Spoiler Discussion Thread

[smoaksmichaelas]

Well I'm really excited about the Curtis/Felicity spoiler. I hope we get more scenes between them. I really like their dynamic & the scene between them in 4x12 was one of the best.

[kismet]

I'm not impressed with a villain coming from Starling because of the bad things because who would they target? I see it a breeding ground for vigilantes and maybe over ambitious crime lords. So perhaps this s5 big bad is using the opportunity to gain more territory. But I don't see how it makes his or her story anymore special, since gaining power & money was what the original list was all about, you don't need 4+ seasons to explain criminal greed.

[dtissagirl]

20 minutes ago, kismet said:

I'm not impressed with a villain coming from Starling because of the bad things because who would they target? I see it a breeding ground for vigilantes and maybe over ambitious crime lords.

Isn't the villain a crime lord? If the guy is, say, a drug/guns dealer who rose from the disenfranchisement of the city caused by four psychotic dudes with a lot of money who tried to destroy SC four times in a row, that's interesting to me.

At least this is my hope -- that even if this guy has history with Oliver or whoever, or if he blames Team Arrow for something, that this time around, it's not someone who literally wants to destroy the city like the 4 previous big bads. But someone who wants to profit off the destruction those dudes caused. And then when Mayor Oliver and/or Green Arrow get in his way, they become targets.

[catrox14]

That synopsis sounds not unlike the Red Hood scenario.

Last we knew Roy was using the name Jason.  I've speculated for some time that is either a nod to Jason Todd or he will come back as Jason Todd.

Where was Roy living last? Maybe someone in Monument Point he loved was killed or he himself was affected by the fallout and it sends him into some crazy town stuff a la Jason Todd. I dunno . I just don't think Jason being his name is meaningless. 

[bijoux]

2 hours ago, SmallScreenDiva said:

My question is: What exactly would Curtis bring to the team? It's not like they've focused on hardware or gear before. What they need, they've always pretty much outsourced: trick arrows, bullet-resistant costumes, etc., per the 2.5 comics.

So the bring him on to cut down on the overhead cost? I don't imagine there is much in the city budget, so Oliver's pay can't be extravagant and Felicity isn't pulling a paycheck. God knows if PT is turning over a profit being once again lead by yahoos who couldn't keep it afloat in the first place.

2 hours ago, Orion said:

As far as evolving, she is the only character who has not developed new skills.  Felicity hasn't been given a taser, gun or hell pepper spray to defend herself. But Curtis the guy who hid under a table is going to get a mask in under two seasons.

I was hoping that the bitch with WiFi scene was going to be expanded into a role of interagator but nope, nothing that would free her from being chained to a desk.

 

2 hours ago, Carrie Ann said:

[Dig] also hasn't really evolved much, skill-wise, I don't believe. He got a very shitty mask, but otherwise, he pretty much does the same stuff he always did. And that's fine with me. Oliver also pretty much does the same stuff he always did (on the team), but actually less because he's not supposed to be in charge of the team anymore.

These are basically my thoughts on the matter as well. I don't see Oliver and Dig developing much new skills either. They seem to have been listening to Felicity and have the basic understanding of technology, which is great, but not something that affects their fieldwork in general. And Oliver's learnt swordfighting and hasn't used it since offing Ra's.

[Morrigan2575]

36 minutes ago, dtissagirl said:

Isn't the villain a crime lord? If the guy is, say, a drug/guns dealer who rose from the disenfranchisement of the city caused by four psychotic dudes with a lot of money who tried to destroy SC four times in a row, that's interesting to me.

At least this is my hope -- that even if this guy has history with Oliver or whoever, or if he blames Team Arrow for something, that this time around, it's not someone who literally wants to destroy the city like the 4 previous big bads. But someone who wants to profit off the destruction those dudes caused. And then when Mayor Oliver and/or Green Arrow get in his way, they become targets.

Agreed, I like that idea. I actually liked that idea back in S2 with "The Mayor".  It would be interesting to see a story about a Villian, not directly connected to Oliver/Arrow but as a result of their existence in SC.  

Although, a part of me worries this sounds a little bit like Daredevil S1 with the Matt vs Fisk. Both trying to "save" their city but having different methods.

[wonderwall]

3 hours ago, looptab said:

The thing is, the CEO stuff is not related to the Team. So, as much as I like and I'm glad that they expanded her character and gave her something away from the Team, at the same time I don't like that what skills she has that can be of service to it are diminished or given to others.

But we can agree to disagree. It's early to tell, afterall.

You're right, it is too early to tell. Who knows? It might be fun to see Felicity tag team with Curtis to make the tech like she did with Ray? Except Curtis by default is better than Ray for a myriad of reasons. 

I guess for me, Felicity isn't the star of the show so her time is limited. So instead of expanding her abilities and showing that, I'd much rather the show spend time on Felicity working as a CEO and working to get the company back and working to release those chips for disabled people (what the show currently has going for her). It's kind of like how I view Felicity's storylines last year. Instead of the show focusing on one or two storylines, they threw too much at her and in the end those storylines suffered. I don't want the same to happen in regards to her abilities. Does that make sense?

Edited June 27, 2016 by wonderwall

[bijoux]

@kismet, I can't quote your post for some reason, but this caught my eye.

Quote

But for me on a show like Arrow it gets to the point that if she is not on track for a mask then she is on track for irrelevance except as the LI. 

I think a mask is the furthest thing from guaranteeing anything on this show. Laurel got it, then lolled around in the background this season and was summarily killed. Thea barely gets a storyline of her own. Whenever Malcolm's in the picture, she's there to support him. Noah, on the other hand, was very much the supporting player to Felicity's main act.

[dtissagirl]

3 minutes ago, Morrigan2575 said:

Agreed, I like that idea. I actually liked that idea back in S2 with "The Mayor".  It would be interesting to see a story about a Villian, not directly connected to Oliver/Arrow but as a result of their existence in SC. 

I figure since this is Arrow, and they haven't found a melodramatic beat they didn't cling to yet, there'll probably be something like, this dude blames the Hood/Arrow/Green Arrow personally for something, and at some point he'll yell "YOU MADE ME A CRIME LORD BECAUSE YOU DIDN'T STOP THE UNDERTAKING/SIEGE/ETC" in Oliver's face, and then I'll point and laugh. But if he's profiteering off criminal activities, that's something I find way more interesting, if Team Arrow is to go back to fighting at street level, than psychotic lunatics with delusions of grandeur again.

[Velocity23]

Quote

You're right, it is too early to tell. Who knows? It might be fun to see Felicity tag team with Curtis to make the tech like she did with Ray? Except Curtis by default is better than Ray for a myriad of reasons. 

This is exactly the problem i am having. Because Curtis is Ray. The islands for Felicity just got replaced.

[wonderwall]

12 minutes ago, Velocity23 said:

This is exactly the problem i am having. Because Curtis is Ray. The islands for Felicity just got replaced.

But the thing is, Curtis was never an island that Felicity was put on. He was perfectly Felicity's supporting character unlike Ray. Felicity served Ray, Felicity helped make Ray's tech, Felicity was Ray's love interest...

With Curtis... Curtis serves Felicity, Curtis helps make tech for Felicity's company, Curtis is Felicity's friend...  Curtis was never the island. And because he never was, I'm not worried just yet. When he starts becoming one, that's when I'll get annoyed but there's no cause for annoyance just yet, imo.

[Velocity23]

The majority of scenes in PT were basically to show what a  perfect guy Mr. Terrific is and took place in his lab. He practically took over Felicitys paralysis story with being the savior, the only reason they removed Felicity from the lair was to invent some BS reason to have Curtis find it and be the saviour against Brie. They kept finding out reason why Curtis has to do the hacking. Because apparently Felicity was unable to do it. I honestly dont see how Curtis served Felicity at all. Basically if you have a male body part we will just stick you with Felicity so she can prop you.

[wonderwall]

19 minutes ago, Velocity23 said:

The majority of scenes in PT were basically to show what a  perfect guy Mr. Terrific is and took place in his lab. He practically took over Felicitys paralysis story with being the savior, the only reason they removed Felicity from the lair was to invent some BS reason to have Curtis find it and be the saviour against Brie. They kept finding out reason why Curtis has to do the hacking. Because apparently Felicity was unable to do it. I honestly dont see how Curtis served Felicity at all. Basically if you have a male body part we will just stick you with Felicity so she can prop you.

I feel like the majority of the PT scenes were actually Felicity fighting for the company while Curtis helped by creating new tech. There actually were zero scenes of Curtis making that endless battery (just scenes of him explaining some stuff to Felicity), zero scenes of Curtis making that bio chip, zero scenes of Curtis unless Felicity was around. Even when Felicity took a break in 417, you could see her working at PT trying to mass market the chip... The PT scenes were more about Felicity than they ever were about Curtis. 

Also I don't think that Felicity's paralysis story was ever done just to make Curtis the savior. Felicity's paralysis story was hardly about Curtis at all. It was about giving Felicity another issue to deal with, giving her some consequences, for that ridiculous breakup moment... Did Curtis save hte day in the end? Sure. But that doesn't mean he ever took over the paralysis story. 

And IDK, while I didn't like Curtis in the lair in 417, I'd hardly call him the savior against Brie. He helped. But at the end of they day it was Felicity who took down that giant robot thing and Oliver took down Brie. Curtis hardly had the heroic moment in that episode. He was just the support while Felicity/Oliver got the leading "save the day" moment.

I don't see how Felicity propped Curtis at all. I actually think Curtis supported Felicity perfectly well. And this is coming from a person who doesn't like Curtis at all. 

But maybe we should agree to disagree.

Edited June 27, 2016 by wonderwall

[way2interested]

Given that Curtis is going to be a series regular for the next season and beyond, and the amount of discussion that came from a tease about him (and Felicity, but still partially about Curtis), should there be a separate character thread for him at some point? "Curtis Holt: He's (Mr.) Terrific", or something more witty?

15 minutes ago, wonderwall said:

I don't see how Felicity propped Curtis at all. I actually think Curtis supported Felicity perfectly well. And this is coming from a person who doesn't like Curtis at all. 

I pretty much agree with this as well. The shining moments from Curtis I feel were just there to sell Curtis to the audience as a good guy and a series regular for next year and to support Felicity during moments when the other characters (arguably) couldn't. When I compare with how he was in scenes with Felicity to how Ray was in scenes with Felicity, I can see a complete difference in where Felicity ranks in the scenes, as one was supposed to be spun-off from day 1. If anything, I feel like Curtis' actions that made him look great at least showed me why I should think he's a good guy instead of many scenes of people telling me how great he is. Curtis' talents may have been a bit overwhelming, but EK made him more likable and endearing. I am worried that he might go down the path of Cisco, as someone else mentioned upthread, so I am wondering what an arc for him would look like (besides possibly killing his husband) if he actually goes beyond what he's been doing right now, being Felicity's, and at the last minute Oliver's, support.

[Velocity23]

Well they are making steps to making him Mr. Terrific, i dont doubt that means him building a suit the whole season just like Ray. So i see no difference between the two.

[wonderwall]

5 minutes ago, Velocity23 said:

Well they are making steps to making him Mr. Terrific, i dont doubt that means him building a suit the whole season just like Ray. So i see no difference between the two.

Well then, I guess all I have to say is, for the sake of all of us, I hope that the show proves you wrong :)

[Velocity23]

I hope so too. My worst case scenario is actually them spending the season on building his suit and then he takes off for LOT next season. Wasting Arrows budget again.

[kismet]

3 hours ago, dtissagirl said:

Isn't the villain a crime lord? If the guy is, say, a drug/guns dealer who rose from the disenfranchisement of the city caused by four psychotic dudes with a lot of money who tried to destroy SC four times in a row, that's interesting to me.

At least this is my hope -- that even if this guy has history with Oliver or whoever, or if he blames Team Arrow for something, that this time around, it's not someone who literally wants to destroy the city like the 4 previous big bads. But someone who wants to profit off the destruction those dudes caused. And then when Mayor Oliver and/or Green Arrow get in his way, they become targets.

The idea you suggested is a good one. I’m just not impressed with it from the writers room or actors. Because it is pretty cookie cutter villainy and doesn’t require a show to be on for 4 seasons to make it work. They did an almost identical story arc with both Blood & Brick. For me a story arc like that is sorta like getting a hamburger at McDonald’s - its just an average experience. But the way its being thrown around in interviews its like they have discovered some amazing new angle, when really its a pretty tride & true villain story.

[Chaser]

Regarding Curtis. It doesn't really bug me right now. I think it might actually be fun to have someone Cisco-like for Felicity to quip off of in the Lair, similar to 4x22. My issue is going to him being Mr. Terrific. At the moment, I can't find a point to having him be a mask. A Captain Awesome Mask at that.

[dtissagirl]

49 minutes ago, kismet said:

The idea you suggested is a good one. I’m just not impressed with it from the writers room or actors. Because it is pretty cookie cutter villainy and doesn’t require a show to be on for 4 seasons to make it work. They did an almost identical story arc with both Blood & Brick. 

We don't know enough to try to guess how the 4 years in the making thing is gonna work. IF that's even actually important. I mean, I get what Amell was implyng when he said it, but... we don't know. And he said it before he read a single script. It might not be the main narrative beat for the villain other than how he started. Also, I don't expect a unique villain, considering the casting process was based on them saying they're gonna try to do The Wire Lite [Very Very Lite. 8pm on the CW without the ability to say the words fuck or shiiiiiiiiiit Lite].

But I do like the idea of going with actual relatable to IRL crime for the first time since... I don't remember when?  I think *Team Arrow* works better when they're dealing with the crime/mission of the week in a more procedural-y close ended manner. And again, we don't know enough of anything for me to be sure this is what we're getting. I just hope it is.

[wonderwall]

5 minutes ago, Chaser said:

Regarding Curtis. It doesn't really bug me right now. I think it might actually be fun to have someone Cisco-like for Felicity to quip off of in the Lair, similar to 4x22. My issue is going to him being Mr. Terrific. At the moment, I can't find a point to having him be a mask. A Captain Awesome Mask at that.

If and when he does get a mask, I hope he moves to LoT or Flash. Arrow has no room for that especially if they want the show to go back to basics, or so they've been spouting since the season finale.

[wonderwall]

In light of the recent spoilers about Felicity, a good way to think about it is... Felicity's abilities are a lot like Chuck's abilities on Chuck. Chuck is a hacker, he knows computers inside and out, so does Felicity. But even though Chuck is extremely intelligent like Felicity, his specialty isn't in building weapons nor is his specialty in engineering in general.It's not that they're dumb, it's that they're not experts in that field. 

[dtissagirl]

I think some journo directly asked Wendy how is Curtis' narrative role different from Felicity, and I'm really glad she had an answer ready. It means the writers room IS aware that there is potential for overlapping, and they're taking steps to differentiate those roles more now that he's a regular. I'd worry more if she had refused the premise of the question.

[Chaser]

I'm curious about how they are going to work in the physical tech. They are going to have to create situations for it. It's one of the reasons I hope Curtis is Lance Level screen time. I want a lot more street fighting. 

Edited June 28, 2016 by Chaser

[SmallScreenDiva]

1 hour ago, dtissagirl said:

We don't know enough to try to guess how the 4 years in the making thing is gonna work. IF that's even actually important. I mean, I get what Amell was implyng when he said it, but... we don't know. And he said it before he read a single script. It might not be the main narrative beat for the villain other than how he started. Also, I don't expect a unique villain, considering the casting process was based on them saying they're gonna try to do The Wire Lite [Very Very Lite. 8pm on the CW without the ability to say the words fuck or shiiiiiiiiiit Lite].

But I do like the idea of going with actual relatable to IRL crime for the first time since... I don't remember when?  I think *Team Arrow* works better when they're dealing with the crime/mission of the week in a more procedural-y close ended manner. And again, we don't know enough of anything for me to be sure this is what we're getting. I just hope it is.

I, too, thought Arrow worked better with the mission/case of the week with occasional dives into the overarching arc of the season. But I can't remember where I read it or who said it that Arrow was told to veer away from that because CW's demo wanted a more serialized, less procedural-type of story. I want to say it was Guggenheim but I just can't remember and I've been Googling interviews for the past 15 minutes.

I did appreciate that Wendy had a ready answer (even if I'm not satisfied with it) regarding possible overlap of skills between Felicity and Curtis. It was something that I've seen a lot of Felicity fans express concern over from the moment Curtis was first introduced on the show. So, yeah, I'm glad the writers were aware of the worries.

Edited June 28, 2016 by SmallScreenDiva

[looptab]

6 hours ago, wonderwall said:

You're right, it is too early to tell. Who knows? It might be fun to see Felicity tag team with Curtis to make the tech like she did with Ray? Except Curtis by default is better than Ray for a myriad of reasons. 

I guess for me, Felicity isn't the star of the show so her time is limited. So instead of expanding her abilities and showing that, I'd much rather the show spend time on Felicity working as a CEO and working to get the company back and working to release those chips for disabled people (what the show currently has going for her). It's kind of like how I view Felicity's storylines last year. Instead of the show focusing on one or two storylines, they threw too much at her and in the end those storylines suffered. I don't want the same to happen in regards to her abilities. Does that make sense?

I get what you mean. And, see, I'm not worried it won't be fun seeing the two of them working  together.  I do like Curtis. I suppose that  was just my knee-jerk reaction, because on a rational level, of course Curtis is going to be the one who builds stuff. But after all the discussion about her abilities being 'too much', I guess I read that and it automatically looked like 'let's cut down what she can do'. I'm calmer now xD I'll wait and see.

[kismet]

9 hours ago, bijoux said:

@kismet, I can't quote your post for some reason, but this caught my eye.

I think a mask is the furthest thing from guaranteeing anything on this show. Laurel got it, then lolled around in the background this season and was summarily killed. Thea barely gets a storyline of her own. Whenever Malcolm's in the picture, she's there to support him. Noah, on the other hand, was very much the supporting player to Felicity's main act.

Nothing is really a guarantee on this show. But for me its easier to see her character pigeonholed into just a LI without a mask. And then her greater purpose or plotline could be interpreted as irrelevant to the main plot. For me, PT could easily be cut out, since it felt like an afterthought for me (to be fair most of the non-lair/fight scenes are the same, but its worse for PT cuz there are no important regulars besides FS). The set/arc was there to prop the new mask characters (RP & Curtis), with the side-effect of giving FS something small to do. I already disregarded most of it for the last 2 seasons since it was just a place to have scenes.

For me, I prefer a show with balance - I would prefer either a blend or masks & non-masks or all masks. I don't like anyone having unicorn status except the lead star of show - and the writers barely give OQ any recognition, so he is definitely not a unicorn. The only reason I knew for sure FS was not going to die in s4 was because they can't kill the LI at this stage in the show - everybody else is fair game.

Her mask would not protect her from anything, but I am curious as to how they are going to balance all the characters this season during the Hero scenes.

[Midnight Lullaby]

8 hours ago, wonderwall said:

 

I don't see how Felicity propped Curtis at all. I actually think Curtis supported Felicity perfectly well. And this is coming from a person who doesn't like Curtis at all. 

But maybe we should agree to disagree.

To me it looked Felicity was CEO so she could be the link between Curtis and the team. If he didn't work for her how did they get Curtis to be relevant for the story and the team?

She spent more time as CEO bringing Curtis stuff to do on behalf of the team (stuff before Curtis she had zero issues doing herself) than being a CEO. So for me there's little difference between Ray/Felicity and Felicity/Curtis story wise. Then we had to balance that Felicity also having something to do on her own and Curtis not being like Ray, thank God, but the dynamics was the same.

[looptab]

5 hours ago, SmallScreenDiva said:

But I can't remember where I read it or who said it that Arrow was told to veer away from that because CW's demo wanted a more serialized, less procedural-type of story. I want to say it was Guggenheim but I just can't remember and I've been Googling interviews for the past 15 minutes.

I remember reading that, too, though I can't remember where. I definitely remember some critics saying that Arrow was at its best with the episodes that dealt with the main arc rather than in the VotW ones. I'll try and find some sources.

44 minutes ago, kismet said:

Nothing is really a guarantee on this show. But for me its easier to see her character pigeonholed into just a LI without a mask. And then her greater purpose or plotline could be interpreted as irrelevant to the main plot.[...]

Her mask would not protect her from anything, but I am curious as to how they are going to balance all the characters this season during the Hero scenes.

To me, mask or not mask, relevant or not relevant, it doesn't mean anything at all. As @bijoux already pointed out, Laurel is a prime example of that - with having a mask S4 and S3, and with her storyarc with Sebastian Blood - which eventually was relevant to the main arc, since she's the one who find out about him. Yet, I personally didn't care about any of it. So, at the end of the day, it really has to do with their ability of creating a compelling story.

What do you mean with "balancing the characters during the hero scenes"?

[kismet]

22 minutes ago, looptab said:

What do you mean with "balancing the characters during the hero scenes"?

Last year they had too many people in the field. This year I fear they will have too many people on comms. They don't really know how to balance when TA does their "heroing" scenes since they have expanded beyond OTA. The actions sequences feel repetitive or fall flat. And then the lair scenes can become boring. For example, I found the trio trying to decode Rubicon very boring, there's only so much banter to sustain the tension in the scene. It's a rare moment when the writers can fit all the regulars into a "hero" scene & make it work.

[looptab]

9 minutes ago, kismet said:

Last year they had too many people in the field. This year I fear they will have too many people on comms. They don't really know how to balance when TA does their "heroing" scenes since they have expanded beyond OTA. The actions sequences feel repetitive or fall flat. And then the lair scenes can become boring. For example, I found the trio trying to decode Rubicon very boring, there's only so much banter to sustain the tension in the scene. It's a rare moment when the writers can fit all the regulars into a "hero" scene & make it work.

Oh, I see. I disagree, though. They can intercut the fighters fighting with Felicity and Curtis - just like it was with just Felicity. That the action sequences are repetitive is an issue broader than that, IMO.

[bijoux]

With Curtis, it's two people on the coms. If he is there. How does that scenario work on The Flash? I imagine mostly it's just Barry in the field and the rest of the team on the coms.

[kismet]

4 hours ago, looptab said:

Oh, I see. I disagree, though. They can intercut the fighters fighting with Felicity and Curtis - just like it was with just Felicity. That the action sequences are repetitive is an issue broader than that, IMO.

They can do it. But I'm just curious how successful they will be. I don't feel like they did a good job splicing the lair with the field towards the end of s4. It was either a lair/loft only mission or a field only mission. I'm just curious what their balance will be. It's not really because of Curtis that I'm worried about the balance. Its the bloating recurring & regulars, plus the writers' kneejerk tendencies to overcompensate at times. I feel the show is evolving at this point, so I'm curious what the new balance will be.

[tv echo]

In the past, they've just had characters' tech skills adapt to plot needs.  IIRC, Oliver used a trick arrow very early in S1 (the arrow he shot into that businesman's office), which was presumably one he built himself.  As others have stated, Felicity has built hardware elements on a number of occasions. Last season, Curtis was hacking into Brie's "bees" to control them. 

So I'm glad that next season, they'll make an effort to distinguish Curtis's role from Felicity's role on the team.  I hope it's made very clear that they have different skill sets.

Edited June 28, 2016 by tv echo

[Morrigan2575]

4 hours ago, bijoux said:

With Curtis, it's two people on the coms. If he is there. How does that scenario work on The Flash? I imagine mostly it's just Barry in the field and the rest of the team on the coms.

That's pretty much how it works on Flash. You have Caitlin, Cisco and Wells sitting in Star Labs while Barry is out in the Field.  Depending on the situation one of the 3 offers advice/support etc.

I'm not really sure why they wouldn't work on Arrow.  During Lemire's GA run he had the same setup. Naomi did the hacking/software stuff while Fyffe was the hardware guy.  They both supported GA while he was in the field based on what was going on.   

We also don't know how much Curtis will actually be in the show. Does he have a 23 episode order?  MM and Lance are both regulars, both appear in less than 23 episodes and both sit around 1-1.5 hours of screentime for the season 

Edited June 28, 2016 by Morrigan2575

[apinknightmare]

STAR Lavs = best typo. 

[dtissagirl]

I don't know. It might be interesting for Felicity to have Curtis to bounce ideas off of in the bunker while the masks are out punching people in the face. She usually doesn't have anyone to talk tech to, and it would be the kind of rapid fire dialog to intercut with the forever mute stunt fighting that bores me out bigtime. I'd actually prefer Curtis in the lair than him also going out to punch people in the face. Which on this show, would make him dialog-less just like the other masks.

[tv echo]

11 hours ago, SmallScreenDiva said:

I, too, thought Arrow worked better with the mission/case of the week with occasional dives into the overarching arc of the season. But I can't remember where I read it or who said it that Arrow was told to veer away from that because CW's demo wanted a more serialized, less procedural-type of story. I want to say it was Guggenheim but I just can't remember and I've been Googling interviews for the past 15 minutes.

6 hours ago, looptab said:

I remember reading that, too, though I can't remember where. I definitely remember some critics saying that Arrow was at its best with the episodes that dealt with the main arc rather than in the VotW ones. I'll try and find some sources.

08/11/15 - Mark Pedowitz (CW President): “We discovered we’re best suited as a brand to make a very high concept or genre based show that has serialized elements. That’s the best way for us to succeed in our storytelling. If the shows check off the boxes, we have a good chance to succeed. Our audience will not come to us if we’re procedural.”

04/01/15 - Den of Geek: "So, what’s the answer? Does comic book TV need 'freak of the week' villains? Well, that question mark there signifies that the ‘solution’ we’re about to offer is merely our opinion, and is by no means intended as the be-all-and-end-all. If you’ve got your own ideas, we’d genuinely love to hear them in the comments. ... We’d argue that comic book television adaptations need a lot of villains, but there’s no need for them to be thought of or planned out as ‘freak of the week’. In our opinion, there generally needs to be a central villain (Reverse-Flash, The League Of Assassins, John Garrett, and HYDRA) or there’s no core strand to hold the show together. ... Once you’ve got this framework of central villainy set up, there’s no reason shows cannot have multiple supporting villains. Malcolm Merlyn has still been a villain of sorts in this season’s Arrow, but the centralisation of R’as and the League provides him with a link to the main action and a reason to be there. The use of Deathstroke this season - far away from the main action, not posing much threat, leaving little impact - seemed a little superfluous in comparison."

Arrow was always intended to be a serialized show, with its five-year flashback plan contrasting with Oliver's present-day character evolution...

10/9/12 - Comic Book Resources: "Guggenheim explained that there was never a discussion of 'Arrow' being made as a movie rather than a TV show, if only because he and Berlanti felt that the story would work best serialized. The creative team said they were excited about the opportunity to explore Oliver's backstory through the flashback dynamic of the show. ... 'Arrow' is ultimately 'two series in one,' with each episode telling parallel stories between Oliver's time shipwrecked on the island and his time as a superhero vigilante in the present day. Episode 2 opens with Oliver setting foot on the island for the first time, underscoring the series' intent for the flashbacks to continue through the entire series. ... 'Ideally, however long this series runs, the last flashback in the last episode of the series will be Oliver seeing the boat that rescued him in the pilot,' Kreisberg said. ... But it is a TV show, and because of that, each season will feel like a different arc. In fact, Kreisberg explained that every few episodes will feel like their own 'chapter,' with episodes 1 through 5 being the first, 6 through 9 the second and so on. Of course, throughout the chapters, seeds will be planted that won't pay off until the end of season 1, season 2 or even season 5, which is something Guggenheim and Kreisberg are really excited about."

Edited June 28, 2016 by tv echo

[Chaser]

Do you do research or data collection for a living because you are crazy good at it.

[bijoux]

I am very glad about the new recurring cop character.

[Guest]

I'm just wondering how they're going to integrate Lance into the story though. He was barely relevant after he lost his job and Laurel died. He really needs to be the Police connection. But maybe they want someone who doesn't know Oliver is GA. IDK.

[kismet]

I think Lance is going to be Deputy Mayor. Since OQ has to keep his ID secret, Lance is the perfect liaison between the SC government & TA. He's in on the secret & has civic experience.

I'm not sure how I feel about the recurring cop character. I hope they have him in a dynamic role opposite Lance & TA. I would love to see the synergy & yet tension that TA had with SCPD in s1/2. Perhaps they can do that with this new kid & Lance.

[apinknightmare]

I think Quentin might become the Commissioner as a way to get him in City Hall with Oliver. 

[looptab]

You know, I like Lance - when he's not the jackass he's been from 316 to 404. But, when you stop for a moment and think about it, that Oliver is all buddy buddy with his time-traveling ex-girlfriend and dead ex-girlfriend's father...and viceversa... I mean, AWKWARD. 

[Guest]

Commissioner definitely makes sense. 

Question, because it wasn't clear to me on the show, did Lance get his job back and he decided he didn't want it? Or not?

[kismet]

I don't think QL got his job back with the force. He refused to sign the paperwork about his daughter. But now that they have sainted LL & are building her a statue maybe that means that he can go back to the force.

I don't see him as Commissioner only because that is basically what he did last year and the job that he got kicked out of for his involvement with his daughter.

Deputy Mayor gets him in the City Hall, but doesn't restrict his storyline to Cop matters. I think they are done with needing to tell SCPD stories to fit QL in. They probably want to branch him out at this point.

Edited June 28, 2016 by kismet

[dtissagirl]

1 hour ago, Angel12d said:

Commissioner definitely makes sense. 

Question, because it wasn't clear to me on the show, did Lance get his job back and he decided he didn't want it? Or not?

That's what I understood. He told the team his suspension got suspended? Something like that. That the dept called him to say so, but he felt nothing, so he was leaving town.

edit: actual transcript:
 

Quote

 

Felicity: You going home to my mama?

Lance: Uh, yeah, to pack. We're leaving town for a while.

Felicity: Wait, why?

Lance: IAB reached out. My suspension is no longer a suspension, but, uh, it's funny, you know, because, you know, being a cop's all I ever wanted, but when I got that call, I didn't feel a thing. All I could think about was Laurel, you know? But then you got her justice, Oliver, and you got me some closure, and I am never going to forget that.

 

Edited June 28, 2016 by dtissagirl

[Chaser]

I got Tyler Ritter confused with Tyson Ritter and thought they cast the lead singer of All American Rejects. 

[Midnight Lullaby]

I was wondering..do you guys think they are going to have an election or just keep Oliver as the mayor because he is white and from a rich family so it must make sense?

[Starfish35]

My guess is that they would do the election during the hiatus, so we don't have to rehash the whole election storyline again.