Arrow season 8, episode 2 review: Welcome to Hong Kong

“Sometimes the mission is not worth the cost.” Spoilers for Arrow season 8, episode 2 follow.

After escaping the destruction of Earth-2, Green Arrow and company end up in Hong Kong on another mission from The Monitor.

In the future, Mia and company are on their way to stop a bust between the Deathstroke gang and another party.

To Mourn an Earth

It would’ve been so easy to just move on from the destruction of Earth-2. Thankfully, that isn’t the case here. Oliver already has the weight of one earth on his shoulders. Now he has another. It’s heavily painted in this episode that because Oliver didn’t listen to The Monitor’s instructions, that’s the reason why Earth-2 was destroyed so soon. If so, this build up the stakes ever more so than before. It’s not random, Oliver’s missions are now a heist where he can’t be noticed by The Anti-Monitor.

Then there’s Laurel’s reaction to the death of her earth. Her anger and rage are absolutely believable. The venom she spews toward Oliver is completely warranted and her reactions feel completely natural. Katie Cassidy does an excellent job portraying the grief that Laurel is going through and the denial that she faces.

As the episode goes on though, the reality of the situation sets in and its heartbreaking. Just as the shock has worn off for the audience, the heartbreak sets in for Laurel. The scene when she finally registers that her earth is gone hurts. It hurts a lot. That’s all due to Katie Cassidy’s excellent performance throughout the episode and the fact that we’ve come to care for this version of Laurel.

Katana Returns

Just as the first episode of the season was a callback to season one, this episode is a callback to the flashbacks of season 3. The setting is the same and the they even bring back Tatsu. As one of the strongest elements of that season, it’s wonderful to see her back in the fold and taking a page out of Oliver’s book. Plus, since this episode is set on Earth-1, it’s not a completely different Tatsu that we’re seeing.

Tatsu has been one of the only characters outside of the main cast that has been willing to call Oliver out, which we get to see again in this episode. She acts as a great foil for Oliver in this episode, which is exactly what he needs when dealing with The Monitor. John right now is acting more like a yes-man than he normally does because he feels the same way as Oliver does.

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Yet, that foil is necessary so that Oliver’s focus can be on what’s right rather than fully being on “the mission.” Stephen Amell and Rila Fukushima play off each other so well and it brings out so much emotion that you wouldn’t really think was going to be come out during their time together.

Even more surprising though was the return of China White. The last time we saw her, she was a member of Lyla’s version of a Suicide Squad, so it really was surprising to see her out of prison, but it makes sense given her connection to Hong Kong. As a strong presence within the early seasons of the show, it simply makes sense for her, and the Triad, to show up again. This story involving China White is not as strong of a story though as the first episode of the season, but it’s good enough to carry the momentum of the season forward.

What the Future Holds

The future storyline is obviously holding much smaller stakes than the present story is this season, but that doesn’t mean it’s not as good. It’s as compelling as it ever was during the previous season, if not more so, and the personal stakes are higher than ever.

This season so far is focusing much more on Connor Hawke and John Diggle Jr., which is really helping build the more personal stakes of the storyline. Last season, pretty much everything focused on Mia and William. But now, since that arc has been pretty much resolved, it’s necessary for the show to move onto a different relationship, which is exactly what it does with Connor and JJ.

Their relationship is rife with tension and the one scene that they share together, without anyone else, feels like it’s really setting up the turmoil to come in the rest of the season. Joseph David-Jones and Charlie Barnett play off each really well and it feels like they truly are siblings on the outs with each other. Really, the only bad thing about the flash-forwards is that they aren’t longer.

Arrow puts another strong foot forward as the Crisis draws nearer. What did you think of the episode? Let us know in the comments below!