Arrow: Welcome to Hong Kong (8x02)

Tatsu! China White! Lyla! The nostalgia continues.

Cons:

You know what this episode doesn't have? An explanation as to why Oliver needs to stay away from Felicity. I understand that the actress left the show. I understand that she's staying in the safe house with baby Mia or whatever. But Oliver is back in his own world. Are you telling me there's no way he could go and check in on her and on his kids? The excuse feels very flimsy, and I wish I understood the reasoning more firmly.

The flash-forward stuff isn't all awful, but it still just doesn't compel me as much as the main story-line. If they were to try and spin off William, Mia, and the others into their own show, I don't think I'd be checking it out. The drama between JJ and Connor should be really compelling, and the actors are really giving it their all... but I still don't really understand Connor's role in events. This drama with the family, John and Lyla prioritizing Connor over JJ... we're hearing about it here, but we didn't get to see it, and the drama doesn't really land for me. Also, are John and Lyla dead? If they're dead, why don't they just say that?

Pros:

I've always been pretty take it or leave it about Laurel as a character. She's certainly been through a lot over the seasons, as we've gotten different versions of her, and seen her endure a great deal of trauma. But this episode made a case for her as a very interesting character in her own right. While Oliver goes about trying to do what the Monitor asks him, in order to prevent the Crisis, Laurel is faced with the fact that her entire reality is gone. At one point she remarks to Oliver that he's only lost copies of the people he loved - she has lost the reality. For Oliver, seeing Tommy and his mother was a painful reminder of past pain. For Laurel, this is all fresh. Why should she fight any less hard for her world, than Oliver would fight for his?

It was fun to see Lyla and Laurel team up. At first I thought it was kind of random and unmotivated, but this episode really was dominated by bad-ass women, and it was cool to see these two bad-ass women in particular, teaming up because of shared goals and an understanding of what it means to suffer survivor's guilt. Lyla can be an intense, nearly cold person. She's pragmatic to the extreme, and that makes sense, given everything she's been through. In this situation, we're seeing Lyla help Laurel to channel all of her loss into a desire to do good in the world. We've seen what the Black Canary is capable of becoming, when she turns to anger and vengeance. She's lucky to have Lyla to keep her on a good path.

Then there's Tatsu! I was so terrified that she was going to die, but luckily she survived. I loved seeing her again. It brought me right back to how I felt when I was watching the earlier seasons of this show. I love that Oliver has made friends with so many interesting and dynamic people over the years. There was something really special about the early seasons of this show, where each year showed a flash-back story that introduced us to new characters. Some of these characters were less memorable than others, but for the most part they made the world feel more vibrant and real. Oliver has experienced a lot of trauma and a lot of adventure in his life, and it makes sense that his past would catch up with him throughout the years. I really like Tatsu. I like that she suffered a terrible loss and is doing what she can to make the world a better place, despite everything she's been through. I like that she can see the change in Oliver, and that it's her who reminds him that sometimes the mission isn't worth the cost.

And that's really the thesis statement of this episode. Oliver is single-minded in his determination to follow the Monitor's orders, and here we see why. He's given up his family in order to stop the Crisis from happening. He's watched Earth Two disappear, he's lost his mother and Tommy all over again. After everything that he's suffered, he needs to believe that he's doing it all for a higher cause. But he's not the kind of hero that follows orders blindly. Tatsu and Diggle both help to remind him that he's his own man. Now, we're seeing Oliver decide to forge his own path. He needs to independently verify who this Monitor really is, before he puts all of his eggs in one basket. In my mind, this is a little late. Of course Oliver should do his own thing. And of course he should let his friends help him! Has he learned nothing over the years? But I'm glad he's finally there now.

While the flash-forward isn't doing much for me, I do like William. I feel connected to him, for his parents' sake. And I like Mia for the same reason. The moment at the end, when we're worried for William's life and Mia can't get a hold of him, was genuinely emotionally affecting. I want to see Oliver's children have a long and happy life. That's got to be the endgame here, or else what is the point?

And that's where I'll stop for now. If we can keep the nostalgia train going for this final season, I'll be pretty happy. Next week Thea returns!

7.5/10