Arrow, Season 3 (Eps 1-4)

And so begins The PCS coverage of the third season of CW's Arrow. In case you need a refresher on what's been happening, there's this. And, in case you're behind on how shirtless Stephen Amell became so shirtless, there's this. Now, with all of that out of the way, it's time to fire up the nanobots and see what can be done to SAVE THIS CITY. (Hint: It may involve rock n' roll.)

Episode 1

• Opening your season with a shot of Arrow and the Outsiders. = +10pts
• Re-establishing the most important love story in the show right out of the box, that being Oliver and Diggle. = +5pts (Oliggle 4-Eva!)
• Captain Chest Hair is promoted to Captain Police Face. = +3pts
• Superman Returns...as Roy Palmer. = +4pts (See what we did there?)
• Fight clubbing yourself. = +6pts (Because who else knows you better than you.)
• The Black Canary finds no air in the new Star City coal mine. = -2pts

Episode 2

• Delivering the body of your dead sister to her friend with benefits, who also happens to be your ex-boyfriend. Awkward. = -2pts
• Oliver embarks on a new series of flashbacks with Asian Slade Wilson. = +4pts
• Hanging out in a building where you witnessed a murder and then being surprised when someone shows up looking for said murder. = -3pts 
• Jousting on bikes instead of horses. = +4pts
• Using bows and arrows instead of lances, the event horizon of rubbing your belly while patting your head. = -2pts 
• Shooting an arrow out of the air with your own arrow and then catching the follow-up arrow and shooting someone with it. = +8pts
• It's good to know that Laurel has elected to continue her impressive streak of bad decisions. = -4pts
• Saving money on funeral costs by secretly being buried in a grave people already thought you were in. = +3pts
• You don't have to name your new baby after the most recent dead person you encountered. Baby names aren't a co-op in NYC, you know. = -3pts

Episode 3

• Star City, where the seven stages of grief include:
1. Infidelity
2. Confession
3. Karate (or Krav Maga depending on your sense of entitlement and injustice.)
4. Fashion shoot
5. The Club
6. Archery
7. MMA
• Total points = +7pts

• Corto Maltese, where Daddy Daughter Day includes adorable smiles and second degree burns to your hands. = -2pts
• Your dad crashing your AA meeting. = -4pts
• Macgyvering Arrow quality equipment from your hotel room. I may or may not be a an urban street vigilante but I did just stay at a Holiday Inn. = +2pts
• Oliver and guns. = +10pts

Episode 4

• Hunting your ex-GFs killer with her ex-GF, who also happens to be an assassin and daughter of the most dangerous man on the planet. Call us crazy, but this sounds like a sitcom on FX. = +5pts
•  Playing hide the dead daughter with your police chief dad. = -5pts
• It's a new episode so Laurel must want another person not responsible for her sister's death dead. = -3pts
• If being in the League of Shadows means that we could be the biggest, most popular,  businessman in our city and totally destroy an impoverished neighborhood, resulting in the death of over 500 people, and still be able to chill out in a trendy part of town while being completely unrecognizable despite no alterations to our face/hair/body, then sign us up! = +5pts (Because we love our perks!)
• Parkour flipping into a sleep dart in front of a chick you are trying to bang. = -2pts
• League of Shadow threeway. = +10pts
• We're not sure the "no prison can hold me" excuse means that you shouldn't at least give it the old college try. = -2pts

Season Score = +52pts

Slipping into a new season of Arrow is as comfortable as slipping into a nice comfy quiver. You know, assuming that you're an arrow yourself, metaphorically speaking. And who wouldn't be at this point, three seasons in? Many of the hits have, so far, been played very well:

• Random shocking death? Check! 
• At least one great action sequence per episode? Check! 
• At least one episode where Oliver displays one heretofore unknown talent/ability? Check! 
• Felicity cracking wise? Check! 
• Laurel acting completely erratically in order to still warrant screen time? Check! 
• Male physical specimens wandering around scenes with their shirts off? ch-wait? What?! 

Call us crazy, but there seems to have been a drastic reduction in the number of shirtless workout scenes this season. While the nanobots aren't in panic mode yet, we hope this doesn't signal a turn towards self-seriousness. Arrow is good when it is serious, but not too serious. So here's to hoping the popular DC villain Gym Rat makes an appearance at some point this season. Otherwise we may start to worry.

Score Technician: Sean McConnell