Arrow: Vertigo Review

The CW's promising superhero drama finally reaches an almighty season highlight!
It had to happen sometime- for thirteen weeks now, we've since The CW's new take on the DC character Green Arrow in the form of Arrow emerge into a show with tonnes of potential. Each review I've done for the series so far, though, has always come with that one key caveat that's stopped each instalment from aspiring to be up with the greats of television. What a brilliant surprise it is, then, for me to be able to confirm that Vertigo succeeds where all of its predecessors have failed, finally taking that much-needed step from episode quality merely being 'good' to something 'great'.

Easily the most contributory element to Vertigo's success has to be the incredibly compelling core narrative. We get dealings with the sinister Count Vertigo, Thea's suspicions about her parents, Oliver's mother and the treachery she's hiding regarding the list, and the Green Arrow's status as either a hero or a vigilante in good measure, along with a few brief flashbacks to the island, and while past entries have got crowded as a result of juggling all of these key plot components, this instalment simply shines as a result from mastering a perfect balance of the lot. Yep, even those pesky flashback sequences which had become a point of tedium in recent episodes are picking up that same intrigue which defined them so heavily in Arrow's earlier days, and with any luck they'll start to build to an exciting climax as we move into the final quarter of this ambitious and brilliant first season of adventures.

All of the cast are on fine form, too, with Stephen Amell getting a great chance to flourish in his role of a hero whose allegiances and boundaries are being tested not only by the growing power and influence of his adversaries, but his loyalties to his allies as well. We've frequently seen the likes of Laurel, Felicity and Thea be placed in some kind of danger as a result of the Hood's fights, yet Vertigo marked the first time when Arrow properly slowed down for a moment to deal with the repercussions of such family conflict, allowing Amell's Oliver Queen the time to contemplate the effect he's had on his friends' lives since donning his costume in the past year since his return.

Better yet, Vertigo wasn't afraid to look forward to the future of both the show and its place within the DC Universe. On a basic level, Oliver's discovery that his mother holds a copy of the infamous list of names the Green Arrow must destroy was masterfully handled, and should hopefully pivot seamlessly into an arc of deception and secrecy that reaches a climax in the days ahead. Moreso, though, with the introduction of the great Heath Ledger Joker-riffing Count Vertigo (Gabe Newell), a man who's clearly driven mad by his own intoxicants come the episode's cliffhanger conclusion, we've got a deliberate teaser for the arch-foes that Green Arrow will acquire in his days as a fully-fledged superhero, something that The CW's production team on Smallville didn't always handle with as much grace as they do here.

Ultimately, Arrow: Vertigo transcends the boundaries so many of its predecessors have placed on the show in terms of narrative, character arcs and cast performances, and for that reason among so many others, it remains a defining season highlight that proves in great measure why Arrow is one of 2013's best TV offerings so far.
5/5