Arrow: A Matter of Trust

"A Matter of Trust" is the third episode of season five of the superhero-action series Arrow, and is the ninety-fifth episode of the series overall. It was directed by Gregory Smith with a teleplay written by Ben Sokolowski and Emilio Ortega Aldrich. It fist aired on the CW Network on Wednesday, October 19th, 2016 at 8:00 pm.

Synopsis
Oliver has his new recruits huddle around Felicity's computer station she they monitor his interrogation methods in the field. On a rooftop, the Green Arrow questions a low level drug dealer about a new designer narcotic that has hit the streets called Stardust. The man ultimately give up a name - Derek Sampson.

The recruits are hungry to go out into the field to dispense some justice, but Oliver feels they are not yet ready, and instructs them to remain at base camp. Rene has no patience, and is chomping at the bit to see some action. Having learned where Derek Sampson operates, Wild Dog and Artemis decide to disobey Ollie's orders and go after him. They hit Sampson's facility and Wild Dog fights him one-on-one. The fight dislodges a fire suppressant system, and through the course of the conflict, Sampson falls into the vat of chemicals used to fabricate Stardust. Rene and Evelyn believe that he is dead.

Meanwhile, Ollie is having difficulties of a political nature. A Channel 52 reporter named Susan Williams launches a very uncomplimentary broadcast questioning Mayor Queen's decision to appoint disgraced cop Quentin Lance as deputy mayor. Ollie however, had no idea that Lance had been offered the position. It was actually Thea Queen who extended the offer. Ollie is furious at her, and tells her to clean up this mess. Thea attempts to appeal to Susan Williams' better nature, citing that Oliver was unaware of Lance's appointment. This tactic backfires however, as Williams issues a follow-up story, declaring that Mayor Queen doesn't even know what is going on within his own administration. Elsewhere, John Diggle is back state-side, but is now in prison. His cellmate is none other than Floyd Lawton - the man he once believed had murdered his brother, Andy. As the two talk, it soon becomes evident that Lawton is not really there, as he had been blown up on a roof top months ago. His presence is just a reflection of John's own guilt over murdering his brother. Lyla Michaels comes to visit him, but John tells her that he is not going to challenge the criminal charges and that he deserves to remain in prison.

Oliver Queen receives a visit from the new district attorney, Adrian Chase. Chase is "royally pissed off", because he has just learned that Derek Sampson had been killed by a vigilante wearing a hockey mask. Ollie knows that this was Wild Dog, and returns to the group to admonish him for disobeying him. After a very tense series of moments, the group breaks off, leaving Ollie alone with Felicity. She urges him to trust in the team.

A the morgue, Derek Sampson suddenly awakens. He is not only still alive, but now has superhuman abilities, and can not feel pain. He kills the morgue attendant and then goes off to reconnect with his gang. Sampson wants to replicate the process that revitalized him, but to do this he requires a device to reproduce the same chemical formula. After acquiring the tech he needs, he returns to his old lair and consults with his men. Green Arrow decides to take Felicity's advice and brings the team together. They go out on their first official mission as a unit to Derek Sampson's drug lab. While Wild Dog, Artemis, Rag Man, and Mister Terrific deal with all of the drug goons, Green Arrow has a one-on-one with Derek Sampson. Although he can no longer feel pain, his body still reacts to injury the same as anyone else would. Ollie uses an arrow to slice up the tendons in Sampson's arms and legs, restricting his mobility. The others set explosive charges to destroy the drug manufacturing equipment, and they all leave as the building explodes.

The following day, Oliver Queen calls a press conference to clear the air. He says that he trusts the people that work for him, and openly endorses Quentin Lance's appointment as Deputy Mayor. This sentiment is echoed in his dual life as well, as he brings the recruits into the Arrowcave. It is at this time Felicity confesses to Rory Regan that she was the one who re-directed Damien Darhk's missile from Monument Point to Havenrock. Rory cannot find the words to respond, and turns away, storming out of the room in disgust.

A short time later, Lyla Michaels comes to see Oliver. She tells him that John is in prison, and she needs the Green Arrow to break him out.

Flashback
In flashback, Anatoly Knyazev speaks with Oliver about the virtues of Bratva. Ollie doesn't trust anything he says, and trusts his Bratva associates even less, for killing three innocent people. The men that the Bratva killed were anything but innocent however, as Anatoly demonstrates as they visit the mother of one of the dead men's murder victims.

Oliver decides to continue on with the Bratva, and undergoes a brutal initiation process, which involves each of the Bratva men drawing a blade across Oliver's back.

Notes & Trivia

 * Arrow was developed for television by Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim and Andrew Kreisberg.


 * This episode is production code number T27.13203 / 3J5203.


 * This episode had a viewership of 1.789 million people upon its initial broadcast, which is down by 0.147 from the previous episode. It rated 0.6% in the 18-49 viewing demographic.


 * Actor Christopher Ang is credited as Chris Ang in this episode.


 * Actor Michael Hanus is credited as Mike Hanus in this episode.


 * Actress Tatiana Loutchaninova is credited as Tatiana Luchanoninova in this episode.


 * This is the first appearance of Josh Segarra in the role of Star City district attorney Adrian Chase. His name is added to he main cast line-up beginning with this episode. He makes regular appearances throughout the remainder of the season.


 * This is the third appearance of Tyler Ritter as police detective Billy Malone. He makes six appearances in the series in total.


 * Floyd Lawton appears as an hallucination only in this episode. The character actually sacrificed his own life in the season three episode, "Suicidal Tendencies".


 * Actor Cody Runnels is actually a professional wrestler with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). He generally goes by the in-ring name of Cody Rhodes, but has also called himself Stardust. He is the son of late wrestler, the "American Dream" Dusty Rhodes, and the half-brother of fellow wrestler Dustin "Goldust" Runnels.

Allusions

 * The title of this episode may refer to the song "A Matter of Trust", which is a pop song by artist Billy Joel and appeared on his 1986 album The Bridge. In the context of this episode, it relates to three different elements of Oliver Queen's life. His trust in his teammates on Team Arrow, his trust in his sister, Thea Queen, in his duties as mayor, and developing a trust with the Russian mob group known as the Bratva.


 * Reference is made to Damien Darhk in this episode. Damien Darhk was the main villain from season four. Although the character died in the season finale, "Schism", an aspect of him was pulled out of the time stream, and he can still be seen causing trouble over in Legends of Tomorrow.


 * Reference is made to Monument Point in this episode. In season four, Damien Darhk launched a nuclear bomb aimed at Monument Point. Felicity Smoak redirected the bomb to Havenrock in the hopes of reducing potential casualties. Rory Regan's family were killed in the Havenrock explosion, which took place in "Monument Point".


 * Curtis Holt dons his Mister Terrific costume for the first time in this episode. The costume is inspired by the DC Comics character Michael Holt, though the in-story inspiration is that of Terry Sloane, who was a professional wrestler who believed in the values of "Fair Play". In the comics, Terry Sloane was the original Mister Terrific.


 * The name of the narcotic that mutated Derek Sampson is called Stardust. "Stardust" was also used an in-ring name for Cody Runnels, who is a professional wrestler with World Wrestling Entertainment. He generally goes by the name of Cody Rhodes.

Quotes

 * Felicity Smoak: So what did we learn?
 * Curtis Holt: Don't piss Oliver off.
 * Evelyn Sharp: Like we needed that lesson.


 * Rene Ramirez: That guy is seriously overestimating my patience.
 * Oliver Queen: I am. Because I didn't think that you had any patience, Rene.

....
 * Thea Queen: What are you doing here? You weren't supposed to be here until 9:00.
 * Oliver Queen The meeting was scheduled for 8:00.
 * Thea Queen: Exactly.


 * Felicity Smoak: I hardly even know Rory. And what I do know about him is that he has several-thousand-year-old rags that he could mystically use to strangle me.
 * Curtis Holt: He must be great at parties.

....
 * Curtis Holt: Which means that he'll return to -- oh, I've always wanted to say this -- "the scene of the crime".

Crew

 * Blake Neely - Composer
 * Jon Wallace - Co-producer
 * Jennifer Lence - Producer
 * Carl Ogawa - Producer
 * Todd Pittson - Producer
 * Ben Sokolowski - Supervising producer
 * Beth Schwartz - Co-executive producer


 * Speed Weed - Co-executive producer
 * Sarah Schechter - Executive producer
 * Wendy Mericle - Executive producer
 * Andrew Kreisberg - Executive producer
 * Marc Guggenheim - Executive producer
 * Greg Berlanti - Executive producer
 * Gordon Verheul - Director of photography

Keywords
Bow and arrow; Coroner; Hallucination; Mayor; Officer; Prison; Reporter; Russia; Super-hero; Superhuman durability; United States Army; Vigilante