apinknightmare

There are so many ways this could go. Felicity could still be working at QC and he could take an interest, she could volunteer to date him in order to get some information on him in order to give Oliver an edge. Maybe they're dating at the beginning of the season, and then he takes over QC? Who knows? Even though the people in charge are out of touch in many ways, they have to know that making Felicity act against her character will backfire big time, especially if it's to make Laurel look good/bring Laurel and Oliver closer together. They haven't made a misstep with her yet, IMO. I hope they don't start now.

I hope so. I've never had my enjoyment of a show (or my continued viewing of it) hinge on the trajectory of one character before.

Just my opinion, but speculating that TPTB are considering a spinoff for the"Daniel" character and/or going to ship Felicity off with him to make way for Oliver/Laurel is a lot to read into a paragraph-long casting blurb. We don't even know who it is yet or how long his arc is going to be. Not saying it wouldn't or couldn't happen, but Warner Brothers aren't dummies. They know what they have with both Felicity and the Oliver/Felicity relationship, judging by their support of both Felicity and Olicity on social media. I think if it gets to the point where they're shipping Felicity off to another show to make way for another ship, the show's got bigger problems than who Oliver ends up with. THE most talked about part of the season finale was the "I love you" fake-out. If they didn't know before, they definitely know now how careful they have to be with that pairing. Not saying they'll actually manage to be careful with it, but who knows.

Yeah, I wouldn't want anyone to get booed; that's got to be awful.

I actually wasn't implying that she *should* be a regular, my original post was just commentary that it doesn't necessarily mean gloom and doom for Sara just because CL isn't on the panel, since she isn't a series regular.

As a member of the League of Assassins? I assumed that's why they specifically mentioned her as an international assassin in the summary. She's the link between the LoA and Starling. I didn't think she'd be back in the Arrow cave.

If they're going to get a good response for Laurel anywhere, it'd probably be there.

She's listed in the official S3 summary though, so it can't be that bad. Maybe she *is* a special guest. She's not technically a regular yet, is she?

Yeah, that's true. My denial has blocked it out. :)

Plus, Sara *is* Canary with the LoA. So, are there going to be two? This is why I think they'll start off by making Laurel another hero (like Manhunter) to test the waters, and then if/when they decide to make Laurel the Black Canary, then they'll kill Sara off.

Yeah, she'd see it as a lie, but not as him lying to her. She'd think he was lying to himself, which would probably just make her feel for him. I mean, she knows how messed up he is, caring for him like she does she'd probably be moved by the fact that he doesn't seem to recognize that he deserves the good relationships he has (platonic or otherwise) and she'd understand how difficult it must be for him to fully recognize the depths of the feelings (also platonic or otherwise) he has for the people in his life. Felicity cares about Oliver, so seeing him with another woman will probably always hurt a little, regardless of the reasons he gave her for thinking he could not/should not be in a relationship.

I don't think Felicity would be hurt to find out "it's better to not be with someone I could really care about," was just a line, because I honestly don't think she even considered that Oliver could be talking about HER when he said it. I think the only time she ever even thought it was possible was when he told her he loved her, which she now thinks was a lie. That's in-show logic though. Story-wise, these writers need to start learning how to plan better, because if he hooks up with someone again, they're going to have to be really careful with how they deal with that (if it's more than a one-night stand), otherwise Oliver's going to come off not looking so good (again).

I think the reasons were a) he likes having sex with beautiful women and b) to maybe possibly show her that he and Felicity weren't a thing, so she'd leave that alone. Probably more a than b though, IMO. Also c) because he's an idiot.

At the end of "Unthinkable" when she was telling him that when he told her he loved her he had her fooled...for a second. She thought maybe he might of meant it...what he said...he really sold it.

IIRC, Stephen Amell said (on Facebook maybe, during a Q&A?) that we'd see Oliver in a different kind of relationship, and a lot of people thought he was speaking about a romantic relationship, but I'm pretty sure he was referring to being a mentor for Roy.

Yeah, I mean...I'd want to see some training, of course, but I'd probably be a lot more lax in what I'm willing to buy, if that makes any sense. It's a show, I just want to be entertained. Laurel is an entertainment suck for me. I love Arrow so much, despite all its ridiculousness - it's the only show I watch live (it's one of two shows I even watch at all), and I've said it before, but it would be so great if I could like Laurel. It would be the best to not have this low-level angst thing going on regarding her story line/presence making me not want to watch. (Warner Brothers/CW should cater to ME, obviously!)

My own opinion? If I liked Laurel at all, none of this would even matter to me. If she wanted to assume the mantle of BC while Sara was gone? I'd be down with it, regardless of what she'd been through. If I felt like she was someone I could root for, I wouldn't care that she "earned" it, I'd want it for her, because she wants it. Honestly, I think she's an a-hole. I think it's partly the fault of incredibly inconsistent writing and partly because KC just isn't the right kind of actress to portray the kind of person they're trying to *make* Laurel be. I cannot stand her around Oliver, I cannot stand Oliver around her, and even though Oliver sucks sometimes, I'm rooting for him. I want him to succeed, I want him to reach the goals he's trying to reach. I don't care what happens to her, I just want her gone. So it makes me angry that a person I can't root for and don't care about is (likely) going to be integrated into a team that I am rooting for and do care about. I really wish they would make her go bad; I think I would love that. It'd fit Laurel's personality (as written on this show), and I think it would play to KC's strengths as an actress. If they're not going to do that, then I don't think there's anything that can be done (IMO, for my enjoyment/satisfaction) at this point.

Yeah, I actually went and looked because I wanted to believe it was just a random jacket, haha.

I don't know, judging by the number of posts I saw in various places about it, I think a large portion of the fandom already knew (at least the ones who are internet savvy enough to be able to find it). I can see TPTB not being pleased, but it's not like he facilitated the leak or posted a link to it on his page, and ultimately he's a huge ambassador for the show - making him take a social media break to "punish/control" him hurts them and their product more than it hurts him.

No, it was the Canary jacket.

I thought so too, but it seems strange that other cast members are still active on social media - he just isn't.

Grinning like a loon while her sister boards a boat to go be a killer again? So emotional (what show are these people watching, my god)! Everyone *but* Laurel embraced their destinies and made decisions about what they're willing to do. Unless she decides to be an EMT, because I don't see the Starling City paramedics getting to that dock anytime soon. She could also be a professional kidnapping victim. Team Arrow's permanent decoy, if you will. (This isn't really a commentary on what might or might not happen in S3, just a venting of my general anger over how Laurel is handled and how the EPs *think* they're handling her. A failure all around, gah.) I really, REALLY hope that jacket hand off was a red herring. I will cling to that hope until it is inevitably dashed.

Those reviews, yikes. Well, now I understand why that relationship is such a monumental clusterf*ck on the show.

This is OT for this thread, I know, but I think he was messing with the audience. What he said was, "Will Laurel not end up being Black Canary, with Sara taking the title? Kreisberg: The answer to that question will be apparent 43 minutes after you start watching the finale." Which, IMO, basically means nothing. It kind of implies that something happens at the end of the ep, which is a) 42 minutes long (not 43), and b) the jacket scene was like, 8 minutes before the end. If he were being definitive, he'd have said "You'll know by the end of the ep." These guys are all liars though, so who even knows.

You were right, he was talking about S3! The interview is here: http://www.ign.com/articles/2014/05/13/arrow-showrunner-teases-a-suprise-outcome-for-season-2-finale