Broken Dolls

"After all, everybody loves a pretty doll."

—Barton Mathis taunting Quentin Lance

"Broken Dolls"
Information
Season 2 » Episode 3
Episode number	26 of 170
Original airdate	October 23, 2013
Written by	Marc Guggenheim Keto Shimizu
Directed by	Glen Winter
Guest stars
Celina Jade as Shado Caity Lotz as The Canary Roger Cross as Lucas Hilton Bex Taylor-Klaus as Cindy "Sin" Simone Michael Eklund as Barton Mathis/The Dollmaker Dylan Bruce as Adam Donner Teryl Rothery as Jean Loring
Chronology
Preceded by	"Identity"
Followed by	"Crucible"

"Broken Dolls" is the third episode of the second season of Arrow, and the twenty-sixth episode overall. It aired on October 23, 2013.

Synopsis

Quentin learns a criminal named Barton Mathis, whom he put away years ago, broke out of prison during the quake and is back to torturing and murdering women. Felicity offers herself as bait so Arrow, John and Quentin can catch Barton, but the plan goes awry. Furious, Mathis kidnaps Laurel in retaliation and plans to murder her while Quentin watches powerless. Meanwhile, Thea and Oliver are stunned when Assistant District Attorney Adam Donner seeks the death penalty for Moira. Arrow asks Roy to help him find The Canary.

Plot

Oliver is saved from the police by a female vigilante, who quickly vanishes into the night. He sets Roy to track her down, which he manages through the vigilante's connection to a girl named Sin. Officer Lance discovers that the serial killer Barton Mathis, whom he arrested years earlier, escaped from prison during the earthquake and is on the killing spree again.

Lance looks to Oliver's alter-ego vigilante for help when he is forced to stay away from the investigation. The pair break into a lab running tests on the evidence found at Mathis's crime scene and are able to discover the link between all of his victims.

Felicity goes undercover by buying Mermaiden, the lotion that all the victims had in common, from all of the stores that sold it in Starling. Quentin, Diggle, and Oliver keep an eye on Felicity as she does so. She is nabbed from an alleyway and Oliver throws an arrow at the guy, stopping him from running off with Felicity. When Quentin went after the guy, Oliver soon followed but cops arrived. Pike ordered Quentin arrested, but Laurel calls in favors to get it dropped.

Roy learns that the female is friends with Cindy, or Sin, and meets Sin. She runs off and Roy follows her to an old building. He is then hit with a lead pike. After he left the station, he comes across what looks like a hobo and instead with Mathis who abducted Quentin and Laurel. The news then announced that Mathis abducted Quentin and Laurel and plans to kill them both.

Once Roy is woken up, he is brought face to face with the female vigilante. She wacks him in the face for answers but he is confused. When his phone went off with a text, she picked up the phone and read the message. It was from Thea who said that Laurel was kidnapped and that she needed him. The female then left.

Barton begins to turn Laurel into a doll when Oliver saves Laurel and Quentin; However Barton escapes. The female vigilante shows up and fights Barton. Barton drops a load of pipes over her. Oliver stops him before he can kill her, however the female vigilante kills Mathis after Oliver captures him. Laurel admits her guilt to her father about Tommy's death.

During the pre-trial motions for Moira Queen, the assistant district attorney announces his plan to seek the death penalty for Moira's actions in the death of the citizens of the Glades.

Later, the female vigilante is tracked down by an agent of Ra's al Ghul; she kills him to avoid having to return to his organization.

In flashbacks to the island, Oliver and Slade rush to the aid of Shado who is being attacked. On the way to rescue Shado, Oliver is hit by the bombs being dropped from a ship nearby. He then wakes up to learn that he is imprisoned by unknown assailants on the boat, Amazo.

Production

Preparation ran from July 23 until July 31, 2013. Shooting ran from August 1 until August 13, 2013.

Trivia

• Quentin Lance's full name is revealed to be "Quentin Larry Lance". This is a reference to the comics counterpart of the character, who is named Larry Lance.
• Officer Lance's patrol number is "DC 52". This is a reference to The New 52, the latest DC Comics universe reboot.
  • The New 52 is referenced also in Barton Mathis' hotel room and on Channel 52, which broadcasts the Lances' abduction.
• Ra's al Ghul is referenced in this episode. Ra's al Ghul is an infamous Batman villain noted for being one of the key people in Bruce Wayne's journey towards becoming Batman.
• Barton Mathis hides in an abandoned facility of Metamorpho Chemical. Metamorpho is the name of a superhero in the DC Comics universe.
• The boat Oliver is imprisoned on is named "Amazo". Amazo is the name of a supervillain in the DC Comics universe, an android possessing the powers of the entire Justice League, created by Professor Ivo.
• Mathis' lawyer, Tony Daniel, is named for the comic book writer and artist of the same name, who was the creator of The Dollmaker.
• Moira's defense attorney is Jean Loring. In the comics, Jean is the girlfriend/wife/ex-wife of the superhero The Atom. She later suffers a mental breakdown and kills the wife of another superhero, eventually becoming a villainous incarnation of Eclipso.
• The Canary is using an abandoned clock tower as her base. In the comics, Black Canary is a member of The Birds of Prey, who have also used a clock tower as their base of operations.
• This is the last episode where Oliver is referred to as "The Hood"; he uses the identity of "The Arrow" onward until Season 4.

Gallery

Promos

Arrow 2x03 Promo "Broken Dolls" (HD)

Promo

Arrow 2x03 Extended Promo "Broken Dolls" (HD)

Extended Promo

Arrow 2x03 Sneak Peek "Broken Dolls" (HD)

Sneak Peek

Arrow 2x03 Broken Dolls - Sneak Peek 2