And I totally don't understand Ollie thinking starting a War with the League is a bright idea

Well, it totally makes sense characterization-wise because Oliver Queen is the king of dumbass decisions. And I say that with love. In this, as in all things, I am Team Diggle. Oliver didn't have to kill Merlyn -- he could have just let Nyssa take care of him! The League was gonna do that anyway, even before Sara's death! But I guess Barrowman is a regular and they needed a season arc.

I actually kinda liked Laurel in this one. She toned down her OTT HULKSMASH face a bit, which helped. Although seeing her in the Arrow Cave still wigs me out.

POOR PAPA LANCE. Instead of being called Arrow, this show should be retitled to Lies We Tell Our Families.

and how do they have access to the Arrow Basement with not owning the building?

Slap a condemned sign on it and enter through secret passage?

You could handwave that Oliver had set up ownership through a dummy corporation so that it didn't trace back to him.

and how do they have access to the Arrow Basement with not owning the building?

Yeah, and if Thea is buying back the foundry, isn't she going to want to go down in the locked basement that she's been denied access to for the past year?

Also, nothing is funnier than Roy doing his badass parkour flip...only to take a tranq dart to the neck. Oh, Roy. You try so hard.

I love watching Barrowman gleefully chew the scenery. It would suck if he were a lesser actor, but he's just so...Barrowman.

I still like the theory that R'as killed Sara. It may be a red herring, but the show is pointing that way.

Finally, I'm starting to think we will never see the salmon ladder again. Boo.

I didn't watch last season's Arrow so I wasn't going to start watching this season, but I have every Wednesday off so I can acatully watch it.

Last night was entertaining and only mildly confusing, I need to go back and find some recaps to read.

I have a couple of questions though that you guys could quickly answer - so everyone who knows about Sara's death (which I assume is Oliver's group, Nyssa and Laurel) is keeping it from her father because he has a heart condition and would die from the grief? Because I can see this ending badly at some point down the line.

Also - what does Thea know about Merlyn, besides she's his father. Does she know he a really bad guy or thinks he's just a corrupt business man or does she know about the whole blowing up innocent people and accidentally killing his own son and is also a trained secret killer. And does she know about Oliver (it didn't seem like she did).

I'm also assuming her investors are either Merlyn himself or something he put together for her.

Finally was it every explicitly stated Sara and Nyssa were a couple (I'm assuming they were an actual couple and it wasn't just one sided on Nyssa's part).

R'as looked more like Meancing Henchman #2 than the actual bad guy so I wonder if once we see him in action he'll be more threatening looking.

I have a couple of questions though that you guys could quickly answer - so everyone who knows about Sara's death (which I assume is Oliver's group, Nyssa and Laurel) is keeping it from her father because he has a heart condition and would die from the grief? Because I can see this ending badly at some point down the line.

They are -- that's mostly Laurel's decision, proving that Ollie isn't the only one who can make bad decisions -- and it surely will end badly.

Also - what does Thea know about Merlyn, besides she's his father. Does she know he a really bad guy or thinks he's just a corrupt business man or does she know about the whole blowing up innocent people and accidentally killing his own son and is also a trained secret killer.

She knows he was behind the undertaking from S1 that killed Tommy (and a bunch of other people) and is a trained secret killer.

And does she know about Oliver (it didn't seem like she did).

Nope. Because Ollie is a dumbass who can't stop keeping secrets.

I'm also assuming her investors are either Merlyn himself or something he put together for her.

I was assuming it was all Merlyn money.

Finally was it every explicitly stated Sara and Nyssa were a couple (I'm assuming they were an actual couple and it wasn't just one sided on Nyssa's part).

It was and they were.

So ... is Malcolm Merlyn a dropout from the League of Assassins? I missed part of the episode, but Nyssa calling him "The Magician" when reporting back to daddy, and knowing about him and his skills, seemed to imply that.

He was trained by the League of Assassins, and at some point asked R'as to release him, presumably so he could go destroy Starling City.