The CW's ARROW – 'Pilot' Review

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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.

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

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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”).

'Black Canary' Cast in 'The Arrow'

katie-cassidy-1According to TV WIRE , Katie Cassidy (SUPERNATURAL has been cast as Dinah “Laurel” Lance, love interest to Oliver Queen (Stephen Amell) in the CW pilot THE ARROW.
 In the DC Green Arrow comic books, Dinah Lance is also the Black Canary, the ebony clad superhero with a supersonic blasting power. However, we may not see her don that jacket and fishnets, as the revisionist TV series seems be presenting her as Laurel Lance,  a  “young attorney with the City Necessary Resources Initiative”  whose relationship with Oliver Queen may be largely past tense.
 Also cast are  Susanna Thompson (ONCE AND AGAIN) as Oliver’s mother Moiria (apparently still living) and David Ramsey (DEXTER) as “an ex-military/special forces type” who is is now employed by Queen in a security role.    

Black Canary in DC's Green Arrow comic books
Black Canary in DC's Green Arrow comic books

Online sources (via ComicBookMovie)  that claim to have read the script indicate that Oliver Queen is returning to “Starling City” (Star City in the comics) after being marooned for five years on an island after an incident that took the lives of his father and a girlfriend — Laurel Lance’s sister.
 The castaway story is part of the DC Comic’s character’s origin. The details have been changed and tweaked for a certain amount of soap opera for the now young female-slanting network, I would imagine.
The pilot was written by GREEN LANTERN film alumni  Greg Berlanti and Marc Guggenheim, with Andrew Kreisberg (FRINGE, WAREHOUSE 13).  David Nutter (SMALLVILLE) will direct the Warner Brothers Television pilot.
Addendum: Here’s the CW’s Character descriptions for THE ARROW

Oliver Queen: A 27 year old reformed bad boy, who after having spent five years shipwrecked on a tiny, brutally dangerous island in the South China Sea returns to town a different man. Or to be more specific, a tortured, thoughtful master of the bow with a ferocious determination to make a difference.
Dinah “Laurel” Lance: 28 years old, smart sexy, Laurel is a legal aid attorney determined to use her life as a one-woman war against the 1% following the death of her younger sister Sara. A sister, who as luck would have it, just so happened to have died aboard Oliver’s yacht.
Tommy Merlyn: 28 years old and devil-smooth, Tommy is a trustafarian like Oliver, a spectacularly rich young man whose life revolves around parties, clubs, liquor and lots of anonymous sex. Unlike Oliver, he can’t seem to understand his former best friend’s sudden change of lifestyle and direction.
John Diggle: 35 years old, African-American, Diggle is really, really big, a former military man who served with the Army Rangers in Afghanistan, and has been a bodyguard for hire for the last four years. Hired by Moira to be Oliver’s chauffeur and protector, Diggle soon finds he is trapped in a battle of wits, as Oliver repeatedly eludes his protection. But in fact, Diggle’s primary conflict is one of loyalty — he has to show that he’s working for Oliver, not Moira, before Oliver will give him a smidgen of trust. (via MTV)

'Smallville' Returns – In Comic Book

smallville_comicThe Warner Brothers Television series SMALLVILLE garnered quite a few fans (and vocal critics) in it’s years on the abandoned WB Network and it’s successor, the CW.  
In view of the upcoming MAN OF STEEL film relaunch, it’s somewhat surprising to see DC Comic launch a comic book continuation of the TV series.
Here’s DC’s press release:

“Fans of the smash-hit TV series Smallville haven’t had much to cheer about since the show ended its critically acclaimed 10-year run on The CW last May. That’s all going to change with the upcoming new comic book series from DC Entertainment: SMALLVILLE SEASON 11.
Written by former Smallville show scribe Bryan Q. Miller, the new digital first series will be published digitally on April 13, 2012, with new digital chapters released weekly thereafter. Additionally, the online chapters will be offered in a print periodical, along with an episode guide to the hit television series, with the first print issue released on May 16.
The new comic book series picks-up where the show left off (with Clark officially now as Superman!) and features other fan-favorite characters including Oliver Queen/Green Arrow, Chloe Sullivan-Queen, Lois Lane, Lex Luthor, and General Lane.
The book features an all-star creative team – in addition to Miller, SMALLVILLE SEASON 11 creators include print cover artist Gary Frank (SUPERMAN SECRET ORIGIN), digital cover artist Cat Staggs and interiors by Pere Perez (BATGIRL).
“Six months after Clark Kent donned the cape and took to the skies to save Earth from Apokolips… enter Season 11!” enthuses Miller. “New allies abound! New enemies afoot! And old friends return where they’re least expected! Pere and colorist Chris Beckett have done a fantastic job of capturing the look of the show and the players, and Gary and Cat are knocking it out of the park on covers. I couldn’t be more excited to help give seasoned viewers and new readers an all-access pass to Clark’s first year in the cape.’ “

Smallv_homecoming_LoisClark
Lois (Erica Durance) & Clark (Tom Welling)

The cover preview above  seems to include a well-rendered likeness of SMALLVILLE star Tom Welling as the Man of Steel, wearing the “New 52” version of the costume. The series finale had featured a mostly CGI version of Welling in what seemed like a mix of the traditional ‘uniform’ and the SUPERMAN RETURNS costume.

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.

The CW's 'Secret Circle'

The CW announced its Fall schedule, with just one new genre show, the “teenage witch” drama THE SECRET CIRCLE.
THE SECRET CIRCLE will join THE VAMPIRE DIARIES on THURSDAYS, while spy-fi series NIKITA will take the departed SMALLVILLE’s Friday 8:00 PM slot, before the returning SUPERNATURAL.
SecretCircle

THE SECRET CIRCLE – “Cassie Blake was a happy, normal teenage girl – until her mother Amelia dies in what appears to be a tragic accidental fire. Orphaned and deeply saddened, Cassie moves in with her warm and loving grandmother Jane in the beautiful small town of Chance Harbor, Washington — the town her mother left so many years before—where the residents seem to know more about Cassie than she does about herself.
As Cassie gets to know her high school classmates, including sweet-natured Diana and her handsome boyfriend Adam, brooding loner Nick, mean-girl Faye and her sidekick Melissa, strange and frightening things begin to happen. When her new friends explain that they are all descended from powerful witches, and they’ve been waiting for Cassie to join them and complete a new generation of the Secret Circle, Cassie refuses to believe them—until Adam shows her how to unlock her incredible magical powers. But it’s not until Cassie discovers a message from her mother in an old leather-bound book of spells hidden in her mother’s childhood bedroom, that she understands her true and dangerous destiny.
What Cassie and the others don’t yet know is that darker powers are at play, powers that might be linked to the adults in the town, including Diana’s father and Faye’s mother—and that Cassie’s mother’s death might not have been an accident.
The series stars Britt Robertson as Cassie Blake, Thomas Dekker as Adam Conant, Gale Harold as Charles Meade, Phoebe Tonkin as Fay Chamberlain, Jessica Parker Kennedy as Melissa, Shelley Hennig as Diana Meade, Louis Hunter as Nick, Ashley Crow as Jane Blake and Natasha Henstridge as Dawn Chamberlain.
Based upon the book series by L.J. Smith (author of The Vampire Diaries book series), THE SECRET CIRCLE is from Outerbanks Entertainment and Alloy Entertainment in association with Warner Bros. Television and CBS Television Studios with executive producers Kevin Williamson (The Vampire Diaries, Scream, Dawson’s Creek), Andrew Miller (Imaginary Bitches), Leslie Morgenstein (The Vampire Diaries, Gossip Girl) and Gina Girolamo. Elizabeth Craft (The Vampire Diaries, Lie to Me) & Sarah Fain (The Vampire Diaries, Lie to Me) were executive producers on the pilot which was directed by Liz Friedlander (The Vampire Diaries, 90210).”

'Smallville: Finale'—Clip

SMALLVILLE Finale

Via The CW: “The story of Clark Kent (Tom Welling) culminates in this epic two-hour series finale as Clark takes the last step to becoming the Man of Steel.
With surprise guest appearances, nods to the first few seasons of the series and Michael Rosenbaum’s return as Lex Luthor, this final episode wraps up a decade-long story following one man’s journey to becoming the world’s greatest superhero.
Erica Durance, Allison Mack, Justin Hartley, Cassidy Freeman, John Glover, Annette O’Toole and John Schneider also star.
Kevin Fair directed “Finale Part 1,” which was written by Al Septien & Turi Meyer.
Greg Beeman directed “Finale Part 2,” written by Brian Peterson & Kelly Souders.”

Lex Luthor Returns for SMALLVILLE's Finale
Lex Luthor Returns for SMALLVILLE's Finale

It’s been ten seasons of ups and downs for the saga of Clark Kent’s early years, moving from high school crushes and BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER-style freak of the week episodes to a more comic-book related syle and more than a hint of soap-operatic drama and angst. 
Here’s hoping the series’ end will be as satisfying as the best of  the show’s episodes.
SMALLVILLE’s 2-Hour Finale airs this Friday beginning at 8:00 PM/7:00 Central on The CW.

'Smallville: Dominion'—Clip

In SMALLVILLE’s Dominion:

Tess (Cassidy Freeman) learns that General Slade was found unconscious on a street corner, proof that someone has gained access to the Phantom Zone’s escape portal and sent him back. Clark (Tom Welling) decides to return to the exiled land to make sure other phantoms are not fleeing and is furious when Oliver (Justin Hartley) tricks Clark into taking him along.
With Clark’s powers gone, the two are immediately captured by the Zoners who take them to their new leader, Zod (Callum Blue), who is thirsting for revenge on Clark for banishing him to this Kryptonian jail.
Meanwhile, Lois (Erica Durance) learns Clark trusted Tess with a secret, but didn’t tell Lois.
Justin Hartley directed with story by John Chisholm.

SMALLVILLE airs Friday at 8:00 PM, followed by a new episode of SUPERNATURAL on The CW Network.

CW Renews 'Vampire Diaries', 'Supernatural'

Vampire Diaries_promoEntertainment Weekly reports that The CW announced early renewals of it’s genre series THE VAMPIRE DIARIES and SUPENATURAL for next season.
VAMPIRE DIARIES is no surprize, as it’s the network’s number one show this year. SUPERNATURAL is holding it’s own, now in it’s sixth season—and since SMALLVILLE has it series finale after ten years on May 13th, a show to anchor the difficult Friday night schedule is much needed.
The fact that both shows are produced by or in association with CW half-parent Warner Brothers Television couldn’t hurt, either.