Arrow

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Season 1
Season #: 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1
User Score
7.9

Generally favorable reviews- based on 1184 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 968 out of 1184
  2. Mixed: 102 out of 1184
  3. Negative: 114 out of 1184
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  1. pur__0_0__
    Aug 22, 2021
    9
    The first season of Arrow made us feel many things. This was so good, and we weren't really used to seeing a superhero show on TV. Sure there was Smallville, but that was based on an already established superhero. Here we had Green Arrow, a character from the Justice League we looked over and his only time to shine was in Injustice where Superman beat him to death. So we do know what wasThe first season of Arrow made us feel many things. This was so good, and we weren't really used to seeing a superhero show on TV. Sure there was Smallville, but that was based on an already established superhero. Here we had Green Arrow, a character from the Justice League we looked over and his only time to shine was in Injustice where Superman beat him to death. So we do know what was at stake here. If this season had been bad the entire Arrowverse would have no longer existed. But the makers did a good job. Stephen Amell is now the first thing anyone thinks of when they think of Green Arrow. Another thing this show did so well was the fight scenes. This is probably the first ever superhero show to spend a full season without a single CGI character. All the action was just raw martial arts. And that's what made it so different from the otherwise CGI fests that we are used to seeing in superhero movies and serials.… Expand
  2. celsojack
    May 15, 2021
    9
    Serie without frills, when needed the main character kills. The guy is there to end the crime not to be a hero. A different and bold approach to TV today. Congratulations to the writers
  3. brockcheese
    Feb 22, 2021
    7
    This show is a great introduction to the character and superhero shows as a whole. By pairing the flashbacks on the island with Arrow's current day problems the show feels exciting and propulsive with its narrative structure.
  4. Snowden111
    Jan 3, 2019
    10
    Very good highly recommend it watch this show !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
  5. Termin8ter
    Nov 23, 2018
    8
    This is a great season. Great acting, music, writing, and interesting, quality characters. The action is very well choreographed too. The tone is consistent, which is good. Great stuff, guys.
  6. GarethB
    Oct 23, 2018
    8
    When arrow used to be good, green arrow is turned into a batman lite. But for cw the action is good but let down by lots of discussions in hallways. The dark archer is a good villain and the list is a mysterious hook.
  7. ToshiroUchiha
    Oct 18, 2018
    2
    Anyone who says Arrow a "Anti-hero" is smoking something most of these top reviews are clearly from when the first two seasons came out cause this show hasnt been the same since I like how they took a twist on him and didnt make him the always wisecracking guy and more serious but come on i dont like how he stopped killing completely IK in comics he doesnt kill but this is supposed to be aAnyone who says Arrow a "Anti-hero" is smoking something most of these top reviews are clearly from when the first two seasons came out cause this show hasnt been the same since I like how they took a twist on him and didnt make him the always wisecracking guy and more serious but come on i dont like how he stopped killing completely IK in comics he doesnt kill but this is supposed to be a realistic portal of him let him be different i legit dropped the show after season 4 cause it got so dragged out and cliche dont give him a girlfriend we dont care about that no one ever wonders what whos batman trying to bang we want to see him fight crime and kick ass something season 1 and 2 did amazing… Expand
  8. CoreGamer1408
    Oct 4, 2018
    9
    Oh wow this is great depiction of a gritty anti-hero character who history is told in very interesting mysterious flash blacks. The Arrow makes Batman look like a girls guide scout for sure and could give the Punisher a run for his money. Awseome out of 10 for a TV production.
  9. Jtrapdoor1
    Jul 6, 2018
    7
    A very inconsistent series. The first two seasons were incredibly well written and acted. It is not to say that the rest of the series is not well acted but the writing takes a suicide dive. Seasons 3 and 4 are really aggravating at times with the decisions made. The show at times makes it impossible to distinguish Arrow's hero from Batman. It uses a little too much from the Dark KnightA very inconsistent series. The first two seasons were incredibly well written and acted. It is not to say that the rest of the series is not well acted but the writing takes a suicide dive. Seasons 3 and 4 are really aggravating at times with the decisions made. The show at times makes it impossible to distinguish Arrow's hero from Batman. It uses a little too much from the Dark Knight repertoire in terms of villains, character motivations and at times character inputs. The end of each of these seasons is very similar, feeling very rushed and usually defeating the point of previously established lore within the series. Season 5 attempted to make a big change to how things worked which was a little sloppy in execution but very much appreciated from an avid viewer. This is all turned around in season 6 where they give up on that entirely. The show is worth a go but dips in quality every now and then. Patience may be the best remedy for that… Expand
  10. Krimson24
    Jun 9, 2018
    7
    The season was great but William is literally the worst part of the season. I want him to be killed off. His dialogue is terrible, his acting is horrendous, his timing atrocious. There is no substance of benefit in him being in the show in any way shape of form.
  11. Ninteundo
    Apr 22, 2018
    3
    Season 1: meh.
    Season 2: pretty good.
    Season 3: utter ****
    Season 4: i stopped watching half way through.
  12. Mistahj666
    Dec 29, 2017
    8
    Arrow season 1 had it's ups and downs, but overall they managed to make a cool story and an amazing season finale.
  13. Trenos
    Dec 16, 2017
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. First Season of Arrow is really good show, but i see why people can hate it too. I really love main villain of this season, Josh Barrowman did a really great job.… Expand
  14. spacebear1
    Dec 8, 2017
    8
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Season 1 of Arrow was a fantastic first season of a fantastic show. Stephen Amell is a perfect casting choice for the vigilante known as "The Hood." The villain of the season, John Barrowman's Dark Archer, was also really great. The action scenes were directed really well and the season is filled with feel of suspense and a very climactic and emotional season finale.… Expand
  15. Zadazoom
    Jul 27, 2017
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Great action show with compelling back story. The character Laurel is the most annoying, however. She keeps telling Oliver (lead) she wants nothing to do with him, but we see her in almost every scene. Telling him how it can't happen between them. Duh, we get it already. And for a hard working D A she spends a hell of a lot of time in clubs and partying. And she is an as st DA in an office where there are all this comely women u under the age of 30. Where the main topic of conversation is her dating life. Yeah right. Her father the cop ( of course cliche plot device) sets himself up at every turn to harass Oliver, because he blames him for his other daughters death. Is he the only cop in the city? Like his personal vendetta would not come to the attention of his superiors? Or the family would not use their influence to get this guy off. Their backs? The holes in this should be plugged up. The actress playing Laurel is as annoying as the character she plays. The guy comes back after 5 years of abscence believed to be dead and no one gives him any slack for what he might have went through. They just expect him to be the same guy who he was when he left. Always telling him how insensitive he is. I guess this is supposed to add to the angst of his character. His best friend is a throw away character with no real value, but I suppose I. Later episodes he will be into something sinister. Another worn plot device. The actor playing Oliver / Arrow brings a dimension to the character that makes the others look shallow and decisive. Too bad. Get rid of Laurel, the side kick and maybe the show will be more intriguing.… Expand
  16. dcutler
    Apr 12, 2017
    9
    When you look at all the superhero shows that are out today they all had to come from some foundation and that was Arrow Season 1. The season showed all the tragedy that one man went through on an Island for 5 years in the North China Sea called Lian Yu. He eventually gets home with one goal to save his city.
  17. MiguelSoares14
    Apr 12, 2017
    2
    I usually do not like this type of series from Marvel or DC with Super Heroes and this one was not an exception. I gave it more than one opportunity but after the first good impression on the story i got dissapointed with it. Too many guys with arrows for me in a world with powerful guns. Every episode feel like the same and too predictable.
  18. nubbinater
    Mar 21, 2017
    10
    This show is fantastic. Great character development, stunning action, just overall great. Even season 3 (potentially its worst season) was great, just very dark and one-dimensional. Every season has added characters, and kept me caring about their relationships with one another as they grow.
  19. gregoryl09
    Feb 16, 2017
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I liked this show initially, but after awhile they started getting to be more and more of a drama, until season 5 when they just flushed themselves down the toilet. This show is now to become blatant leftist propaganda, starting first with gun control promotion, sacrificing the story to promote a political agenda. Bad form.… Expand
  20. travellyn
    Jan 9, 2017
    8
    Arrow bides it's time and it's worth it with a great cast brilliant development and heavy drama all while using awesome action arrow hits the bullseye in its first season
  21. disankey
    Dec 25, 2016
    4
    This show started off great. The first two seasons were well written, directed and acted. Season 3 got a bit boring for me. Season 4 was second best to season 1. Sadly, season 5 so far is awful. I am so tired having a show where I like the actors and team then poof, they are mostly gone. Another thing that is annoying is the way shows portray relationships never working out and getThis show started off great. The first two seasons were well written, directed and acted. Season 3 got a bit boring for me. Season 4 was second best to season 1. Sadly, season 5 so far is awful. I am so tired having a show where I like the actors and team then poof, they are mostly gone. Another thing that is annoying is the way shows portray relationships never working out and get off all the whining. I'm not a prude but hey come on, so many shows write that the characters jump in and out of love more often than they shower. Ya know, some people still believe that when you say I love you it really means something but these writers only devalue the concept of love and truly binding relationships. On the other hand, I admit, this is the soap opera drama crap that so many people seem to soak up and think is how real relationships work. The other thing that is getting rather annoying in this show as well as others is the constant self recrimination bit. Come on, you make a choice, you commit and go for it. If it doesn't work out you learn and just move on. Stop all the self loathing, whining and BS. I will try one or two more episodes in hopes in improves.… Expand
  22. Joshuan
    Oct 18, 2016
    7
    The Arrow

    The Arrow focuses on a billionaire who was shipwrecked on an island. His boat is destroyed by a storm and a saboteur. While floating in a lifeboat hundreds of miles from civilization his father gives him a list of people that have destroyed Oliver’s home town. When he reaches the island he is the only still alive as his father killed everyone else including himself so he would    The Arrow

    The Arrow focuses on a billionaire who was shipwrecked on an island. His boat is destroyed by a storm and a saboteur. While floating in a lifeboat hundreds of miles from civilization his father gives him a list of people that have destroyed Oliver’s home town. When he reaches the island he is the only still alive as his father killed everyone else including himself so he would have enough food. The Island holds many dangers and enemies, but it also contains a few friends that make this man into a survivor with many traits of a very highly trained soldier. His name was Oliver Queen, but now he best known as “The Vigilante.” When he gets rescued he takes the list his father gave him and he deals with those people through whatever means necessary. At first he easily kills or discourages these people but he eventually runs into complications that make the show more exciting. The Arrow is a very interesting and exciting show that uses unrealistic and impossible scenarios to envelope the viewer.
    This show is very similar to other superhero shows and movies where the hero is able to dodge bullets and catch arrows. Like in many other superhero movies, the Arrow in this case is unable to shoot straight when facing a super villain but is able to do fantastic things and never miss while facing against regular people. This show is very cheesy so you need to turn your brain off while watching it if you want to enjoy it. There are many plot holes and impossible scenarios in this show that you must ignore. In season three a main character who trained with Oliver reveals her identity but no one even glances at Oliver which is unbelievable because some main characters were already suspecting that he was the arrow. Many people would say that it is too unrealistic to enjoy but the action scenes make up for the unrealistic situation they are in.
    While it is as believable as a pig flying a plane, the show can be very exciting. Every episode has many action scenes and they constantly flash back to Oliver’s death defying time on the island. The flashbacks show him getting tortured, killing terrorists, becoming an assassin, and making some very dangerous enemies. I found myself enjoying the flashbacks much more thane events because the flashback is possible and believable, however unlikely, at least for the first two seasons. Many of the episodes are repetitive but the there are still many fantastic surprises.
    While the show still goes on, the writers seem to be struggling with more ideas to add. The show is becoming sporadic and using things that contradict information they give the viewer in a previous season as if they have simply forgot. In one season they have a criminal fight off hundreds of soldiers with only a sword and bow but later have the same criminal get knocked unconscious in a prison brawl. The viewers are left to wonder, will the writers find more inspiration or will the show fall apart?    … Expand
  23. timjunior5
    May 18, 2016
    9
    With movie-like action sequences, amazing character development, and top-notch dialogue, Arrow succeeds as a great comic-book TV Show! The complex and interwoven motives and backstories of the characters make this show a must-watch for anyone interested in comic book action/adventure TV Shows.
  24. ihatefilm
    Mar 29, 2016
    10
    Rich white guy with daddy issues tries to save his city by fighting crime in a costume. No this isn't Batman. Based on DC's Green Arrow, CW has created a superhero show for a slightly more mature audience. If you don't like superheroes who kill, this season is not for you. Season one has a fantastic story arc and Stephen Amell, David Ramsey and Paul Blackthorne really standout among anRich white guy with daddy issues tries to save his city by fighting crime in a costume. No this isn't Batman. Based on DC's Green Arrow, CW has created a superhero show for a slightly more mature audience. If you don't like superheroes who kill, this season is not for you. Season one has a fantastic story arc and Stephen Amell, David Ramsey and Paul Blackthorne really standout among an overall solid cast.… Expand
  25. Britar1720
    Feb 6, 2016
    10
    The flash backs are wonderful, all the hints and easter eggs are so much fun, the cast is great, real life hero would make the comic arrow proud! I love all the spin offs, but this is my favorite of the shows. I love felicity, the constant introduction to loved comic characters, and the tone of the show. Added bonus of mocking "arrow cave" and "arrow mobile" when the comic got started, andThe flash backs are wonderful, all the hints and easter eggs are so much fun, the cast is great, real life hero would make the comic arrow proud! I love all the spin offs, but this is my favorite of the shows. I love felicity, the constant introduction to loved comic characters, and the tone of the show. Added bonus of mocking "arrow cave" and "arrow mobile" when the comic got started, and the shows roots similar to batmans. (:… Expand
  26. charmanestarr
    Jan 29, 2016
    8
    I believe this show accomplishes what it was intended to do, appeal to a wide audience and have a balance of action, adventure, explosions, love stories, sex, drama, etc. This series is every bit as a soap opera as it is a super hero show. It executes it all in a satisfactory balance.
    For some it will be too dramatic and corny with all the emotions and soap operas. That person will have    I believe this show accomplishes what it was intended to do, appeal to a wide audience and have a balance of action, adventure, explosions, love stories, sex, drama, etc. This series is every bit as a soap opera as it is a super hero show. It executes it all in a satisfactory balance.
    For some it will be too dramatic and corny with all the emotions and soap operas. That person will have to watch another show if emotion and human conflict bother them.
    An excellent show that has moments of being lame. As with life, this show becomes extremely better once you accept the BS and focus on what makes it worth it.    … Expand
  27. byambaa2010
    Jan 22, 2016
    7
    This show has good villains and actions. But I am really tired of their bullsh*t relationship problems. Characters are just so weak always complaining, whining about their life. Specially Laurel Lance.
  28. G_man
    Dec 23, 2015
    4
    I used to like this show. I just couldn't get over how bad some scenes are. For example, specially in the first 2 seasons, the Arrow kept making unrealistic shots; Like when he shoot his enemies' weapons from the side while running behind them. Another example is from Season 4. Queen was in a car surrounded by armed soldiers who were shooting the car. He was taking cover in the back seatI used to like this show. I just couldn't get over how bad some scenes are. For example, specially in the first 2 seasons, the Arrow kept making unrealistic shots; Like when he shoot his enemies' weapons from the side while running behind them. Another example is from Season 4. Queen was in a car surrounded by armed soldiers who were shooting the car. He was taking cover in the back seat for a while before he slowly climbed from the back seat to the front, while being shot at from different directions by trained soldiers, and drove away. The only reason why I continued to watch the show is for the Flash tv series which is much better than this one.… Expand
  29. sehecman
    Dec 6, 2015
    9
    Easily the show's best season, even if its finale does fall flat. Watching Oliver Queen dole out vigilante justice in a morally gray manner makes for great television. It has its weaknesses no doubt, but as a fun, if at times repetitive, action series, Arrow does a good job. Unlike the later seasons, this one gets the formula just about right, properly balancing the action and primaryEasily the show's best season, even if its finale does fall flat. Watching Oliver Queen dole out vigilante justice in a morally gray manner makes for great television. It has its weaknesses no doubt, but as a fun, if at times repetitive, action series, Arrow does a good job. Unlike the later seasons, this one gets the formula just about right, properly balancing the action and primary conflict with just the right measures of human subplot and moral debate.… Expand
  30. slock
    Nov 20, 2015
    6
    Agree with most of the negative reviews but I still watch this (& enjoy it, lazily) just because it's easy to get sucked into the visual stylized darkness of the whole thing. A positive review said it's sort of a Grey's Anatomy (Shonda Rhimes type) in DC comic mode which is true. Also agree with another reviewer that they should drop all the island flashbacks. [ They are tedious (imv).]Agree with most of the negative reviews but I still watch this (& enjoy it, lazily) just because it's easy to get sucked into the visual stylized darkness of the whole thing. A positive review said it's sort of a Grey's Anatomy (Shonda Rhimes type) in DC comic mode which is true. Also agree with another reviewer that they should drop all the island flashbacks. [ They are tedious (imv).] The depiction of individual self-doubt and weakness is kind of refreshing, even if in such a contrived context… Expand
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Awards & Rankings

41
#41 Best TV Season of 2012
2
#2 Most Discussed TV Season of 2012
2
#2 Most Shared TV Season of 2012

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
73

Generally favorable reviews - based on 25 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 21 out of 25
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 25
  3. Negative: 0 out of 25
  1. People Weekly
    Reviewed by: Tom Gliatto
    Nov 12, 2012
    88
    The CW's best show since Gossip Girl.... it has a forthright narrative seriousness, a respect for the gobbledy-gook that makes up any superhero's backstory--and a game cast performing with the correct degree of seriousness. [19 Nov 2012, p.35]
  2. Entertainment Weekly
    Reviewed by: Ken Tucker
    Oct 23, 2012
    83
    Your interest in Arrow depends on how much you miss the troubled-in-love, conflicted-by-family heroics of Smallville--it mirrors that series' setup.
    Read full review
  3. Chicago Sun-Times
    Reviewed by: Lori Rackl
    Oct 10, 2012
    75
    This slick action-drama is based on the comic book superhero Green Arrow. Prepare to quiver.
    Read full review
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