The Tribune

Episode Name: Broken Dolls Air date: 10/23/2013 Summary: Lance learns a criminal named Barton Mathis, whom he put away years ago, broke out of prison during the quake and is back to torturing and murdering women. Felicity offers herself as bait so Arrow, Diggle, and Lance can catch this villain, but the plan goes awry. Furious, Mathis kidnaps Laurel in retaliation and plans to murder her while Lance watches. Meanwhile, Thea and Oliver are stunned when District Attorney Adam Donner seeks the death penalty for Moira. Oliver asks Roy to help him find the Canary.

But Oliver's biggest problem at the moment is the police, led by an increasingly annoying Laurel. This is the first time they got in his way during a mission, as he puts it, and that has the potential to be a huge problem. He's been on his best behaviour since Tommy's death but, brilliantly, this show doesn't let its characters off the hook that easily. The police are after The Hood because he's killed people, plain and simple, and they didn't get the memo about his name change to the Emerald Archer. Maybe sparing the lives of China White and Bronze Tiger is the turning point, but leaving villains to scheme another day seems a little dangerous. It's nice to see some forward motion in the evolution of the character and the world, and bringing Roy on board as an informant is obviously the first step towards integrating him into the team. That's a team that's in danger of fracturing, too, as Felicity's demotion to secretary isn't the best news she's ever received. I loved the exchange, as Diggle points out that he too is operating way below his skills, just to avoid questions about his constant contact with Oliver. It draws attention to the stereotypes of sidekicks, and I appreciated that Arrow even wants us to think about what toll the mission will have on Felicity and Diggle. They are also living double lives, and Oliver rarely considers that.

Sebastian Blood is the most interesting addition in the episode, as he's the latest comic character to be seamlessly adapted into Arrow's real-world setting. Here, he has something legitimate to be angry about and to fight for, and the Queen name is being dragged through the mud even more this week. Oliver makes a half-arsed attempt to improve the family reputation by organising and appearing at a fundraiser for The Glades, but superhero duties get in the way of actually attending. If anything, things are now worse, and that is clearly going to be a considerable obstacle to Oliver in future weeks. The episode is called Identity, and Oliver had trouble juggling the wealthy CEO and the vigilante this week.