Arrow: 13 Action Sequences That Totally Blew Our Minds

2. Oliver Vs. Ra's al Ghul, Part 1

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The CW

Episode: 3x09 – The Climb

Combatants: Oliver Queen vs. Ra’s al Ghul

What Happened: Determined to save his sister, Oliver claims to have killed Sara and demands a trial by combat from the League of Assassins. Oliver is somewhat unfairly forced to climb a mountain to face Ra's al Ghul in a battle from which only one man would emerge alive.

Both men shuck off their shirts because of a custom that totally makes lots of sense for the plot, and the duel commences.

Choosing swords as weapons, Oliver demonstrates breathtaking skill and technique, but he is no match for the Demon's Head. Catching Oliver's blade in his hand as Oliver swings back for a killing blow, Ra's disarms Oliver and slices him in the side. "Consider this an honorable exit," he tells the hero of the show, then runs him through with a sword before kicking him off of a mountaintop. 

Why It Was Great: The mountaintop duel was a stunning feat of athleticism from Stephen Amell and Matt Nable’s stuntman, and everything from the cinematography to the soundtrack was positively epic. Viewers were left teetering on the edges of their seats as hiatus began on a cliffhanger.

Well, cliff-faller, anyway.

Winner: Ra’s al Ghul

Contributor
Contributor

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 .