Arrow 616 Thanatos Guild Review

The plot seems stalled for now with Diaz.  We learn a little more of what he's up to,  but this episode set the stage for Thea and Roy to depart on their own hero journey, possibly allowing for a new big bad, Athena, reappearing in the future.  For me this episode was another so-so episode that only moved the plot forward slightly.  I apologize, if  this seems like a lack-luster review.  I have rehearsal for Easter looming  day and tomorrow, and I will  be with family on Sunday, so it's now or never that I write.  Also, for me the episode itself was lack-luster, in my humble opinion.  Let's dig in:

     Olicity:  Olicity moments were few and far between.  This was a bit disappointing. At the farewell party for Thea and  Roy, Felicity and Oliver talked with Roy and Thea, and Felicity had her arm around Oliver and gazed lovingly into his eyes, but I am not certain I saw the same look back.  Did  any  of you?  This I am thinking is  due to the fact that the writers will have Oliver removed from all those he loves yet again (I will address that below), and so we start to see this in his face.  Stephen Amell knows how to express a  lot of  feeling and emotions without words. If  in  fact, everyone saw the same lack of emotion as Felicity had, that may explain it.  The writers  are preparing us for what is coming in the next episode.  I  did enjoy the annoyance Felicity experienced  at having Nyssa  around calling Oliver, "husband." It was good, and may  I add  about time, to tell Nyssa, "I  have a wife now, and she  doesn't like it," when she called him husband yet again.  We all know Oliver loves Felicity and he doesn't want to see her hurt in any way.

Oliver as Dad:  We had a sweet moment with Oliver as dad. At the part, we see William coming along to take a lick of icing from the cake with his finger, and Oliver follows telling him to get a fork and plate and take a reasonable slice of cake. That's a good dad thing to do, and it seemed automatic for Oliver.

      Oliver as Green Arrow:  In his talk with Thea, Oliver says he gave up being the Green Arrow to  be a better father, but when William seemed fine with it, he  realized he really wanted to stay the Green Arrow and not give it up.  In being the Green Arrow does Oliver have to sacrifice everything?  I thought he has learned he doesn't have too, yet  Marc Guggenheim says that he has to lose everything to be a hero?  Seriously I do not understand what the writers are thinking.  All this seems so contrary to the last 5 seasons where Oliver has learned he doesn't have to be alone.  Are you as confused about this as I am?


     Thea and Oliver:  Oliver and Thea have always been close and since Oliver's return, he's been very protective of Thea, yet at the same time Thea has always  held her own with Oliver.  I enjoyed the moment when Thea told William about his dad's night light.  I've done something similar with my brothers and their children.  It's always fun to tease a little.  I think the most revealing moment and one to move the plot was when Thea tells Oliver, "Being the Green Arrow, makes you feel complete.  Being the Green arrow is the best version of yourself."  She also tells him later at their parting, that he should let John know.

     Felicity and Thea:  The moments with Felicity and Thea as sisters were good too.  When Nyssa wanted to take the box, Thea immediately thought of her sister, and said  that we had "the greatest   mathematician right here, and her confidence in Felicity added to the closeness of family. Felicity of course solved the puzzle of the box, but she allowed Thea do the honors of opening it.  Felicity always thinks of others.

    Athena and the League of Assassins:  It was good to see Katrina Law again, and interesting to have her leave with Thea. But I didn't care much for Athena.  The whole point of this was to give Thea and Roy a purpose to leave, and possibly and opening to bring them back.  Will they bring Athena back as a villain again.  They could, but frankly I wasn't impressed.  Maybe my migraine kept me from focusing so much on it.  I was surprised that there were 3 Lazarus pits, and it made sense for Thea want to destroy them because she of all people was most affected by it, and knew the dangers of them.  The Athena story line didn't seem well developed to me.

 John Diggle:  We know a fight comes in the next episode and John will leave.  This confuses me too.   No ground works has ever been laid as to why John wants so much to be the Green Arrow.  He was fine as Spartan, and he did a hero's work as Spartan, and now he isn't complete if he's not the Green Arrow?  Perhaps in the next episode when he talks with  Lila we'll find out why its' so important to him.

Curtis and Dinah:  They continue to work to find out who is corrupt in the police department, and uncover the fact the the chief works for Diaz.  I don't like the Curtis character.  He's too much like Felicity, and frankly I find him annoying, but I think I am alone in this opinion.

Final Thoughts:

• The plot with Diaz moves slowly.  We do find that he's dealing in vertigo, and probably a more deadly type of vertigo.
• Felicity had been in danger in past seasons when vertigo appeared.  Will she be in danger again?
• Nyssa gives Oliver his annulment. :)
• The episode moved slowly.  Not sure it was a fitting parting for both Thea and Roy. The door seems left open for guest starring returns, so that is good.
• Will Athena appear again?
• Dark Oliver, seems a poor move.  His character had grown so much and now it seems that he's going to push everyone away yet again.  How many times will they do this?
• The team has left Oliver, he's going to push Diggle away in the next episode, and we hear that Felicity and William will be pushed away.  Does a hero have to go alone to be a hero?  Or does a true hero admit he/she can't go it alone?  I am not sure what the writers are thinking, because these seems like Oliver moving backward and not forward.  However, I trust the writers, so I am going to wait and see what results. I don't think Felicity and William will be pushed away forever.  
• I read that Caity Lotz as Sara will return in the last episode of this season, so my guess is that we can expect Quentin Lance to die.
• So apparently everyone made it off the island but Malcolm Merlyn and William's mom. :)
• Not my favorite episode.