Arrow Episode 3.16 Recap, The Offer

The episode begins with a fresher of how the last episode ended, wherein Ra’s al Ghul wants Oliver to replace him. He tells him that Ra’s is a title, greater than any one man, and the man he succeeded relayed a phrase to him, “A tale to be told, begins thus.” Ra’s walks Oliver through the catacombs of Nanda Parbat where they observe some ninja training and he talks about the people who approach them desire purpose and all they owe is loyalty, and their death. Both of them sit at a table for dinner where Ra’s sees right through Oliver regarding his duel identity. Oliver knows he’s right but he hides it well, despite Ra’s prophesying that his city will turn on him, his friends will call him a criminal, and he will be hunted one day.

Back in Starling, Thea hands Nyssa the sword, but Nyssa really doesn’t believe her confession that she killed Sara. Thea tells her Merlyn drugged her and that she doesn’t deserve to live. It’s clear Nyssa doesn’t plan to indulge her in her death wish, but this doesn’t stop Laurel and Roy from running in and attacking Nyssa. She puts up a good fight but Roy pops her with a tranquilizer dart and she goes down. Ra’s continues his pitch meeting with Oliver, with the big push about the Lazarus Pit (though he doesn’t call it that just yet, but come on, we know). He tells Oliver they both seek justice but Oliver reminds him that his ninjas are trained to kill, which can be changed if he wants. Oliver asks what happens if he says no, and Ra’s signals for Maseo who enter with Diggle and Merlyn. “You’re free to go,” he replies. Oliver heads for the door and Ra’s shoots a glance toward the pool.

Thea enters the apartment to find Oliver waiting on her, and Merlyn crashed on the couch. She takes it about as well as you’d expect, but Oliver asks her to let him stay so he can heal. He heads over to Verdant where Diggle asks how Thea took it, which he answers, and what happened in Nanda Parbat that they were allowed to leave, which he doesn’t. We flashback to Hong Kong where Oliver guides Akio around a market following the separation from his parents. The kid runs off as kids are want to do but they find each other and he tells Oliver they need to go to the Botanical Gardens since it was the secret meeting place between Akio and his parents.

Oliver enters the Arrow Cave to a less than enthused crowd in Laurel and Felicity. He approaches Nyssa’s cell, opens it, and tells her she’s free to go. She doesn’t believe him and says Ra’s would never bargain his life for hers, and he tells her that wasn’t the case. When everyone keeps asking what’s up, Oliver brushes it off, which much like children running away Oliver is want to do. They still have a job to do, he reminds them, and Felicity locates a robbery for them to go stop. Some heavily armed thieves are attacking a truck and their leader has his mouth sewn shut. As they try to make off with the score, Oliver, Roy, and Laurel leap in and take most of them out, though Stitches gets away with some of the product. Captain Lance exits the SCPD to find the goons on the ground and Oliver standing over them, and he drops a bombshell on him: they’re done. Lance confronts him about keeping Sara’s death a secret which is a betrayal he can’t abide by. Plus he got away from who he thought he was by trusting him.

At Palmer Tech, Felicity works on some gobbledegook computer thing with Ray when Oliver enters. Ray exits, but the sexual tension in the room is still palpable. Oliver tells Felicity about old’ stitch face, who she finds in the police database as one Michael Amar, AKA Murmur. He tells her about Captain Lance, ahem, breaking up with him, but she can tell something else is on his mind. In true Oliver fashion, he deflects it. Laurel heads over to Thea and Ollie’s apartment to check up on her, where the main thing they have in common is how much they want Merlyn dead, but the pair also concede it’s kinda messed up that Thea tried to have him killed. Thea relents that at least Laurel has a normal dad, if only she knew! Laurel leaves and Merlyn lets it be known he heard everything she said, but Thea isn’t sorry about it. He messed her up big time, to the point that he even predicts she’s holding a knife in her hand without having to see it. Merlyn taunts her to kill him, but she doesn’t give in.

Nyssa returns to Nanda Parbat where she is very cross with Ra’s. He explains that he set Merlyn free as a gift to Oliver Queen, an advance for becoming his heir, which is probably the last thing she expected him to say. This upsets her, because as she sees it he never approved of her relationship with Sara and as a result won’t let her have the title. Ra’s counters that her devotion was so strong that even after Sara’s death she can’t let it go. She lunges at him with her sword, which he blocks with his bare hand. In a low growl, Nyssa whispers that she won’t stand by while an outsider takes her legacy. “Then don’t,” Ra’s replies. His daughter exits and Ra’s walks over to his pool, dipping his hand in, which is now fully healed from the cut.

Ollie relays the info about Murmur to Diggle and Roy, but they can’t figure out why they would want to steal the diamonds on the truck which was the least valuable items present. Roy heads off to ask old friends about why and Diggle confronts Ollie about what’s going on. He tells him about Ra’s prediction as well as the offer, which Diggle can’t believe, especially since Oliver appears interested. Oliver goes home and talks to Thea, who reminisces about their mother and cites her as the reason for not killing Merlyn herself. As she leaves, Merlyn approaches Oliver who tells him about Ra’s Offer. Not surprised, Merlyn tells him about the prophecy, that the man who survives the blade of Ra’s al Ghul will become Ra’s al Ghul. A text comes in from Roy, helping Oliver preoccupy his mind a tad longer, but Merlyn lets it be known that he has no choice in the matter.

Back in Hong Kong, Oliver and Akio talk about bamboo. Oliver tells him about his sister but notices that they’re being watched by ARGUS agents, so they take off. Oliver enters the Arrow Cave and finds Felicity where they briefly talk about her and Ray but she mentions Diggle told her about Ra’s offer. He laments that he’s been an assassin before and questions what he’s even accomplished in his crusade as the Arrow. All of the people that have died because of him, the crime, his family, and for what? Felicity talks some sense into him, if she can figure out what she needs to do with her life then he can too. Diggle and Roy enter with some new info, Murmur and his crew stole the diamonds to make armor-piercing bullets out of them, which they intend to use on cops.

Captain Lance’s phone rings, and when he sees it’s Felicity he ignores it. Laurel enters and tells him about the stages of his grief that she knows by heart know, which will culminate in him blowing up on her, and she wants him to get it over with. Quentin can’t do it though, she might want to save the world but she can’t save what she’s done to their relationship. About that time gunfire erupts outside and Murmur’s gang has arrived to take on the cops. Lance directs Laurel out to the hall where she runs into none other than Nyssa. Oliver and Roy enter and a grand tussle begins, including Murmur v Captain Lance. Murmur takes an arrow to the chest and runs for his life, but Oliver goes after and subdues him. Lance asks if he’s waiting on a thank you, but Oliver tells him that’s not why he does this.

In the Arrow Cave, Felicity congratulates Oliver who turns it around by thanking her and telling her she was right. He started this journey because of his father, but it became something more despite him not thinking about what it was before. During tonight’s adventure all he could think about was the familyies of those police officers and how they were depending on him to keep them safe (Were they really though?). That’s why he’s doing this. Back to Hong Kong one last time as Oliver and Akio navigate the market when who should they stumble upon but the presumed dead Shado (dun dun duuuuun).

Laurel exits the SCPD and finds Nyssa waiting on her. Though they get off on the wrong foot, they decide to have dinner together, since they’re still both grieving Sara’s death and each have jerks for fathers. Nyssa offers to train Laurel, since she’s got nowhere else to be. Ra’s isn’t gonna like that. Oliver heads to meet Maseo in another part of town where he says he’s not accepting the offer, and just like Merlyn said Maseo tells him the decision was already made for him. Roy sits in his tiny house reading when there’s a knock on his door and outside is Thea, who is quite confused about her life. She asks to stay at his place with him and plants a kiss on him. Meanwhile, Murmur’s crew plays pool somewhere when suddenly the Arrow appears and kills three of them. We then notice that it’s not Oliver under the hood but Ra’s al Ghul, who tells the lone survivor, “Tell everyone what you’ve seen.”

You can check out the promo for Episode 3.17 of “Arrow” in the plaer below. Titled “Suicidal Tendencies,” the episode is officially described as follows:

“It’s celebration time as Diggle (David Ramsey) and Lyla (guest star Audrey Marie Anderson) get married. However, Deadshot (guest star Michael Rowe) interrupts their honeymoon and tells them the Suicide Squad has been given a new mission – rescue United States Senator Joseph Cray (guest star Steven Culp) from a hostage situation in the Republic of Kasnia. Amanda Waller (guest star Cynthia Addai-Robinson) breaks down the mission and introduces them to the newest member of the Suicide Squad, Cupid (guest star Amy Gumenick). Meanwhile, Oliver learns about Ray’s new Atom costume and the two have a heated stand-off. Felicity and Ray hit a rough patch.”

Directed by Jesse Warn and written by Keto Shimizu, the episode is set to air March 25. “Arrow” airs Wednesdays at 8 P.M. EST. on The CW.