm so glad we got to explore those layers.