Arrow season 3, episode 12, “Uprising,” aired tonight. Read our recap and discuss the episode with fellow fans.
Bloody backstory
In the cabin in the woods, Oliver prepares to return to Starling City, despite Tatsu’s protests. He asks her to come with her, but Tatsu refuses. Oliver heads off, concerned about what’s been going on in his city in the weeks he’s been gone.
And he’s right to be concerned, as Brick’s reign of terror continues in Starling City. Black Canary and Arsenal interrupt a couple of Brick’s men from robbing a diner in the Glades. As they’re leaving, Sin spots them and thinks Laurel is Sara.
Meanwhile, Malcolm and Thea continue training, and Malcolm hammers in the point that the League doesn’t do mercy. He says that the first person he killed was the man who killed his wife.
Arsenal meets with Captain Lance, who reveals he knows Roy’s in the suit and hands over SCPD’s files on Brick. He then tells Roy to look after Sara.
Back in the foundry, the evidence reveals that Brick’s gun was used to kill Rebecca Merlyn. And Malcolm, being the snake that he is, bugged the foundry so heard the entire conversation. Guess he didn’t kill his wife’s murderer after all.
A proposed alliance
Tatsu follows Oliver through the woods and tells him that he’ll still needs to train more to beat Ra’s. The next day, they find a truck that Oliver pays to take him home. Tatsu warns him that he will have to sacrifice that which he holds most dear to defeat Ra’s.
Back in Starling City, Team Arrow discovers that Brick and his men have taken over the SCPD station in the Glades. Felicity cuts the power while Black Canary and Arsenal attack. They take out Brick’s men, only for the man himself to appear. However, that confrontation is interrupted by the Dark Archer’s, appearance. Brick, shot, flees and Malcolm wants to talk to Team Arrow.
Back in the foundry, Malcolm proposes he and Team Arrow join forces to take on Brick since their interests align at the moment. Naturally, he meets some serious resistance.
While pondering what to do, Roy heads up to the club and find Thea, who tells Roy that Malcolm protected her during Slade’s invasion. She believes he truly cares about people, even if his actions are misguided. This moves Roy, who heads back to the foundry with this new information.
But while Roy is in favor of the team-up, Felicity is staunchly anti-Merlyn. She knows Oliver would never work with him, though Roy counters that they need to stop acting like Oliver is still there. The debate comes down to a vote, and Diggle reveals to Malcolm that they voted against teaming up with him.
Taking it to the people
Team Arrow eventually decides the best way to take down Brick is to recruit the people of the Glades to fight. Laurel goes to see Ted Grant and Roy to see Sin. Eventually, they build up an army of civilians. Black Canary and Arsenal lead the assault, telling Brick that he has failed the city.
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Battle ensues, and Ted confronts Brick. Brick, though, beats Ted within an inch of his life and is about to kill him when Arsenal’s arrow saves him. Brick’s subsequent flight is cut off by Malcolm, who easily knocks him down.
Meanwhile, as the fight continues, a green arrow flies through the air. #TheEmeraldArcherRises
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Brick confesses that he killed Rebecca as a part of a gang initiation, and Malcolm is about to kill him when the Arrow appears and convinces him not to for Thea’s sake.
He’s baaaaack
Later, Brick is tied up and the Arrow speaks to the gathered citizens and news cameras, telling the people they did not fail in his absence and he’s back to protect the city.
Lance brings his men back into the Glades, where he runs into Sin, who tells him the woman in the blonde wig isn’t Sara.
Meanwhile, Malcolm heads over to Thea’s and tells her he didn’t kill his wife’s killer. But their conversation is cut short by Oliver’s arrival. Oliver says he’d been in jail for a few weeks. He and Malcolm shake hands, and while Thea heads into the kitchen, Oliver says Ra’s will come eventually, will learn the truth about Sara and come after Thea. So, to defeat him when he does, Oliver wants Malcolm to train him.
Oliver then heads to the foundry for an emotional reunion, particularly with Felicity.
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He commends the team on protecting the city and then says he’ll be training with Merlyn. Felicity, though, is gobsmacked. In a heartbreaking scene, Felicity says she fantasized Oliver would come back and be better. But working with Merlyn, who manipulated Thea and killed Sara… Felicity says that she doesn’t want to be a woman Oliver loves.
A sacrifice of what Oliver held dear.
Twenty-one years ago
Malcolm comes in to find a young Tommy having a nightmare and promises not to let anything happen to him. That’s when the police arrive at his door to tell him his wife had been murdered.
After Rebecca’s funeral, Malcolm is given the identity of her suspected murderer. Malcolm tracks him down and points a gun at him, but then proceeds to get his butt handed to him. But his attacker leaves the gun behind and walks away from the bloody and bruised Malcolm, so Malcolm grabs the gun and shoots.
Later, Malcolm decides to flee Starling City, leaving Tommy behind, to go to Nanda Parbat. There he can learn to fight and harness the rage still within him.
Watch a promo for next week’s episode
