Distributor: Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.
Episodes: 26
Duration: 42 min (per episode)
Arrow: Season 6 (Blu-ray) – Series Review
Arrow, the series that started off very strong, still stands. Some hiccups occurred along the way, lowering the review scores and giving both critics and fans mixed feelings about how the series was/is evolving. Since the first season aired back in 2012, the show has lost about half its viewers. But fortunately for some, there is something special about the new season! Oliver’s flashback stories would only last five years, and that time is up. That doesn’t mean flashbacks are completely gone though. Can season 6 get the attention of the audience back?
Season 5 ended with a boom, literally. Oliver Queen (Stephen Amell) went back to the island Lian Yu to save his team and family from the bad guy of this previous season; Adrian Chase (Josh Segarra). When Adrian ends up shooting himself, he sets of C-4 explosives on the island where Oliver’s loved ones are still present. The only one who was with Oliver during the explosion was his son William Clayton (Jack Moore). Season 5 ended with an amazing cliffhanger and kept Arrow fans at the edge of their seats. Enter the first episode of season 6: five months later. Unfortunately, the success of the fifth season’s last episode couldn’t be extended to the first episode of the sixth season. It seems like life in Star City has resumed and nothing has changed. Where did the thrill of the island explosion go? Not here in this first episode, that’s for sure. The aftermath of the island adventure unravels slowly while a new villain comes into play. This time team Arrow has to deal with James Cayden (Michael Emerson), the former leader of the hacktivist organisation Helix. Assisted by Black Siren (Katie Cassidy) and several other villains, James seeks revenge for the death of his son.
The flow of this season is definitely an improvement. With the various villains working with James, there is a whole team of criminals to deal with. The relationship between Oliver and Felicity (Emily Bett Rickards) blooms again, reminding us of the beginning of their relationship. This feels a little annoying but luckily not too much focus is put onto the couple. Besides this, we also get to see more of Oliver’s son William and the bond between father and son.
Of course the usual flashbacks are featured in the sixth season as well as this has always been a vital part of Arrow. However, in season 6 we move on from Oliver’s flashbacks to his time on the island. Also flashbacks also don’t appear in every episode anymore. In this season we get flashbacks to what happened after the explosion on Lian Yu. We also get a closer look into other characters’ backstories. For example, Slade Wilson (Manu Bennett) gets his own flashbacks.
Besides the flashbacks, we also have the crossovers. The adventure starts in the Supergirl series, followed by an episode in Arrow. The crossover ends in The Flash and Legends of Tomorrow. While this remains a great concept, we don’t enjoy the execution very much. It fits in-between the other episodes very well, but this crossover connects no less than four different series, kind of forcing you to watch them all. This means you’ll probably get a little lost if you don’t follow all of them. Honestly, we’re just happy this is only the case for one episode per season. The upside is, if you missed the original airings, the Blu-ray box comes with the full set of episodes that involve the crossover’s story. While this is the first time they actually add the extra episodes, and it doesn’t completely justify the broadcasting format, it’s fun for those who want to follow the full story and always wait for a physical release.
A demerit of season 6 seems to be the return of some known characters. Sure, we love a good comeback, but that’s not what is happening here. In a way, it feels like Arrow is ‘recycling’ their characters and putting them in a new light. It doesn’t work. Slade Wilson, once the bad guy, now seems to be a rather good guy. Anatoly Knyazev (David Nykl), once a good guy, turns bad. It seems like easy writing.
The acting performances remain high-quality. The whole cast gave the best of themselves once again. This season the Arrow cast is joined by Michael Emerson, an actor some might know from his performance in Lost. We already knew Michael is a terrific actor and he proves this again when he takes on the role of James Cayden. He makes a great leader, and an even greater villain.
The extra features on the Blu-ray edition of the sixth season of Arrow are quite plentiful. You’ll not only receive the four crossover episodes from this season (which are neatly implemented in-between the normal episodes), a piece about said crossover, you’ll also get a lengthy Comic-con panel, a feature about Deathstroke and more information about Cayden James. You can certainly prolong your Arrow experience with this physical copy.
Conclusion
After a weak start of the sixth season, Arrow did manage to create some new enjoyable content. After the series slacked a little, a new team of excellent criminals, some interesting plot twists and a different take on the flashbacks may just make you want to take up the American superhero television series again. If you can look past the old characters appearing in a different light, you will surely appreciate the acting performances of the whole cast, wrapped in a decently executed sixth season.
Arrow: Season 6 (Blu-ray) – Series Review,
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