"Lian Yu" is the Perfect Arrow Season 5 Finale

05/24/2017 05:26 pm EDT

This is the year of the cliffhanger for The CW's DC Universe shows.

Yes, there's always teasing for next season, and unresolved questions meant to carry over to the new season, but in Monday's Supergirl finale, the two big plot points everyone has been expecting for weeks never came to pass (well, okay, the proposal came to pass but the engagement isn't officially on), setting up an epic premiere while leaving fans hanging between now and then. The Flash took what could potentially be the biggest chance any of these shows has ever taken, setting up a paradigm shift for the season 4 premiere.

Arrow, which has been projecting its cliffhanger for quite some time, manages to pull off the craziest one of the three, topping off an hour of television that just does not stop.

Tonight's episode, "Lian Yu," is the final episode that will feature the flashback device that has been a part of Arrow since the series premiered. After five years in Hell, Oliver will return home at the end of tonight's flashbacks...although just what will be happening in the modern-day story is anybody's guess.

The story takes place completely on Lian Yu -- both the flashbacks and the contemporary story happen there -- and while the season might not have begun with Oliver running through the woods, we get plenty of that (as well as dozens of other characters running through the woods) throughout tonight's episode.

The MVP trophy for this episode -- probably the best season finale Arrow has made yet -- goes to the editors who cut together an episode of television that bounces back seamlessly between the flashback and the modern day with manic energy that never seems to stop ratcheting up until the final moments of the week.

There were solid performances all around, but it was up to Stephen Amell to growl and smash his way through the episode. There's not much in the way of nuance -- not because he's not acting the hell out of the script, but because this episode is so fast-paced and full of so much action that there isn't much time for it. Olicity fans will enjoy probably Amell's most tender moment in the episode, but it passes quickly becuase there are so many characters on hand and so much to do that the episode doesn't stay anywhere for very long.

What's particularly nice is that nearly every character on the stage is given something significant to do; they don't bring back Deathstroke or Talia just for the wave of applause such a guest appearance brings, and each of those stories comes to a satisfying conclusion in "Lian Yu."

They also manage to play with audience expectations -- both in the moment and throughout the larger plot -- regarding Chase always being a step ahead of Oliver, while reminding audiences that while Chase has a master plan, he's simply not as good as Oliver is up close, and that's something that allows the pendulum of the battle to swing several times throughout the hour.

The cliffhanger, too -- we'll say this: it feels earned in a way that few of these season-ending cliffhangers do. It builds throughout the episode and when it pays off, it's satisfying, leaving some very serious questions ahead for Oliver and company.

The battle between Oliver (Stephen Amell) and Adrian Chase (Josh Segarra) culminates in a final epic battle on Lian Yu. After recent events, Oliver decides to recruit a group of unlikely allies – Slade (guest star Manu Bennett), Nyssa (guest star Katrina Law), Merlyn (John Barrowman) and Digger Harkness (guest star Nick. E. Tarabay) – to defeat Chase. However, Chase has his own army – Black Siren (guest star Katie Cassidy), Evelyn Sharp (guest star Madison McLaughlin) and Talia al Ghul (guest star Lexa Doig) – and the forces collide in an explosive season finale.

Jesse Warn directed the episode written by Wendy Mericle & Marc Guggenheim. It will air on May 24 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on The CW.

Based on the characters from DC, ARROW is from Bonanza Productions Inc. in association with Berlanti Productions and Warner Bros. Television, with executive producers Greg Berlanti (The Flash, Supergirl), Marc Guggenheim (Eli Stone, Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters), Andrew Kreisberg (The Flash, Supergirl), Wendy Mericle (Desperate Housewives, Eli Stone) and Sarah Schechter (Supergirl, Blindspot).

Arrow airs Wednesday nights at 8 p.m. ET/PT on The CW Television Network.

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