Arrow S4:E16 Broken Hearts Recap starts now!

Hearts, flowers and spoilers ahead!

Carrie Cutter aka Cupid is back, and this time she’s changed her mind about love. After falling for Deadshot then losing him in an explosion, she’s turned her back on love, and now thinks love is like a bullet to the brain. She has a couple held hostage and tied to chairs, she makes them state their love for one another and then shoots them with double heart tipped arrows. Sheesh, this is gonna be a depressing one, isn’t it?

Meanwhile, Damien Darhk is having is day in court, filing a motion to dismiss. His lawyer states that his name is Kenneth Bender from Markovia, and he was being held against his will at the time of the abduction of William. The judge orders Laurel, the Assistant DA, to present her evidence as she will judge whether there is enough evidence to proceed.

Felicity is moving out of the apartment, and is covering her sadness by talking a mile a minute and coming up with plans to streamline the moving. She asks Oliver to cancel the wedding venue, and she’ll un-invite the guests. Oliver says he’ll see her when he see her, but Felicity reminds him that as part of the team, she’ll be there in the bunker tonight for the evening ops, if she’s still welcome. Oliver tells her she’ll be a part of the team forever and always.

Laurel arrives at the bunker and lets them know that the evidence she has on Darhk is shaky, all the Ghosts have split, taking any evidence with them. Felicity and Thea offer to testify about the night they were kidnapped and Laurel decides to take them up on it. Felicity tells the others that her and Oliver are no longer engaged. She’s tells them she’s fine, which is universal code for I don’t want to talk about it.

Diggle goes to check on Oliver, and asks if it was about William. Oliver confirms that, and Diggle tells him to just give her a bit of space and time. Oliver is still hopeful, seeing as she still wants to be a part of the team. Thea arrives and tells them she’s had a call from Captain Lance, and they’ve had a visit from an old friend.

At a crime scene, Oliver appears as Arrow, and Lance breaks away to tell him what’s going on. The couple Cupid shot has been posed on the ground in a heart shape, and a heart shaped arrow has been found. Oliver asks why she isn’t still in Argus custody, but Lance is clueless. She also left a note, Love Is Dead.

Down at the Arrow bunker, they review her file, and Diggle reports that Carrie had an arrangement with the dearly departed Amanda Waller, and was released after serving as part of a task force. Thea recognises the victims as a celebrity couple, Blaine and Shannon, who had the wedding of the decade.

Diggle gives evidence in Darhk’s trial, and gives the story of the kidnapping over Christmas. Darhk’s lawyer begins to pull him apart, and asks how Oliver can still afford to keep Diggle on as a security consultant. He also has a sworn affidavit from a drug dealer, from when he helped Thea buy $75k of drugs that they used for a sting. There goes Diggle’s credibility in one fell swoop. This guy is good.

After leaving the courtroom, Laurel isn’t happy, but grateful that he didn’t dig any further. Their whole operation could have been exposed. She is running out witnesses though, and Captain Lance offers to put himself on the stand. He’s the only one without a secret identity, and if he tells the truth about his involvement, there’s a lot less for them to pick apart. Laurel refuses, not willing to let her father go to jail. They get a call from Felicity, she’s tracked Cupid, but she has another celebrity couple with her.

Cupid is driving the limo, with the couple in the back, having just come their secret wedding. Diggle is in the van, and Oliver and Thea on the bike following. Thea jumps on to the roof, but gets collected by a wall on the entrance to a warehouse. Diggle stops to check she’s okay, and Oliver follows her in. The limo crashes into a wall, but the accelerator has been held down by a brick and Cupid is gone.

Cupid attacks him, and begins firing arrows. He manages to tie her up with a wire, but she cuts it when his back is turned freeing the couple from the limo. She manages to escape, leaving behind a small part of her jacket.

They take the jacket back to the lab, and try and work out what her angle is. Felicity totally understands how she fells about love, and doesn’t really blame her for wanting to wage war against the thing that has betrayed her. Thea points out that she is only targeting celebrity couples, maybe that will help in working out her next target. Oliver, Diggle and Thea hit the streets, and they give Oliver some advice. Felicity’s snark is strong on this one, and they encourage him to tell her how she feels, that giving her space is not working.

Captain Lance goes to see Laurel, and the witnesses she has subpoenaed to testify against Darhk have refused to give evidence, one’s even sitting in jail over it. Captain Lance offers to testify again, and Laurel agrees but only if he makes sure he tells the court he was being coerced.

Felicity has run the jacket, and the sample contains sixty different types of white silk lace, and polypropylene, which is used to store fabrics long term. She comes up with the address of a wedding dress storage company, and the crew heads off to check it out. They find a shrine dedicated to celebrity couples and their high profile weddings. There so happens to be pictures of a celebrity couple they hadn’t thought of, Oliver and Felicity. The next couple due to get married.

Oliver goes to Felicity with the horrible idea of staging a wedding to draw her out, and it happens that he has a venue that he hasn’t cancelled yet. This will work out well. Thea will leak the news that they are planning to get married in secret, and they’ll stake it out.

Captain Lance takes the stand and admits to his involvement in helping Darhk. He details all the things he did, but states that he only did so after Darhk threatened Laurel’s life. On cross examination, Darhk’s lawyer stumbles and Lance sinks the boot in further, pointing out that considering he is sabotaging his career, what reason does he have to lie?

Oliver is waiting at the altar for Felicity, and the area outside is crawling with paparazzi that were tipped off by Thea. She arrives in a pouffy dress, looking very un-Felicity. They stand at the altar, and for some reason say actual vows to each other in front of an unaware celebrant. I guess they are assuming that Cupid is listening, but it just seems like it’s gonna cause pain all round. Oliver’s vows are particularly heartfelt, and puts Felicity’s engagement ring on her finger. Felicity looks like she is almost ready to forgive him, when a heart shaped arrow files between them.

Cupid tells Oliver that if he is really in love with Felicity, that means he is soft. And soft means death. She shoots an arrow at his chest, and Oliver collapses to the ground. Cupid asks whether there was an explosion that will bring down the whole building on their guest registry? She begins to lecture Felicity about love being a bullet to the brain, and Oliver gets up showing her the Kevlar under his suit. Felicity tells her she is wrong, that love has made her a better version of herself, and if she dies tonight it’ll be okay, because she has experienced love. Her and Oliver’s love gives her life meaning and purpose, and it’s worth living for. Cupid starts to tear up, but her finger is still on the detonator. Thea and Diggle arrive, but she manages to fight them off, until Oliver shoots her with a tranquilizer.

After, Oliver asks Felicity if they can talk about all the things they just said to each other, and she agrees to meet him tomorrow. Thea gets a call, the judge has made a decision on Darhk’s case. The evidence is very thin, but the testimony from Captain Lance has helped her make the decision to proceed with the trial. Darhk is denied bail, and will be held in prison until the trial. The death stare they get on the way out is a scary one.

The Lieutenant appears and suspends Captain Lance pending an investigation. Laurel offers to represent him, but he tells her to focus on Darhk’s case, that he’ll tell the truth and whatever happens happens.

At the Arrow Bunker, Oliver is hanging out, unable to sleep. Felicity arrives to pick up a few things, and Oliver tells her that he meant everything he said. She tells him that she loves him, but she can’t be with him, or marry him. He tells her that he can be different, he can change. Felicity tells him that he might be able to change, but it would only last until the next thing came along that he had to keep from her, in order to protect her. She has decided that she can’t be a part of the team, that she can’t see him every day, it’s too hard. Oliver tells her that he doesn’t want to let her go, and she replies that she doesn’t want to let him go either, but she’s already gone.

In prison, Darhk is led to his cell and locked in. He holds on to the bars, and looks out at his new surroundings. He opens his mouth and takes out the ring he had been concealing and puts it on his finger. Uh oh, Darhk’s not done with yet, and he confirms it with a creepy smile straight at the camera.

Ugh, well that was an uplifting episode. Love is beautiful, and joyous, and makes you a better person. But you can’t have it Olicity fans, no happiness for you! We gave you half a season, time to rip it all away *maniacal laugh*.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIcQEPo38f8