Comics
[TV] “Arrow” Recap: Left Behind
Arrow began 2015 on extremely solid footing by focusing on Ollie’s massive absence after his deadly duel with Ras Al Ghul. After the events of “The Climb” Ollie is left dying on a rock face halfway down a mountain and “Left Behind” explores the effects of his loss to varying degrees of success.
Somehow it didn’t even matter. We all knew Oliver was going to be coming back in relatively short order, but this week we got to see just how badly his absence affected the team that was “Left Behind.” After having very little to do for most of this season Diggle and Roy begin the episode with a bang. I could seriously watch Diggle in that “too tight” suit for the remainder of the season. While Roy actually made good on his training and proved to be a rather formidable force when going up against the faceless goons of the week.
Their resolve to keep fighting was contrasted by Felicity’s loss of her ditzy attitude. It was replaced by a noticeable hole. She’s lost the man she loves and she refuses to believe it. She can’t help but want to prevent Diggle, and Roy from falling to the same fate. And even still we can see her worry with Ray, a scientist who has great ideas but faulty execution. Her scenes this week felt a lot more at home with Ray as the two of them actually have some stakes to their interactions.
While, Malcolm Merlyn is the honorary recipient of the most convenient appearance of the week award since his few scenes in this episode were nothing if not problematic. His rolling into the Arrow cave to deliver his version of the bad news, only to reappear a little later to show that he’s done the worst detective work on his trip to Nanda Parbat was pretty much laughable. As was his random scene with Thea warning that they had to leave the city asap.
Danny Brickwell was a welcome addition to the glades. He is perfectly cast as Vinny Jones, and looks to be the villain of the next couple of weeks. I found his plan to not only be enjoyable but a pretty great idea all things considered. Plus he gave us that fantastic sequence between his goons and Roy in the pipe.
The fight choreography has really taken a step to another level this year. I was legitimately on the edge of my seat when Roy jumped out of the pipe, onto the top and bounced off the one to his side while firing his bow. Giving us simply awesome stuff that you wouldn’t have been able to find on this show two years ago.
The flashbacks with Ollie and Maseo did a lot to sell the debt between these characters. The infiltration of the lab was another action highpoint and showed yet another different side of Ollie that we never knew he had. I’m happy they didn’t play coy with Ollie’s resurrection for too long. I knew we’d be seeing him sooner rather than later but I’m glad to see the literal “cliffhanger” resolved so quickly. Maseo seems to be the perfect character to save Ollie. I’m excited to see where this goes.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Laurel’s transition from useless pretty face to Black Canary. But I can’t stop cringing over that line she delivers. Let’s hope donning that domino mask does something for her character, otherwise I welcome her long overdue death.
Next week we’ve got “Midnight City.”
Comics
‘You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive’ – IDW Dark’s Next Horror Comic Will Make You Question Reality
Five friends. Four houses. One perfect life. Bloody Disgusting is excited to exclusively announce You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive, a brand new horror comic from IDW Dark.
From Eisner-Nominated writers Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly, and rising horror artist Heather Vaughan, You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive is described as a “paranoia-laced, socially-conscious, horror mystery that will leave you questioning reality, and reveal that this crafted world is more of a nightmare than the idealistic dream they were expecting.”
Phoebe Joplin has never questioned the world her parents built: a secluded community where she and her friends were raised to be smarter, stronger, and better than anyone else. No distractions. No dangers. No secrets. Until the night of their graduation.
When one of them dies under impossible circumstances, Phee starts to pull at the edges of her perfect life—and what she finds is something far more terrifying than she ever imagined.
Because this place isn’t a sanctuary. It’s a cage. And no one who discovers the truth ever leaves it alive.
Collin Kelly & Jackson Lanzing (Batman – One Bad Day: Clayface, Star Trek: The Last Starship) co-write the upcoming IDW Dark horror comic, featuring art by Heather Vaughan.
Jackson Lanzing said in a statement to Bloody Disgusting, “You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive is in many ways a spiritual successor to our last creator-owned horror, The Principles of Necromancy – a dive into the promise and consequence of playing god with the blood of innocents. But the Hivemind book this reminds me of most is Clayface: One Bad Day. This is a deeply human story with intensely raw emotions – five best friends and their five mysterious parents, tearing one another apart for the promise of some impossible glory that’s waiting just beyond their darkest actions. We’re thrilled to be bringing this story to life with our long-time partner in crime, editor Heather Antos, at IDW Dark – and we’re particularly excited to give our Clayface fans a new, brutal and emotional horror made just for them.”
Adds Collin Kelly, “We’re deconstructing a feeling that seems universal these days; our elders have a death grip on their power, without any intention of giving it up to the generations that come next. YNLTPA is about growing up with the limitless potential of the future… and realizing how much it’s a lie we’ve been fed to keep us under the yoke of the past. Bringing this brutal experience to life is our artist and co-creator, Heather Vaughan, who brings an incredible amount of humanity to our cast. But it’s in our youthful leads that Heather’s art really shines – you are going to fall in love with these young people, even as they go through the worst experience of their lives. What we’ve all crafted together is going to be tragic, painful, but above all else, sincere – with a future so uncertain, there’s only one thing we can trust: you’ll never leave this place alive.”
“Some horror stories are about monsters in the dark. YNLTPA is about realizing the monsters raised you,” previews Senior Group Editor Heather Antos. “Working with Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly on this series has been a dream in the darkest possible way. They’ve built a story that’s layered, brutal, and deeply emotional, and every issue gives artist Heather Vaughan opportunities to push the art into places that feel both haunting and deeply personal. Some horror comics will keep you up at night…this is one that will stick with you for years to come.”
The first issue of You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive goes on sale October 14, 2026! Make sure to pre-order at your local comic shop by September to guarantee a copy.
Exclusively check out the various covers for Issue #1 down below.
IDW Publishing’s horror imprint IDW DARK features comics like A Quiet Place: Storm Warning, Smile: For the Camera, The Exorcism at 1600 Penn, Beneath The Trees Where Nobody Sees, The Twilight Zone, Event Horizon: Dark Descent & Event Horizon: Inferno, and more.
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