Arrow – Purgatory

• Title: Arrow – Purgatory
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The final pre-Crisis episode of Arrow takes Oliver Queen‘s (Stephen Amell) back to Lian Yu in and episode that attempts (somewhat clumsily) making sense of the various missions and locales Oliver and his friends have returned to over the course of the season. On the island the group will race to complete a weapon for the the Monitor (LaMonica Garrett) while literal ghosts from Oliver’s past arise to cause complications. The farewell tour brings back a couple of familiar faces in Yao Fei (Byron Mann) and Fyers (Sebastian Dunn), but in an episode (and season) devoted largely to fan service (when not advertising a big crossover), I was disappointed not to see Shado (Celina Jade) earn a final cameo.

By the end of the episode even Mia (Katherine McNamara) seems to have come to terms with what awaits Oliver in the looming Crisis (that begins before the credits roll). In terms of taking steps closer to their comic counterparts, both Roy Harper (Colton Haynes) and Lyla (Audrey Marie Anderson) end the episode in familiar situations (with Roy missing an arm and Lyla finally on her path as the Harbinger). Although the show will return for a pair of episodes following Crisis (the first without Amell) to wrap-up the series, “Purgatory” works to wrap-up the season threads heading into The CW’s big event. Fryer is an odd choice of villain to bring back, especially compared to the larger threats Oliver has faced over the years (though his nameless minions keep Team Arrow busy with something to do and Oliver’s return to the island does bring the show full circle).