Arrow:
The Complete Second Season
(2013 - 2014/DC Comics/Warner Blu-ray w/DVD Set)
Picture:
B+/C+ Sound: B/C+ Extras: A Episodes: A-
Sometimes
it's easier to create a sensational first season of a television show
than it is to build on that success with a second one. Just ask the
creators of the late lamented Heroes
show. Great first season. All downhill from there. Arrow
producers Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim, and Andrew Kreisberg faced
just such a challenge going into Season
Two
of the CW's surprising hit superhero show. To recap, lead character
and bon vivant Oliver Queen (Stephen Amell) spends five years on a
deserted island, only to return a changed man. Haunted, toughened,
and bearing enough secrets to choke the NSA, Oliver begins a war on
Starling City's corrupt power elite.
That
war changes him. He gains allies and enemies. Clever flashback
sequences to his life on the island slowly reveal how he survived and
changed into the expert fighter and archer he is now. Oliver wears a
hood to hide his identity and uses brutal methods to accomplish his
goals. He kills for the cause of justice. The end of season one
left him mourning the loss of one of his dearest friends and
questioning his methods and his mission.
This
sophomore season opens with staunch allies John Diggle (David Ramsey)
and Felicity Smoak (Emily Bett Rickards) traveling back to the
mysterious island where it all started. Oliver has exiled himself
there to lick his wounds and heal his soul. Convincing him he is
still needed in Starling City, the trio returns home to face a raft
of new threats, and a deadly menace from the Arrow's past.
It's
no real spoiler to let folks know that Slade Wilson, aka Deathstroke
(Manu Bennett) features as this season's primary villain. His grudge
against Oliver/Arrow drives the action, but plenty of twists and
surprises will keep viewers guessing as to how things will end. Much
of the action centers around the Arrow's desire to change his killing
ways and adopt non-lethal methods of taking down bad guys. He does
this to honor fallen friend, Tommy Merlyn. As the character's ethos
matures, his identity shifts from Season
One's
Vigilante
or Hood
to The
Arrow.
Season
Two
features even more of the DC Universe characters fans will recognize
and love. At the risk of revealing too much, we get to see a lot
more of Deadshot and a certain Dirty
Dozen
style task force. Some other familiar faces return, and plenty of
new ones emerge.
This
Blu-ray/DVD combo set contains the full run of this season in both
formats. The episodes (in their 1.78 X 1 framing) look great in both
1080p HD Blu-ray and 480p standard-definition DVD, but the many dark
fight sequences show up better on the Blu-ray discs. Hints of color
as intended by the look of the show beginning the previous season
remain and really come through on the Blu-ray discs in ways the DVDs
cannot capture. The lossless DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 mixes on
the Blu-rays easily outdo the lossy Dolby Digital 5.1 mixes on the
DVDs in warmth alone, but they are also rich in detail and depth the
Dolby cannot handle.
The
extras on this set include a nice documentary on Oliver/Arrow's
metamorphosis from vigilante killer to hero. Interviews with cast
and crew add plenty of insight to the writers' decision to take the
Arrow away from the path of vengeance to one of heroism. Another
featurette highlights the computer graphics used for some of the
special effect shots in the show. Also included is a segment on the
wire work used to make some of the more spectacular stunts happen.
Finally, a Comic Con 2013 interview panel with Stephen Amell and many
of the other major cast members provides viewers a neat look into the
cast and crew as people. The panel interview reveals them as a true
working family, and a great bunch of people truly humbled by their
show's success.
Arrow:
Season
Two
delivers on the promise shown in Season
One,
and ratchets the action and drama up yet another notch. Season
Three
will have even more to live up to!
-
Scott Pyle
