Arrow: Present Tense (8x04)

I felt more emotion from William, Mia, and Connor in this episode's opening scene, than I ever have from any of them in the past. Let's dive in.

Cons:

Timeline stuff is always going to make things confusing and weird, but it gets even worse when you add in the logistics of stuff outside of the show's control. Because of the actress's decision to depart, Felicity can't be in this episode. But the longer that Oliver spends on his own earth in his own time, the weirder and stupider it becomes that he wouldn't be able to check in with Felicity and baby Mia. Last season we had this whole story where Felicity raised Mia in isolation, separated from Oliver because Oliver was already dead, or at least so inaccessible that it came to the same thing. Then, here, we see Oliver about to call Felicity on the phone, and he only decides not to because William says that time travel is confusing and they shouldn't bring her into it until they know more. That... is stupid. That is a lame excuse.

Also, Curtis coming back is always a treat, but he felt pretty useless here given that William can be a stand-in for any and all computer wizardry that might be required. I like that these two gay men get to be bad-asses and spend some on-screen time with each other, but I'm a little annoyed that William's sexual orientation gets trotted out occasionally but that we never really see him with a romance arc. Give this guy a boyfriend, stat!

Pros:

So, like I said, I felt so much more emotion and connection to all the future characters now that they are back here interacting with these people we've known for seasons on end. There were too many powerful moments to count. William running into Oliver's arms. Oliver's voice as he says "Mia?" and the look on his face when Mia storms away from him. Connor calling Diggle "Dad" over and over again, while Diggle remains wary. Rene rushing to be with Zoe after hearing what's going to happen to her in the future. Dinah's pep talks. Laurel's advice to Mia. William coming out to Oliver. Oliver learning that his kids didn't get to grow up together. All of this stuff added emotional stakes to the story in a way that has been seriously missing all along.

I like the dynamic between Rene and Diggle here. How does one react when confronted with a good friend and teammate whose son is one day apparently going to murder your daughter? But with Dinah out there as a cheerleader, encouraging everyone to fight for change, it looks like their relationship is going to weather the storm, for the time being. Same with Connor and Diggle. Imagine looking at a younger version of your father, and seeing no recognition or affection in his eyes. Mia and William are having a weird experience, but at least their dad remembers being their dad, and is eager to be around them. For Connor, his father is right there, but doesn't even remember adopting him. Diggle is of course much more concerned for the fate of J.J., and Connor is the one who has to come clean about what Diggle's older son has become. The drama and tension there is just so delicious.

Another great thing about the kiddos journeying back in time is that it takes care of some of the crappy implications of last season. I was so annoyed at the thought that all of the hard work of our heroes was coming to naught. We saw the future of Star City, and it was horrible. So all of the pain and sacrifice and hard work wasn't going to pay off. But now we have concrete stakes: Zoe is going to die. We have larger scale stakes: Star City is going to become a horrible and corrupt nightmare zone. And now we have a lot of highly motivated people looking to change that. It grounds Oliver's quest to "save the universe" into something more minute, something that we can really feel on an emotional level.

William's coming out scene was actually quite lovely, even though I do wish they would give him a romance arc. It was sweet that Oliver sat there and let him say it, and gently replied that he and Felicity knew, and were waiting for William to be comfortable telling them. You know, I watch a lot of TV. Way, way too much TV. Hence the name of this blog. But I have seen very few scenes of kids coming out to their parents. Men coming out to their fathers. Especially when it goes well, when the queer kid is met with nothing but love and support, and then it's not that big a deal and everyone just moves forward with their lives. So that scene was actually quite lovely to see.

Mia and Oliver have a bit of a bumpy start, but everyone's emotions make so much sense, and you can really feel how badly Oliver wants to connect with Mia, and how hurt Mia feels about growing up without him. The clinching moment is actually with Laurel, as she remarks to Mia that revenge isn't always what's right, and this convinces Mia not to go through with her plan to murder the bad guy. Mia is then able to talk with her dad about survivor's guilt, and what it means to lose people. I want to see this father/daughter bond grow over the remaining six episodes of the show.

I'm feeling so much better about things now that we have a concrete direction. All of our characters are in one place, more or less, and they all have a similar goal of preventing a horrible future for their beloved city and their loved ones. We still have the Monitor, trying to make Laurel betray Oliver, and this whole Crisis crossover finale looming, but I'm feeling like the season has a direction now, and I can't wait to follow it through to the end!

8/10