Arrow (TV Series) The Promise (2014) User Reviews

arrow at its complete best

[radioactib111 · 10/10 · 7 March 2014]

This episode is structurally similar to the episode of season 1 named 'The Odyssey' . This episode sets up the rest of the season .

Wonderful story-writing & dialogues . The actors have delivered the goods, especially Manu Bennett (Slade Wilson) . Now we can understand the extent of the hatred & the emotional drive of him although we have been teased about it in the previous episodes .

The conversation between slade & oliver when they are alone are very interesting . In the flash-backs, the story & action are executed well . You will absolutely love the scene where slade,oliver,sara,roy & oliver's family stand in the same room .

As usual this episode will give you an unpredictable ending.

An excellent episode to feel astonished .

Probably the best episode since 'Three Ghosts' and 'Sacrifice'

[cousbrojs · 10/10 · 7 March 2014]

After weeks of starving without decent Island flashbacks, 'The Promise' gave us exactly that, and then some. Stephen Amell's social media account posted a trailer for this episode and also said that it's the best episode yet, and I can assure you, the hype is truly met. This was an excellent episode which answered a lot of questions, but not all of it. After last week's cliffhanger, we pick up right where we left off. And that was basically the whole mood for the present day. Tense. But the flashbacks, really served it's purpose. The freighter raid was highly action packed, the pacing was superb and the way the episode ended was exceptional.

*Dialogue: Very good *Pacing: Excellent *Action: Excellent *Drama: Good *Story: Excellent

Season two of Arrow is proving to be spectacular on it's own merits. Slade Wilson's character is quickly coming to life and Team Arrow is developing along nicely. If you need a reason to watch this show, it's for Deathstroke, the one and only. Episode rating: 10/10

Brilliantly-Awesome Episode

[arora-pawan1 · 10/10 · 29 May 2015]

Hope there was 11/10 so i could rate what it deserves Definitely one of the best episode on the series

Story - Dialogues - Action are done in a brilliant way

Specifically here more story is concerned about what happened on the Lian Yu ( Island ) & Amazo ( the ship ) also clears reason behind Slade's Hatred Towards Oliver

Stephen Amell and Manu Bennett are really best at their roles Both have their story and shown in best manner

Cherry on the cake was when Team Arrow, Queen Family, Oliver, and Slade is in the same room where even Oliver get's a bit scared about what's gonna happen next ( Definitely give's sensation to viewers )

Hat's off to Manu Bennett, He was the best attraction of the series

The Mystery Finally Revealed

[hendrabpp · 10/10 · 6 March 2014]

This episode is great! The story is about the connection between Slide Wilson and Oliver Queen in the island and in the present.

In this episode you will know why Slide Wilson has a very deep hatred to Oliver Queen. Even though it just a misunderstanding, and because of Mirakuru effect (I think), but Slide Wilson don't care about that. He still hate Oliver Queen and he want to kill him and his family.

As usually, in every episode, Arrow always give us an unpredictable story.

Slide Wilson has prepared everything to kill Oliver Queen and he's entire family. Slowly, and deeply.

I love the scene when Slide Wilson shake hand with Ray. Both of them have Mirakuru in their body. It will be great to see them fight.

Overall, it's great episode to watch!

"What would you like to do now, Mr. Wilson?"

[andrewleivesley-697-421069 · 10/10 · 6 March 2014]

This episode of Arrow is without doubt a massive turning point for the series as a whole. From now on nothing will be the same, we now know exactly how Slade and Oliver had there fall out(even though it wasn't hard to guess after 'Three Ghosts') but we know how they fell out and seeing Slade realise the truth about how Shado died was one of the most devastating and gripping moments of Arrow so far. Manu Bennett has always been one of the strongest actors in Arrow and he proved why in this episode, the contrast to the calm friendly 'business' Slade in the modern day and the violent, angry and unstable Slade in the flashbacks was a joy to behold. This was also one of the best episodes for Stephen Amell, he excels in most episodes but I would say he has never been better than this, him and Bennett are brilliant together on screen, whether it be the scene where Slade states how he and Oliver are now like brothers, to their showdown in the climax of the episode, they both play their roles so well and I really couldn't see anybody doing a better job than these two. This episode is like a sequel to 'The Odyssey'the focus was on the flashback sequences, however, the scenes in the mansion were some of the most unforgettable in this season of Arrow. They were tense, brilliantly written and acted superbly, the exchanges between Oliver and Slade when they were on their own were extremely well crafted as we now see just how vulnerable Oliver is and how much it will take for Team Arrow to beat Slade as he is organised, clever and of course extremely dangerous. The highlight of the episode for me was in the mansion when the Arrow Team, Slade and Oliver's family are all in the same room and the tension is at its absolute highest, it appears that they are all ready to settle the score which raises the stakes even higher than they already where. The final revelation of the episode is the reason as to why Slade was really at the Queen Mansion and it was simply to place bugs all around the house so he can watch and wait until Oliver is at his most vulnerable. This episode was stunning, the fight scenes were at their usual high standard, the set pieces were bigger(despite not the best visual effects) and the revelations make this the best episode of Arrow so far.

Great episode, except...

[errant-52785 · 17 November 2020]

... the whole reason for the break between Oliver and Slade is incredibly moronic.

Really kind of ruins the entire relationship and any drama borne out of it.

Suffer Then Die, Brother

[SpideyVerse23 · 9/10 · 19 January 2023]

This episode is just a gift to the people who have watched this show till this point. This episode is a flashback episode but the present day storyline is equally as good.

In the flashbacks, Oliver, Slade and Sara plan to take over the Amazo and use it to return home. Meanwhile, Oliver is feeling more guilty than ever about hiding the way Shado died from Slade, even though Sara says its for the better. The action sequence on the freighter is amazing with us finally getting to see how Slade and Oliver became enemies.

The present day is super tense, with Slade meeting Moira and Thea who have no idea about who Slade really is, other than man acting in support of Moira's mayoral campaign.

In the end, it all comes together very well despite us knowing what will happen, it was awesome to watch it onscreen.

The Sadistic Choice Fallacy

[brightguard · 1/10 · 3 November 2015]

This episode was ruined by a contrived moral fallacy that is rampant in our society. Ivo made the choice to shoot Shado, not Oliver.

This is more than just a problem with this and many other TV and movie scripts. It's a problem with society. The choices terrorists make are on their heads and no one else's. They are not automatons, they are not attack dogs, they are human beings with free will. They are manipulative, they try to get into your head and convince you that the responsibility for the immoral choice they are about to make rests with whomever they chose to pass the blame onto. I would go so far as to say that by buying into their framing, you are complicit in their immorality. Do not accept sadistic choices, they are inherently fallacious.

On top of this it's lazy writing. Boo.