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The CW’s ‘Arrow’ may seem like a strange inclusion on an overall “best of” list for the year, but the fact remains that the DC superhero drama has gone above and beyond in its second season, elevating the very genre around it. In the same year that showed Marvel’s ‘Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’ to be an assembly of concepts and characters with very little hook to speak of, ‘Arrow’ managed to entirely reinvent our image of TV superhero dramas, working from the ground up to put character before concept.

There’s good reason why TV critics have gone out their way to single ‘Arrow’ out for its must-watch status, and not just for good standing with its producers. Stripping away the convoluted chaos of earlier effort ‘Smallville,’ and smartly adding a dash of ‘Batman Begins’ (okay, more than a dash), ‘Arrow’ shook up our image of the CW’s hunky teen soaps to deliver a reliably engaging anti-heroic thriller that matched its every impressive stunt feature with a unique and relatable character performing them. Its second season in particular had endured an embarrassment of riches with regard to DC character integration, successfully expanding its premise to a more comic-friendly tone without sacrificing the deeply personal relationships that drive the story behind them. If anything, ‘Arrow’ repeatedly proves itself better than we could have ever expected from such humble beginnings.