Arrow Season 8 (2019) Review

So after 8 years we have finally come to the end of the DC show that started a huge universe of its own Arrow and here is my review for the 8th and final season of the show. The premise of the season sees Oliver Queen have to work with The Monitor in an attempt to stop the upcoming Crisis. 

Main Character

Stephen Amell has become known for playing the role of Oliver Queen/The Green Arrow and he does a great job in his last outing as the character. He gives a really emotional and dramatic performance as he struggles with the crisis that is coming and how he plays into it. I have always liked how this character has moved with the times, in a world with aliens and speedsters he acknowledges it and becomes a better character for it. It is also clear to see the development that his character has gone through from the first episode to the last one and it shows a really well crafted and well developed character. 

Supporting Characters

David Ramsay as John Diggle is really the only other character who has been on the show since day one and really he has developed just aswell as Oliver. There friendship and brotherhood is on full display this season and again seeing how the character's friendship has grown since day one has been a really great watch and it continues here. Katie Cassidy as the Earth 2 version of Laurel Lance has had a good character arc since her introduction in season 5 of the show and it kind of comes full circle here and shows just how much of an interesting character she has become here. Katherine McNamara playing an older version of Mia Queen is much better this season then she was in Season 7, they do something interesting with her character and seeing her story arc is an interesting watch. But I also feel like certain characters that have been at the forefront of previous seasons are pushed to the side this season, such as Rene Ramirez and Dinah Drake played by Rick Gonzalez and Juliana Harkavy, they get very little to do here as the show focuses on other elements of its story. 

Story

The story is interesting, I think what this season does well in terms of its story is highlighting the journey that the characters have been on and showing how the past has shaped them into the characters that they are in this final season. Also most of the characters get satisfying endings, though it is clear that there are future plans for some of these characters in terms of there journeys in this universe. But this shows story feels unbalanced and just very different, the show feels more in line with The Flash and Supergirl in terms of its more science fiction elements and kind of loses the grit rough edge the show previously had. Also this show lacks a big bad and feels like a big build up to the Crisis, so when that is over the show feels a bit lost in what exactly it wants to do in it's last few episodes even though the finale is pretty satisfying. 

Script

The script here is a mixed bag, the drama really works. I think because of this being the last season it allows the actors and actresses to put more emotion into the story and make you care more about the characters. Though with being a bit grim, it does feel the little bit of charm is missing that has been there in previous seasons and that is a bit of a missed chance.

Style

I have always said that Arrow has some of the best action scenes in any TV show or film out there and this continues this season. The combat is fantastic and is filmed brilliantly, it just feels so forceful and gritty and shows just how good the performers and filmmakers are at showing action scenes. Though this film has a bit of a struggle with its pacing, luckily it is only ten episodes but with the crisis being such an important part it feels like that takes up so much of the focus that it takes away from its own individual story. 

Overall

Overall, this is an above average final season of Arrow. It struggles in having to focus to much on the crisis crossover, but it still has some good things and as I said finishes this show in an appropriate way for the characters. If you are a fan of this show it should be seen and I think new fans should get into this show as there are some real highlights during the 8 season run.

Rating - 6/10

Crisis On Infinite Earths Crossover Event (2020) Review

So finally all 5 parts of the DC Arrowverse crossover Crisis on Infinite Earths has hit the UK and I have got through them all and here is my review for it. The premise of the crossover sees the heroes of the multiverse have to come together and stop The Anti Monitor from unleashing power to destroy every Earth in existence. 

Main Character

Stephen Amell is at the end of his road with playing Oliver Queen/Green Arrow and for his last crossover he does a good job here. He is given a different role then he is used to in the previous crossovers but it is done well and it feels like the show gives Oliver more of a spotlight for being the first hero in this universe. Though I thought other main characters The Flash played by Grant Gustin and Melissa Benoit as Supergirl weren't given the shine as much because of it, it just feels like ther importance isn't played up as much which feels surprising considering how much the first half of The Flash season 6 has been setting up The Flash for Crisis. It is not that they are bad it is just they don't have that much to do. 

Supporting Characters 

There is a huge supporting cast here but I will mainly aim for the ones who have the largest role here. I have watched the first half of the first season of Batwoman and I haven't been sold on Ruby Rose's performance as Kate Kane but I actually think she is better here bouncing off of the other heroes, I mean it looks like this will be her last crossover and that is a disappointment as I feel there was potential for her to improve here. Sarah Lance played by Caity Lotz has always been a great character whether on Arrow or Legends Of Tomorrow and she is really great here, she really takes charge in the last few episodes and gets more time to shine and she does a great job adding some depth to the drama in the show. I have to admit that when Jon Cryer was cast as Lex Luthor I wasn't sure if he was a great choice, but wow I was wrong. He is fantastic in the role and just has such a quick wit and charisma that he is devilishly charming in the role and even though he is a clear villain you can't help but find him entertaining. But this show also wastes some of his characters, I mean if you are a fan of certain characters in this universe you will be let down as quite a few of the characters aren't really here or given a chance to shine. Plus the characters of The Monitor and The Anti Monitor are wasted and ultimately boring, Arrow set up The Monitor to be more interesting but this crossover fails on that and he just becomes a boring character and The Anti-Monitor is more boring as he is just a dumb villain that literally has no character. 

Story

The story is the largest this universe has ever done and it demonstrates that pretty well, some things happen here that feel huge in nature and it feels like it could affect it for the future and this really allows some exciting things that could happen in the future. But this character does struggle with balance, it has so many characters and it tries to give too many of them individual story arcs and especially at the beginning of the crossover it can be hard to follow and feel like too much is going on for unnecessary reasons. Also there are some cameos that feel really forced here which takes away from the story and it feels like it doesn't do much to help the telling of this tale. 

Script

The script is okay, it has some decent drama and nice humour I mean mainly from Lex Luthor but I can't deny that it is here. Though it must be said there is some poor dialogue here that feels pretty cringe which isn't the first time that it has happened with these shows. 

Style

Now this is the largest ever event in this universe so the action should be the biggest yes, and yeah it is, it is large in scale and it does feel cool seeing all these heroes working together and fighting these large forces. But the enemies aren't that interesting and it is clear that the budget was stretched here and at times the CGI looks poor and like it just can't hold up what is needed. 

Overall

Overall, this should have been the biggest and best crossover for The Arrowverse but for me it just felt pretty short. It is just distinctly average and doesn't do enough to hit the levels that it wanted to and it feels like the build to this hasn't been worth the time and hype. 

Rating - 5/10