TV Review: Arrow – S5E1 – Legacy (The CW)

Arrow season one was one of the first things that I reviewed for Fanboy Factor. I had not watched the show and had no interest in it.

Upon binge watching the entire season for the review I fell in love with the series. With the start of season two, I was a faithful follower of the show. Week after week I tuned in to see what DC character they would introduce next. I can remember the episode that introduced Barry Allen, eventually leading to the Flash getting his own series.

Sadly, after launching an entire television universe, Arrow has struggled with keeping up with the greatness of its offspring. Last year’s season was trying so hard to be a “superhero” show that it lost a lot of the gritty, down to earth charm that it had in previous seasons. The other major downfall of last season was that the villain was such a major threat that it will be hard to make anything seem as menacing. This season’s villains (at least in this first episode) feel too basic and likely to be easily thwarted.

While it starts a little slow, the premier does find its tone about midway through and gives a tease of an entrusting premiss evolving a promising new team. This angle seems to be the part of the story that I, as a fan, am most excited for. I am also thankful that it has been confirmed by Greg  Berlanti (show runner) that this is the last season for flashbacks. What worked so well as a way to tell an origin has aged poorly and evolved into a story telling method that ends up feeling like unnecessary filler.

All of that said, I love Arrow. I will always have a soft spot for it as it paved the way for the exciting DC television universe. This first episode doesn’t make me overly excited for the season to come…but I am not completely disinterested.

The season five premiere, “Legacy” will air on The CW on Tuesday, October 5th at 8pm!