The Undertaking

For the event of the same name, see The Undertaking (event).

"The Undertaking"
Information
Episode number	21 of 170
Original airdate	May 1, 2013
Written by	Jake Coburn Lana Cho
Directed by	Michael Schultz
Guest stars
Emily Bett Rickards as Felicity Smoak John Barrowman as Malcolm Merlyn Jamey Sheridan as Robert Queen Chin Han as Frank Chen Colin Salmon as Walter Steele Byron Noble as Harold Backman Ray Galletti as Dominic Alonzo
Chronology
Preceded by	"Home Invasion"
Followed by	"Darkness on the Edge of Town"

"The Undertaking" is the ???th episode of Arrow. It aired on May 1, 2013. "The Undertaking" is the twenty-first episode of the first season of Arrow, and the twenty-first episode overall. It aired on May 1, 2013.

Synopsis

Finding it difficult to mend fences with Tommy and John, Oliver instead focuses on crossing another name off the list. While digging through a crooked accountant’s laptop, Felicity discovers a transaction that could help Oliver find Walter. To reconfirm the lead, Oliver gambles that Felicity can be counted on in the field for the first time. In a flashback, Malcolm reveals to Robert Queen and Frank Chen painful details surrounding his wife’s murder, and how that shaped his plans for the Glades. Meanwhile, Tommy stuns Laurel with the truth.

Plot

Oliver tracks down an accountant, Harold Backman, for the secret organization and steals his laptop in order to redistribute all of his money back to the people he stole from. While decrypting the laptop, Felicity uncovers a link to Walter a $2 million transfer was made to Dominic Alonzo, a underground casino owner who was hired to kidnap Walter.

With Felicity posing as a card shark and was obviously caught for the plan, while leaving Dominic destroyed Felicity communicator which she states to Dominic he will be upset when he meets her partner. The pair then infiltrate the casino, after being beaten and threatened, Dominic reveals that Walter was killed as soon as he was delivered to the person who hired him. Oliver informs his family, Moira immediately confronts Malcolm, who reveals that Walter is alive.

Oliver suspicious of his mother's reaction to the news of Walter's death followed her and was listening in, discovers that Tommy's father is heading the secret organization that kidnapped Walter and wants to do something horrible to the Glades. When Felicity returns to the Arrowcave, Oliver tells her to hack into Malcolm phone records to ascertain Walter's location. Confused about what's going on, she starts to ask questions, but Oliver just asks her to find Walter. As the Hood, Oliver frees Walter and reunites him with their family. Meanwhile, Oliver is at the hospital, Malcolm approached him and has to disguise his rage at Malcolm's questioning of Walter's condition knowing he's only trying to ascertain if he can be tied to the crime. Then he's approached by Laurel, who wants him to tell Tommy that Oliver doesn't have feelings for her anymore and he refuses, implying it's one lie too many with all the others he has to carry.

Oliver, then, goes to Diggle and apologizes, telling him he was right about everything, including his mother's involvement in the Undertaking and he needs Diggle's help to finish this. 

In a flashback, Robert Queen is shown disagreeing with Malcolm's proposed "Undertaking", which would involve levelling the Glades and kill thousands of people in an effort to rebuild the area and remove the crime. Moira is completely unaware of what the private meetings are about. Robert tells Moira what Malcolm wants to do, and she insists that he finds away to stop it, because she doesn't want any of them to be responsible for that much death. He tries to prevent it with Frank Chen. They make a plan to meet up in China and prevent Malcolm being able to rebuild after he destroys the Glades. Unfortunately, Chen sells him out to Malcolm (much like Moira later does to Chen). As a result, Malcolm has a bomb planted on the Queens' yacht just before Robert and Oliver set off. The last thing Robert sees on before his voyage to China is his wife waving to him from the docks. 

Trivia

• Ted Kord is referenced in a flashback scene. In the comics, Ted is the second Blue Beetle.
• Also in a flashback scene, Malcolm reveals that The Undertaking will be performed with the "Markov device". This is a reference to the seismologist Brion Markov, who in the comics is the hero Geo-Force.
• When Oliver brings Laurel pizza, 5 years ago, she mentions "Ray and Jean". In the comics, Ray Palmer is a superhero, The Atom, and Jean Loring was his girlfriend, then wife and later his psychotic ex. Jean Loring does in fact later appear, however she is much older and seemingly not really friends with Oliver.
• This marks the first episode to feature flashbacks for someone other than Oliver.

Production

Preparation ran from March 6 until March 14, 2013. Filming began on March 15 and ended on March 26, 2013.

Featured Music

• Your Heart Keeps Burning by Adam Agin
• Bleeding Love by Leona Lewis
• Through the Walls by Gary Go