Country of origin United States Original network The CW | No. of episodes 23 | |
Original release October 9, 2013 (2013-10-09) – May 14, 2014 (2014-05-14) | ||
The second season of the American television series Arrow premiered on The CW on October 10, 2013 and concluded on May 14, 2014 with a total of 23 episodes. The series is based on the DC Comics character Green Arrow, a costumed crime-fighter created by Mort Weisinger and George Papp. The showrunners for this season were Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim and Andrew Kreisberg. This season introduces characters from The Flash, which was being developed as a potential spin-off at the time.
Contents
Premise
The series follows Oliver Queen (Stephen Amell), billionaire playboy of Starling City, who spends five years shipwrecked on a mysterious island. Upon his return to Starling City, he is reunited with his mother, Moira Queen (Susanna Thompson), his sister, Thea Queen (Willa Holland), and his friend, Tommy Merlyn (Colin Donnell). In season two, Oliver has vowed to stop crime without killing criminals, and comes under attack from Slade Wilson (Manu Bennett), a man from Oliver's time on the island who resurfaces with a vendetta against him. Oliver must also contend with outside forces attempting to take over Queen Consolidated, guilt from decisions he made in the past, and secrets harbored by his family and friends. Oliver grows to accept aspiring vigilante Roy Harper (Colton Haynes) as his protégé, and begins to receive assistance from Laurel's father, Officer Quentin Lance (Paul Blackthorne). Oliver also gains another ally; a mysterious woman in black, who is eventually revealed to be Laurel's sister, Sara Lance (Caity Lotz), who had survived her ordeal at sea years prior.
Main
Guest
Episodes
This season was prefaced with a recap episode airing on October 2, 2013, titled "Year One". It featured highlights from season one and a special preview of season two.
Production
On February 11, 2013, The CW renewed Arrow for a second season for the 2013-14 season.
A backdoor pilot for The Flash was originally going to be the twentieth episode, but due to the positive reception of Grant Gustin's appearance in the eighth and ninth episode, executives at The CW scrapped it in favor a traditional pilot so that it gives the developers more time to flesh out the character in addition to receiving an increase in the budget.
Casting
Emily Bett Rickards, Colton Haynes and Manu Bennet were all promoted to series regulars. Jacqueline MacInnes Wood, who originally played Sara Lance in the pilot, did not return and was replaced by Caity Lotz.
Costume design
In the second half of season two, Oliver replaces his "paint" mask with a domino mask, similar to one worn by the character in the comics. The change is addressed on-screen, with Kreisberg saying, "He doesn't just put on a mask. It's actually a big plot point in an episode, and there really is a story behind, not only the need for the mask but also who provides him with it." On adding the mask now, Kreisberg stated that, "Conceptually, it was something we wanted to do because Oliver himself is evolving as the Arrow—from vigilante to hero, sort of from Arrow to Green Arrow—and we wanted to see that progression in his costume as well. As Oliver is embracing being a hero, being a hero means stepping out of the dark and being more of a symbol, so he has to take steps to conceal his identity more." He added that it will "allow the Arrow to interact with people who don't know his identity in a much more organic way than having him constantly keep his head down."
Costume designer Maya Mani put together roughly 50 mask options for the producers. Kreisberg said, "What's so wonderful about the design that Maya came up with is that it really is very simple, and it feels as if it’s been part of his costume since the beginning...once we finally had this mask and put it on Stephen [Amell], even Stephen was like, 'This is the right one.'" In the episode "Three Ghosts", Oliver receives the mask from Barry Allen, who is able to create a mask that will help conceal his identity, while still being functional and allowing Oliver to see clearly.
Critical reception
Season two received favorable reviews. Jeff Jensen of Entertainment Weekly gave the first half of season two a rating of B+, saying, "Arrow possesses an intelligence that shines through its TV-budget production values, which aren't too shabby. The writing is adult and witty, the action is exciting, and Amell holds the center with well-cultivated ease." The A.V. Club's Carrie Raisler gave the first half of season two a rating of A-. She said, "Arrow [has] officially established itself as one of the most satisfying shows on television. The most satisfying thing of all is that it did so by respecting its characters... [Arrow respects] the character’s comic-book roots in its overarching plotlines, all while using the network-appropriate soap-opera stories to do the heavy character lifting."
Ratings
The second season averaged 3.28 million viewers across the 23 episodes, ranking 128th among television show viewership.