3. Introducing Superpowers
Arrow has steadily been building towards a more fantastic world all season long and it finally took its first steps into a much larger universe. Not only did Brother Blood successfully develop his own version of the Miracle serum, but there was the revelation that Oliver had fought someone like Cyrus before on the island. The reactions Oliver's team had to the existence of a superpowered man was one of the strongest parts of the episode; this series has dealt so much in hyper-realism that the moment superpowers entered the picture it would change everything. That significance was not lost on the characters as each expressed disbelief and worry over the possibility of facing such a man. However, superpowers now go further back than the Miracle serum on the island thanks to Barry Allen's backstory. I had been very curious as to how they would approach Barry's backstory as Flash's history contains more science fiction elements than most of DC's heroes, not the least of which is time travel. Seeing Arrow has kept intact the full extent of his mother's murder by hinting at the Reverse Flash definitely gives me confidence they are going to adapt Flash correctly, especially now that the CW are moving forward with giving The Flash his own pilot rather than using a later episode of Arrow as a backdoor pilot to his series. The world of Arrow is set to completely change long before this season reaches its conclusion.