Ties that Bind: Arrow 622 Review

     What an  exciting episode!  It had everything we love about Arrow: great action, compelling story, and wonderful Olicity moments. The compelling dialogue, written by Ben Sokolowski drove the story forward; we had no wasted words.  He understands the characters created six years ago, and in this episode we see not only the growth of the characters, but a driving forward to a very exciting finale.  In the beginning we see each of our heroes in their own home environment: Oliver with Felicity and William making dinner; John and Lyla getting John's arm checked out and about to have a date night; Rene and Zoe watching ice hockey on television; Curtis showing is friend the kind of work he does during the day; Dinah, sadly alone,  trying to get Intel on Diaz, before all hell breaks looks on these people by Diaz trying to kill each of them.

Olicity:     

  It was  fun  seeing Oliver happy making eggs for supper with his  family in the kitchen. He asks Felicity for the salt,by saying,Salt me, Felicity, and  flings it at him.  Oliver senses that she is upset with him, and so William makes his exit.  He knows Mom and Dad need to talk alone.  There's a lot of Oliver in that boy! Felicity tells Oliver that she and William almost lost him because of Diaz and Diaz  is still out there and shouldn't they being doing something.  Oliver just wants one night with the people he loves more than life itself, he told Felicity that he needed to reminded of  what he was fighting for, and then he holds her so tightly.  His strong arms wrapped completely around her small frame and then they kiss passionately. Olicity invented the art of kissing, folks!  While I watched this scene, Oliver, I think just wants a normal family life. He wants time to be with Felicity and William.  He wants a chance to have children with her. That one night, he wanted peace with his family.  I hope that when the series ends, which I hope will be not for at least 6 more seasons 😉, we will find Oliver happy enjoying life.  He at least deserves that. 

While the  Queen family eats the phone rings.  William, "Dad, aren't you going to answer that?" Oliver, "No, that's one of the perks of being impeached, no more interruptions." Felicity, "Answer the phone, Oliver."  He gets up and answers.  Not even Ra's al Ghul could make him move that quickly.  Anatoly warned Oliver to get out of the apartment.  Oliver shielded his family and told Felicity to take William into the bedroom and shut the door.  We see Felicity shielding William with her body while the gunfire blasted around them.  It reminded me of  Oliver shielding Felicity's body in the car. She didn't think about herself getting shot, she thought of her son.

Oliver asks Raisa to come to the apartment, because he wants William and Felicity to go to an A.R.G.U.S. safe house.  Felicity won't go. She tells Oliver she says this is as much her fight as it is his and she's not going anywhere.  How many times has she said this?  She is indeed glue.  She fights by Oliver's side, and this time, he doesn't fight her on it.  He does't like it, but he does not argue.

      Later when everyone is  all  in the Newbies' bunker, Felicity watches as Diaz  completely destroyed  their lair.  She winched  when she saw all her computers blow up. She is so cute, you could see her pain. With Anatoly's  help  they make a plan to get Diaz by surprise. In the process, Curtis gets stabbed, in the fight, Diaz loses what looks to be a necklace, but is a thumb drive.  The Arrow approaches, it almost seems in slow motion, and it seems like he could get Diaz with one of his arrows. Diaz grabs the thumb drive and leaves.  The team knows this drive must contain important information, because Diaz chose this over killing Curtis.  Oliver asks Felicity if her sniffer can find it, because they plan to go to the police station to get it.  They believe it contains the names of everyone who is helping Diaz.  Oliver doesn't want Felicity to go along.  He wants her safe because she's a parent now.  Oliver does not want William  to lose another parent. If he dies, William would have Felicity.  She reminds him that Lyla  will go, and she's also a parent.  She promises Oliver she would not do  anything stupid.  He thinks she's safe in the car.

Lyla installs the sniffer, but Diaz and his IT guy know that the information is being downloaded, and so go after Lyla, enter the Green Arrow and Diggle.  Felicity hears gunfire, and goes in to get the sniffer. She nearly gets a bullet in the head by Diaz, but Oliver keeps her safe. Later they talk.  Felicity says, "I hope this where you say good job, you did good out there." Or something to that effect.  She's always  wanting to lighten Oliver's mood.  He's worried about her, but she tells that marriage is about each one being the other one's strength, then she adds, "There's no alone for us anymore."  Felicity understands marriage. She won't leave his side.  Oliver wanted her safe. He's lost so much in his life, that it's so understandable why he wants both she and William safe.  I think she wants Oliver to understand that even if he could shield her, you can't always keep each other safe.  Being together and doing it together is better than being safe.

       Diaz gets wind of where they  are, and plans to destroy them all in the building.  Felicity won't leave until she has decrypted the device. Smoke fills the room.  Everyone goes.  Felicity urges Oliver to go, she says, "I'm not leaving until it's  done. Do not fight me on this." Felicity urges him to go, and says, "William needs you."  Oliver stands firm saying, "William needs us."  I love this dialogue.  William does need both his parents.   He stays with her.  She gasps for breath.  Time's running out.  Five more minutes to go, but it's harder to breath, and Oliver sees his  wife struggle for breath as she coughs; he takes her  out.  She falls.  He carries her.. I thought back to season 2 when Oliver carried out of the car, remember?  Diaz and Oliver fight.  Diaz almost gloats, "Which is worse, killing her in front you, or killing you in  front of her?" He knocks Oliver down and falls by Felicity, and she looks at him knowingly.  They are so one person.  He deploys some kind of explosion and Diaz  falls, and Oliver and Felicity escape. They are safe.

Oliver calls William and they both tell him that they love him and are safe. Oliver apologizes to Felicity by saying they were able to keep each other safe.  She leans into his shoulder, as she did in season 4, and kisses it.  Then she says, "It's nice to know you can still learn something." Oliver says, "I have more to learn." She simply says, "I know," and Oliver gives that special smile he has for her, again reminding me back to season one when he walked into her office for the first time.

 

      The team knows they are in a bind.  There are too many of  Diaz's men.  They can't possibly fight them all. Oliver has a plan.  He goes to F.B.I. agent Watson.  He asks for her.  She needs two things from him. He confesses, "I am the Green Arrow," and the second thing?  Will this be the cliffhanger next week?  Some think he's going to prison to help her.   Some think, he'll be working for her, but not going to prison. What do you think?

Married couples in the field :  What I enjoyed about this episode was the juxtaposition of the two couples fighting on the field.  John and Lyla have done it before on the battlefield and then as Spartan and she as the head of A.R.G.U.S, and now together there.  They know how to do it this, and Felicity envy's it a little, so it was cute that in the middle of an ops operation Felicity asks Lyla how she does she do it. Oliver and Felicity are new at it but are working it out.  Maybe season 7 we may see Felicity more in the field or at least getting training?

John and Lyla:       There were two stand out scenes for me.  One when John  wheeled around and protected Lyla, and the other where she did the same for John.  Poor John and Lyla every  time they get a chance at a date night or alone time, they  get shot at.  They couldn't even leave on their honeymoon  without getting shot at.

John and Oliver:  I  loved the talk they had.  John knows that there are tensions between the two, and John trys to tell Oliver that he shouldn't get rid of everyone that give Oliver his strength.  Felicity give Oliver his strength just as he gives her his strength. John also is Oliver's strength.  We noticed that Oliver listened to John and used his suggestion.  This showed growth on Oliver's part. It was a short scene yet an important one.

The Team:  I think we begin to see the team coming back together. Curtis still annoys me. It annoyed  me when he said, suit up.  I don't mind Rene or Dinah, but Curtis has never apologized for anything. He was the one who disabled the tech in John's arm after all. I should let it go, I know.

Anatoly:  Oliver went to him for help.  I  wonder if  Anatoly will end up being killed by Diaz?  There's an old saying about honor among thieves and Oliver appealed to that honor in Anatoly. When they two meet, Anatoly,  who knows that Oliver doesn't enjoy killing, says to him, "You  can't win a revolution  with white gloves.  Lenin was wrong about many things, but he was right on that one."

Diaz:  He has now gone from calm, collected, and calculating, to maniacally insane.The more he loses to Oliver the crazier he becomes, and the more determined to destroy him.  He's finally after nearly 22 episodes become the formidable villain.  I still wonder why it took so long to bring his villain to the fore?  It's probably just me.  How did he have the wherewithal to get the entire police force and government leaders behind him? At one point I thought Watson might be in his loop,  but I think that less likely after this episode. Diaz  has a massive insecurity complex.  Did you notice that that when the gentleman from the Quadrant touched his suit jacket how Diaz looked?  He  found  that demeaning and I think he killed that guy just for that one thing alone.  Looking forward to the way they bring this man down. Diaz needed an IT person; he's not computer  savy then. So, did he put that information on the thumb drive?  Is there someone behind  Diaz  whom  we have yet to meet?

Final Thoughts:

• This episode was simply full of Olicity goodness and wonderful dialogue that captures who these people are.
• Ties that Bind are family and friends.  They all need each other.
• Totally wrong about Cassamento, they surprised me with that one. Usually they hint at the new big bad about this point in the season, and I thought it might be her.  A female big bad might be interesting.  Please say it  isn't Watson.
• Love the way the two married couples worked in the field.
• I loved the way Oliver said, William needs us.
• William is a little Oliver, telling his dad to, "Kick his (Diaz's) ass."
• Where did they buy their furniture?  It can withstand a  multitude of bullets. Perhaps it could withstand all my grandchildren. Ha ha
• Felicity shielding her son with her body.  Did you notice the light around her?
• Oliver's favorite food to cook must be eggs.
• I loved the nods to past episodes:  the eggs from season 4; the way he carried her  from  season  2; the kiss and on the shoulder from season 4; the smile from season one; all these little things that remind us of  past episodes give continuity to the story--well written
• This episode is a great lead-in to the finale episode. 
• New home for Oliver, Felicity, and William in season 7, and a new bunker for the team as well.,  along with new showrunners, it seems season 7 will have a new, fresh start.  
• Still hoping for Olicity baby
• Sorry both for the length and for the lack of a lot of images. I am so pressed for time.  Tomorrow I take a group of violin students to Phoenix for a violin competition and I also get to pick up my son, he's coming home from college for the summer, and I didn't have time to look  for images.