Arrow: Easter Eggs and DC Comics References In The Man Under the Hood

Tonight's episode of Arrow was a lot of world-building, and the end result was an episode that didn't have a ton of time to linger on inside jokes, even if it did mark the first appearance of two stars from The Flash with metahuman stories of their own to (potentially) tell some day. That doesn't mean there wasn't some stuff to spot -- including a name-drop of Dr. Arthur Light, which I missed but have been assured by readers did in fact happen...at some point in the episode. For the ones I did catch, read on...and for the rest, there's the comments! The Centrifuge At the heart of "The Scientist" and the earliest stages of Slade and Brother Blood's Mirakuru plans was a centrifuge. Stolen by Cyrus Gold and intended to be used to mass-produce Mirakuru from Slade's blood, the device was returned to its rightful owner -- Queen Consolidated -- when Gold was stopped. Of course, this epidoes, Team Arrow had to take it out because they feared that it was part of Slade's plan, and part of the reason he wanted Queen Consolidated for Isabel.

"Before she was a supervillain" Ollie may have been taken in, but Felicity didn't like Isabel Rochev -- "even before she was a supervillain." Is that the first time we've heard that term used on the show? In any event, Isabel gets really supervillain-y in the final scene, so this bit of dialogue may have been meant as both a wisecrack and foreshadowing.

The Rip Hunter chalkboard Just as Barry Allen put together his Big Board o' Clues in "The Scientist," Laurel has one here to determine whether Slade's claim that Oliver is the Arrow holds any water. Hers pays off faster than Barry's does, but of course, she's also got the answer when she starts and only has to find evidence that fits it. Also: It's complete with wanted posters, newspaper clippings and other Easter eggs from all throughout the first season! Flash fact: The "Rip Hunter Chalkboard" is what I call this device as a result of the blackboards used by Time Master Rip Hunter in 52 and Booster Gold...both written by Geoff Johns, who co-wrote this episode of Arrow. Apparently he likes the idea. The Skeleton Key The object of Slade's desire when he breaks into the Arrowcave is the Skeleton Key, confiscated from the Clock King during "Time of Death." It's such a powerful device that while it's appealing to keep it around for plot reasons, it's curious that Team Arrow didn't see the threat of it even existing and bail on the idea.

Killer Frost Caitlin Snow, who appears here as the female S.T.A.R. Labs tech played by Danielle Panabaker, is better known as Killer Frost in DC Comics. She'll be a regular on The Flash if indeed it goes to series, which Marc Guggenheim (Arrow Executive Producer) seems to think is more or less a done deal. Check out the behind-the-scenes video for this episode where he refers to her as a regular on "the forthcoming series."

Cisco Ramon, the other S.T.A.R. tech, is actually a Justice League member from time to time. This guy is on top of his references, too; he not only drops the word "vibe" into conversation, but follows it up by blasting Slade with a super-weapon that discharges energy that seemingly functions like Vibe's powers do in the comics.

Ivo's mutations In the comics, Ivo has found himself hideously disfigured before, too. Even though he (seemingly) dies this episode, we still get a peek at what might have been first. "He'd become a person" The monologue that Quentin gives Laurel in the hospital is quite like something you'd hear Jim Gordon say. The showrunners have always said that The Dark Knight trilogy is their "North Star," and here, it shows. Quentin is willing to go to jail rather than hear who the Arrow is and lose the illusion that he's a kind of larger-than-life symbol of what the city needs. Laurel's "exciting new career" About that threat Laurel makes to Kate Spencer... After the One Year Later jump, District Attorney Kate Spencer became a defense attorney for a while, too. It often didn't go over well with her prosecutor friends, but she was doing it under orders from Director Bones, with whom she was secretly working. Roy's the guinea pig This does a couple of things; it suggests that Slade either planned on drawing Roy away, or at least adjusted his master plan to account for the fact that Roy had run off...and it sets up next episode, when Roy is a major threat. That said, it should theoretically weaken him somewhat, providing Team Arrow with an opportunity to take him down a little easier.

Roy in Bludhaven This isn't the first time we've heard Bludhaven referenced on the show, and it's widely known that Andrew Kreisberg and Marc Guggenheim would love to use Nightwing. Nevertheless, it's always cool to hear that name dropped...like when Deathstroke and Ravager Isabel reveal where they found Roy after he fled Starling. Slade and his moles/girls You know, it's easy enough to joke about Slade having a thing for younger women given his relationship with Terra, the Teen Titan that he brainwashed and turned against her team because she was "in love" with him. Then again, the fact that both Terra and Isabel were moles in organizations he was targeting is almost as good a coincidence. Trick arrows Oliver's arrows haven't been as tricky this season; he's relied more on close-quarters combat, traditional archery and, of course, Team Arrow. Last year, though (and in the comics) trick arrows like the explosives he fired into Slade were much more common. How to pilot a submarine So...they plan to use the submarine (last seen in a lagoon in the middle of the island) to get on board The Amazo somehow. I'm just leaving this here to remind you that the line wasn't a non-sequitur and, yes, we know where they can find a submarine. S.T.A.R. Labs to the rescue It seems Cisco and Caitlin will be the ones to try to help them "cure" Slade? Interesting...and something that could make for a good reason for Felicity and Oliver to show up in The Flash.

Ravager Set photos have suggested that Summer Glau might turn out to be Ravager in one form or another, and it seems we've figured out just how. The real question now is whether Isabel -- who self-identifies as under 30 -- could be the daughter of Deathstroke. Bennett's real age is 44, just 12 years older than Glau who is 32. But of course an "under 30" Isabel suddenly means that if they add five years to Bennett's age to account for island time and the greying of his temples, he could have fathered her at 20, even if she's 29 years old.