Sunshine

I actually thought the most interesting part was commenter Penelope who acts like she's "in the know" who said Stemily was created to deceive the shippers. Why would shippers need to be deceived to sell Olicity?

Thea likes "bad" boys. See Roy & DJ Douche. Hmm...Are we going to get another "what happens in Russia stays in Russia" scene or just a callback? Will Russian vodka be involved? There are 2 women and 4 men. (I'm just kidding.)

Is Susan Rene's ex? Just kidding! Good to see if she's back on my screen she's being a reporter. Shouldn't Thea be around for this?

Rene transporting a prisoner in his care and beating him to earn a dishonorable discharge doesn't mean he was military police but it could. It's also not unusual for former military to become police. Just speculating. I guess we'll know soon.

Another idea...With Rene's background could they perhaps be setting him up to join (go undercover) in the ACU? Might explain his scenes with Lance.

I like the idea of Pike as Prometheus but does he fit the age profile? Isn't Prometheus early 30s? AH is only 42 and could play younger. If he's not Prometheus he could be the inside connection.

I'd rather not but I have trouble not seeing them.

I agree with these statements. I would like this show better if it was S1 and not S5 and I had no expectations based on what these characters and their relationships were like prior to 5.01. It's been like watching reruns but with characters I have no investment in.

Not sure if this is the right place but I think Oliver & Felicity's S5 relationship is supposed to be like S1 Oliver & Laurel but without the acrimony. Some obstacle they can't overcome so they both try to move on. Oliver's reaction to Billy is a lot like his reaction to Laurel & Tommy as in none really. I just want you to be happy. Susan Williams is a combo of Isabel & McKenna Hall. Billy only = Tommy as dying and Oliver blaming himself. He also reported directly to the Mayor's office as part of the task force although we never saw it. Oliver & Wild Dog = Oliver & Roy. Thea is S2 Thea Verdant/Mayor's office and S1 Laurel regarding Lance and drinking . Curtis has taken on some of the narrative purpose of both Diggle & Felicity.

I thought the promo was well done.

When she took off the ring the timeline Barry disrupted in 4.08 was healed. Cue miraculous spine/leg healing. Dramatically walk away. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. LOL!

Just looking @statsgirl's post. Justin Claybourne could be a definite possibility. He wouldn't have been familiar to Oliver if he did see or hear him. He would also tie into the story if he is Prometheus's father. If Talia turns out to be his mother that's another connection. He owns a pharmaceutical company so that probably qualifies him as a billionaire. Why am I trying to make sense of this?

I guess I wasn't thinking Oliver would actually see/hear him.

Definitely sounds like a swipe at Trump. I thought maybe Malcolm because of the Undertaking. He was going to wipe out the glades and buy up the land. Damien Darhk is another possibility. You have a good point though. They might not want to use an established character.

Millionaire/Billionaire - Malcolm Merlyn ? :-) Wonder if Oliver offs Kovar in this episode or the next and then makes his way back to the Lian Yu for a couple of episodes.

I think so. Covering it up with makeup or something. Writers don't want to be too obvious I guess.

I assume they will be operating on screen as fighting partners. I'd love it if it was more a Tina/Felicity thing but since everyone seems to be parroting Geoff Johns "You can't have GA without BC" I'm trying to be realistic not pessimistic. I'd love to be wrong! As I said it's the only reason I can think of why Oliver would continue seeing Susan after the reveal. Has Oliver become unobservant? Seems like he should have noticed the Arrow on Susan's wrist and asked about it already.

I guess I'm going to have to watch The Dark Night Rises!

If Susan is working for/with Talia why is she investigating Oliver's time in Russia? Wouldn't Talia have made her aware of it especially if she was her daughter? Around 5.15 Felicity has a secret that others know about but Oliver is kept out of the loop on. Events in 5.10-5.12 launch her dark arc. IF we get a dark BOP in 5.14 then 5.15 might be Oliver finding out about their escapade but not Felicity's involvement. 7 episodes later cue his discovery. :-) The only plot purpose I can come up with for Oliver and Susan to be a couple after the reveal is to keep people guessing where they are headed with him romantically. They don't care how stupid he looks. Meanwhile they test audience reaction with GA/BC, Oliver & Felicity are still on hold, and TPTB decide who will be THE LI. My guess is both sets of shippers go into hiatus thinking it's their ship. This hiatus is more pleasant for the show runners. LOL!

Unless Rick just wasn't around for the BTS photo and mannequin challenge. Now that I think about it the BTS w/Rick & Paul might be 5.13. It was a 100th episode Instagram thing by Echo. SA said at a HVFF Atl something about the 2 sharing scenes and they were around 5.12 then. I might be mixing up things. I hope for more than a hacking battle too but I think that's what 5.11 is. 5.10-5.12 sounds like setup per BFS. Yeah. I googled Wild Dog and noticed the name was different but the girlfriend getting shot while on a date with him was the backstory.

In 5.11 we have Rory & Thea in town. In 5.12 it looks like Rene and Thea. Rick is in none of the BTS Russian pics but is in a suit and tie with Paul Blackthorne. 5.13 is titled "Spectre of the Gun" and mayor's office is shot up. If it's Bratva or Vigilante collateral damage, I'm guessing it's to trigger Rene's flashbacks to the loved ones he lost (girlfriend and baby) . He's referenced an ex and a child on screen. In the comics Wild Dog's girlfriend was shot and died while they were on a date. I guess it could be Bratva collateral damage brought on by 5.12.

How does going up against the NSA, the FBI, Argus or whomever help propel Felicity to a dark place? If she's being reckless and getting caught shouldn't she be thinking maybe I need to get out as opposed to using morally grey areas to target Prometheus? If it's a "good guy" isn't the option work for us or go to jail? Do not pass go. Do not collect $200. (Monopoly reference). There isn't really a choice to contemplate. Prometheus might very well have contacted Brother Eye ("bit tied to her past" and a future she's contemplating) figuring they would try and get Diggle free by unlawful means so someone's on the lookout for her. It's also why I suggested the unknown adversary might actually be a sibling she's unaware of. Noah Kuttler has a son as well as a daughter in the comics. Not saying it couldn't be a "good guy". I'm just trying to understand.

I thought Arrow couldn't use Oracle?

IIRC, he actually said at Nerd HQ that he wanted to "utilize" his fan base to do the projects he wants and can control. (There are rumors that he is getting NO callbacks on movies he's read for.) In order to do that you have to be marketable. He's made some faux pas in the last year that may have done some damage to the "Amell" brand based on things I've read elsewhere. He also needs to increase his fan base if he wants to keep going to that well for money. His social media presence lately has been all about "Shop Nocking Point's facebook page" similiar to KC's "Shop my Insta" As cynical as that all sounds, I do think SA enjoys interacting with fans. Q&A's is one way to do it as he's not doing quite as many cons as he has in the past or so it seems.

Per BFS "Malone's death uncorks what Felicity bottled up (re: Havenrock) and the events of 5.10-5.12 have Felicity re-examing her life, or lack of, as of late" 5.10 Prometheus targets Oliver using BS as a fake LL. Felicity ends up in the crossfire at some point. 5.11 Felicity ends up in a hack-off similar to the one with Cooper in S4. Oliver's focus is on honoring his promise to dying Laurel. 5.12 Team goes to Russia. The why is unknown. In search of Talia makes sense but why take the whole team? Oliver is the one with connections. Rescue mission for Susan because of her "investigating" might be a reason to take a bunch of people unfamiliar with the country. Oliver and Susan reunion which causes Felicity to feel all alone? Oliver is once again not focused on taking down Prometheus? Felicity is going up against another super hacker in 5.11 while trying to help free Diggle. I guess this addresses Havenrock since she had a hack-off with Cooper trying to stop the launch of the missiles. MG said they wanted to use new characters which is why neither Donna or Noah were being brought back. So, is the unknown person on the other end of the computer a random or does Felicity have a unknown half-sibling? In the comics, Noah Kuttler/Calculator has a daughter, Wendy and a son Marvin White. Secret sibling that your team mate doesn't know about doesn't really parallel secret child your fiancee doesn't know about, but this show. If it's a random like Diggle's army guys, the lie being paralleled is probably the lie of omission from 5.04 and the PT break-in. Curtis (at least) will know Felicity's secret since he's the main character she's allowed to talk to. There could be others. If the lie is simply I'm only working with Team Arrow part-time, Curtis would be the one covering for her. Oliver's probably unaware because he's operating from the mayor's office more.