Arrow brought several DC Comics characters to life during its 8-year run as it helped flesh out the larger Arrowverse with big and obscure heroes and villains joining the small-screen. One of the heroes that joined the rooster was a re-imagined version of Mister Terrific as Echo Kellum joined the franchise as Curtis Holt, loosely based on Michael Holt who was one of the people to go by the superhero title.
The character first joined Arrow in season 4, which was an attempt to try brightening up the gritty vigilante drama. Curtis was one of the elements to help with that as the IT-based hero became one of the new members of the team.
Curtis would eventually join the superhero-action when suiting up as Mister Terrific in the fifth season before exiting Arrow during its seventh year. Throughout his run, Curtis went through as many dark moments as he did light-hearted ones. With the series now over, it’s time to look at 10 of Curtis’s best moments and events during his time on Arrow.
Meeting Felicity For The First Time
It became evident early on that Curtis and Felicity (Emily Bett Rickards) were destined to become best friends from the moment he stepped on to the scene. In his first episode of the series, Felicity is dealing with being in charge of Palmer Technologies, a job easier said than done. With the company’s board being as strict as they were, Curtis was the opposite of that.
What started as a misunderstanding ended up becoming the duo’s bonding moment when Felicity was forced to lay off a chunk of employees. But together, they overcame that obstacle, for the time being, while creating one of the show’s long-lasting friendships.
Almost Finding Out Oliver’s Secret
Oliver (Stephen Amell) wasn’t known for being the best at keeping his superhero activities a secret. As several people tried to expose him as the Emerald Archer and many others were close in figuring it out, Oliver had to juggle a lot with that.
One of the people that almost figured it out before learning it for real was Curtis when they met for the first time. Despite being so close, Curtis sees past Oliver’s obvious similarities by determining that he doesn’t have the same jaw as the Green Arrow.
His First Crossover
The first crossover Curtis ever takes part in is the Invasion event which was the Arrowverse’s first 4-show event. While he doesn’t join the superhero action, he does get to team up with The Flash’s Cisco Ramon (Carlos Valdes) as he and the rest of the nerdy IT-squad try to figure out where the Dominators took Oliver and the rest of the gang.
Just those scenes alone made it clear that there needed to be a crossover where all of the IT-characters came together for one shared technological adventure. While this wouldn’t be Curtis’s last crossover, it was his best one.
Becoming Mister Terrific
When announced to be joining the show, Curtis’s transition into Mister Terrific was anticipated. While season 4 was too early to have him suit-up, the fifth season is when he officially dons the costume.
Even though his second costume was a massive improvement, the original suit was still amazing to see come to life, given its close comic book resemblance.
Finding Team Arrow’s Bunker
One of the consistent, but hilarious flaws in Greg Berlanti’s shared DC TV franchise is how easy it is to get into the heroes’ headquarters. No matter how high and advanced the security is, people still find ways of getting into those bases, and Arrow is no exception.
Curtis discovering the team’s lair is probably the funniest one because unlike others who found it, he did it while being sick. That made his discovery that much more amusing, simply due to the fact that it shouldn’t be this easy to break into the Arrowcave, especially when having a cold or the flu.
Joining Team Arrow 2.0
Despite having helped the team out in season 4, the following season is when Curtis officially joins the team for real. After being ambushed by street thugs, Curtis decides to double his membership on the Arrow team and to stop being only in front of a keyboard.
Curtis’s speech to Oliver about not wanting to feel powerless anymore was excellently delivered and something that felt universal as people could relate to his feelings.
Make Felicity Walk Again
Season 4 had a major change in store for Felicity after she was almost killed thanks to Damien Darhk (Neal McDonough.) While she survived the massive car crash, Felicity’s spinal cord was permanently damaged, making her not able to walk. Despite that storyline lasting for a bit, it had an expiration date, thanks to Curtis.
While maybe one of the more rushed solutions, Curtis was the one to make Felicity walk again. A few episodes after the car crash, Curtis had developed a bio-stimulant implant that allowed her to walk again.
Going Undercover
One of his more fun missions was when Curtis had to go undercover. In the seventh season, Curtis had to go undercover for A.R.G.U.S., not that he was really fond of the idea.
While no longer acting as Mister Terrific, seeing Curtis going undercover with a French accent was incredible and probably the most enjoyable mission he went on.
Leaving Star City On His Terms
While having a good run in the series, season 7 would mark Kellum’s final season as a full-time cast member. Even before the season had ended, Curtis departed.
But the important thing was that Curtis got to leave Star City on his terms that included a job in Washington, D.C., instead of being killed off or forced to leave Star City.
Returning For Oliver’s Funeral
Despite his departure in season 7, that wasn’t Curtis’s final episode on Arrow. He came back for the last season, including the series finale. But Curtis’s most important return was seeing him join his fellow allies for Oliver’s funeral.
Seeing him along with so many of the important lives that Oliver had impacted made it one of the character’s biggest moments, without a doubt.
