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

One of the most solid episodes of the entire series

[hanruiz · 10/10 · 10 December 2014]

There have been some great episodes that The CW has put out over the past two years for Arrow.

This episode, however, breaks all bounds that the show has set before for a "good episode." Every single plot point, conversation and character from this episode plays such a crucial role to the plot's development and the show's overall progress forward for characterization and connectivity between character stories.

Every single scene is so important to watch and experience and if this episode is watched more than one time, one will slowly realize that if a normal viewer were to miss a single scene, they would be missing a great deal of the plot even if it were just for 5 minutes.

This episode not only tugs on your emotions but keeps you on the edge of your seat for the entire time.

Truly spectacular.

You've Taken Your Last Life

[ThomasDrufke · 10/10 · 10 December 2014]

They have done it. Arrow has officially stunned me more than any other show has. More than Breaking Bad and more than Game of Thrones. The Climb is one of, if not the best Arrow episode we have ever had. I really didn't know how this show could have stepped up their game after how great season 2 was down the stretch. This season we knew Ras Al Ghul was the big bad, but man did we get quite the introduction. A brief glimpse of him in 'The Magician' but this episode could not have been a better way to get us to fear what is to come from Ras.

Before we get to the craziness that was the final 5 minutes, lets get to the minor albeit still important material this week. Felicity had some emotional scenes with Palmer, though I don't know that this couldn't have waited until after the break, shout-out to the ATOM suit though. Speaking of suits, the subtle changes to the Arrow suit were a good change of pace, but lets face it, Roy still has the coolest suit. Laurel had a few unnecessarily awkward scenes with her mother, but luckily finally told her about Sara. I'm sorry but Quentin needs to know, it's getting really frustrating at this point and makes me hate the Laurel character even more. It was also strange that Laurel told Thea. I guess the writers want us to know that Thea REALLY didn't know that she in fact killed Sara.

Even though the story lines are not as broad knowing Thea was brainwashed, it was very interesting hearing Malcom's overall plan. It makes sense that he would have Thea kill her, but it still seemed like it could have been even more crazy if she had known she did. Speaking of Thea, Oliver finding out that she was trained by Malcom was another crazy reveal. But Thea didn't look like a convincing enough fighter to me. Another reveal was that Maseo is in fact a present day League of Assassin member. I was nearly spoiled of this online last week, but I cant say I wasn't still stunned seeing it this week. And that 'it happened' moment between them was likely referencing his family being murdered later on this season.

Onto the last 10 or so minutes. I really liked Oliver's goodbyes to everyone. A few bro hugs and an I love you to Felicity seemed fitting. Some people don't believe in that relationship but I think Oliver truly loves her. Especially just as one of his best friends. When Oliver reaches Ras all hell breaks loose. This may have been Arrow's best choreographed fight scene. Stephen Amell said he did all the stunts for this episode and it showed. You really feel for Oliver when he is getting ripped to shreds. Ras is also probably the biggest bada** this show has ever had. Matt Nable didn't seem too convincing in his first appearance but he knocked it out of the park this week. But Ras saying his last challenge was 67 years ago means the Lazarus Pit definitely exists. And is just about the only way Oliver will be brought back to life. Ras has officially changed this show forever. This was a heartbreaking episode and easily one of the best Arrow has had.

+Nable as Ras

+Absolutely stunning episode

+Suits

+Maseo reveal

+So many reveals

+Last 10 minutes was.. just.. unbelievable

+Lazarus Pit

-+Malcolms plan

-Quentin needs to know

10/10

This changes everything!

[jbrowning-w · 10/10 · 11 December 2014]

My life changed tonight. I watched arrow, season 3, episode 9: the climb. Before this, my favourite TV show was breaking bad and the greatest episode of television was Ozymandias. Now my favourite show is arrow and the best episode is the climb.

I do not understand who is rating arrow so badly for the overall to be 8.2 but I beg of you, please change it if your rating for overall is less than a 9. To get into the episode, I must say the only singular minute I did not enjoy 100% was the Thea and Oliver fight. It just didn't fit in but it was very necessary to convayed the point that Oliver knows the truth about his sister. Even though Thea has betrayed Oliver more in 48 hours than she did in two years, Oliver still gives his life for her. That is family love.

Malcolm's plan was beautifully amazing and I just love John Barrowman's acting. Ray Palmer revealed his origins in a heartfelt scene. Felicity and Oliver was a great way to see Oliver's human side. Felicity and Ray was a great way to give felicity a good relationship. I'm happy they didn't over do it with giving Roy or Diggle a major story otherwise it would have been over crowded.

I'm going to save the best for last- Ra's V.S Oliver. The fight was not only surprising, it was a amazing majestic masterpiece. The speeches. The fighting. The end. Everything was a beautiful piece of work. I knew Ra's Al Ghul would beat Oliver but to kill him is a new story. This episode breaks the barriers of what TV shows do. I can not wait to see Lazarus pit and resurrection.

I can only say this show has made me feel the way I never thought I would. I have not been like this since ozymandias. This is my idea of perfection. 10/10

Mid Season Finale Craziness

[TrioHaydos · 10/10 · 11 December 2014]

First of all, lets start with the slight and forgettable negatives... The editing of this episode for a lack of abusive word, is bad. I love Felicity but all her emotional scenes need work, it throws the whole thing off. Thea's fights scenes and Laurel's reasons for not to tell his dad about Sara's death but let everybody else know. Ra's Al Ghul fight scenes and stunt double editing, as I said before...very bad.

Some of you might be thinking that many things and slight negatives...well I mentioned it because I believe even a guy who does not like this episode can't come up with more than all these.

As for the rest, without ruining too much, are all damn on positives. Where do I start...use of more or less all characters, ATOM suit and Ray's plans, Malcolm's plan, character surprises, deaths or not, two shocking reveals, and what are TV series without cliffhangers. And what is an Arrow episode without the last 5 minutes of craziness.

If you ever thought, this show was boring and slow and so left, this is the episode you need to watch to see the change in dynamics.

Honourable mentions, 67 years from the last duel...caught my eye. This show has changed completely and this is the best episode of this series and hopefully only the start.....Just when I thought, The Flash was beating Arrow each episode quality wise...They have made a comeback, the kind that started this season on a rocking edge......"The Climb".

Clearing a few things up...

[captin_scarlett · 10/10 · 19 December 2014]

I loved this episode but in this review I will not be talking about what happened in "The Climb" I will be talking about the aftermath and what might happen in future episodes.

First of all the "Death" of The Arrow (Oliver Queen) looked suspect from the moment he was stabbed. He has survived the same sort of injury before on the island when he was first tortured and secondly in the second to last shot where he was kicked off the cliff you do not see him fall all of the way. This leads me to believe that he is not dead. Another thing that makes me think that he is not dead is the short t trailer for episode 10 that will be released towards the end of January in the New Year. In this trailer you see then sword that killed Oliver in the rock at the top of the cliff. Then you move to a scene where you see a currently unknown character walking along the cliff. Whilst said character is walking along the cliff he discovers Oliver's body. This is where the trailer ends.

Another reason the makes me wonder if Oliver really is dead is the title for episode 14 "The Return". I think that episodes 10-13 will be developing the characters that assist Oliver such as Roy and Laurel so that they are more prominent and play a bigger part in the second half of the series.

Hope this clears things up, Have a good new year if you are reading this :) P.S. I'm literally buzzing and can't wait for episode 10!!!!!!

Realistic (for a comic book!) meets comic-book fantasy...will it work?

[yvonneshusband · 9/10 · 19 December 2014]

I have to admit, even though I gave up on this show in Season 1, when Merlin kicked the Arrow's ass even though he's: 1. Twice Oliver's age and 2. played by John Barrowman, I decided to give it another try when I happened to watch the Season 2 finale. I found myself thinking that this was the way 'The Dark Knight Rises' should have been plotted, with a deranged army of steroid freaks actually trashing the city, the hero then becoming fully accepted by the population and police force as he puts his life on the line in its defence. Since the beginning of Season 3, I've been getting more and more engrossed in the show, despite my misgivings about the introduction of Ra's Al Ghul, though finding out that his daughter is played by none other than Katrina Law made me feel a little bit better about it. Much as I did enjoy the mid-season finale, I did note that, as well as borrowing a lot of the cast of 'Spartacus' they seem to have borrowed the 'sword catch' move from the final season of that show to allow Ra's to gain the upper hand over Oliver in their showdown. I was a little disappointed in the casting of the Demon's Head, especially since I don't actually like the Ra's Al Ghul character to begin with (I actually stopped playing 'Arkham City' when I realised he was the main villain). The fact that he was doubled in most of the fight scene is putting me off him even more; if you're being hired for an action show, you should be able to do the 'physical acting' yourself! However, my real problem with the ending of this episode is that, with Oliver's apparent death, the Lazarus Pit is likely to be introduced as a plot device, although Ra's talking about his own apparently unnaturally long life may just be Demon's Head propaganda. I'm not sure the gritty, realistic approach to the show so far will stretch to fit this utterly fantastic 'deus ex machina' if it is in fact introduced.

The Climb

[SpideyVerse23 · 10/10 · 20 January 2023]

This episode answers a lot of questions and takes the plot somewhere unexpected.

Oliver is given 48 hours by the League to find Sara's killer otherwise they will start killing innocent people. So, Team Arrow starts working on find the identity of the killer before the deadline. The killer is revealed and it was truly a shocker. Malcolm has played Oliver perfectly. Ra's Al Ghul is proves himself as a formidable villain with his fighting skills being way above Oliver.

Laurel is still hiding the death of Sara from her father, who invites her mother over to surprise Laurel for Christmas.

Ray reveals to Felicity what he is planning on doing and why he went away after they kissed.

tragic

[mixalakis28 · 2/10 · 10 January 2015]

The whole episode was average.

The end was TRAGIC. All that training Oliver had though these years, all the experience, he manage to climb the mountain only to confront Ra's like AMATEUR, like this is the first time he picks up a sword. And don't mention Ra's ,... who is this guy? super SA-yan 4 ?? give me a break. Generally i love this show. and i loves when flash came to starling city and helped Oliver with a case. as all series has the good and bad episodes. this episode was the worst. they showed us Oliver dying and we all know ... he cant die, he is the main character, so now its left to see how far their imagination can go to revive Oliver. Tragic

I must be addicted to this series it is so bad

[DarkWench · 1/10 · 31 July 2016]

I am playing catch up with my Arrow seasons. This season I just do not know what to think. This episode Season 3 Ep 9 where Oliver goes off to fight Ras' and just assumes he will survive. The fight sequence not so bad but the continuity person needs firing, firstly he is stabbed just above his left hip but the killing blow is under his rib-cage and up to the heart (ergo the blood dribble) but when the camera pans back, just as he gets punted over the cliff - the stab wound has vanished WHAT THE HECK......

So he again survives with the help of sub-zero temperatures and the vanishing stab wound.

So now I start on spoiled Laurel, she is not the Canary, look back and you will see that the canary aka Sarah has a reasonably sized rack which she displays comfortably. Whereas would be sister literally buttoned up like a flying nun and so fake it is hysterical.

Love Felicity but I do wish she would find another kind of guy to fixate on and drool over. Mr Diggle is just Diggle and will someone please give Speedy the little sister a humongous slap hard enough to rattle her teeth and eyeballs. Malcolm does not love nor want her, he wants a tool he can use and that is it. Roy bless him is just cute with his wrinkled brow line when he is confused. Mr Palmer is another rich kid with delusions....look at Oliver....as he is broke where does he get the money to set up the lab etc and survive and pay wages to the people who have families to support.

I will go away now

Nuff said I am off to grit my teeth through yet more idiocy.......

The twist and oliver queen death is was mot done well

[mgam78 · 3/10 · 11 December 2014]

Last episode The arrow was telling the flash not to rush and study the opponent and to case the environment, and in the episode oliver was completely the opposite, he was offensive , not thinking, even he new that Ras was so experienced an merciless and one of the most dangerous men on earth, he still rushed in fought foolishly impulsively without any cautious, as if he intentionally want to loose, unless the twist in the coming episode will show something else, this episode end sucks. Beside the ending the rest of the episode was nice, the plot of Malcolm Merlin by framing Thea was great, Oliver accepting the challenge and defending his sister is so convincing as it goes with his personality, building the thrill about ATOM was great, even picking Matt Nable as Ras Al Ghul was a great pick, he is so convincing and have the mysterious look

A rather good episode unti....

[LittleStorpingInTheSwuff · 2/10 · 21 July 2018]

....the final 'battle' on top of the mountain. Really? There are still 14 episodes left before the end of the season, and everyone is supposed to believe Oliver was killed? Pu-leeze!

The rest of the episode was rather good, probably about a 7 rating. But the tear jerker good-byes with the team began the meltdown, followed by the pathetic battle with the fake 'death of Arrow/Oliver'. The fight scene was rather good, don't get me wrong. But the end of it was pathetic. First Oliver has his throat slit by a blade of some sort (you can see the blood through his fingers when he grabs his throat). Then he gets the sword run though him to the hilt, and his slit throat had suddenly disappeared. And just before he is pushed over the edge, the view of his chest reveals --- no stab wound!!

If this had been the final episode of the season it would have been a good cliff hanger. But with 14 episodes left it isn't a cliff hanger, it's a slap in the face of viewers.