Arrow Vs The Flash: Which TV Show Is Better?

3. Big Bads

The Flash's first season had a villain who was part dark mirror of its hero, part a connection to both Flash's future and past, and also a thrilling mystery just waiting to be solved. He felt like a serious threat, the questions and reveals were well spread out, and the end result was more than satisfying. That was all great, but a problem for The Flash is that, over the next two seasons, they did the same thing in increasingly convoluted ways. Zoom had his moments, especially in Enter Zoom, but the ultimate mystery wasn't satisfying, and the Savitar storytelling even less so.

Arrow, on the other hand, has tended to succeed with its Big Bads. Dark Archer was a brilliant reflection of the Hood, and a perfect entry point villain for the show's first season; Ra's al Ghul was good in spots, especially the duel in The Climb, but again faded by the end; Damien Darhk was brilliantly, enigmatically played by Neil McDonough, but bogged down in the magic plotting; and Prometheus was a real throwback, a violent, vicious villain with a real personal vendetta against Oliver Queen.

And even despite their many merits, they all pale in comparison to Manu Bennett's Slade Wilson/Deathstroke. The character had some of the best development on the show, his hatred of Oliver burned onto our screens, he was charismatic, sadistic, and the action sequences between the pair were a series highpoint.

Winner: Arrow