‘Arrow’ Recap With Spoilers: “Next of Kin”

“Next of Kin” starts off with Team Arrow in pursuit of the criminal we saw come to the aid of Black Siren earlier this season. Back at HQ Diggle tries convincing Dinah that his tremors are taken care of.

Oliver and William are having breakfast, William is stressing out about an upcoming exam. Oliver goes to work and has to deal with the FBI’s current investigation on his connection to the Green Arrow.

While Oliver has been exonerated — again — as the Green Arrow, the FBI still wants to make sure the hooded vigilante has no connection to the mayor’s office.

At a data center, there’s a breach. A woman — Onyx — has broken in, used some kind of flash grenades to render the workers unconscious and has begun to hack a computer.

Act II

Cops are now at the scene — we find out it’s Kord Industries.  Dinah asks to speak with the CEO and begins investigating the scene with the help of Team Arrow through their comm systems.

Oliver and Lance continue to brainstorm on ways to distance themselves from Team Arrow.  Oliver then stops by Felicity’s place with lunch.  Felicity is going through potential business names for her and Curtis’ new business and she begins talking to Ollie about William.  Oliver asks her for help on how to tutor William for his math exam.  Curtis calls Felicity with some updates about the break-in at Kord Industries, the robber used specialized nerve gas.

Elsewhere, a Kord Industries truck is moving technology.  As a rumored target of Onyx’s next attack, Diggle stops the truck to ride along.  The truck stops only for Diggle to find an ignition blocker.  As he’s examining it, he’s shot by Onyx.

A fight breaks out between Team Arrow and Onyx and after she uses the same flash bangs she used at Kord HQ, shand her cronies are able to steal the gas the Kord’s truck is transporting.  They then drive the truck and the remaining canisters into a building, exploding the truck and the building.

Act III

Back at Arrow HQ, Rene and Dinah both confront Diggle about freezing in the field.  Felicity informs them that there were no casualties, however, a dozen or so people were treated for smoke inhalation and two are in critical condition.

Felicity tells them the group is lead by Onyx Adams, a former special ops member of the military.  Diggle apologizes again and the team agrees to move on.

Oliver and his staffers are watching a news report on the heist and explosion.  Lance gets a message that a city council member is trying to past an anti-vigilante ordinance.

Diggle and Dinah are talking about Diggle’s problems again.  Diggle thanks her for having her back and she says she does it because the team needs a leader.

Felicity finds out that Onyx is wiping out members of her special ops unit and there’s one left she has yet to kill.

Oliver approaches William about his upcoming test and offers up help when the door rings, it’s Rene.  He’s upset about Diggle’s action in the field — he doesn’t think Diggle can handle being the leader and asks for Oliver to come back.

Act IV

Oliver’s at Arrow HQ to talk to Diggle and Felicity.  He asks Felicity to help tutor William and then approaches Diggle.

Diggle tells Oliver that he think’s the latter made a mistake by leaving the team.  Oliver gives Diggle a pep talk and tells him that he’s the reason why Oliver even picked up the hood.  Oliver continues the pep talk and tells Diggle that if he continues as the Green Arrow, he can be a better hero than Oliver ever was.

Onyx starts rallying her troops.  They’re discussing going after Reynolds — the last remaining special ops member.

Felicity is tutoring William.  She explains how much school was important to her and William asks her to continue tutoring him.  Oliver and Felicity both approve.  William tells his dad that Felicity is pretty cool and Oliver agrees.

The team gathers at the bunker and discover that Reynolds is on the move and will soon be at a hotel where thousands of guests are.  If Onyx and her crew release the gas there, it could have disastrous results.

Act V

Onyx and her crew close in on Reynolds with the gas.  Team Arrow arrives at the hotel and start fighting with Onyx’s crew.  After approached by Diggle, Onyx starts releasing the gas.

The team members flood Diggle with questions, he orders them to take care of the gas while he pursues Reynolds.  Dinah uses her sonic powers to blow the garbage can that the gas canister is in.

Reynolds gets into a limo outside but is stopped by Onyx.  As she’s about to shoot him, Diggle comes in to stop her and the two fight, with Diggle eventually knocking her out.

Curtis and Dinah dissipate the gas by blowing a hole in the wall and Rene approaches Diggle.  After finding out the problems are solved, Rene calls Diggle “hoss.”

Act VI

Rene apologizes to Diggle about going to Oliver and the two make amends.

Curtis and Felicity show Diggle a new weapon they came up with for him — a specialized crossbow.  He tests it out and shoots multiple tennis balls, proving to Dinah that the tremors are gone.

Lance tells Oliver that the vigilante ordinance has overwhelming support.  Oliver goes into the city council meeting and invokes a city rule that allows him to make the vigilante an ordinance a public referendum, allowing the citizens of Star City to vote on the matter instead of just having it passed by the city council.

At the FBI investigators office, she’s watching the news of Oliver’s political move on the television and pins a picture of Diggle next to his on her bulletin board.

Oliver shows up to Felicity’s house with a present for her, William got an A on his exam.  She opens the present and it’s a key to Oliver’s apartment.  Oliver tells her that William’s life will be better with her in it and the two kiss.

In an alleyway, Diggle gives a stranger some money and in exchange gets a drug that he injects in himself that makes him steady.