Shermdawg says of last week’s “This Is Your Sword”:
TLDR VERSION!!!
* Ra's reveals Maseo/Sarab gave him the Alpha & Omega bio-weapon to join the League.
* Oliver has been undercover and working with Merlyn to take down the League from the inside.
* Akio died from the virus, and General Shrieve got the upper hand on Ollie, Tatsu, and Maseo in the flashback.
* Thea tracked down Roy, they did the nasty, he took off again but gave her his red jacket.
* Ray turns the company over to Felicity without her knowledge.
* Merlyn and Tatsu tell Team Arrow about Ra's plans and convince them to help Ollie.
* In Nanda Parbat, the team have an epic battle and take out the plane carrying the Starling City bound virus.
* Tatsu dons her Katana outfit, fights and kills Maseo/Sarab, he thanks her for releasing him.
* Ra's reveals the plane was a decoy to weed out a traitor.
* Tatsu says Maseo was the traitor, Merlyn says it was Oliver.
* Diggle is still super pissed about Oliver kidnapping his wife.
* Ra's exposes Felicity, Diggle, Laurel, Ray, and Merlyn to the virus. Ollie shows no emotion.
* Al Sah-him (Ollie) marries Nyssa. Nyssa fails at killing him mid-ceremony.
* Team Arrow appear to be dead.Previously on "Arrow"...
* When we last left Al Sah-him (Oliver Queen) and current Heir to the Demon of Ra's al Ghul's mantle, he was informed he would marry Nyssa al Ghul before flying to Starling City and releasing the Alpha & Omega bio-weapon completing his ascension to Demon's Head.
* Ra's reveals that after losing his child, Maseo Yamashiro (now known as "Sarab") had the courage to demand the audience of him and brought the bio-weapon to his doorstep as an offering to join the League, while others brought money and treasures. The revelation of this news elicits a momentary break in character for Sah-him.....there may be some traces of Ollie left after all!
* Back in Starling, after having his best friend kidnap his wife, John Diggle takes out his rage on the city's scum. Laurel assists him, and after having a difficult time with one opponent in the previous episode, can now somehow manage three at once. They make quick work of a gang of thugs but Diggle has to be pulled off of one poor sap while caught up in the lingering anger of recent events. They meet up with Felicity back at Diggle's apartment where he ices his bloodied hand. Felicity tells him he can't keep putting people in the hospital because he's mad at Oliver. He promises it won't happen again before Laurel accuses her of having a "sanguine" attitude about things. (Who the fuck says "sanguine"!?) "Oliver died the day he joined Ra's" Felicity says. When asked if she honestly believes that, she says she has to.
* Nyssa, dressed more regal than we've ever seen joins her father and Al Sah-him for dinner, but waves off the food offered to her. "Ah yes, many a bride has skipped a meal or two before their wedding day" Ra's jests. "I would rather die than marry this pretender" she snaps back. Ra's informs her that after they wed, she will extend his lineage and bear Al Sah-him a child. She balks at the idea. "You will have as little say in the matter as your mother was given" he replies before turning to Sah-him and asking him why he's been quiet. "While I am prepared for ascension, I'm still coming to terms with marriage" he says before suggesting a walk to clear his head. Ra's suggests taking some guards as escort, but he refuses. "If I can not protect myself, then I am not worthy of inheriting your mantle" he says before palming a knife from the table and walking off as Nyssa glares at him.
* On his walk a masked archer sneaks up on Sah-him, who he quickly subdues. "You're late" he says as the archer removes his mask revealing that it's.....Malcolm Merlyn! Ollie's been undercover this entire time! The two have a fireside chat where Oliver tells him Ra's demands and is none too happy that Malcolm failed to inform him he'd have to destroy his home in the last step to ascension. Malcolm says he was under the impression they'd have more time to pull off their plan and dismantle the League from the inside. Oliver says they need help, but both agree Malcolm would never be able to convince Team Arrow on his own. Fortunately Ollie says he knows someone that might change their minds.
* Back in flashbackland... Oliver, Maseo, and Tatsu seek help for Akio who's been infected with the virus. They take refuge from the panic stricken streets of Hong Kong, where Tatsu sings to her son trying to ease his pain. Maseo tells Oliver he's going after General Shrieve and is bringing back a cure, Ollie agrees to help.
* Thea tracks down Roy who has relocated to a new town after faking his death to clear Oliver's name. He's now going by "Jason" and working as a mechanic. Thea gives him his Arsenal costume, tells him about Ollie, and they make love. The next morning she wakes up to an empty bed and learns he's quit his job and left town. He left her a message saying he should have been dead or in jail and she changed his life, she made him the man he always wanted to be, and now it was time he repaid the favor by letting her be the person he knew she could be without him, her father, or Ollie. That and Oliver didn't join Ra's just so she spend her life running from the law with him. He says his goodbyes, and leaves her his jacket saying red was more her color anyway.
* Felicity visits Ray who cheers her up, and before she leaves he has her sign papers that she is told are just "run of the mill corporate bs", but it turns out he had just turned ownership of the company over to her without her knowledge!
* Sarab spots Al Sah-him still sitting by the fire, he tells him he took a vial of the bio-weapon from the truck they blew up in the previous episode. He said he wanted revenge on Shrieve even before his son Akio was infected for the pain he caused and intended to unleash it upon him, but instead used it to get himself into the League of Assassins because he wasn't strong enough for himself, nor his wife. Sah-him asks if he would go back to her if he could, and offers to release him from his oath when he ascends. "I can release you from your prison" he says, but Sarab tells him that Maseo Yamashiro is no more and rejects the offer saying the League was not his prison....and from his prison "there is no escape."
* Malcolm calls for a Team Arrow meeting. He tells them the entire thing with Oliver and the League was a charade. The group naturally questions why they should believe him...especially Laurel who brings up the fact he had her sister killed, as well as why Ollie would choose him of all people as the only person to assist his efforts in embedding himself into the League. Malcolm says Oliver knew he was better versed in the art of deception. He says the circle of trust had to be as small as possible for the plan to work. He then introduces them to Tatsu Yamashiro. Despite telling the group she knew Oliver back in Hong Kong and that she nursed him back from the brink of death after his duel with Ra's, Diggle isn't swayed until she brings up her son Akio (who Oliver had told him about), him dying from the virus, and Ra's plans to release it in Starling. She says she is not aware of their past with Merlyn and this request of assistance comes straight from Oliver. "That's not any better at this point" Diggle replies. Malcolm reminds them his daughter lives in Starling and gives them all of the info he has on the bio-weapon. He tells them if they're coming with him, to decide by dawn.
* Ra's visits Nyssa and presents her with her mother's necklace that he gave her when she gave him the gift of a child. He tells her that he kept the necklace in hopes that she would wear it on the day she'd marry. Nyssa seems taken by its beauty before tossing it to the side asking him if he thinks trinkets would easily sway her into marrying a man she didn't love. Ra's grabs her by the chin and pulls her closer. He promises if she doesn't, she'll suffer a fate "worse than a thousand deaths." As he walks off it's revealed she was holding a dagger hidden in her sleeve.
* Team Arrow watch footage of the Hong Kong outbreak, and Diggle says if there's even a chance of that landing in his city he's reporting for duty. Laurel is with him, but expresses hesitation saying she could never return to Nanda Parbat after what they did to Oliver. She however changes her mind after a conversation with Tatsu who encourages her to not let The League take Oliver away as it took Maseo from her. The next morning she joins the others but promises Merlyn that if he's lying, she will let the world know he's alive.
* Upon arriving in Nanda Parbat, Tatsu dons her Katana outfit from the comics and travels with Team Arrow to the village ruins that Ra's took Al Sah-him in the previous episode. They spot a fighter jet in the distance that Merlyn says will release the bio-weapon over Starling and just as Felcity gears up to sabotage it, the group find themselves surrounded by League assassins. A battle ensues. Tatsu slices fools left and right until Sarab enters the fray. He orders her to surrender and she may live. She tells him he left her when she needed him the most, but it's not too late to come back to her. "Your husband is long dead and if Sarab must die as well, so be it" he replies pulling out his sword.
* As Tatsu and Sarab begin to fight off in the distance, Merlyn saves Laurel with two arrows to the back of an assassin who had her in a chokehold, she says she wouldn't have done the same for him, to which Merlyn replies "I know."
* Despite Felicity frantically trying to gain control of the plane with her tablet, it begins to take off. "Frak!" she says. Suddenly an arrow lands through the tablet's screen destroying it. "More frak!" she adds as she pulls the arrow out and flings the device back at her attacker hitting him in the throat which seemingly stops him. She smiles in amazement. That smile is quickly replaced with an "oh" face when he topples over revealing an arrow in his back courtesy of Merlyn. "Yeah, that makes more sense" she says before turning her focus back to the plane which is now in the air. Diggle takes a few shots at it hoping to stop it, but to no avail. "Can you take it down?" Merlyn asks. "My tech's destroyed....but I brought insurance" she replies.
* From out of nowhere, Ray swoops into frame wearing the Atom suit. He fires on the jet, the jet fires a missile back, it hits him and takes out his wrist cannon, now unarmed Ray is forced into flying full speed into the jet blowing it up. The impact unfortunately sends him crashing to the ground. Felicty runs over worried to find him catching his breath. "You should see the other guy!" he says.
* The sword fight continues until Sarab sweeps Tatsu off her feet and readies his sword. He asks her to tell Akio he loves him, but before he can act she springs to her knees and drives her katana into his chest. "You tell him for the both of us " she says before pulling out the blade and embracing him. He thanks her for releasing him from his prison and she tearfully sings the song she had sung for Akio as Sarab slips away.
* As Laurel and Diggle take out their remaining adversaries, Ra's....with Al Sah-him by his side, appears and orders for them to stop. Another wave of assassins surround them. He tells them they have failed and any further attempt to undermine their cause would be futile. He pulls out the Alpha & Omega virus and reveals they just took out a decoy. Al Sah-him then gives them the option to "surrender or die!"
* Al Sah-him escorts Team Arrow to back at the palace. He tells Felicity to be quiet and if any of them talked they'd all die. He leads them to Ra's who reveals the trap laid out for them was simply a ruse to identify any traitors amongst the League. He asks them how they were aware of the plans to release the virus. Tatsu says it was Sarab. "How convenient a dead man told you" Ra's replies not convinced. She reminds him only three knew of his plans. Sarab, Oliver, and himself. "Oliver Queen is dead" Sah-him says. Ra's reconsiders her claim and states "This wouldn't be the first time Sarab has betrayed me due to the weaknesses he had for you." The topic of conversation quickly turns to the revelation of Al Sah-him's impending wedding to Nyssa which shocks the group, particularly Felicity.
* Once imprisoned, Team Arrow ponders the wedding and their escape before a guard comes for Diggle. He's taken to Al Sah-him's quarters where Ollie breaks character and asks if everyone is ok. "Like you give a damn" Diggle fires back before questioning the morals of taking Lyla in front of their infant daughter. Ollie tells him he needed a way to prove his loyalty to Ra's, and to gain that loyalty he had to sacrifice everything he cared about including Diggle's friendship. "You didn't just lose my friendship, you lost my trust....and my respect" he replies.
* Back to the flashback, Ollie and Maseo arrive at General Shrieve's base. They force him into giving them the cure and take him back to Akio and Tatsu. Sadly they realize they're too late. Akio lays dead in Tatsu's arms. Shrieve reveals there was no cure anyway and what he had given them was insulin. Suddenly laser dots pop up on Oliver's chest. Upon gaining the upper hand, Shrieve thanks Ollie for leading him him back to Tatsu, that it saved him from having to track them all down.
* Ra's confronts Merlyn. He says the treachery of Al Sah-him's friends was expected, his however was disappointing....especially after saving his daughter. Merlyn says the last time he was standing before him in chains he offered his fealty, and he is there to offer it again. Ra's says he had nothing to offer then, and he has nothing to offer now holding a sword to his throat. "I have the name of the person that betrayed you to Al Sah-him's friends, it wasn't Maseo Yamashiro, it was Oliver Queen, he's been lying to all along." Merlyn reveals. Al Sah-him walks in on the two. Merlyn apologizes to Oliver calling him by name. Ra's tells him Merlyn ratted him out. Sah-him reminds him that he's killed for him, severed all ties to his past, hurt the people he called friends, and would've killed Nyssa upon his request if he hadn't stopped him. Ra's still questions if all of that was part of an elaborate ruse, to which Sah-him says "if it is, I will have nothing, and no one to go home to. Oliver Queen is dead, and the Arrow gone." "We shall see" Ra's replies.
* Back in the dungeon, Felicity ask Diggle what Oliver had said. "Nothing worth hearing" he answers. Felicity apologizes to the others and says that they were right about Ollie. Ra's and Sah-him bring Meryln back to the cell and toss him to the ground as he is still begging Ra's for mercy. Ra's says he is giving him mercy, his death will be far shorter than he originally planned. He says that Al Sah-him has told him that Tatsu has been inoculated from the virus and has her removed from the cell. He pulls out the vial containing the bio-weapon. Team Arrow begins to panic, begging for Oliver to do something. Ra's tosses it to the ground, and as it shatters orders the room to be sealed. The group continue their pleads, but he ignores them and walks off as a glass containment door slowly drops over the cell trapping them inside.
* The wedding ceremony is about to begin. Al Sah-him approaches Ra's who tells him he is currently "Wareeth al Ghul - Heir to the Demon", and before the night is over, he will be "Ibn al Ghul - Son of the Demon." (So to save his city Oliver had to become something else after becoming something else before becoming something else....ok, gotcha.) Sah-him nods. Nyssa enters and approaches them under a path of the crossed swords of the League members in attendance. As the ceremony begins we see shots of the Team Arrow members suffering from the effects of the virus. Midway through, Nyssa lets her dagger drop from her sleeve and attempts to slash Al Sah-him's throat, but he blocks it and forces it to the floor. He asks for the ceremony to continue.
* Back in the cell Diggle apologizes to Felicity, she says he has nothing to be sorry for and she was glad to have known him. Just as the two pass out Al Sah-him and Nyssa al Ghul's "union is sealed."
The CW says of this week’s “My Name Is Oliver Queen”:
Everyone's lives are in danger as Ra's al Ghul puts forth his final plan. Oliver/Al Sah-him must decide if he's strong enough to take on this new role and what it will mean for everyone on Team Arrow, and his soul.
The Prequel To GAME OF THRONES!! $21.78 Hardback!! $11.99 Kindle!!
