Swinging back into the mayoral plotline we briefly forgot about this season, Code of Silence is actually a pretty tame episode of Arrow...which means they’re probably going to hit us hard in the next episode. (Spoilers regarding future episodes at the end!)
Oliver and Thea are running through the debate rules when Ruvé Adams, his new opponent, swings by to introduce herself formally. When she leaves, Oliver and co. decide to do some recon, following her home as their alter egos. Though they lose the tail, she pops up out of the Darhk (couldn’t resist) to send a message to them from her husband, managing to distract them and losing their tail once again.
In the foundry, Team Arrow is less than thrilled that they’ve lost her and any chance at finding Darhk while Darhk and his team are feeling much better in their own lair. In a meeting with H.I.V.E., the board is not quite sure how to deal with Oliver Queen. Damien is positive he’s going to be able to take care of him, thanks especially to Malcolm’s tip at the end of last week’s episode.
Worried about her father, Laurel’s doing some checking up on him, worried Darhk’s ready to make a move when he figures out it was Lance that betrayed him. She decides to join him as he checks in on a possible breaking and entering charge using the excuse of grabbing dinner later, but he tries to brush off her worries. At the site, he asks her to stay in the car; at the perfect moment, she manages to grab him out of harm’s way and pull him out of a building that begins to collapse as they’re inside. Diggle patches him up but they’re worried Darhk has finally figured out Lance was the leak. In an effort to keep those he loves safe, he breaks things off with Donna.
Back at the Queen apartment, Donna is keeping herself busy by helping Felicity plan her wedding to Oliver. She’s managed to completely commandeer the event planning, overwhelming Felicity in the process while Oliver is distracted by the mayoral race. Thea quickly swoops in to steal him away, disclosing that Alex found a discrepancy in one of Moira’s former tax returns. Turns out the late matriarch of the Queen family once wrote a $1 million check to someone named Samantha Clayton...which was never cashed. Oliver advises Thea to drop the issue but it’s clear she’s not going to leave it alone.
Felicity finally manages to track down where the calls to Lance came in. They trace it back to an empty building, where a group of highly trained agents are operating in. Though Team Arrow manages to catch them off guard, the group sets off a self destruct sequence to bring the building down behind them. Thea stays behind to grab their laptop, hoping for some evidence of their next nefarious plan, barely making it out as the walls come down around her.
Turns out they’re called the “Demolition Team” and a part of H.I.V.E. As the laptop turns out to be a dead end, Felicity gets called away by Donna, who’s upset about the breakup with Lance. She admits that she’s been using the wedding as a form of escapism; Oliver’s a great guy who is always honest with Felicity, something Donna recognizes is rare and appreciates it for Felicity. We’re just going to skim over the whole, “Oliver is actually a vigilante who runs around town in a green hood and mask to conceal his identity from everyone,” part.
Oliver’s having a family moment of his own when Thea finally confronts him about his connection to Samantha. He spills that William is his son and that he’s still not happy about having to keep the secret from Felicity, especially with their wedding and his desire to always be honest with her. In a surprising moment of extreme maturity, Thea actually sides with Samantha, reminding Oliver that anyone in his life automatically has a target on their back. Keeping everyone in the dark keeps William safe. It’s moments like these that you see just how far she’s come from the party girl with an attitude problem in season one and get to truly appreciate the character development.
Their talk is interrupted by Diggle, who’s managed to find a lead on the Demolition Team. When he and Oliver arrive on the scene, the team is long gone with a hundred gallon barrel of hyaluronic acid; Diggle speculates they needed it for their next bomb...which is bound to be big.
Determined to get any information on their next attack, Felicity decides to take the computer to Curtis, hopeful he can get something out of it. He manages to salvage a little information and finds the blueprints, sending them to Felicity who quickly determines which building is next: the building they’re having the debate in. They’ve got twenty minutes to showtime, which prompts them to evacuate the building to find the bombs. During their exit, Ruvé Adams (aka Damien’s wife) sends a call out to the Demolition Team, ensuring they do not let Oliver leave alive.
As the Team tries to stop the bombs, the Demolition Team ambushes them. Thea manages to quickly get Laurel out of the way of several small bombs while the team disarms the numerous bombs and makes it back in time for the debate to start in a truly anticlimactic form.
Oliver goes on to win the debate but he’s clearly worried about other things, namely his secret from Felicity and any connection the media can hopefully make to Darhk and Ruvé Adams. There’s little time to worry, however, with the engagement party happening. Lance uses the opportunity to talk with Donna. He admits that he’s been having issues with H.I.V.E., not a gambling problem like he originally told her. She’s touched that he went through all the trouble to keep her and Felicity safe, patching things up.
However, the hands down best moment of the night goes to Curtis, who surprises Felicity with an implantable bio-stimulator. She’s initially confused until Curtis explains it’s meant to help her walk again and should, hopefully, be ready in time for her to make it down the aisle on her own two feet. Can I admit I totally teared up at this moment? Though we’ve had little time to really get to know Curtis, I love his friendship with Felicity and how much he has truly grown to care for her in such a short amount of time. Plus, he seems like one of thos people who just genuinely loves others so purely...it’s nice to see that after seeing everyone else be weighed down by their emotional baggage.
On the island, Oliver succumbs to peer pressure and finally takes out his island nemesis. It’s about as exciting as it sounds. Has anyone actually enjoyed these island flashbacks? I’m seriously hoping to find out why these are relevant to this season very soon.
If we had to rate it, I can’t say this episode would be on par with the past several episodes the show has managed to crank out this half of the season. However, I’m slightly worried they gave us a small filler episode to give us time to be prepared for what’s sure to be a gut wrenching episode next week. The promo teased the kidnapping of William and there’s surely something that happened with Samantha and [SPOILER ALERT] the rumors have been circulating for months that Oliver and Felicity break off their engagement in this episode. I have to admit, I have been rooting for them to get together since their first conversation but what’s better than a little angst?
What are your thoughts and speculation on this episode and the ones coming up? Any theories on who is in the grave? Comment below and let us know!
Arrow airs Wednesdays at 8/7c on The CW.