After a five-month hiatus that followed a game-changing second season finale, the CW's Arrow blew viewers away (in ways both good and bad) with its Season 3 premiere when it aired on October 8. Misleadingly entitled "The Calm," an awful lot happened in not a whole lot of time, and the ensuing week was hardly enough time for everything to sink in. Second episode "Sara" almost feels like an installment from a different show; all of the people and places look the same, but the slower pace and smaller scale jar in comparison. Nevertheless, "Sara" hit all of the right notes as the characters struggle to make sense of the Canary's brutal death as it happened in the final moments of "The Calm." Oliver and Laurel travel down different paths as they work to catch the killer, and the rest of Team Arrow must try not to fall to pieces in the aftermath. Dynamics romantic and platonic shift. Tasks fail and change. Objectives personal and professional are raised. Overall, "Sara" was far from a perfect episode, succeeding far more with regard to character rather than story. Failings of execution aside, however, "Sara" worked as a bridge from the spectacle of the premiere to what will be the rest of the season. So, here are six things that "Sara" managed just right...and three that it didn't.
Fiction buff and writer. If it's on Netflix, it's probably in my queue. I've bought DVDs for the special features and usually claim that the book is better than the movie or show (and can provide examples). I've never met a TV show that I won't marathon. Follow on Twitter @lah9891 .
