âI just canât believe that she would lie to my face. I guess thatâs the way with the people that youâre closest to.âÂ
Oof. This line is said by Tommy to Oliver so thereâs the explicit connection that Oh no, what Tommy doesnât know is that Oliver is lying to him too, in this very moment about something (a lot of things) way bigger than what Laurel lied about.Â
BUT THEN you layer in what neither they nor the audience (on first watch) know yet which is that Tommy before too long is gonna get hit with ANOTHER even bigger lie, which is that his father is a megalomaniac serial killer/assassin/mass murderer.Â
And honestly where does that leave Tommy? When your girlfriend, best friend and father (who are really the only meaningful relationships in your life*) are all lying to you, where do you turn?Â
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The Bermuda Triangle: Arrow 1x13 Review (Betrayal)
Time to deal with this love triangle and all the ways it is awful.
Letâs dig in...
L*uriver vs. Merlance
I frequently say to myself as I rewatch Season 1 that the triangle makes sense in theory. The writers have all the components, albeit clichĂŠd, that should create a love triangle full of juicy drama.
Man wrongs woman in another life thereby destroying any future together
Woman falls for secret identity without realizing it is the same man who hurt her
Man âgives upâ woman for her own goodÂ
Man and best friend are in love with the same woman
Best friend changes his ways and becomes the perfect boyfriend
Woman no longer wants best friend and instead lusts for secret identity bad boy
And round and round we go. The problem is this doesnât really tread any new ground. How many times have we seen this type of love triangle play out? MANY TIMES. Not saying a tried and true trope canât be repeated, but if youâre going to use it then try to inject some new life into it.Â
Arrow stays stubbornly in between the lines on this one, which means there are no real surprises. We know exactly where this is headed. Everyone is just waiting for L*urel to choose Oliver. Hell, even Tommy knows it is coming someday.
This brings us to our second problem. L*urel choosing Oliver is so inevitable it doesnât require a lot of character growth for either of them. L*urel and Oliver have not dealt with ANY of the issues that caused their demise. Yes, Oliver cheated on L*urel, but there were reasons why he cheated. Those have yet to be discussed.Â
Weâre supposed to accept that since Oliver is wearing the hood and is out saving the streets as the vigilante then he is âworthyâ of L*urel again. Weâre supposed to be waiting with baited breath for L*urel to discover Oliverâs secret identity, realize heâs the man in the hood sheâs been lusting after, and fall back into his arms where she belongs.
I think not. Donât get me wrong. I love me a good triangle. I loved The Vampire Diaries. Two brothers in love with the same woman. Interesting. Woman looks exactly like the lost love that destroyed their bond a hundred years earlier? MORE INTERESTING. And kinky.Â
I enjoy exploring the varying ways love is expressed in different relationships and what it can reveal about the characters. There isnât always a right or wrong choice. Thereâs just a choice and it reflects the kind of love you need to live.
But I understand the complaints about love triangles. Oliver, L*urel and Tommy are the PERFECT validation of those complaints. Itâs a tired way to insert some drama that has a completely predictable ending. The even bigger problem is thereâs barely enough heat to melt an ice cube. L*uriver is frigid. Merlance is better, but they certainly arenât an inferno.
âBetrayalâ does an excellent job of highlighting all the love triangle problems which plague Season 1. Weâre all waiting for L*urel to see that Oliver is a changed man. If only she knew he was The Hood! Her anger and hurt over Sara blinds her ability to see those changes. He needs to wear the mask, so L*urel can see who Oliver truly is. God that sounds good doesnât it?
 ITâS NOT GOOD.
Sara was a symptom of much bigger problems between L*urel and Oliver. He did not want to be with L*urel, so he blew their relationship up in a fairly spectacular display of self sabotage.
Why doesnât Oliver want to be with L*urel? Well... welcome to Oliverâs mind. Heâs been asking himself that same question for the last five years. If he wanted to be with L*urel then he would have never left town. He would have never cheated on her with Sara. Then Sara would be alive. His father would be alive. EVERY ounce of guilt Oliver Queen carries is connected to that one single choice of leaving L*urel.
So, itâs fairly easy to understand why Oliver thinks being with L*urel will fix everything. If he can fix things with L*urel then heâs truly forgiven. It washes away the sins of the past. Itâs like it never happened. At this point, this is what Oliver wants more than ANYTHING. He canât bring Sara or Robert back. But he can resuscitate his dead relationship with his ex-girlfriend. Close enough. The man isnât choosey after five years of misery.
Unfortunately, Oliver hasnât changed at all when it comes to L*urel Lance. Oh I know BUT THE HOOD. Listen yâall, throwing on leather accessories and playing Robin Hood doesnât equate to relationship therapy. Sorry writers. I need more than crime fighting to believe Oliver can be the perfect boyfriend now.
He continues to make all the same mistakes. OLIVER IS STILL LYING TO L*UREL. He lies to her every day. He lies when heâs wearing the hood. He lies when heâs not wearing the hood. LIES LIES LIES LIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIESS. Oliver continues to hide who he truly is from L*urel. Different outfit. Same problems.
This brings us to SO. MUCH. MISOGYN. Lance is using the phone The Hood gave L*urel to trap him. Whenever we are looking at betrayal and the Lance family itâs important to grade on a curve. Itâs a dirty move on Quentinâs part, but far from the gold medal of betrayals this family achieves.
Source: @laurelsource
Everyone finds out that L*urel is working with the Hood and by everyone I mean Tommy. Quentin follows L*urel with a battalion of police officers to her meeting with The Hood. Heâs gathered information on a newly released crime boss, Cyrus Vanch. When Oliver realizes theyâve been busted he holds L*urel by the throat as cover so he can jump off the roof. BuT tHeIr LoVe Is iS hEaLtHy.
Source: @dinahlaurellancesource
As L*urel rants to her current boyfriend (yes I use the word âcurrentâ on purpose), he pieces together that sheâs been lying to him about working with The Hood.
Source: THEARROWGIFS:
L*urel: He's been lying to me for weeks.
Tommy: Yeah feels like crap doesn't it?
Are we surprised L*urel fails to see the hypocrisy in her little rant?
We are not. This is why Tommy was always the better man for L*urel. He actually had a pair and would call her on her BS. Oliver was incapable of doing until well into Season 2, but I digress.
So, Tommy goes to his best friend Oliver for relationship advice. I know this is a television show, but why in the ever living mother of Zeus do L*urel and Tommy think OLIVER is the best person to ask for relationship advice?
Oliver: Tommy, every time you want to talk to me about something, and that something is L*urel, you look like youâre about to tell me you have some terminal disease.
Me: He does have a terminal disease. Itâs called L*URIVER.
Tommy: Sheâs been working with The Hood guy.
Oliver: What? Youâre letting her work with that crazy person? She could get hurt Tommy.
Tommy: Iâm not letting her do anything. I only just found out about it.
I know this episode aired in 2012, but talk about some patriarchal bullshit. The entire episode is filled with language like this. Quentin, Oliver, Tommy and The Hood all act like L*urel needs their permission to go to the bathroom. New flash fellas: If L*urel wants to engage in nightly rendezvous with a serial killer thatâs her business.
L*urel says something to similar effect, but is summarily blown off by whatever male sheâs speaking to. She meets up with The Hood after he and Lance save her from Cyrus Vanch. Â
Source: BJ-HUNNICUTTS-BLOGÂ
It seems The Hood didnât think through all the ways talking to L*urel on a phone and meeting her secretly on rooftops would put her in danger.
Source: BJ-HUNNICUTTS-BLOG
L*urel: I knew the risks.
The Hood: Now I know them and Iâm not willing to take them with you.
L*urel: What does that mean?
It means he wants to bone you, L*urel. Get a clue.Â
Holy hell, these conversations make her look stupid. L*urel, do you know a lot of six foot men with similar build and facial hair to Oliver Queen?Â
Maybe she would take issue with his infantilizing if she stopped speaking like a three year old whenever The Hood is around.Â
Source: LAURELSOURCE
She has this dazed expression too. I know L*urel is so overwhelmed with all the ATTRACTION and LUST that her eyes dilate and the bosom heaves, but Iâm starting to think a taser gun is how they forced Katie do scenes with Stephen.
Source: @dinahlaurellancesourceÂ
The point is nobody is all that interested in L*urelâs agency â INCLUDING L*UREL. I understand âsecret identityâ is a very common trope in heroâs stories, but it never makes any sense to me. Shouldnât the âtrue loveâ be the first person to know who the hero is and not the last? Oliver keeps saying he canât tell the people he loves who he truly is because it will put them in danger. So, he doesnât care if Diggle gets killed? His logic makes no sense. If this was truly about protecting people then why did he need a partner?
And no â you canât use John can protect himself. We just watched L*urel throw down with that umbrella. She was lethal.Â
Source: @dinahlaurellancesourceÂ
Oliver is the king of compartmentalization. He does not know how to merge his two selves yet. He cannot fathom showing Thea, Moira, Tommy and L*urel his darkest self because that means being honest about what happened the five years he was away and what it did to him. That will be a hard pass from our leather clad hero.
My other issue with the love triangle (in addition to all the lying and misogyny) is Oliver comes off like an asshole. He manipulates Tommy with statements like, "L*urel is lying? That doesn't seem like herâ and â have an honest chat with herâ like there is something in their relationship causing her to lie or that Tommy is responsible for L*urelâs behavior. Heâs slowly pecking away at the Merlance walls until it crumbles. DIRTY POKER OLIVER QUEEN.
But then we arrive at this gross fest:
Tommy: Thereâs some sort of infatuation thing going on here. We both know that she has a pretty strong track record of being attracted to guys who are dangerous, who break the rules. Show me a more dangerous rule breaker than The Hood.
Oliver: I just think you need to have an honest chat with her. Find out the real reason sheâs keep secrets.
Tommy: I just canât believe that L*urel of all people would lie to my face. I guess thatâs the way it is with the people you are closest to.
Oliver: I know, but talk to her anyway. And fix this before it becomes something thatâs unfixable.
Did this conversation actually happen?
Does anyone else find it weird that Tommy and Oliver psychoanalyze L*urelâs dating preferences?Â
And even weirder they are ACCURATE?Â
Credit where credit is due. L*urel likes bad boys right up until they become good boys. Then sheâs off to find the next asshole that will lie, cheat and disappoint her. (We could do an entire novelâs worth of L*urel Lanceâs toxic dating choices).
Even worse, Tommy concludes she has the hots for The Hood like itâs nothing. Like itâs completely normal and okay behavior.Â
Holy hell man! Tommy, maybe L*urel has beaten any self respect into the ground, but ITâS OK TO EXPECT YOUR GIRLFRIEND TO NOT BE INFATUATED WITH OTHER MEN.
Whatâs really gross is Oliver lies straight to Tommyâs face (no differently than L*urel did) while using the secret identity to engage in inappropriate flirting with his best friendâs girlfriend. He uses the hood to say things to L*urel that he would NEVER say as Oliver Queen. And L*urel never tells The Hood she has a boyfriend or to back off. In fact, she encourages the behavior. THIS. IS. CHEATING. Maybe not physical, but it sure is emotional.
Letâs also never forget L*urel started sleeping with Tommy as a way to stick it to Oliver. She wasnât expecting to develop real feelings for Tommy, and I do believe she loves him, but that doesnât erase the toxicity of this cycle that somebody needs to end.
Thereâs just no good here, my friends.Â
Source: @dinahlaurellancesourceÂ
The writers are relying on an empty âthey are supposed to be togetherâ promise without providing any evidence why. Neither L*urel nor Oliver has changed in a meaningful way to support giving their relationship another try. The problem between them wasnât whether or not Oliver fought street crime. The problem was honesty. Between all the lying and just-on-the-line cheating, Iâd argue they bring out the worst in each other. Nuclear winter has better chemistry. Need I go on?
Ok. I will.
The only one who has shown any growth is Tommy. This is change L*urel encouraged in Tommy, but then he became dependable and honest, so she started lusting after The Hood. Both Oliver and L*urel are lying to him about a variety of things. With friends like these who needs enemies?Â
L*urel is treated like some prize, but is she a prize they really want to win? Neither man is given a reason to love L*urel beyond sheâs who they are supposed to want.
Source: @dinahlaurellancesourceÂ
Donât get me wrong. I am a Merlance shipper, but it is hard to root for their ship at this point. If the writers just left them alone and let them be adorable then it would be fine.
Source: @dinahlaurellancesourceÂ
BUT. THEY. KEEP. INSERTING. OLIVER.
And where is L*urelâs character? Weâre thirteen episodes in and sheâs too busy flip flopping personalities for me to nail her down to one specifically. For arguments sake, letâs say the hot and cold behavior IS one of her main traits. It only surfaces in relation to Oliver. L*urel flips on him which causes her to flop on Tommy. L*urelâs actions are simply a reaction to Oliver. Â Thatâs not agency. Thatâs a prop.
Source: @dinahlaurellancesourceÂ
Itâs almost like the writers canât be bothered with more. Sheâs a justice seeking, self sacrificing attorney who works pro bono. TA DA! Character is complete. Nothing more to see here!Â
Well, if thatâs the criteria then why isnât Joanna in the running for heroâs true love? Throw Annie Ilonzeh in a room with Stephen Amell. Letâs see if the chemistry is any better.
The writers havenât constructed L*urelâs character beyond a hockey puck for Tommy and Oliver to pass to each other until we reach the inevitable conclusion of L*urel âchoosingâ Oliver. Itâs like watching a train speed toward a brick wall. I know the crash is coming, but Iâm not apprehensive about it or grotesquely fascinated or even scared. Iâm just want out of this Bermuda Triangle.
Quentin and L*urel
The only real interesting facet of L*urelâs character is her relationship with her father. I love the raw pain between them. It is always just under the surface. The writers throw those problems like grenades in their scenes together. Katie isnât given much to work with, but her best material is always with Paul Blackthorne.
Source: LAURELSOURCEÂ
Quentin using his daughter as bait was brilliant, but shadey. Super shadey. It also had the unintended consequence of getting her kidnapped by a mob boss. Oops. I sort of love that Quentin had to eat crow and call The Hood for help once he figured out there was a dirty cop feeding Vance information.
L*urel is in a rage after being held hostage by The Hood. (He can use her as a human shield because he loves her. No problems here. Nope nope nope!) Quentin really hoped L*urel would appreciate his fine detective work, but sheâs pretty pissed off about all the guns pointed at her. She feels her father has lost his perspective on this particular case.
L*urel: Are you gonna find another criminal? Someone else to blame for mom leaving, for Sara dying, for your drinking?
The gloves come off! Daaaaaamn. The booze? Weâre going there? Meow.
I agree Quentin Lance has an addictive personality. He directs his rage and grief into an outlet he can control. Hmm⌠who else does that?
However, L*urelâs indignation is a little much. She is cavorting with a known criminal. The same criminal her father is investigating. L*urel does nothing to help the investigation and one could argue she impedes the investigation. This is called obstruction of justice, Counselor. L*urel actually commissioned the crime The Hood is perpetrating this week, so she could also be charged as an accessory after the fact. Maybe even aiding and abetting. So, her horror at the police pointing guns at her is somewhat ludicrous. Donât do the crime if you canât do the time.
Source: LAURELSOURCEÂ
L*urel spends much of the episode fighting the rampant patriarchy and misogyny of the men around her by firmly accepting the danger of working with the vigilante. She is prepared to take those risks.Â
Source: LAURELSOURCEÂ
But then L*urel is appalled the second sheâs put in any danger and holds all the men responsible for not keeping her safe.
She can be mad her dad lied to her, but stop clutching the pearls. If L*urel wants to play the vigilante game then she is going to be used as bait and occasionally get kidnapped. Thatâs what everyone means by danger, girl. Youâre either in or youâre out. If youâre in then you donât get to blame anyone else for danger knocking on your door. Own your choices honey. THY NAME IS AGENCY.
Oliver and Diggle
This is week 323 of Diggle arguing that Moira is guilty as sin and Oliver ignoring the massive pile of evidence supporting that belief.Â
Ok, it hasnât been that many weeks, but it feels like it. Thou Shall Not Question Diggle. He is always right, but Oliver digs his stubborn heels in. So, John offers to drive Moira around for a week and bugs her. As one does.
Oliver: You bugged my mother?
This is how OTA shows their love, Oliver.  Diggle knows Moira is a slippery snake and can wiggle out of any question Oliver asks her. She even burns the copy of the List Felicity gave him after Oliver confronts her with it. Â
Moira insists she never associated with the people in Robertâs book and knew it only as a list of people who owed him favors. Oliver believes his mother is trying to protect her children from Walterâs fate.
So, John gets Moira ON TAPE discussing The Undertaking with Malcolm Merlyn and the sabotage of Robert Queenâs boat.Â
Weâre going to ignore that Moiraâs voice is perfectly identifiable, but Merlynâs is about ten octaves lower. The point is these are information diamonds Diggle unearths and Oliver FINALLY agrees to pay his mother a visit as The Hood.
Flashbacks
The best part of the flashbacks is meeting all the people who helped Oliver Queen become The Hood.Â
Source: @olivergifsâ
Hello Slade Wilson! Heâs a massively important character in Arrow and it is fun to rewatch how he came into Oliverâs life.
Slade and his partner, the man who tortured Oliver, are Australian Intelligence who came to Lian Yu to free Yao Fei. Slade and Yao Fei have been monitoring an air field so they can escape the island, but he cannot take it alone. There is always a reason behind all of Yao Feiâs actions, but it takes Slade a minute to figure out why he sent Oliver.
Slade: You have no skill. No strength. No training. To say you fight like a girl would be a compliment.
Iâm equally indignant and amused by that line. Slade doesnât believe Oliver will be any help to him because well⌠he met him. If Oliver is ever captured again he could reveal Sladeâs location. So, he decides to behead Oliver. Itâs the nice thing to do. It wonât hurt a bit. What can I say guys? Itâs Lian Yu! These are how the memories are made.
Oliver dislocates his shoulder and punches Slade in a vain attempt to defend himself. Yao Fei may be a softer judge of character, but heâs not wrong about Oliverâs survival instinct. Slade sees the fight in Oliverâs eyes and finally understands why Yao Fei sent him. They need Oliver to survive as much as he needs them. He might not be much to look at now, but Slade Wilson is just the man to harness Oliverâs will and turn him into the fighter they all need him to become.
Stray Thoughts
David Anders is like my personal Kevin Bacon. He's in everything I watch. #Arrow #TVD #Alias #OUAT
IÂ was never all that jazzed when L*urel was the damsel in distress and I love that crap. Another clue I didn't ship it. Source:Â LAURELSOURCE
Do people on this show not realize you canât touch evidence? JFC.
Twenty four arrows in the quiver. Good to know.
âIt doesnât mean I have to read the bastard his rights though.â IF YOU WANT THE CHARGES TO STICK YOU DO.
I am so confused on what type of law L*urel practices. Her firm works for a victimâs advocacy group, but she also prosecutes criminal cases. This feels like a radiologist performing heart surgery.
KC is just really bad at action scenes. It's always so awkward.
Musings of the Kiddo
Kiddo: Does he ever run out of arrows?
Me: He has extra in the car.
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In honour of the 150th episode of Arrow I thought it couldnât hurt to reminisce about some of my favourite moments of Arrow - based on the gifs available ;) Iâm starting to think this is simply stuff I miss BIG TIME.
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- the last Felicity-less episode of Arrow ever!!!!!
- Sark from Alias is Cyrus Vanch.
- 'the innocent party is the one missing, or presumed dead.' I agree fully with John Diggle's logic.
- Slade Wilson introduction.
- Pike is pro vigilante but doesn't he suspend Lance at some point for working with him?
- Oliver is so naive about Moira.
- Cyrus Vanch reminds me of Dragon, definitely not a season big bad.
- Diggle spying on Moira. He does not trust her at all.
- co written by Beth Schwartz.
- 'you don't really see straight when it comes to Laurel, or your family.' Diggle is a good judge of character.
- So many lies between these characters. It's hard to keep up.
- Diggle no. Don't be a smoker. It is a filthy habit.
- how come it's only Moira's voice that can be heard? Malcolm has a scrambler or something. Of course he does.
- there's a mole in the police...now you need the hood, huh Lance?
- Oliver finds out that the yacht was sabotaged. Still not willing to believe about Moira.
- the Hood and Lance team up.
- I like how the scene where Oliver goes after Vanch is edited. Kind of reminded me of 6x11's amazing scene with Felicity.
- Oliver stops Quentin from shooting Vanch. 'I'm the vigilante, you're the cop.'
- I'm sad that Lance is gone now, but I'm glad we won't be getting any more Lance family drama.
- Deathstroke mask and there's that music.
- 'Moira Queen, you have failed this city.' Oh dear.
Rating: âââ not a favourite. But like i said at the beginning of this; this episode is the last Felicity-less episode of Arrow ever. Saying that, she still got a mention. Oliver just can't keep that girls name out of his mouth lol.
top 15 dctv female antagonists (as voted by my followers):
  11. moira queen â âFor the past five years, under the threat for my life and the lives of my family⌠I have been complicit in an undertaking with one horrible purpose â to destroy the Glades and everyone in it.â
  + her legacy: