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Arrow Season 1 Episode 3

Lone Gunmen

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AIRED: Oct 24, 2012

8.7

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Episode Summary

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Oliver learns that he is not the only person in Star City that is flying under the radar of the police. An assassin named Deadshot is targeting businessmen bidding on an energy project, and Walter is one of the men involved. Oliver has no choice but to turn to Detective Lance for help to protect his family while he taken on the killer.

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FAN RECAP

TV.com Episode Review

Arrow "Lone Gunmen" Review: Mostly Dead On

"Lone Gunmen" was a big step up from the second episode-itis of "Honor Thy Father," and it also gave us a sense of what this show is going to be, which is a superhero procedural mixed with some decent character work.

By Noel Kirkpatrick, Oct 25, 2012

Fan Episode Reviews (10)

Lone Gunmen

10

By hell693, Nov 22, 2012

This episode introduced one of my favorite villains Deadshot. His incarnation in this show is much better and more badass than his version in Smallville where he was a cowboy (i like cowboys but it doesnt fit this character sorry smallville). This show is bringing DC Characters fast and i can't wait to meet more of the character in Arrow. (Spoiler Alert) In the end of the episode deadshot was shot but i dont think he is dead as per the comics oliver takes his eye and i want that to happen because i want to see more of his specially now that olver may have taken his eye (if he will be back he will come back with vengeance and revenge on the green arrow and that would be awesome to watch).moreless
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UBER IMPRESSIVE!! Each Better Than The LAST!

10

By JamieHuckeby, Nov 12, 2012

This was an amazingly captivating episode of Arrow! It's definitely not like all the other procedural shows out there which by the middle you're watching the clock an wanting to go for a lil break to the men's room or lady's room as it were. But with Arrow, its like it goes by so FAST! It's over before you know it! An better than that, its entertaining throughout with character development, backstory on the villian, DEADSHOT, and more fascinating, the flashbacks!!! Those were wicked cool! I cannot wait to hear more on why the commandos were looking for him. Was it because of his father's involvement with organized crime, or was it simply another mystery that is the ISLAND? Im not entirely sure, or haven't quite made up my mind as to what my opinion might be as of yet, but i am indeed HOOKED! I also, for sure look forward to a bitter onslaught of nemesis' for Oliver to overcome this season as well as a massive amount of backstory on the island to put our curiosity in check! Perfect 10 in my book.moreless
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Great balance between action and drama

10

By smpm22, Nov 12, 2012

The series has been getting better and better. The director has taken advantage of all their high points. More importantly, they're doing it slowly. Each episode there is a bit of character development, a bit of background story. They're not eager to show off everything in the first part of the season, which is good because they won't run out of ideas early. Like Heroes: the first season was amazing. Then, it was horrible, like they were trying too hard. Hopefully, Arrow won't go through that, and the writers will evenly distribute the story, the drama and the action.

The background story keeps developing. They are slowly explaining how Oliver survived five years on that island, and how he learned all of Arrow's abilities. The island, as it turns out, wasn't desolated. People are living in it; dangerous people. Fortunately, Oliver found himself a protector. Probably the one that teach Oliver everything he knows.

This episode the villain was Deadshot: a hit man that never misses a shot. Oliver found about him when Deadshot killed Oliver's target. And thus the race began. Deadshot wanted to kill some people on Oliver's list. Oliver likes to give the bad guys an opportunity to do what's right and only kills when it's necessary. So, instead of targeting the bad and wealthy of Starling City, Oliver focused on taking out Deadshot and protecting the wealthy. It was a nice twist. Especially because Oliver alone couldn't protect everybody, he needed help. I thought this was going to be Dig's big brake, but instead Oliver asked Detective Lance's help.

Two characters keep growing on me bit by bit: Dig and Moira. Dig is slowly becoming the perfect sidekick. He is doing his job protecting Oliver, but being as perceptive as he is, Dig already suspects Oliver is Arrow, and admires him for that. I think Dig will eventually become an Arrow enabler, especially helping Oliver with his alibis.

I'm liking Moira more and more. I don't know if she's really good, or if she's bad, or if she is a bad person with good feelings. I haven't forgotten she sabotaged the yacht and kidnapped Oliver in the Pilot. But Snow she's behaving more motherly towards Thea and Oliver. She seems so nice and ready to change and become the mother she never was. I don't think she's faking it. I think she's lowered her guard. Last episode she said Oliver didn't knew anything, so maybe she really thinks that and now feels at ease. Thus, being able to act more motherly around her children.

Thea have changed too. She's becoming wilder and more realistic. At first Thea, as a character, felt forced. Now she literally seems like a girl that likes to party and do drugs; a girl that was damaged by her father and brother's death. The moment in which my perspective of Thea changed was when Moira talked with her about Robert Queen. Both of them felt real, a mother and daughter bonding. Even though, in the club scene between Thea and Oliver, Thea still felt forced.

This episode introduced a new character, besides Deadshot: Felicity Smoak, an IT technician. She was funny and dorky, I love her. I really hope she becomes a recurring character. Being a DC character maybe she will.

Arrow is doing a great job maintaining its regular balance between drama, action and suspense. I can't wait for the next episode.moreless
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From Drama to Action

10

By Graeccus, Oct 30, 2012

Arrow is bringing its A-game. The poisoned bullets were very impressive. Escape the shot and you'll still die. This show opens new questions. Every ending is a cliffhanger. Which is good but risky. The bullets VS arrows thing was a kick-ass fight scene. It looked so awesome. Also, Laurel and Tommy looks better together.

Questions:

What kind of plant is that?

He's Bratva? What does that mean? Where'd that tattoo came from?

Is Warren Patel actually involved in this?

PS. I love that he's getting allies especially Diggle.moreless
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There is just so much potential here. I hope that after a few more episodes, Arrow can tap into it.

7.0

By MovieMark, Oct 29, 2012

Three weeks in now and Arrow is already showing signs that it will be a series worth investing your time in, once the kinks are ironed out and the blades sharpened. The underwritten narration/exposition needs to stop (about two episodes ago), and thankfully that will soon be addressed once Oliver's circle of sidekicks grow, as is the case come episode's end.

And, I can't believe I'm saying this, but we get it, Oliver Queen is nicely shaped: Enough with the gratuitous shirtless scenes. (Again, I'm in disbelief at myself right now.)

Meanwhile, on LOST, we find out at a little bit more about Oliver's vacation on the island. Only, it's not enough. I really would like more time spent on delving into this aspect of how he became the man he is today, cos with so many concurring present-day storylines crammed into one episode, it undercuts the awesomeness that is Deadshot. And no-one should ever undercut Deadshot. The mysterious archer who is helping out our stranded playboy is a bit of a head scratcher: I'm gonna shoot you with a bow to save your life. What a top-notch guy. And who was he referring to when he said ''they'd'' kill Oliver? The Others? All I'm saying is that Oliver should watch out for some polar bears. And Jack. Especially Jack!

It seemed a little odd to take out such a note-worthy DC villain so early in the game, especially when you take into consideration that there really wasn't much of a character there to begin with. The action-scenes with Deadshot were slickly handled (and his unnervingly casual bloodbath was just that -- casual and unnerving); but I expected more here from this storyline. What's the point in tapping into DC's roster of villains if you're not going to pay them service? The look and style of Deadshot meshes well with the tone of the show, but I personally preferred Smallville's iteration, if only for the slick bullet-time sequence.

A lot of the drama this week also bored me. Theo still feels like an ex-girlfriend of Oliver's, and the whole family dynamic is too stilted to find in anyway engaging. I really got a kick out seeing Dinah er, kick and punch that Max fella ( cos, ya know, Black Canary-ness) but I also can't really stand whatever is not happening between her and Merlin.

There is just so much potential here. I hope that after a few more episodes, Arrow can tap into it. I appreciate that it's not simply relying on its DC brand, and is attempting to create an ensemble cast first and tackle DC villains second, but the writing needs to be tighter and the show needs to take itself a little less seriously. I'm not looking for Batman & Robin camp here, but everyone outside of Merlin just needs to lighten the eff up a little.moreless
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Cast & Crew: STARS

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Stephen Amell	Oliver Queen/Green Arrow
Colin Donnell	Tommy Merlyn
Katie Cassidy	Dinah "Laurel" Lance
David Ramsey	John Diggle
Willa Holland	Thea Queen
Susanna Thompson	Moira Queen

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Cast & Crew: RECURRING AND GUESTS

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Eugene Lipinski	Alexi Leonov	Guest Star
Tobias Slezak	James Holder	Guest Star
Lini Evans	Business Suit	Guest Star
Colin Salmon	Walter Steele	Recurring Role
Byron Mann	Yao Fei	Recurring Role
Roger R. Cross	Detective Hilton	Recurring Role

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Episode Photos

Stephen Amell and Emily Richards on Arro...

© 2012 The CW Television Network
Stephen Amell on Arrow from "Lone Gunmen".

© 2012 The CW Television Network
Stephen Amell and Michael Rowe on Arrow ...

© 2012 The CW Television Network
Michael Rowe on Arrow from "Lone Gunmen".

© 2012 The CW Television Network

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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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TRIVIA (0)
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QUOTES (9)
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- Oliver: My name is Oliver Queen. To my family, I am the brother and son who just returned home after being lost at sea five years ago. They don't know I came back with a mission, to bring justice to our city, and they never can. The men and women I've targeted are dangerous, corrupt, a virulent cancer. Cancers like James Holder, whose corporation put defective smoke detectors in low-income housing in the Glades. There have been many fires and too many funerals. But cancers can be fought and conquered. All it takes is a surgeon... and the right instrument.
  EDIT SHARE
- Diggle: So how was your evening, sir?
  Oliver: You mean after I said I had to go to the bathroom at dinner and never came back?
  Diggle: I guess from now on I'll be watching you pee.
  EDIT SHARE
- Oliver: Max Fuller?
  Tommy: Hmm-mm.
  Oliver: I slept with his fiancee.
  Tommy: Yeah, before the wedding.
  Oliver: It was at the rehearsal dinner.
  Tommy: The rehearsal dinner is technically before the dinner, right? Besides, who stays mad at a castaway?
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- Tommy: You want to get to him? You got to go through me. Wow, they are probably going to go through me.
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- Tommy: The girl's pretty cute.
  Diggle: That girl is my sister-in-law.
  Tommy: Who I will never speak to or look at... ever.
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- Tommy: Look, man... about Laurel. I was going to tell you. I was just trying to figure out the right way.
  Oliver: To tell somebody that you slept with their girlfriend after they went missing and were presumed dead. What, there's no greeting card for that?
  EDIT SHARE
- Oliver: I was at my coffee shop surfing the web and I spilled a latte on it.
  Felicity: Really?
  Oliver: Yeah.
  Felicity: Because those look like bullet holes.
  Oliver: My coffee shop is in a bad neighborhood.
  EDIT SHARE
- Oliver: I didn't study Shakespeare at any of the four schools that I dropped out of.
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- Oliver: Dig, you got your eyes open?
  Diggle: That's what I'm here for, sir. That and answering patronizing questions.
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NOTES (7)
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- Deadshot
  
  Floyd Lawton first appeared in Batman #59 (June 1950), and was created by Bob Kane, David Vern Reed, and Lew Schwartz. Lawton is the scion of a rich family who turned to crime and mastered firearms out of boredom. He first tried to become Gotham City's new hero but was soon arrested and returned as a Silver Age villain 27 years later (in Detective Comics #474 - Dec. 1977) with a new costume and wrist-mounted magnums. He bounced around for a while as a third-tier Batman villain until John Ostrander made him a "permanent" member of the Suicide Squad (Suicide Squad Vol. 1 #1 - May 1987). Although he had a psychological block that prevented him from shooting Batman, he had no such qualms against other opponents and brutally and directly took them out. Under Ostrander it was eventually revealed that Deadshot had a death wish and had pursued a criminal career from an early age - his father had unknowingly hired him to kill his mother, leading to the various psychological problems that haunt him to this day. Since then, Deadshot has remained a DC villain in good standing.
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- Injoke: Among the countries that Deadshot has visited is Markovia. Markovia is a fictional country that exists only in the DC comics, and is the European home of Prince Brion, better known as Geo-Force.
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- Injoke: Laurel and Joanna are working on the Jurgens case. Dan Jurgens is a long-time DC writer and artist. Besides penning "The Death of Superman" in 1993, he worked on Green Arrow in 2011.
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- Injoke: The names of Deadshot's previous victims, as seen tattooed on his body, are the names of various crew members, including: Glen Winter, Gordon Verheul, Todd Pittman, Ken Shane, Jim Pate, and Andy Haskell. Andrew Diggle is also there, and is the name of the comic book writer that created the comic book mini-series Green Arrow: Year One.
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- Injoke: Big Belly Burgers, the diner that Carly works at, is a popular restaurant chain in the DC comics.
  EDIT SHARE
- Injoke: Floyd's room number, 52, is a reference both to the 52 different realities that make up the post-Final Crisis DC Universe, and the "New 52" that DC titled their kickoff in 2011 when they rebooted all of their comics and their continuity.
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- International Airdates:
  UK: November 5, 2012 on Sky1
  Sweden: February 19, 2013 on Kanal 5
  Portugal: April 28, 2013 on RTP
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