EmeraldArcher

She did. She really is just the worst. I wish you hadn't reminded me about Sara, who got a pine box and a secret burial. Sara, who earned the name Canary through the worst sort of tribulation. Sara, who nurtured a canary when she was but a child and protected women when she was more than a killer. Sara, who was willing to sacrifice herself for her family. Laurel was nothing, and now they pretend she was everything.

Pros: Fights Flashbacks Felcity's wardrobe Flashback wig John Diggle* Cons: WWLD BF Mayo Giving credit to Malcolm Merlyn No Oliver running scene to open the season premiere. Can't Believe They're That STUPID: Mayor Queen's speech justifying the expense of commissioning a statue of LL/BC. Like seriously, if he's ever outed, it seems like such gratuitous self-glorification. He's using his position of power to control the narrative about how the Green Arrow and his team should be admired. I thought superheroes were uncomfortable with being idolized--they normally don't allocate the funds and give speeches about how awesome they are. LL's deathbed speech. Just Ugh times a gazillion. She is so pathetic. Her last words about always wanting a part of her out there with Oliver nullifies anything heroic about her being the BC. And, if I'm not mistaken, she was planning to give up the mask the night she died anyway. Keeping BF Mayo a secret from Oliver. *When Oliver said "Hey, Buddy" to John, my heart melted a little--partially from their closeness, but also in remembrance of Tommy.

Awwww. Hang in there! I visited China last year for work, so I can empathize. I was so homesick, too.

Let me have this, OK? Otherwise, the only explanation is that Joe had a big, fat, gaping Barry-shaped hole in his life but never knew why his actual family couldn't make him happy. And if that's it, then I'm back to being mad again. Ugh. This isn't even my show.

I'm still confused about FP and mad that I wasted my time watching Flash tonight only to fail in my purpose of understanding how it could affect the show I watch. But other than that, I'm excited to see how the air punch that looks so bad in all of the promos is going to look really cool in the actual episode. BamBam promised.

Right. That was my impression, but the post-ep article up thread gave this as the reason: Lucky for Joe, Barry has no boundaries and made sure to shower him before whisking him to work.

I didn't catch on at all that Joe was slacking off at work because he and Iris were estranged. And, even after watching the entire episode, I still have no idea how FP works or in what ways it can affect Arrow. I thought Flash's big double-tornado fight with The Rival was stupid. The tornado manipulation was OK, but then he leapt out like Thea from the LP and just sort of landed on The Rival, who then pronounced him "the fastest man alive." Lame.

You don't have to, as long as Barry does. ;-)

My problem with it was that Iris was rendered completely unnecessary, despite the heavy-handed True!Love she and Barry clearly felt in the FP. First, the one major difference in the West household in FP is Barry's absence, so Joe is an alcoholic with no other explanation except that Barry was missing from his life. And, when Barry restores the timeline and goes "home," it's Joe's house that's his home (as it's always been), even though one would think True!Love would have led him to Iris, that she would have been his home. And, I just don't buy that after so many seasons of Barry pining for his mother, he would happily proclaim himself OK after giving the kill order for his mom in FP and when returning from his father's grave in the current timeline. Did 301 just wrap up that heavy, emotional journey so neatly?

Sorry, but I only have more questions: Why is Joe an alcoholic? I'm borderline pissed by the implication that it's because he didn't have Barry to nurture and give his life purpose. Also, why is Cisco's Star Labs full of people despite he sweeping shot of a clearly empty parking lot?

I just read that Dynasty will be rebooted and on The CW: http://deadline.com/2016/09/dynasty-reboot-the-cw-josh-schwartz-stephanie-savage-1201829178/ I never watched it, but I do wonder what scheduling implications this will have for what seems like a crowded primetime roster on The CW. Since it won't launch until next season, that probably means the final run of TVD will make room, as well as the potential dumping of under-performing shows like Reign. The article indicates that this is a pretty ambitious move for the network and signals its interest in maintaining some shows on its roster with soapy elements and that break from the superhero shows The CW is getting known for.

I hope it's the new BF to Felicity because the relationship is a ruse on her part and she's avoiding any intimacy with him. Hey, a shipping fangirl can hope! Everything I think is going to be bad about the upcoming season goes back to that stupid BMD. Or LL. Or Barry. Ugh.

I only see what I want to see--she looks repulsed to me. She could climb on his lap and wiggle around, and I'd still think she looks repulsed! ;-) Honestly, I think they'll get Olicity back together this season. Oliver's voice over during the promo about having no name, no family, etc. is describing his initiation into the Bratva and current day. Whomever the writers pin the breakup on, the result is that Oliver lost everything. So, I'm encouraged by the show's usual parallel structure of the fb and present day. I just hope that their new love interests are likable enough that I continue to be entertained.

Now that we know definitively that Barry isn't the boyfriend, I realize how much I've pinned my hopes on the bf just being a gimmick. I'm starting to feel like an ex watching her move on, and it sucks. :-/ But, I agree that Laura Hurley's experience watching the show is almost always exactly aligned with mine, so I'll try to avoid despondency until we have more information about where this is going. I would so love it if she's just trying to get information--in the pic of the shoulder massage in the loft, she looks like she's reaching up to stay his hand rather than encouraging more intimate contact. I was pretty surprised by how together Felicity looks in all of the promos and photos. Someone who is consumed with guilt and spending all of her time in the bunker normally wouldn't make the effort to look so fabulous. I don't even think the explanation that she's putting on a brave front but tormented on the inside would work; guilt and self-loathing are pretty tightly bound, so I would expect some outward manifestation to clue us in about her inner turmoil.

I just shocked my family by my exclamation! Yay! Moira!!

I think she's Cleavage Sara. :-)

I love the idea of these photos in the park! The Deathstroke one is awesome, given his and SA's posing. It would be cool to have several of these taken now to commemorate the 100th episode--the heroes and villains of Arrow posing in such an incongruous setting. It's interesting and jarring.

I'm not of a fan of KC or LL, but I don't mind her appearing in the 100th episode. She was a part of Arrow for its first four seasons, and for some of it she was technically the female lead. I think it's only natural that she would be included, and it's likely in the form of a flashback or alt reality. I'm positive it won't amount to much, but it's a nice gesture. I would be really glad if some of the others who have been killed off are included, and it seems like at least a few are.

Right?! Those two things alone have the potential to make this season the very best yet! :-) I haven't yet been interested in the newbies ("the recruits"), but that's likely because my experience with an expanded team is limited to Sara, Roy, Thea, and Laurel. Sara made sense and wasn't there very long, I love Roy and he was recruited by Oliver, and Thea was adorable as Speedy last year and had training. Laurel was the one who pissed me off because everything about her joining the team was wrong: her motivation, her lack of training, her forcing herself into Oliver's life, EVERYTHING. At least these newbs are inspired to help their city in the aftermath of DD's attack, and their lack of training is addressed. Best of all, there isn't Oliver-related baggage.

I'm right there with you, @quarks! I'm pretty happy the stunts are an area of focused improvement, and I'm so excited for the premiere. I also was considerably cheered by the non-spoilers review of the premiere posted in the Spoilers area, specifically this passage: I'm glad to hear that Diggle and Felicity only have slightly reduced screen time in the premiere and that discussing them is too difficult due to inadvertently spoiling something about them. That doesn't sound to me like they've been forgotten about at all, and I appreciate that he credits the episode as being very Oliver-centric as the reason they have about 20% less screen time than usual. It makes sense that the premiere will be Oliver-centric, as this will be our first glimpse at Oliver juggling being a mayor of a major US city that's falling apart with being the Green Arrow. When the news of Felicity having a boyfriend first broke, I admit I started dreading the season because I LOVE Olicity when they're great. But, I'm convinced it's Barry, and he doesn't count. With this reviewer's statement that they're building something, and the guy from GreenArrowTV saying that the theme seems to be getting back everything dear that was lost last year (paraphrased), I'm optimistic that Oliver's fairly telling answer to Diggle's Olicity question is that he's still in love with Felicity and wants to win her back. So, I'm looking forward to gritty, brutal fights; awesome stunts; Arrow being Oliver-centric; Diggle learning to forgive himself; Felicity learning to forgive herself and tackling her next professional challenge (whatever that might be); Prometheus; an Olicity slow burn towards reconciliation and staying together; Thea being interesting again; the 100th episode; Russia flashbacks; and NO Laurel! Oh, and the return of Oliver's navy pea coat, per SA's tweet!

Agreed. From her very first day in the lair as part of the team, she's been assertive. Overriding the locks and challenging Oliver about hurting a single father? Pressuring Oliver to think about the good he could do for the city beyond crossing names off his list? Even changing Oliver's computer setup while he was unconscious and before he asked for her help?

Given that Felicity has a boyfriend and there's speculation that he's FP related, my Sunday morning crack theory is that maybe only Oliver is aware of his and Felicity's romantic history during the premiere. I like the thought that S5 might be "the journey to get everything [that you hold dear] back." Maybe Felicity's comment in the promo is more about going back to how the team was 5 months ago instead of about their relationship. I know it's a L-O-N-G shot, but it would be awesome if Oliver fixes things with Felicity as FP is corrected by telling her the truth, not just about William, but how they were in love and he screwed it up by lying to her. This could be the big Olicity moment in 505, but wouldn't necessarily push them right back together because it's one thing to be told there was another reality in which you were engaged to Oliver Queen and actually feeling it to be true. I know there have been a lot of hints at cons over the summer that negates my theory, but it would make sense of Felcity making the kind of innuendos from S1-S2 despite having nearly married to Oliver and having him break her heart. Also, as much as I like the theme proposed by GreenArrowTV, I fear it could mean the return of William as one of people Oliver held dear and lost. But, given that Oliver f-upped that entire situation, his hero's journey won't be complete without making it all right with everybody he hurt with his lies.

I don't know if it's what you're referring to, but now I'm thinking that we heard DR mention it in one of the recent con clips. Does anybody recall if he mentioned suiting up as Green Arrow in the upcoming season? As much as I love Digg, I don't want anybody but Oliver Queen donning the Green Arrow suit in the 100th episode, especially Robert Queen. It's fair game for the others in any other episode.

Ideally, the marketing people would generate promotional materials based on information from the writers or EPs about this season's direction. But, my comment was more about the writers' clumsy handling of Oliver in the last several seasons and my hope for something better for him.

I agree with @tv echo's point, and I love how clearly Oliver's inspirational speech underscores her point. This show is infamous for its messy inconsistencies, most of them harmful to Oliver's characterization and especially his growth. And yet, my hope from seeing such an assertive focus on Oliver in this poster is that the writers will be much more cautious in making Oliver behave stupidly or in ways that are counter to his hero's journey (they've done that so many times). I can only champion "His Fight, His City, His Legacy" being the writers' mantra from now on if it means we get the most awesome version of Oliver Queen we've seen yet.