The Cast of ARROW: Cinefantastique’s New York Comic Con 2012

Stephen Amell is ARROW.
Stephen Amell is ARROW.

The shadows continue to spread over the DC Universe, most recently with ARROW, the new reimagining of The Green Arrow as a driven, bow-wielding vigilante for justice, determined to clean up the corruption of his home town of Starling City. With its dark ambiance, its intense, parkour-inspired action sequences, and its LOST-style central mysteries (what, exactly, happened on the island that millionaire playboy Oliver Queen was stranded on for five years?), the show’s made a memorable debut, chalking up healthy ratings for the CW network.
New York Comic Con hosted press roundtables for the show, and we were there to capture the conversation with all the participants. Featured, in order: Willa Holland, who plays Thea Queen, sister to wealthy scion Oliver Queen; Katie Cassidy, who’s crusading reporter Dinah “Laura” Lance in the show; executive producer Marc Guggenheim; and Stephen Amell, who plays Oliver Queen, the feckless playboy who spends five years stranded on a island and returns a much, much different man.
Click on the player to hear the interviews.

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The CW's ARROW – 'Pilot' Review

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Click to enlarge

ARROW: Pilot — Review

Well, I watched the CW Networks’s ARROW, based on DC Comics’ Green Arrow character. Yes, it’s a complete re-boot of the character, and it bears little resemblence to the previous TV version of Green Arrow, played by Justin Hartley on SMALLVILLE for several seasons. With all the “re-imagining” going on I was prepared to dislike the series. 
The surprising thing is, I found the series premeire quite interesting and enjoyable to watch.

To save me the typing here’s the official boilerplate regarding the series.

“After a violent shipwreck, billionaire playboy Oliver Queen was missing and presumed dead for five years before being discovered alive on a remote island in the Pacific. When he returns home to Starling City, his devoted mother Moira, much-beloved sister Thea, and best friend Tommy welcome him home, but they sense Oliver has been changed by his ordeal on the island. While Oliver hides the truth about the man he’s become, he desperately wants to make amends for the actions he took as the boy he was. Most particularly, he seeks reconciliation with his former girlfriend, Laurel Lance.
As Oliver reconnects with those closest to him, he secretly creates the persona of Arrow – a vigilante – to right the wrongs of his family, fight the ills of society, and restore Starling City to its former glory. By day, Oliver plays the role of a wealthy, carefree and careless philanderer he used to be – flanked by his devoted chauffeur/bodyguard, John Diggle – while carefully concealing the secret identity he turns to under cover of darkness. However, Laurel’s father, Detective Quentin Lance, is determined to arrest the vigilante operating in his city. Meanwhile, Oliver’s own mother, Moira, knows much more about the deadly shipwreck than she has let on – and is more ruthless than he could ever imagine.”

Well, I’m glad I had that to fall back on, because the pilot (entitled Pilot) is so stuffed with incident and characters that some of it was a blur.  For instance, even though I had known in advance (at some point, months back) that  Detective Quentin Lance was the father of the girl who died on the Queen’s yacht, I had no inkling of that while watching the episode, until just about the end of the program, when the policeman, frustrated with a glibly evasive Oliver Queen, asks “you didn’t even try to save my daughter, did  you?” I had no idea what he was talking about for a few seconds.
There’s enough plot material in the episode to fuel a full season of a prime-time soap opera. And make no mistake, there is going to be plenty of angst-ridden soap on this show. Judging from the first episode, there’s also going to be a lot of well-done and edgy violence, as well. I was surprised at the level of violence this ‘hero’ was capable of— he’s quite literally lethal, killing a man, a kidnapper,with his bare hands simply because ‘no one can know his secret’. 
In fact, later in the episode  for a few seconds I thought he killed another, entirely innocent person, until I realized that the character— Oliver’s bodyguard—is set to be a series regular. He just knocked him out, apparently. (We don’t as far as I could tell, see or hear of the character again in this week’s show. Maybe it was cut for time.)
The  show is an attempt to turn Green Arrow into a vigilante protagonist to match the flavor of the Christopher Nolan/Christian Bale BATMAN films.  This seemed a stretch to me, as the comic book version was originally created in the Golden Age as a sunnier, more wholesome copy of the Dark Knight.
However, this show is pretty damn dark, and thus far pretty interesting, despite being overloaded with exposition, emotional confrontations,  and dark doings, all of which might have been better unfolded over the course of several episodes, rather than one. It sure wasn’t slow.
The series stars Stephen Amell as Oliver Queen, and he very nicely portrays both the current cagey, fury-driven Queen, and his younger self in flashbacks. Katie Cassidy plays (Dinah) Laurel Lance, an idealistic lawyer, and in the comics becomes The Black Canary.
 Colin Donnell played Tommy Merlyn, Oliver’s old hard-partying friend, who may or may not know that Queen is now a dangerous vigilante. Merlyn in the comics was Queens archery mentor and some-time adversary. In the New 52 comics (which I have not followed), he’s an old friend to whom something strange has happened. Any direct tie-in to the series? Anyone’s guess at this point.
Brian Markinson guested as Adam Hunt, the first of the villians on the Arrow’s list—from his dead father’s diary/confessional notebook. He could turn up again.

Arrow _susanna-thompson-in-
Susanna Thompson as Moria Queen -- Villainess or just bad mother?

Willa Holland was Thea Queen, Oliver’s troubled sister, Susanna Thompson plays Moira Queen, a rather sinister Mother figure. She’s now married to  Walter Steele, played by Colin Salmon.
David Ramsey was bodyguard John Diggle,  and Paul Blackthorne was Detective Quentin Lance.
ARROW airs Wednesdays at 8:00 PM/7:00 Central on the CW Network.
From Bonanza Productions Inc. in association with Berlanti Productions and Warner Brothers Television, with executive producers Greg Berlanti (GFREEN LANTERN), Marc Guggenheim (FLASH FORWARD)  Andrew Kreisberg (WAREHOUSE 13), and David Nutter (SMALLVILLE, GAME OF THRONES).   Co-executive producerMelissa Kellner Berman .
PILOT directed by David Nutter from a teleplay by Andrew Kreisberg & Marc Guggenheim, story by Greg Berlanti & Marc Guggenheim.

Latest CW 'ARROW' Teaser

Here’s  ‘Justice’,  the latest teaser for ARROW, The CW Network’s TV reimagining of DC Comic’s long-running Green Arrow character.  Much of the footage has been seen before, though this is supposer to be for the show’s first episode, Pilot.

“After a violent shipwreck, Oliver Queen was missing and presumed dead for five years before being discovered alive on a remote island. His mother Moira, sister Thea, and best friend Tommy welcome him home, but they sense Oliver has been changed by his ordeal on the island. Oliver secretly creates the persona of Arrow – a vigilante – to right the wrongs of his family, fight the ills of society, and restore Starling City to its former glory.”

ARROW_Cast1ARROW stars Stephen Amell as Oliver Queen, Colin Donnell as Tommy, Katie Cassidy as Laurel Lance, David Ramsey as John Diggle, Willa Holland as Thea Queen, with Susanna Thompson as Moira Queen and Paul Blackthorne as Detective Quentin Lance.
Pilot Directed by  David Nutter (SMALLVILLE) Story by: Greg Berlanti & Marc Guggenheim (GREEN LANTERN).
Script by: Andrew Kreisberg & Marc Guggenheim.

ARROW premieres Wednesday, October 10th on The CW at 8:00 PM  ET/PT.

CW Greenlights 'Arrow' & Beast Remake

The CW Network has picked up ARROW, a new spin on DC Comics’ Green Arrow character. The show will ignore the previous TV incarnation of the character that appeared for several years on the networks’s SMALLVILLE.
From their press release:
ARROW

Click to enlarge
Click to enlarge

After a violent shipwreck, billionaire playboy Oliver Queen was missing and presumed dead for five years before being discovered alive on a remote island in the Pacific.  When he returns home to Starling City, his devoted mother Moira, much-beloved sister Thea, and best friend Tommy welcome him home, but they sense Oliver has been changed by his ordeal on the island. 
While Oliver hides the truth about the man he’s become, he desperately wants to make amends for the actions he took as the boy he was.  Most particularly, he seeks reconciliation with his former girlfriend, Laurel Lance. 
As Oliver reconnects with those closest to him, he secretly creates the persona of Arrow – a vigilante – to right the wrongs of his family, fight the ills of society, and restore Starling City to its former glory. 
By day, Oliver plays the role of a wealthy, carefree and careless philanderer he used to be – flanked by his devoted chauffeur/bodyguard, John Diggle – while carefully concealing the secret identity he turns to under cover of darkness.  However, Laurel’s father, Detective Quentin Lance, is determined to arrest the vigilante operating in his city.
Meanwhile, Oliver’s own mother, Moira, knows much more about the deadly shipwreck than she has let on – and is more ruthless than he could ever imagine.
The series stars Stephen Amell as Oliver Queen, Colin Donnell as Tommy, Katie Cassidy as Laurel Lance, David Ramsey as John Diggle, Willa Holland as Thea Queen, with Susanna Thompson as Moira Queen and Paul Blackthorne as Detective Quentin Lance.
Based on characters appearing in comic books and graphic novels
published by DC Comics, ARROW is from Bonanza Productions Inc. in
association with Berlanti Productions and Warner Bros. Television,
with executive producers Greg Berlanti (“Green Lantern,” “Brothers &
Sisters”), Marc Guggenheim (“FlashForward,” “Eli Stone”), Andrew
Kreisberg (“Warehouse 13,” “The Vampire Diaries”) and David Nutter
(“Smallville,” “Supernatural,” “Game of Thrones”).  Melissa Kellner
Berman (“Eli Stone,” “Dirty Sexy Money”) is co-executive producer. The
pilot was directed by David Nutter from a teleplay by Andrew Kreisberg
& Marc Guggenheim, story by Greg Berlanti & Marc Guggenheim.
Linda Hamilton and Ron Perlman in the original
Linda Hamilton and Ron Perlman in the original

The network is also commisioning a new series based on the 80’s fan favorite BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, though with quite a number of changes, it would appear.
Here’s the skinny:
BEAUTY AND THE BEAST
Detective Catherine Chandler is a smart, no-nonsense homicide
detective.  When she was a teenager, Catherine witnessed the murder of
her mother at the hands of two gunmen.  Catherine would have been killed too, but someone – or something – saved her.  No one has ever believed her, but she knows it wasn’t an animal that attacked the assassins…it was human. 
Years have passed, and Catherine is a strong, confident, capable police officer, working alongside her equally talented partner, Tess.  While investigating a murder, Catherine discovers a clue that leads her to a handsome doctor named Vincent Keller, who was reportedly killed by enemy fire while serving in Afghanistan in 2002.  Catherine learns that Vincent is actually still alive and that it was he who saved her many years before.  
For mysterious reasons that have forced him to live outside of traditional society, Vincent has been in hiding for the past 10 years to guard his secret – when he is enraged, he becomes a terrifying beast, unable to control his super-strength and heightened senses.  
Catherine agrees to protect his identity in return for any insight he may have into hermother’s murder.  Thus begins a complex relationship between Catherine and Vincent, who are powerfully drawn to each other yet understand that their connection is extremely dangerous for both of them.
The series stars Kristin Kreuk (“Smallville,” “Chuck”) as Catherine, Jay Ryan (“Terra Nova”) as Vincent, Max Brown (“The Tudors,” “MI-5”) as Evan, Nina Lisandrello (“Nurse Jackie”) as Tess, Nicole Gale Anderson (“Make It or Break It”) as Heather, Austin Basis (“Life Unexpected”) as J.T., and Brian White (“The Shield,” “The Cabinin the Woods”) as Joe.
BEAUTY AND THE BEAST is from CBS Television Studios with
executive producers Jennifer Levin (“Without A Trace,” “Felicity”),
Sherri Cooper (“Brothers and Sisters”), Bill Haber (“Rizzoli & Isles,”
“Thurgood”), Paul J. Witt (“A Better Life”) & Tony Thomas (“A Better
Life”), Ron Koslow (“Moonlight”) and Gary Fleder (“Life Unexpected”).

Green Arrow Cast

AmellAccording to Deadline, Stephen Amell (THE VAMPIRE DIARIES) has been cast in the lead in the CW’s Green Arrow pilot, entitled simply ARROW.
Based on the DC Comics character, The Green Arrow was  created by Mort Weisinger and George Papp, first appearing in More Fun Comics #73 in 1941. 
 The character bears a relationship to Edgar Wallace’s masked character from the novel The Green Archer. Possibly inspired by the 1940 Columbia movie serial of the same name, which presented the lethal bowman of Bellamy Castle in a more heroic light, Weisinger recast the Green Arrow as a fairly obvious Batman retread, giving him a young red-clad Robin analog named Speedy, an Arrow-Car, and an Arrow Cave headquarters.  
The Green Arrow is Oliver Queen, millionaire playboy turned masked vigilante in Star City, an altogether brighter place than Gotham. In the Warner Brothers pilot he’s been upgraded to a “billionaire industrialist-turned-outspoken politician”. (In keeping with modern characterizations.)
Green_Lantern_ArrowFor most of his comic book career, the character was an also-ran, not making it into the Justice Society in the Golden Age, appearing instead in the Seven Soldiers of Victory (The Law’s Legionnaires) among other secondary heroes.
However, he became one of the few DC characters to survive the post-WWII die-off of super heroes, possibly because Mort Weisinger had become a managing editor of DC, and he kept the Arrow and his other creation for More Fun #73, Aquaman going as back-up features in Adventure Comics and Superboy.
In the 60’s Silver Age he would join the Justice Society, and in the 1970’s he would shed his bland, copy-cat image by changing his Robin Hood-esque costume and becoming a harder-edged, left-leaning hot-head, often at odds with his more conservative colleagues, particularly his friend Green Lantern (Hal Jordan).
SmalVarrow-3webOn the long-running WB-CW network SMALLVILLE series, Justin Hartley took on the role (again as a Batman substitute) and became a regular cast member and fan favorite.
Rather than capitalize on this history, apparently the decision has made to intentionally separate this pilot from  the previous show, and thus presumably several years of potentially confining continuity problems and audience expectations.
The pilot will be directed by David Nutter, and will be written/executive produced by Andrew Kreisberg,  with Greg Berlanti and Marc Guggenheim (GREEN LANTERN).
Though it seems somewhat surprising to entrust the writing to a team that did not garner fan or critic favor with their previous superhero work, a non-super-powered hero show has some real potential on the budget-restricted network.