Arrow 8X4: Present Tense

I think this was my favorite episode of this season so far. And this has been a really good season. Just having everyone together in the same timeline was delightful.

Okay, so, at first, we try to keep the truth about what's happening in 2040 from Team Arrow. But, it doesn't take long until we have to spill the beans in order to explain other necessary things. It's no surprise that Mia is very standoffish with Oliver, but he and William get along much better. I mean, they do have a history after all. Oliver is basically a stranger to Mia. And John is shocked and confused when Connor tells him he's his adopted son, since that hasn't happened in his timeline yet.

But anyway, the Deathstroke Gang is now here, in Star City. Connor says he knows where they started back in 2019, so the kids head over there without Team Arrow. However, Team Arrow is not made up of dummies, and they get there shortly after. Unfortunately, Mia stepped on a booby trap and cannot move or the building blows up. Oliver takes care of it, and the they flee to safety.

However, when they first got there, Mia started yelling for JJ, but when his mask is revealed, it's actually Slade Wilson's son. One of the members of Team Arrow overhears this (I cannot remember which one), but is the catalyst to tell the truth about the future. And it does not go well when Rene finds out that John's son killed his daughter.

Mia is hell bent on killing Slade's son. She claims that in the future he was captured and escaped many times. If we kill him now, we can perhaps save Zoe in the future. Laurel tries to talk her out of it, by telling her about the time Felicity wanted to kill Diaz, and ended up being very happy that she never did.

Later, the team splits up to disarm a bomb that Wilson as set (that connected to several other bombs- you know the Arrow drill). Oliver puts himself and Mia on the same team. The one that's going after Wilson. Mia gets there first. And after a bunch of fighting, she has him on the ropes and is ready to kill him. But Oliver shoots him with a wrapping up arrow and spares him. Mia is livid.

Back at the bunker she tells Oliver that she could have killed him. And Oliver tells her knows, but that she didn't really want to. She thanks him for not letting her. I'm not sure I buy this. I have no issue with her changing her mind, but I just don't like how it happened. Like, we really saw Felicity struggle with this when she wanted to kill Diaz. I don't think we got the same payoff here.

While all of this is going on, Curtis is working on some scrap of fabric that we got from the Monitor (I think). After analyzing it, he thinks they can make a weapon to defeat the Monitor. But getting the pieces will be difficult and illegal. Plus, we've got to go to Russia. Fun.

At the end of the episode, the Monitor approaches Laurel and tells that he can bring back Earth 2. All she has to do is betray Oliver.

We all need to sit down and have a frank discussion about who knows what about the Monitor. What he's promised them. Who is helping him. If we don't lay this all out, it's going to be a disaster.