Sunshine

I think from the promo on the CW's page they must tell Lance. I couldn't tell in the dark but I thought the 5 in the cemetery were Oliver, Laurel & Lance with Felicity & Roy off to the side. This also makes me think Colton was referring to Felicity & Roy bonding over something bad and he said Sarah to not spoil similar to Manu using Caity's name when talking about being punched in the face by Emily. Regarding Laurel's mask: Unless there is a date stamp on the picture it could have been taken months ago. The storylines had to be approved last May/June. SA mentioned he was training for the biggest fight scene in the history of the show (3.09) so I assume Ra's. KC was in Dallas for about 2 weeks. Story wise she could be off training and shows up in the fight scene in costume as a "surprise your going to want to tune back in after the holidays". They think we will love her once she dons her costume. They like to do things sooner rather than later hence Roy being a fully integrated member of Team Arrow along with his costume in 3.01. Also, there was talk during S2 by MG about wanting to do another BOP episode in S3. They can only pull that off if Laurel is already established as Canary. Okay, I am depressed now.

Thanks. Like I said I couldn't make it out but that seemed like a strange thing for her to say so I figured I had misunderstood.

I was just rewatching...When Felicity went to the hospital and saw Lyla, Diggle and the baby did she say she was jealous right after commenting on the digglette? I rewound it a couple of times but I couldn't quite make it out.

See I wondered if Episodes 2 & 3 were going to have Diggle rethinking his decision not to be in the field. I don't remember Diggle leaving the team. I thought he was just not doing field work. Maybe he'll do what he can tech wise/monitoring since Felicity will probably be working a less flexible job than the one at Buy More?

Laurel is going to show up in a superhero costume?

I think she's a bigger Original Team Arrow (O/F/D) fan. She's definitely a huge John Diggle/David Ramsey fan.

I agree with all the comments on here about these episodes being filler, not adding anything to the larger narrative, etc. I think we are missing something though. The EPs keep talking about doing things sooner rather than waiting. I think they wanted to do The Promise, Suicide Squad, and Birds of Prey because they could, not because they had too many episodes to write and didn't know how to stretch it out. They found a way to insert, however loosely, some of their favorite comic book characters into the narrative and ran with it. Only SS had any bearing on the finale. They should have spent more time developing the Isabel and Slade revenge plot present day instead. BTW, I enjoyed (not liked, but enjoyed) this episode when it originally aired. My expectations were so low that it wasn't hard for it to be better. I was amused by the absurdity of it all. Sometimes it was so bad I couldn't help but laugh. However, it is one of the episodes I skipped when rewatching. Once was definitely enough.

I think maybe they have bigger plans for Ray/Atom even if it's just as a recurring character in both Arrow & Flash. Unless they have changed their minds, I think they said his flashbacks would be to the Season 2 finale events. I am assuming that is what motivates him to seek control of the Applied Sciences Division.

I had read spoilers relating to both scenes. I was more surprised by the Moira death scene from the standpoint of wow they actually did it the way it was spoiled. The spoiler was pretty detailed. I am used to reading spoilers and them playing out differently than most people surmise. The spoilers I had read mentioned an ILY and a kiss along with Slade's death reminiscent of the count. Everyone was of course speculating Oliver & Felicity. I still couldn't imagine it happening so was relieved when there was a kiss and ILY between Thea and Roy. (I had no idea everybody and his brother was going to tell someone they loved them.) I was truly shocked when Oliver said ILY to Felicity in the mansion.

Why are we having this discussion here instead of the spoiler thread?

I wasn't planning on watching this episode initially. Then I read a Berlanti interview and he said they weren't misleading anyone. There would be fisticuffs between the two. Now I am probably watching because I cannot imagine either one of them throwing the first punch. Oliver/Arrow is usually very restrained except when fighting the villain. I just can't picture Barry. The idea amuses me greatly. There is a shot somewhere (Canadagraphs perhaps?) where Barry is actually face down on the ground beside Oliver. It might have nothing to do with the fight though. Oliver is pointing his bow upwards like he is shooting it. Quick getaway?

Is Komodo the villain targeting employees of a certain company? If so my guess as to who is on the table with the black arrow would be someone Felicity knew from QC.

I don't think we have anything that says Ray knows Oliver is the vigilante or that she works with him. I think Felicity/Ray are supposed to have obstacles. Part of her journey is supposed to be about if she can't be with Oliver can she be with someone else because of the life she is leading. (Sound familiar?) Advice from Diggle doesn't work. His significant other knows what he does and is in a similar line of work.

Maybe Sara is hurt (by Komodo) attempting to help Roy somehow. She doesn't die but won't be able to function as Canary any time soon (coma, paralyzed, etc) so that's when her sister decides to follow in her steps? It would explain PB, KL & KC filming together with no CL mentions.

As a non-Laurel fan, I am fine with Laurel and Felicity being friendly. I didn't expect anything else. I am also expecting Diggle to come around but probably at a slower pace. MG said something back around SDCC about Diggle seeing Laurel in a new light. This doesn't mean that I expect any of them to be best friends and hanging out together. Felicity has never had a problem with Laurel. She knew Oliver loved her and accepted it. I don't think the EPs ever intended to set up Laurel vs Felicity. I think Laurel's behavior in the scenes cited probably didn't come across as intended. I think Laurel looking down her nose at everyone is mainly a problem caused by KC's portrayal. As for tension within the lair, CH said in one of his interviews that Diggle and Felicity would show signs of jealousy because of his place on the team. I consider that eye roll worthy and more out of character for F & D. He's been around since mid-season 2.

Maybe Sarah's backstory is more about introducing/expanding Ra's Al Ghul and the League than her?

I could see this happening too. It's also why I hope Ray remains a potential love interest instead of an actual one. I guess the idea of her getting romantically involved with her boss makes me go ugh! Maybe she will do contract work for QC. At least for me it makes the romantic angle a little easier to take.

I came into this show expecting to root for Laurel right away based on what I had read about the show. I had never heard of Cassidy before the pilot. I have pretty much hated her since the moment she appeared on my screen. I think the EPs/writers were going for conflicted (which would explain the back and forth) but she just came across as an over the top drama queen and it was all about her. It wasn't exactly what I was expecting from a "kind, compassionate, caring" lawyer. The narrative has repeatedly told me Laurel was one thing but the portrayal said something else entirely. This is my other problem with Laurel. They throw all these wonderful labels on her but they don't actual show any of it. For me the only way I knew she had an addiction was because Quentin and Oliver were always asking if she was okay. There was never any out-of-character behavior actually shown. It's a TV show. It's okay to tell things from time to time but I really need you to show me too.

@HighHopes Brandon Routh has shot at least 6 episodes of Arrow so far but he's probably not allowed to reveal much.

It might have ... at least in his mind. Assuming he finds out about the cop he killed under the influence of Mirakuru in 3.06 from some source other than the Trio, it wouldn't be inconceivable that he would place some distance between himself and them.

Doesn't Cupid target villains in the comics as a way of "helping" GA? I thought she captured Merlyn and then tried to get GA to kill him. I think this is how she tries to show her love/admiration in the comics. Would they really have her targeting Arrow's friends & family? Wouldn't that be a redux of Slade but on a smaller scale?

No. Tommy's death was the device used to propel Oliver's Season 2 journey. He was Oliver/Laurel collateral damage. The decisions on how S1 would end and S2 would begin were probably all made around the same time (Feb 2013).

Yes, but who throws the first punch?!!! I guess I am having trouble picturing either one of them doing it.

I thought SA said in one of his SDCC interviews that Ray was a good guy. They just had different agendas.

I think the dealing with the finale rather than with them is just about Oliver's "because of the life I lead..." stance. They go back in the box romantically until later. His journey in S3 is supposed to be about who does he want to be Arrow, Oliver or a combination.