Arrow: 6 Things That "Sara" Did Right (And 3 It Didn't)

2. Character Interactions

First, we had Oliver and Laurel. As the two who had known Sara longest and best, it was natural that these would be the two most deeply affected by her death. For once, we were shown rather than told that there was more to their bond than the bitterness and bad memories left over from their catastrophic romances. Determined to play his role, Oliver's interactions and affections with Laurel had a paint-by-numbers aura to them as he attempted to provide comfort without opening himself up to receiving any. In contrast, Oliver seemed to go out of his way not to touch Felicity. His most human response of the episode prior to his final confession was when Felicity startled him into looking her in the eye after she accused him of not having any feelings. While she apologized immediately, his devastated reaction was enough to remind us that there was a person underneath all of the stoicism. Where he spent the premiere trying not to smile whenever he looked at her, Oliver in "Sara" looked on the verge of breakdown whenever she managed to pull a reaction from him. The most uplifting interactions of the episode were between Oliver and Diggle. Digg went out of his way to tether Oliver to the rest of Team Arrow as a family. He more than any of the others accepted that Oliver's method of mourning was his own and understood that Oliver's relationship with Sara was not in the least comparable to any other. The former rich boy and bodyguard are brothers in all but blood at this point, and it only feels right that Oliver's final moment in the episode is with Diggle. Roy and Felicity had a few nice moments as he stepped up to console Felicity, and their dynamic has the genuine sense of a friendship developed offscreen. As for Laurel and Quentin...well, that's for another entry.