Heartaches, Bromances, True Love and Team Arrow: the Relationships Thread

[lemotomato]

Considering almost half of these happened were when they weren't even together yet, it's amusing to think that the show wasted time trying to sell other ships. 

[tv echo]

[BkWurm1]

I need to heart this many, many, many more times.  

[tv echo]

I'm tired of reading repeated online claims that Felicity only became Oliver's love interest because Arrow producers caved in to the demands of a few fans. The producers have made it clear that they were responding to the on-screen chemistry between SA and EBR...

Huffington Post (Apr. 24, 2013) - Marc Guggenheim: “There’s a scene that they share in Episode 22 where just the chemistry is just so palpable. I was actually just on set telling Stephen that you really feel there’s a lot of chemistry and heat between the two of them."

The Larry King Show (May 14, 2013) - Greg Berlanti: "I think, uh, we really like the charm and the charisma that the two of them have together. And there's lots to explore there before we'd walk down a path of ever having them become a couple just yet. But, um, we'll see what happens. You never know. We like to surprise the audience."

OK! Magazine (May 14, 2014) - Marc Guggenheim: "Look, I think we are lucky that we are faced with the age-old television conundrum when you have two characters with chemistry. At what point do you have them consummate that relationship? Have you written yourself into a corner? Have you prematurely brought an element to a show to a close? Those are all things we talk about in the writers’ room. Lord knows there have been plenty of shows that have given both positive and negative examples. The one promise we made to ourselves, at the very beginning, is we would never try to drag things out just to maintain a moment. We churn through story. We don’t bide our time with anything. If something feels natural to do something in season 1, we will not wait ’til season 2 to do it. I imagine that will be our guiding principle with respect to Oliver and Felicity. At the same time, we’ve established that Felicity is not the only woman in Oliver’s life. I respect the fans who basically ship Oliver and other women. I think for us, part of the fun of writing the show is watching all of these romantic entanglements go through ups and downs. I would like for the romantic elements to be as surprising and shocking as all the other elements."

Examiner* (Aug. 4, 2014) - Andrew Kreisberg: "They have so much chemistry, it's literally insane... If they were our friends in real life, we would all be going, 'Dude, why aren't you two together?' There are other women on the show, like Amanda Waller, that he won't have had a relationship with. ... Once we saw those dailies and we saw what Emily [Bett Rickards] did to Stephen [Amell], especially early on, it was just this thing that just kept growing and growing and growing."

(* This website no longer exists, but I preserved this quote in my personal archives.)

MTV (Oct. 8, 2014) - MTV: "So to transition from babies into another romance thing, let’s talk Olicity. The fans are, of course, freaking out about the kiss that’s being teased in the first episode, but was that always part of the plan? Or did that naturally develop from the chemistry that Stephen Amell and Emily Bett Rickards have on the show?" Marc Guggenheim: "You know it really just naturally developed. I mean, they have had incredible chemistry ever since season one… Just the way their scenes were playing, it sort of became this natural thing where we got to the end of season two, and we’re like, you know, we have to sort of address this now. We can’t just keep stringing along the audience with their little banters and their little moments, glances to each other. There needs to be some sort of actual story addressing this head on."

MG Twitter (Oct. 16, 2014) - Fan: "Marc, is this Felicity love interest solely because of the fans? or was that a long term plan?" Marc Guggenheim: "Neither.  We've simply written to the on-screen chemistry between Stephen and Emily."

Long Beach Comic Con Panel (Mar. 11, 2015) - Marc Guggenheim: "We really - we didn't have a plan, except there was so much chemistry between Stephen and Emily. Um, though I also say, like, I defy you to put Emily in a scene with anyone else and have her not have chemistry with someone."  

MG Tumblr (Jun. 23, 2015) - Fan: "Since Felicity was suppose to be a one-off character, when did you decide to shift the writing to make her be the romantic interest for Oliver?" Marc Guggenheim: "Sometime during Season 2, I would say. Based upon the on-screen chemistry between Stephen and Emily in Season 1."

Arrow Writers Twitter (Oct. 7, 2015) -  Arrow Writers: "Loving the chemistry between @EmilyBett and @amellywood...we figure you guys are too..."

James Bamford Twitter (Feb. 17, 2016) - In response to fan asking how much of the hand holding support between Oliver & Felicity was scripted in 4x14, James Bamford: "Those two seize the moment during the scene and it just comes naturally. Just when I'm about to ask....it happens."

Seat42F Roundtable Interview at SDCC (Jul. 23, 2016) - Wendy Mericle: "One of the reasons that relationship happened was we wanted to write to the chemistry that was obviously palpable on screen between Stephen and Emily."

ShowBiz Junkies Roundtable Interview at SDCC (Jul. 23, 2016) - Wendy Mericle: "What's interesting about Olicity is, it's become this big - as everyone knows, this huge thing online and everyone has taken sides. But for us, it was really a byproduct of you cast someone like Emily Bett Rickards and there is obviously chemistry and you start to write to that. And it really felt in seasons 3 and 4 that, if you didn't go in that direction, it was going to do a disservice to the show and to the characters. And so we leaned into it, we went that way, we saw what it could do, and in season 5, we're going to do the same thing, which is, we left them ambiguous at the end of the season and I will say, you will get some clarity in episode 5 of season 5. But even then we're going to be - we are going to be exploring it in, actually in real time, to see where the characters are taking us, and where we feel like the best stories are going to be told."

TVLine (Nov. 29, 2016) - Marc Guggenheim: “I get a lot of s–t online, for reasons, but the way it played out for us was very organic. Like any showrunners, we react to the dailies and we started seeing these two actors have chemistry. So, no, I wouldn't do anything different.”

MG Tumblr (Apr. 14, 2017) - Fan: "According to your long experience as tv show producer, from 0 to 10 how you'd evaluate the on screen chemistry between stephen and emily?" Marc Guggenheim: "10."

MG Tumblr (May 17, 2017) - Fan: "Secondly, why does everyone that works at arrow insist on shoving olicity down the throats of arrow viewers? I'm legitimately confused on the appeal." Marc Guggenheim: "I don’t know what to tell you except that there are people involved with the show (including me) who feel like Stephen and Emily have chemistry together."

TV Guide Magazine's SDCC Issue (Jul. 12, 2017) - Marc Guggenheim: "I think Stephen really enjoys working with Emily... Those two have undeniable chemistry. We've always written toward it, even when we were writing away from it, you know?"

I'm also tired of reading online claims (and demands) that, now EBR has left the show, Arrow will (or should) move toward an Oliver/E2 Laurel romance. MG has emphasized that Oliver is now a married man...

Geekyvibes Nation Podcast (Feb. 14, 2018) - Marc Guggenheim: "Oliver's now married to someone who's not the Black Canary or ever will be the Black Canary. And I just don't think there's any desire on our parts to tell a story about Oliver cheating on his wife.... I can't think of a quicker way to get the Internet to hate me more than it already does." 

Edited July 14, 2019 by tv echo

[Featherhat]

It fits the narrative better to have a tiny amount of loud crazies be the reason Olicity happened whilst the vast, vast majority of fans got cheated out of Lauriver because of them. Because there's absolutely no way Oliver would ever look twice at a gorgeous, smart ,funny, brave young woman an IT girl apart from that.

It's not like her role was already being expanded before the show even aired or they had private data or professional reviews to work with. You don't change course this drastically because of 50 loud fans, you might shiptease for years but don't actually change the structure of the show. 

[statsgirl]

On 7/14/2019 at 1:25 PM, tv echo said:

At the same time, we’ve established that Felicity is not the only woman in Oliver’s life. I respect the fans who basically ship Oliver and other women. I think for us, part of the fun of writing the show is watching all of these romantic entanglements go through ups and downs.

This was the summer when SA said at SDCC that Oliver has only one woman in his life, Felicity.

#Don'tTrustMarcGuggenheim

[lemotomato]

33 minutes ago, statsgirl said:

This was the summer when SA said at SDCC that Oliver has only one woman in his life, Felicity.

#Don'tTrustMarcGuggenheim

To be fair, that interview with MG happened in May 2014, right around the season 2 finale, when the show was ship-baiting all of Oliver’s relationships in order to set up the “woman you love” twist in 223. 

[Simba122504]

On 7/14/2019 at 1:08 PM, Featherhat said:

It fits the narrative better to have a tiny amount of loud crazies be the reason Olicity happened whilst the vast, vast majority of fans got cheated out of Lauriver because of them. Because there's absolutely no way Oliver would ever look twice at a gorgeous, smart ,funny, brave young woman an IT girl apart from that.

It's not like her role was already being expanded before the show even aired or they had private data or professional reviews to work with. You don't change course this drastically because of 50 loud fans, you might shiptease for years but don't actually change the structure of the show. 

It's rewriting history because when Oliver and Laurel showed up onscreen in S1, I'll say a huge portion of the fanbase marked "Return to Sender." And that godawful love triangle didn't help. But when Felicity showed up, those same people started shipping them and talking about their amazing chemistry. Hoping TPTB whould see what we see and of course they did.

Edited August 6, 2019 by Simba122504

[tv echo]

I do not know for certain who was the first person to use the term "Original Team Arrow," but David Ramsey is the earliest source that I found. If anyone has more information, please let me know. Thanks...

ORIGINAL TEAM ARROW ("OTA")

The concept that Oliver, Diggle and Felicity are the core trio or core team at the heart of Arrow is not a fan-made concept. Instead, it is a concept that was recognized early on by the producers and then embraced by producers, writers, cast members and media (in addition to fans). To illustrate this point, here is a representative chronology of quotes from various sources (this list is not meant to be comprehensive).

May 8, 2013:
Geoff Johns (Collider interview) - "One of my favorite episodes is, I don’t think it’s aired yet, but there’s this big sequence with Oliver Queen and Felicity Smoak and Diggle, when I saw those characters in that episode, I thought I could see this show going forever."

Jul. 20, 2013:
Emily Bett Rickards (SDCC press roundtable interview😞 "I think for Felicity, she - you know, she found a family in Diggle and Oliver which she was missing."

Jul. 20, 2013:
Stephen Amell (SDCC Arrow panel) - "In the grand scheme of things, Diggle and Felicity are Oliver's best friends... These are the people that he can talk to, and they go to great lengths and great distances to bring him back to Starling City in the premiere. Great distances. Long distances."

Jul. 20, 2013:
Stephen Amell (SDCC press roundtable interview) - "Diggle's his guy. Felicity's his girl. I mean, they're the people that he's really able to share himself with. And we got to see at the end of Season 1 that they weren't subsidiaries in, you know - they are team members. And if we're gonna pick back up again, that's where we find everybody. We find everybody as team members."

Sep. 17, 2013:
Andrew Kreisberg (EW interview) - “One of the crew members actually pointed this out to us. He said, ‘The scripts are really funny this year.’ It’s not just Felicity. It’s having Felicity and Dig and Oliver together. Having that triumvirate... One of the things we’re really exploring is that they’ve really become friends. And they really have become family. There’s an easygoing camaraderie about them that allows them to enjoy what they’re doing a little bit more.”

Sep. 20, 2013:
Stephen Amell (Digital Spy interview) - (When asked what he thought Diggle and Felicity added to the show) "Well, Felicity immediately in the third episode when she showed up presented a dynamic for Oliver that we really hadn't seen. He smiled... when he - when he saw her. And that was actually - that wasn't Oliver, that was me. That was quite natural. I thought that Emily was charming and that the way that she was delivering her dialogue was really interesting. And, um, having them as a team, you know, having more of a dynamic there, and - and really a team by the end of the first season, we really see the all operate in concert with one another and not with Oliver as this sort of impetuous, stubborn, myopic dictator which we - you know, we saw a little bit in early going. It was constantly me saying one thing and Diggle looking at me, going, 'really, is that the way you want to do things?' Um, so, um, bringing in - uh, bringing in different elements and different opinions is always good for business."

Oct. 29, 2013:
TVLine (Vlada Gelman) - TVLINE: "Oliver meets The Canary this week. How does that affect the core team of Oliver, Felicity and Diggle?" Emily Bett Rickards: "What creates the biggest wave is the fact that we’ve learned there’s another extremely powerful fighter in town. But she’s helped us, so what does that mean? She’s extremely dangerous, so we’re on-guard, but also thankful. [Laughs] We never had to be thankful with Helena. She wasn’t ever helpful in any sort of way. It just creates a whole bunch of waves and equations to figure out that’ll definitely take time."

Nov. 6, 2013
Arrow Episode 205 (League of Assassins) - Sara (to Oliver, Diggle and Felicity): "You three are quite the team."

Jan. 29, 2014:
Arrow Episode 212 (Tremors) - Roy: “Okay. Alright. How many people know what - who you are?” Oliver: “Too many. But these are the only two that matter. John Diggle and Felicity Smoak.” Roy: “Does this group have a name? Like ‘Team Arrow’, or something?” Oliver: “We don't call ourselves that.” Felicity: “I do. Occasionally.” (This was the first time that the term "Team Arrow" was used on the show.)

Apr. 8, 2014:
Marc Guggenheim (THR interview) - "The people craving more screen time for the core three [Oliver, Felicity and Diggle]. That’s coming in a big way."

Apr. 30, 2014:
Arrow Episode 221 (City of Blood) - Oliver (to Diggle and Felicity, after rejecting Laurel's offer to help): "This started with the three of us. It's time we got back to that."

Jul. 25, 2014:
David Ramsey (tweet) - "#OriginalTeamArrow is incomplete at #SDCC" (tweeting pic of himself with SA).

Jul. 26, 2014:
David Ramsey (tweet) - "# OriginalTeamArrow is now complete" (tweeting pic of himself with SA and EBR).

Oct. 21, 2015:
Arrow Episode 403 (Restoration) - Felicity (to Oliver and Diggle, over comms): "I'll give you one better than that. 20 feet ahead. I got one gift-wrapped for you. Feels like old times, the three of us. The OGs. The Original Gangstas." ... Felicity (to Oliver and Diggle): "Okay, I know that was kind of a bust, but wasn't it fun having the Original Team Arrow back together?" ... Felicity (to Oliver and Diggle): "To OTA. Original Team Arrow. Sorry, I know you hate it when I call us that." (This was the first time that the terms "Original Team Arrow" and "OTA" were used on the show.)

Oct. 27, 2015:
Fangirlish (Alyssa Barbieri) - "Over its three seasons and into its fourth, Arrow has proven that it’s at its best when Original Team Arrow is at the center of the show... The thing about Original Team Arrow is that it’s not a popularity contest. It’s not about Oliver, Diggle, and Felicity being better than others that have helped out. It’s about how in sync the three of them are when they’re working together; they are stronger together. ... It’s hard to imagine there was a time when Team Arrow wasn’t a thing, but early season one was the dark ages as far as I’m concerned. Season one showed us three separate dynamics: Oliver as a one-man mission, Oliver and Diggle as partners with occasional help from one very blonde IT girl, and finally the formation of the team we all know and love as Original Team Arrow with Oliver, Diggle, and Felicity all working together to protect Starling City."

Jan. 18, 2016:
TV Overmind (Laura Schinner) - "Arrow was the show that started it all for The CW, when it comes to the success of their DC Comics shows. And Original Team Arrow, made up of Oliver, Diggle, and Felicity, is what started it all for Arrow and hooked a large percentage of the audience. As the team has grown to include Thea, Laurel, and others who have come and gone, this core group has remained a big reason why people tune in week after week."

Jan. 28, 2016:
GeekDad (Joey L. Mills) - "Cisco Ramon (Vibe) on The Flash. Mick Rory (Heatwave) on Legends of Tomorrow. These guys are polar opposites, yet both are the heart and soul of their respective teams... Arrow has a pair of these characters. They’re two-thirds of the O.T.A.s. Original Team Arrow. They are John Diggle and Felicity Smoak."

Mar. 8, 2016:
Just About Write (Meredith) -  "[A]s one third of the unstoppable Original Team Arrow. Felicity is not only the brains behind the brawn, but is a vital member of the trio."

Nov. 15, 2016:
David Ramsey (TVLine interview) -  “I hope you get to see [the OTA of Diggle, Felicity and Oliver] more, in general, because I think the show has really missed that... I don’t think I’m misspeaking that the show really does hinge on those three and that relationship between them.”

Nov. 30, 2016:
4YourExcitement (Verena Cote) - "One thing that should have been established by now is the fact that the Original Team Arrow is the heart of the show. We wouldn’t want to tune in week after week if it wasn’t for the banter between Oliver, Diggle and Felicity. One of the most beautiful storylines has been the assembly of those original team members... The first few episodes of the OTA working together have been the best team-related scenes the show has had, and every time throughout the last five years that those three have shared a scene has been a highlight. We do hope that at some point Oliver, Diggle and Felicity will go back to fighting crime amongst themselves. Or just having a drink somewhere and chatting about the weather."

Feb. 8, 2017:
Arrow Episode 512 (Bratva) - Diggle (to Oliver): "You know, Oliver, you were wrong. Me and Felicity, we're no better than you. You, me, Felicity. We make each other better."

Feb. 8, 2017:
David Ramsey (Mashable interview) - "[The original OTA team of Oliver, Diggle and Felicity] is the backbone of this show and the writers are definitely getting back to it."

Feb. 8, 2017:
David Ramsey (Watchtivist interview) - "I don’t think it’s too much to say that has really been the backbone of the show and it has been for 5 seasons... I can say yes, we will get back to OTA, to the backbone of the show. Those three particularly, watch each other’s backs like no other team members can and you’ll see how Diggle particularly helps Felicity in the coming episodes. Yes, a lot of the coming episodes will have OTA scenes."

Feb. 9, 2017:
Yahoo! Entertainment (Robert Chan) - "No matter how many people you add, this show still comes down to the balance of Oliver, Diggle, and Felicity. Oliver is driven to do good by any means necessary, and he needs Diggle and Felicity to keep him from becoming as bad as the criminals he hunts. Diggle needs Oliver and Felicity to check the rage that made him kill his brother. Felicity needs Diggle and Oliver to keep from backsliding into the anarchist hacker she once was. Diggle saying, 'You, me, Felicity — we make each other better,' is basically the writers pointing out what the show needs to be its best."

Mar. 31, 2017:
Agents of Geek Podcast Episode 67 (Craig Wack & Tatiana Torres) - Craig: "If Felicity is the heart, then certainly Diggle is the soul of Team Arrow." Tatiana: "OTA, you guys. OTA. I just miss when it was the three of them."

Apr. 26, 2017:
TV Overmind (Chris King) - "[T]here’s a chance that Season 5 could match, if not surpass the quality of Arrow‘s outstanding second season. But in order to do that, the show is going to need to do what it did when it’s at its best and focus on the Holy Trinity of characters, the Big Three, the OTA: Oliver, Felicity, and Diggle." (This article link no longer works. After Chris King left TV Overmind, they must've deleted his articles. However, I had saved this excerpt in my personal archives.)

May 4, 2017:
Marc Guggenheim (tumblr post) - Fan: "You always claim that your writing is not influenced by fandom campaigns, but your constant shoutouts to a fanmade concept, #OTA is a prime example of oliciter fanservice. The rest of the fans/viewers either DGAF abt this supposedly 'original' team, or hate OTA, because they know it's used to devalue&exclude key char. like LL/BC&elevate FS. IF U wanna write for a wide, non-partisan audience, U should stop reinforcing the idea that F/D/O are more 'core'&'special' than canon char. like BC or Roy."  MG: "Let me clarify:  We don’t make story decisions based on outside forces.  But I’m not above making a meta reference about anything."

Jun. 3, 2017:
Michael Rowe and David Ramsey (Super Heroes Con III panel) - MR: "Let me tell you about - what my favorite OTA moment is. I kinda created - as Floyd - I kinda created Team Arrow in a way. He shot this guy with the poisonous arrows - danger, way stronger. He shot the laptop that he, then Oliver brought to Felicity. And so, it all happened around Floyd Lawton." DR: "Actually, we do have Floyd Lawton to thank for creating OTA."

Jun. 22, 2017:
Marc Guggenheim (EW's Superhero Insider interview) - "Other people, uh, felt that having new members of the team... detracted from, you know, what they loved - which is, you know, what they call 'OTA', which is, you know, the original trio of, uh, Oliver, Diggle and Felicity. Um, but what I think was most surprising - at least to me about that - was that there have always been a lot of people in the lair apart from Oliver, Diggle and Felicity. Um, you know, we've had Laurel, we've had Roy, we've had Thea, we've had Sara. Um, you know, it's always - Team Arrow has always been, uh, a bigger group than just that core trio. Um, so I was a little surprised, you know, by some people objecting to it."

Sep. 2, 2017:
Urban Dictionary - "original team arrow Has three members. Shortened to OTA. Includes Oliver Queen, (the love of his life) Felicity Smoak and John Diggle. That's all. Laurel doesn't go here. Oliver: it started with the three of us."

Sep. 18, 2017:
GreenArrowTV (Craig Byrne) - "The 'Original Team Arrow' interaction of Oliver/Diggle/Felicity came in second place with 9%...."

Oct. 26, 2017:
Entertainment Weekly (Sara Netzley) - "Gotta say, Arrow depicted the Oliver/John and Oliver/Felicity relationships so beautifully tonight. Original Team Arrow know each other inside and out, and their one-on-one scenes are a pitch-perfect combination of insight, support, and encouragement."

Nov. 7, 2017:
Stephen Amell (KSiteTV interview) - "There are new members of Team Arrow, and there are original members of Team Arrow. Um, obviously going back to Season 1, it was first just me, then me and David, and then me, David and Emily, and it stayed that way for quite a long time. That's always been sort of the core elements of Team Arrow. And, despite how useful and, um, you know, exceptional the new members have been, they still are the new team members."

Jan. 14, 2018:
CBR (Stephanie Holland) - "Arrow also established an entire superhero universe on The CW and that is influence that can’t be taken lightly. There is literally a hero for everyone in the Arrowverse and those roots can be traced back to Oliver, Diggle and Felicity starting their small team together."

Jan. 18, 2018:
Arrow Episode 610 (Divided) - Oliver (to Diggle): "This started with you, with me, and with Felicity. Whatever comes our way, we can handle it. I believe that."

Jan. 18, 2018:
TV Guide (Lindsay MacDonald) - "It's definitely sad to see the team so fractured, but it does leave an opportunity for Arrow to give fans something they haven't seen since Season 2: Original Team Arrow. ... Original Team Arrow (or OTA as they're more fondly referred to) is exactly what it sounds like. The original team of Oliver, Felicity and Diggle from early seasons of the show back when they were fighting crime all on their own."

Jan. 25, 2018:
Arrow Episode 611 (We Fall) - Curtis (to Dinah and Rene): "I mean, let's just be different than OTA. Let's be, like, NTA and say it together."

Mar. 8, 2018:
ComicBook (Russ Burlingame) - "The 'Arrowverse' was built on Stephen Amell, but Amell alone could not hold the weight of such a project on his back. Without [Emily Bett] Rickards and [David] Ramsey, there is every chance the show would not have been what it needed to be, and none of these other actors would have had their chance to shine."

May 25, 2018:
Arrow Episode 423 (Schism) - Felicity (to Oliver and Diggle): "Well, it looks like it's just the three of us. Team Arrow? The original gangstas? Up top." (Slaps hands with Diggle)

May 26, 2018:
David Ramsey (HVFF-London panel) - "Personally, I think that Season 2 was our best season... It was tough to beat that season. I think that's when everything really gelled... Emily became a regular. I think OTA kinda sealed during that season. Kinda sealed it up."

Jun. 19, 2018:
We Got It Covered (Eric Joseph) - "Before the series debuted in 2012, one could imagine Oliver Queen existing without the likes of John Diggle or Felicity Smoak orbiting him, but now it just seems downright impossible to do so."

Aug. 13, 2018:
ScreenRant (Britt Poteet) - "Diggle, Felicity, and Oliver have always been the heart of the show, so it’s hard for viewers to care about the entire sidestory of Curtis, Rene, and Dinah throughout the season."

Sep. 5, 2018:
GreenArrowTV (tweet) - "#Arrow Season 7 is 40 DAYS away! Check out this cover from when OTA was part of the comic book mix! http://greenarrowtv.com" (tweeting pic of cover of New 52 Green Arrow comics featuring comics versions of Oliver/GA, Diggle and Felicity).

Nov. 27, 2018:
Birth.Movies.Death (Amelia Emberwing) - "When the day is won, the fires extinguished, and the inmates returned to their cells, Oliver Queen leaves Slabside Maximum Security prison as quietly as he entered it. Appropriately, it’s Dig and Felicity waiting for him at the gate rather than the whole team. When they see him, their faces aren’t relieved. All of the members of OTA look at each other as if they’ve just survived a war, driving home just how taxing everything’s been since Diaz tried to take over the city, the loss of Quentin Lance, and Oliver’s subsequent imprisonment."

Dec. 2, 2018:
Colton Haynes and David Ramsey (HVFF-San Jose panel) - CH: "Would I be OTA? Because technically I'm OTA... Wow. Okay, I thought I was OTA. I guess not. (To DR) What's it like to be a part of OTA?" DR: "Um, I miss it. I miss it." 

Feb. 5, 2019:
Pure Fandom (Lynsey Neill) - "Felicity’s scenes were great… by why did they sequester her to the B storyline? She’s 1/3 of OTA. A little more recognition of how integral she is would have been nice… in the 150th episode. ... The John/Oliver scenes were great. But we needed more OTA. Again, where’s Felicity?"

Feb. 5, 2019:
Tell-Tale TV (Brianna Martinez) - "When will OTA return from the war? For an episode that is meant to honor the core of the series, there is a stunning lack of the core trio that used to be a highlight of the show for me. Give me more Oliver, Felicity, and Diggle working together again, please."

Mar. 4, 2019:
Arrow Episode 714 (Brothers & Sisters) - Felicity (to Oliver and Diggle): "Well, I love a spontaneous OTA moment as much as the next person, but you didn't really come here to tell us about resurrecting an old ARGUS defunct program, did you?"

Mar. 7, 2019:
Paley Center (tweet) - “'Sad. It was really sad before Felicity.' #OTA 4ever ?? #Arrow #WereNotCryingYoureCrying @StephenAmell @david_ramsey @EmilyBett."

Apr. 14, 2019:
Pure Fandom (Lynsey Neill) - "Goodbye’s are not easy. Especially from your favorite people. And in the Arrow fandom, Oliver, Felicity, and Diggle are our FAVORITE. From hitting people with vans and just driving away, to drinking margaritas after a job well done, we will always love this iconic trio, known to us as 'Original Team Arrow,' and OTA. ... The Goodbye OTA Project is a movement towards sending the show off with style, and more importantly, with some love. The project has raised a considerable amount of money, which is still continually growing. Firstly, their efforts has funded a ‘Goodbye OTA’ billboard in Times Square, along with additional donations towards multiple charities."

Apr. 21, 2019:
CarterMatt (Matt Carter) - "Do – Show the absence of this character [Felicity Smoak]. How is Oliver doing without it? What about Diggle? She’s a part of the coined OTA because of her skill set and her value — she’s an inspiration to many out there because she showed the value in atypical superheroes. It shouldn’t be business as usual without her and while it’s okay to see Oliver and others finding some success, there should be a void felt here."

Apr. 22, 2019:
David Ramsey (TV Insider interview) - "Yeah, we're losing the T from our OTA. Obviously, we all feel how we feel about it... Emily Bett's been fantastic. I remember making a comment years ago, of me and Stephen brooding in the foundry until Felicity showed up and that's just part of what Emily brings. But again, what I point to is being able to tell these big, big stories without being limited to anything that we had previously, that includes OTA."

Apr. 22, 2019:
David Ramsey (EW interview) - "What does OTA mean after we lose the T and me and Oliver have to move on past that?"

Apr. 30, 2019:
Chris King (blog post) - "In two weeks, Arrow will be losing an integral part of its DNA, one-third of OTA, and the show needs to make the most of the time it has left with her instead of jerking its audience around with a mystery story that’s more boring than it is thrilling, more exasperating than it is compelling."

May 10, 2019:
The Silver Petticoat Review (Catherine) - "#3 FELICITY JOINS THE TEAM ON HER TERMS... And Original Team Arrow is born."

May 13, 2019:
Beth Schwartz (ET interview) - "Yeah we definitely honor the OTA in the [Season 7] finale. There’s a lot of really nice homages to where the series started between the three of them and as well as between Oliver and Felciity."

May 14, 2019:
Polygon (Justin Carter) - "We see the original Team Arrow trinity of Oliver, Felicity, and Diggle stand inside their lair one last time together before shutting the lights off for good." 

May 24, 2019:
jbuffyangel (Jennifer) - "Even though Original Team Arrow doesn’t get the focus and screen time we crave, they are and will always be the show. The chemistry between Stephen Amell, Emily Bett Rickards, and David Ramsey was discovered as Season 1 evolved."

July 20, 2019:
ComicBook.com (Russ Burlingame) to Stephen Amell - "For you personally, you are the focal point of a lot of this stuff now. Like, everything that has happened in these five shows now flows out of Arrow, and a lot of that is you and David and Emily." 

August 4, 2019:
David Ramsey (Den of Geek interview at TCA) - "We had lightning in a bottle, man. Me, Stephen, and Emily, it just doesn't happen a lot."

August 19, 2019
TV Guide (Lindsay MacDonald) - "While every member of Team Arrow has become near and dear to us, there will always be a special place in our hearts for Original Team Arrow, aka Oliver, Diggle (David Ramsey), and Felicity. They've been thick as thieves since the earliest days of Arrow, despite their ups and downs, and frankly, if we had to pick a final scene for the entire show, we'd choose for it to be one featuring these three."

August 23, 2019:
Marc Guggenheim (Los Angeles Times interview) - "A couple years ago, I think it was the end of Season 4, I realized, “Oh, I know how to keep the show on the air for 20 years,” at least as far as some of the fans. Each episode would be self-contained. It would just be Oliver, Diggle and Felicity in the bunker, or solving a case of the week, with a billed supervillain of the week. ... The problem was, that was never the show any of us were interested in doing. I don’t think the actors were interested in doing a show where their characters didn’t evolve and change. I know I certainly wasn’t interested in writing a show with characters [who] didn’t evolve and change. Once you make the decision that the show is going to be constantly changing and not be the same thing, week in week out, year in year out, you are immediately building in an expiration date, because then you always have to do something new. At some point, you do run out of things that are new, and that’s when the show starts to lag and become ... that’s when you risk jumping the shark."

September 11, 2019:
Cammien Ray (tweet) - "listen friends I am a grumpy old historian who has been here for a long time not a good time and let me tell you the term OTA was created and owned by fans to describe Oliver, Diggle, and Felicity and that's the etymology go argue with your mother."

Edited September 22, 2019 by tv echo
UPDATED on Sep. 22, 2019

[Chaser]

I feel like OTA was so acknowledged as what made the show finally 'click', I'm so confused as to why they stopped writing to it regularly. I understand that they felt they needed to expand the team but OTA became more of 'moment' storytelling. 

They really lost something when they stopped writing Delicity scenes.

[Featherhat]

I miss Delicity scenes, we seem to be getting a good Oliver/Diggle send off but sob, nothing of Diggle supporting Felicity and Mia. Hopefully that will come up in the season somehow, though Mia didn't know who Connor really was in 2040.

The OTA billboard reminded me how much some fans resent the fact that OTA became a thing. Like "my OTA is Oliver, Laurel and Roy" (Never happened as a three) or My OTA is Oliver, Laurel and Dig.....(theoretically could happen a bit this season with BS) You can like whoever you want but it's pretty specific who it refers to and fans who raise money are entitled to put whoever they want on the billboard, or have Lord Mesa do it. 

The only part of the stupid civil war stuff I liked was that they didn't actually have Diggle or Felicity go on the other side to Oliver to "even it up" in terms of OTA  vs NTA. And there were quite a few good OTA scenes before Diggle lost his mind over being GA again. Of course that was guaranteed to make the whole thing easy to root for but would have made more sense if they wanted viewers to be conflicted as well. Then again they apparently thought NTA had a leg to stand on, which I'll never understand. Whining Toddlers. 

[tv echo]

To be a member of Team Arrow, you had to know the Hood/Arrow's true identity (Oliver Queen) and be accepted by Oliver to work with him in the Foundry/Lair/Bunker.  Therefore, the only "team" that could arguably claim the title of "Original Team Arrow" would've been Oliver and Diggle. However, I think they were considered more of a duo and that the term "team" was used to refer to more than two people. Therefore, the first Team Arrow didn't officially form until Felicity joined them.

Edited August 12, 2019 by tv echo

[BkWurm1]

I figure since Felicity came up with the name she gets to say who was on it

[tv echo]

#ThrowBackThursday: From July 20, 2013 SDCC interview with EBR and CH (video in article) - this would've taken place between S1 and S2...
https://nerdreactor.com/2013/10/07/colton-hayes-emily-bett-rickards-talk-arrow-season-2-sdcc/ 

-- EBR: "I think for Felicity, she - you know, she found a family in Diggle and Oliver which she was missing."

-- EBR: "Now we come back to her and she's starting from the bottom... She's having this back from the bottom, trying to find - trying to find herself. Trying to be strong through it all, maybe holding back tears a lot more. An underlying layer of sadness, I think." CH: "Especially with your - with Felicity and the way she feels about Oliver." EBR: "Hmph. She loves him." CH: "All the girls are always about Oliver Queen. Felicity is maybe a little jealous."

Also, at this same SDCC in 2013, EBR was on TV Guide's Fan Favorites panel (TH was also on this panel)...

Mod: "Congratulations on being made a series regular."
EBR: "Thank you. I'm excited."
Mod: "Did you ever imagine how popular Felicity would become with the fans?"
EBR: "I didn't. Um, she's so awkward that I think everyone finds a little part of themselves in there, I hope. I think that's why."
Mod: "Do you think Felicity has a crush on Oliver?"
EBR: "Yes. She does. Oliver Queen. Right? Stephen Amell."
Mod: "Do I need to hold up his cover again? ... Do you think there's any chance of them hooking up?"
EBR: "I think there's a chance. I think there's a good base for it. When we get back in Season 2, there's a lot of tension between the three again and I think that'll span over the season quite a bit. I'm not sure. I can't guarantee. But there's a large chance. If you guys want it, well, there's even better chance." (Laughs)
Mod: "You're also one of the only other people who can stand up to Oliver. How will that play out?"
EBR: "She's his polygraph. She's his lie detector. She needs all honesty from him all the time, or else they're going to get killed, they're going to get hurt. So if she doesn't stand up to him, lives are going to be lost. And that's her biggest dilemma with being in this group. She doesn't want to kill anybody. And if she doesn't stand up to him, people are going to die."
Mod: "So do you think that means more adventures in the field for her in the future?"
EBR: "Oh, absolutely."
Mod: "So are you doing your martial arts training?"
EBR: "Yes. Actually, we started, um, Season 1 this week and all three of us have bruises from yesterday. So get ready."

Edited August 15, 2019 by tv echo

[Trisha]

Ahhh! 

[Mellowyellow]

Gawd they're cute!

I even heard a smoochy noise! 😂😍

SLEEP ON HER DOORSTEP AND BEG HER TO COME BACK SOMEONE FROM CW!!!!!!!!

[calliope1975]

I love and miss them so much!

[Mellowyellow]

14 minutes ago, calliope1975 said:

I love and miss them so much!

They really were the ultimate OTP. They RUINED all future and past OTPs for me.

She was so charming and adorable and he just reacted to that adorableness all the time.

[Trisha]

29 minutes ago, Mellowyellow said:

She was so charming and adorable and he just reacted to that adorableness all the time.

I love her "Ok!" response when he says "no more secrets." She really is the best. 

[Mellowyellow]

7 minutes ago, Trisha said:

I love her "Ok!" response when he says "no more secrets." She really is the best. 

She made Felicity into a very real, larger than life character full of consistent personality traits and mannerisms. 

EBR is so different to Felicity in real life. Cute too but very different.

It was never "Oh look it's EBR doing her thing." I think that's why I love Felicity so much. 

Felicity was always so vividly real to me and so were Oliver's reactions to her. 

ETA: I kinda want to cry now! 😭

Edited August 16, 2019 by Mellowyellow

[Soulfire]

GIFs of the scene, because why not?

[tv echo]

Here's the video alone...

[statsgirl]

I find that scene heartbreaking because they're planning to make things better for William and Oliver is once again realizing the impact on the people he loves of his decision to out himself as the Green Arrow at the end of season 6, and little do they know that William is soon to be out of their lives forever and there will be no chance to make things good for him again.

[tv echo]

Regarding the following Q&A during SA's panel at Fan Expo Boston (video posted on page 767 of the Social Media thread)...

Quote

Fan: "So throughout all the seasons, you've had different love interests. Who do you believe that Arrow is truly in love with?" SA: "Felicity. For sure. Yeah."

The phrasing of this statement ("all the seasons") made me think that the fan might not be an Olicity fan. Except for Susan (who was more the result of Oliver's loneliness than love), Felicity has been Oliver's main love interest since S3.

I thought it was possible that maybe the fan asking the question wanted SA to say something like, 'Oliver was in love with Laurel when he first returned home from the island, but that didn't work out because of guilt over Tommy's death, so then he fell in love with Felicity,' thereby indicating that Laurel was an equal love interest to Felicity but just thwarted by circumstance (or, as KC would say, Oliver and Laurel were "star-crossed lovers").

I don't agree, of course. I think SA said it exactly right. Felicity is the only person who Oliver truly fell in love with.

Pre-island Oliver was too selfish and immature to truly love anyone. Then, when he was away for five years and when he first returned home, he clung to the idea that he loved Laurel (and her photo) because she represented home and his former easy life. His harsh experiences made him grow up quickly and made him into a deeper, more layered man who was capable of self-sacrifice and who was capable of really loving someone. Felicity is the one who he trusted, who he fell in love with and who he wanted in his life. And that's why he married her.

ETA: I think the trauma of losing Oliver and Sara at the same time, his betrayal of her, her inability to forgive either of them and to grieve for her sister, and having to deal with her father's alcoholism, all combined to freeze Laurel emotionally for five years, so she never moved past her arguably immature love for Oliver (the kind of love that blindly ignored his numerous infidelities). Therefore, she never really saw present day Oliver until near the end. She kept saying that she knew Oliver better than anyone and knew him to his bones, and even Oliver once said that she always saw the best in him. But if that were true, then Laurel would've been the first one to suspect that he was the crime-fighting vigilante in S1 and would not have been fooled by his pretend, flippant, playboy act after he returned home. Yet she had no clue until Slade Wilson told her near the end of S3. Because she was stuck emotionally, Tommy never had a real chance of beating Laurel's idealized vision of being married to Oliver Queen and living happily ever after in Queen Mansion. (Ironically, this was the vision represented in the 100th episode as the alien hallucination.) 

Edited August 19, 2019 by tv echo

[Featherhat]

3 hours ago, tv echo said:

I thought it was possible that maybe the fan asking the question wanted SA to say something like, 'Oliver was in love with Laurel when he first returned home from the island, but that didn't work out because of guilt over Tommy's death, so then he fell in love with Felicity,' thereby indicating that Laurel was an equal love interest to Felicity but just thwarted by circumstance (or, as KC would say, Oliver and Laurel were "star-crossed lovers").

Could be, but even then I'd personally specify Laurel in the question since SA doesn't say anything about Laurel in relation to Oliver's relationships if he can help it. I guess at this point it doesn't really matter. 

3 hours ago, tv echo said:

ETA: I think the trauma of losing Oliver and Sara at the same time, his betrayal of her, her inability to forgive either of them and to grieve for her sister, and having to deal with her father's alcoholism, all combined to freeze Laurel emotionally for five years, so she never moved past her arguably immature love for Oliver (the kind of love that blindly ignored his numerous infidelities). Therefore, she never really saw present day Oliver until near the end. She kept saying that she knew Oliver better than anyone and knew him to his bones, and even Oliver once said that she always saw the best in him. But if that were true, then Laurel would've been the first one to suspect that he was the crime-fighting vigilante in S1 and would not have been fooled by his pretend, flippant, playboy act after he returned home. Yet she had no clue until Slade Wilson told her near the end of S3. Because she was stuck emotionally, Tommy never had a real chance of beating Laurel's idealized vision of being married to Oliver Queen and living happily ever after in Queen Mansion. (Ironically, this was the vision represented in the 100th episode as the alien hallucination.) 

I think this is a good way of looking at it. Being stuck emotionally, even though outwardly you appear to have your life together works for the character as presented on screen, though I don't think that's what they were going for. She did have a hell of a lot to cope with over those 5 years and a lot of reasons to have that pain and anger there when Oliver came back and Sara didn't and then when Sara came back. But to play it well and have their OTP have any chance they needed an actress who could play layers and also had chemistry with SA. Oops.

I couldn't take any of Laurel or Oliver's "you know me better than anyone, know you in my bones etc" seriously because no she really didn't. She even gets very self righteous about Oliver never telling her he's The Arrow in S4 as part of her rant when soulless!Sara has just nearly killed Thea. It's why I don't and never did take Laurel's entry into the foundry as this huge moment that was going to shake up the whole show and lead to GA/BC as some did, despite her "private" pep talk. Because it wasn't handled very differently to how other main characters found out. 

Don't get me started on "always saw the best in me." She probably was supposed to have but the show never backed that up with Flashbacks, even in S1. Any pushing to "see the best" was about wanting him to follow her 5 year plan so they could be the next big power couple of Starling City. And that meant ignoring the reality of who Oliver actually was. Which was a giant douche canoe she should have dropped years ago. 

Poor Tommy was always going to loose in this triangle, Oliver was always going to be figuratively in bed with them. 

[Kymmi]

I just binged S2 and it remains my favorite season (there are individual episodes and arcs that I enjoyed, but as far as a full season, S2 is still the strongest for me.  I remain sad that they wasted the young Arrow crew (Thea/Roy/Cyn) - I loved them.  SA and MB had great chemistry - I don’t care what MB is like in person, he’s so good at being a villain.  If I had one request it would be that I could buy the whole seasons without any of the flashbacks.  

[tv echo]

I came across this 2013 interview with SA (right before S2 began) in which his comments further support the idea that Oliver's first and "original" Team Arrow was Oliver, Diggle and Felicity...

Stephen Amell on 'Arrow' season 1, Justice League
Published on Sep 20, 2013, by Digital Spy

-- When asked what he thought Diggle and Felicity added to the show, SA: "Well, Felicity immediately in the third episode when she showed up presented a dynamic for Oliver that we really hadn't seen. He smiled... when he - when he saw her. And that was actually - that wasn't Oliver, that was me. That was quite natural. I thought that Emily was charming and that the way that she was delivering her dialogue was really interesting. And, um, having them as a team, you know, having more of a dynamic there, and - and really a team by the end of the first season, we really see they all operate in concert with one another and not with Oliver as this sort of impetuous, stubborn, myopic dictator which we - you know, we saw a little bit in early going. It was constantly me saying one thing and Diggle looking at me, going, 'really, is that the way you want to do things?' Um, so, um, bringing in - uh, bringing in different elements and different opinions is always good for business."

Edited September 13, 2019 by tv echo

[tv echo]

^^^ Also from this same 2013 Digital Spy video interview with SA...

-- Interviewer: "So Arrow then, a fantastic first season. Do you feel like the show kind of evolved as it went along through that first run of episodes?" SA: "Yeah, absolutely. I went back recently and I watched, uh, the second episode just aired in America. And, um, you know, I - I - I got the inkling, sort of the itch to re-familiarize myself, and it's an entirely different show. It's, you know - there's like bad guy of the week, there's voiceover, there's, um - which, uh, was, you know, Diggle became my voiceover, basically. Um, you know, there - there are so many aspects of the show that are different. I mean, the fun - the fundamental pieces are there, but, you know, by the time we had aired in America, we had shot - we were shooting our 10th episode, and our first 12 episodes had 12 different directors. And, you know, it's also the learning curve of we had 17 days to shoot the pilot and then you go into production, you have 8. So I'd like to think that we, you know, came through that first stretch relatively unscathed, with - with a pretty - with our - with our audience intact and that we then, you know, figured out all the things that worked and kept them, and took some of the stuff that didn't work and discarded it. And, you know, the finished product by the end of Season 1 was something that we can be really proud of."

I wonder if SA knew by the end of S1 that they would be moving away from Lauriver in S2.

Edited September 13, 2019 by tv echo

[statsgirl]

9 hours ago, tv echo said:

I wonder if SA knew by the end of S1 that they would be moving away from Lauriver in S2.

He should have suspected much earlier, when the time they were teasing Oliver with Helena. By the time they were shooting the Christmas episode, it was pretty much over for Oliver and Laurel. They ramped up Oliver/Laurel in the last few episodes of the season but as one of them (I think it was AK) said, they had to end that ship before they could start Oliver with anyone else. Having Oliver sleep with Laurel and then it ends very badly was a way to end it.

[JenMD]

His first Olicity tweet was the night The Odyssey aired (or thereabouts); they would have still had another 2 months or so to film at that point.  Yeah, I'm thinking he knew how things were going.

[insomniadreams88]

On 9/10/2019 at 9:38 AM, tv echo said:

I thought that Emily was charming and that the way that she was delivering her dialogue was really interesting

This comment from SA just makes me think of the script page and how different it was from what ended up on-screen for that first meeting. 

I sometimes can’t help but think about how they have a great love story for Olicity from the very beginning without even intending to with her first episode.

[tv echo]

I came across this series of articles about Oliver's love life from 2013-2014 by the same writer and thought it was interesting to see how his thinking evolved over the first three seasons of Arrow (the second article had a readers' poll)...

The Complicated Love Life Of Oliver Queen – CW’s Arrow
Joshua Murray   Feb. 2, 2013
https://www.thereviewsarein.com/2013/02/02/the-complicated-love-life-of-oliver-queen-cws-arrow/

Quote

By my count we have 4 options that are either in Oliver’s life now, have been in Oliver’s life in the past, or can come back in Oliver’s future. 
*  *  *
Oliver and Helena:
*  *  *
Oliver and McKenna Hall:
*  *  *
Oliver and Felicity:
...
There seems to be a pretty strong chance that something could happen here. I’ve seen some pictures from the next episode and it looks like Felicity is going to learn some more about Oliver. Who knows what that could mean for the 2 of them together.

I can also see Felicity as part of the crime fighting team that is growing and building steam in the Arrow Cave. She’s got the skills Ollie and Digg need and she’s done a lot of work already. I like this pair. It could happen!

note: it seems there are some people out in the world hoping that this pair happens as well. I’ve seen “team Oliver and Felicity” in the search results on the blog here.

Oliver and Laurel:
...
The star-crossed lovers. The Green Arrow and Black Canary duo comic book fans know. The former couple split by cheating, bad decisions, the death of a sister and all that comes with it. Oliver loves Laurel. And Laurel loves Oliver. But they both know that they can’t be together and so Laurel is with Tommy. Now Oliver says he’s glad she’s happy and he and Tommy are like brothers – but this can’t last forever.

At some point Oliver and Laurel will have to be together in some capacity and then Ollie will screw it up, as he does. But they will be there and we will be watching!

note: I can’t wait to see how this is written and plays out.

The Complicated Love Life Of Oliver Queen – Season 2 CW’s Arrow
Joshua Murray  Nov. 16, 2013
https://www.thereviewsarein.com/2013/11/16/the-complicated-love-life-of-oliver-queen-season-2-cws-arrow/

Quote

In February I wrote the 1st edition of this post and had 4 options listed: Laurel Lance, Felicity Smoke, Helena Bertinelli and McKenna Hall. In season 2 we seem to have lost Helena and McKenna… but we’ve added 2 new love interest possibilities.
*  *  *
Oliver and Laurel:
...
Ollie and Laurel have been the star-crossed lovers presented to us since the beginning of the series. He loved her, he wronged her, he fought to get back from the island because he missed her. Hell, he risked everything by calling her from that com tower in season 1.

But now Laurel is broken. Losing Tommy and blaming herself has taken her to a dark place. The drinking, the meds, the depression… it’s not good. There is a chance the Ollie thinks he can save her. That he still loves her (I believe he does), but I’m not sure that they are meant to be the couple that we once thought they were going to be.

I don’t really think that this is a couple that will work out long term.

But they could end up in a fling again before this is all said and done.
*  *  *
Oliver and Felicity:
...
Felicity’s feelings for Ollie are becoming more and more transparent with every episode. It’s at the point now where Oliver has had to tell her that he can’t be with anyone he cares about because of the danger that would come with that.

However, the more time they spend together, the more she helps him and learns him and supports him emotionally and outside of the “Arrow Cave” the more chance there is that these 2 end up in love.

I know that there is a lot of support for this couple in the fan community, but I’m not sure that it’s going to happen – even as a fling.

I do think that there’s a chance that we’re going to see a really passionate kiss between the Ollie and Felicity, probably during a mission and the reaction on her face will show the deep, deep feelings that she has for him. And then it will change when she realizes that it wasn’t real… or that it doesn’t mean she’s going to get what she really hopes for.
*  *  *
Oliver and Isabel Rochev:
*  *  *
Oliver and Sara Lance:
...
The Green Arrow story has Oliver and The Black Canary together… and apart and together. It’s a messy, complicated relationship. Kind of like Ollie and Sara.

The issue with their relationship on this show is Laurel. That’s a new wrinkle in the lore. It’s also the reason that I don’t think that Oliver and Sara will be together.

Unless Laurel leaves.

And there’s the rub.

Ollie and Sara probably belong together. They understand each other. They have a unique history. They can take care of each other. They might even be able to save each other from their demons.

For the sake of the story and the legend and DC’s Green Arrow – I hope these 2 end up together some day.

Just don’t expect it to happen in season 2.
*  *  *
Thank you for voting!
Felicity    70.69%  (22,411 votes) 
Sara        24.75%  (7,846 votes) 
Laurel       4.41%  (1,399 votes) 
Isabel        0.15%  (49 votes) 
Total Votes: 31,705

The Complicated Love Life Of Oliver Queen – Season 3 CW’s Arrow
Joshua Murray   Dec. 3, 2014
https://www.thereviewsarein.com/2014/12/03/the-complicated-love-life-of-oliver-queen-season-3-cws-arrow/

Quote

Okay, so season 3 hasn’t really been big for Oliver Queen’s love life… so instead of focusing on the Green Arrow, we’re going to focus on Felicity Smoak!

There are 3 options for Felicity right now in her budding love life. They are all flawed, but they could all work.

And because we all (I’m choosing to speak for everyone here) want to see Felicity smiling and happy, we want to see one of these 3 options work out for our favourite IT Wonder Girl.
*  *  *
Felicity and Oliver
...
These 2 love each other. It’s plain to see and it’s adorable and heartbreaking to watch them together.

Ollie has decided that he can’t be with her because it isn’t safe for her… or has he? If you’re caught up on season 3 you know that he’s had his moments of second thought (with Digg’s pushing) – but as of right now Ollicity isn’t looking like it’s going to happen right now.

Felicity and Ray Palmer 
*  *  *
Felicity and Barry Allen
....

Edited September 16, 2019 by tv echo

[tv echo]

Making it even more evident that the same people are behind Arrow and Flash...

From new Flash "Love Is Power" trailer:
Iris (to Barry): "The Barry I know would never stop running. He would find another way to fight. So what do we do first?"

From Arrow 201-City of Heroes:
Oliver (to Felicity): “It was just like a good friend once told me, I had to find another way.” 

From Arrow 222-City of Fire:
Felicity (to Oliver): “You honor the dead by fighting. And you are not done fighting!"

From Arrow 407-Brotherhood:
Oliver: "And I promise you, all of you, that I will never stop fighting to save this city."

Edited October 4, 2019 by tv echo

[BkWurm1]

Not sure if this is the right thread but bringing over from the News thread.  This was from a opinion piece on what Arrow got wrong.

Quote

15 Laurel’s Fate...
When fans first saw Laurel Lance on the show, they assumed they knew where her story would go. She was supposed to become the Black Canary and be romantically involved with Oliver.

While both of those things technically happened, she was also whiny, judgemental, and pushed to the side to make room for Felicity. Eventually the character perished and fans were outraged at the way the character was treated.

It's hilarious to blame Felicity for Laurel being "pushed to the side" when they point out that her being whiny and judgemental is a big reason why even though she became the BC and had been romantically involved with Oliver, even her fans were not happy with the character.  She pushed herself aside.   Felicity and Laurel didn't even interact beyond a few seconds until season three.  Felicity had already carved out her place in seasons one and two.  

If anyone was pushed aside to make room it was Sara to make Laurel at all relevant and even that didn't stick, lol.   

[RS3]

On 10/22/2019 at 10:51 AM, BkWurm1 said:

It's hilarious to blame Felicity for Laurel being "pushed to the side" when they point out that her being whiny and judgemental is a big reason why even though she became the BC and had been romantically involved with Oliver, even her fans were not happy with the character.  She pushed herself aside.   Felicity and Laurel didn't even interact beyond a few seconds until season three.  Felicity had already carved out her place in seasons one and two.  

If anyone was pushed aside to make room it was Sara to make Laurel at all relevant and even that didn't stick, lol.   

The thing with that kind of opinion piece is how great their authors are at cherry picking. Laurel was killed for Felicity despite Olicity being the main romance for two seasons while Laurel was alive and well but Sara wasn't killed for Laurel when hallucination!Sara literally said she was being replaced by her sis. No, Felicity being Laurel's ex's girlfriend is directly responsible for Laurel's lack of relevance, not the fans who wanted Laurel dead for having actual real conflict. Laurel was whiny when she was forefront in s1-2 but became Great when her only storyline was bringing her sister back while parading in her costume during fight scenes. 

So to recap:

- masked female character who fights = great

- female character who shows emotions other than sass and humor = whiny 

- female character who shows emotions other than sass and humor and doesn't fight = she must die

[Featherhat]

1 hour ago, RS3 said:

The thing with that kind of opinion piece is how great their authors are at cherry picking. Laurel was killed for Felicity despite Olicity being the main romance for two seasons while Laurel was alive and well but Sara wasn't killed for Laurel when hallucination!Sara literally said she was being replaced by her sis. No, Felicity being Laurel's ex's girlfriend is directly responsible for Laurel's lack of relevance, not the fans who wanted Laurel dead for having actual real conflict. Laurel was whiny when she was forefront in s1-2 but became Great when her only storyline was bringing her sister back while parading in her costume during fight scenes. 

So to recap:

- masked female character who fights = great

- female character who shows emotions other than sass and humor = whiny 

- female character who shows emotions other than sass and humor and doesn't fight = she must die

Yup, that's pretty much it. 

I don't get the idea that she was killed for Olicity, they had no problem writing them with her alive and well, but when they broke up? Oh yeah gotta kill Laurel to make sure Olicity succeeds. Ssssuuuurrrreeee. As you said, her only storyline in her "best" season is to resurrect the sister this show killed for her sake for a whole other show, be Quentin's daughter and die. And stand around in the Canary suit, which is the most important part. 

[tv echo]

[Josh371982]

On 10/25/2019 at 9:55 AM, tv echo said:

Ugh gross. Hes a POS and shes a hero. I cant stand when people want a villian with a hero

[BkWurm1]

22 hours ago, Josh371982 said:

Ugh gross. Hes a POS and shes a hero. I cant stand when people want a villian with a hero

I don't mind shady but Nope to blatant killer without a conscious.  

[tv echo]

If they can redeem Black Siren (who acted pretty much like a cold-blooded killer in past seasons, murdering innocent people even when it was unnecessary), then they can redeem JJ. However, if the future has been changed now, then maybe they won't need to redeem him.

[way2interested]

8 minutes ago, tv echo said:

If they can redeem Black Siren (who acted pretty much like a cold-blooded killer in past seasons, murdering innocent people even when it was unnecessary), then they can redeem JJ. However, if the future has been changed now, then maybe they won't need to redeem him.

There's a difference between "redeeming" her enough for her to be an ally and part of the team and "redeeming" him enough to ship him with the person he had physically beaten and almost killed (and even joked about it), or at least that's my biggest issue with it XD. Redemption is super frequent on this show, so that wouldn't be surprising, I would just hope it would never go that far. Sure maybe the future changes everything, but I partially wonder if it doesn't since the JJ vs. Connor relationship provides a lot of conflict to mooch off on for plot for a while.

[tv echo]

Looking back to when Olicity won MTV Ship of the Year...

Edited November 17, 2019 by tv echo

[tv echo]

I guess I'll post this article here, since it's all about Arrow ships...

Arrow: 5 Couples That Are Perfect Together (& 5 That Make No Sense)
BY BEN PETTITT – ON NOV 18, 2019
https://screenrant.com/arrow-couples-perfect-make-no-sense-tv-show/

Quote

7 WORST - RAY AND FELICITY
...
These two are literally the cheeriest and dorkiest characters to have ever appeared on Arrow and so their relationship should have been successful in theory. Admittedly, it was quite cute as both sides had been hurt before and needed someone to act as a comfort blanket. Watching them help each other back up was adorable.

However, this couple occurred during Season 3, the season which spent a lot of its time trying to convince viewers that Oliver and Felicity should be an item. Unfortunately, the two went back and forth a lot, irritating viewers, and Ray and Felicity's relationship was just another plot point devised to keep Olicity apart.

6 BEST - TOMMY AND LAUREL
...
These two were actually surprisingly sweet together, and one of the highlights of Season 1. Tommy clearly had a crush on Laurel but the latter struggled to trust Tommy because of his sexually active past with many, many women. Eventually, though, Tommy won Laurel over and they started dating.

Initially, the two felt a bit awkward as Oliver was Laurel's ex and Tommy's best friend. Also, this was probably the first serious relationship Tommy had ever had. However, they overcame those obstacles as a couple and both helped the other to become better people.

5 WORST - OLIVER AND SARA
...
This couple didn't exactly get off to the best start. Firstly, Oliver was dating Sara's sister, Laurel, when they got together which was obviously a jerk move. Secondly, the moment they stole away to have some alone time together, they got blown up and marooned on an exotic island in the middle of nowhere.

Their time spent on Lian-Yu did help to mature the pair thanks to their shared traumatic past and they briefly rekindled their relationship when they encountered each other again in the present day. By this point though, too much time had passed and they were both completely different people. It simply didn't work out.
*  *  *
3 WORST - OLIVER AND LAUREL
...
Audiences never really got to see what this relationship looked like in all its glory as it was over by the time the first episode aired. However, this couple was teased in various flashbacks and we got enough of the backstory to know that it wasn't the best relationship ever, mainly due to a certain billionaire playboy.

Before Lian-Yu, Oliver was an entitled ass who suffered no repercussions for his disgusting behavior. He struck up a relationship with Laurel which got to be fairly serious. However, Olly still slept around, resulting in a pregnancy that Moira hid to protect her son. Oliver also slept with Laurel's sister, and got her killed for about 6 years.

2 BEST - OLIVER AND FELICITY
...
This may be a controversial choice but we shipped Olicity before they even thought about getting together. The two were just so dam cute together. Who doesn't miss the days when Oliver would visit Felicity down in IT with a bullet-ridden laptop and a lame excuse, which Felicity would just ignore and help her bae?

While this relationship may have taken its sweet time to actually get going, once it did, it was clear that Oliver and Felicity both loved each other very much. After the producers decided that an on/off relationship wasn't going to work, Olicity finally became official in Season 6 and have remained strong ever since.

10 BEST - OLIVER AND SHADO
9 WORST - OLIVER AND HELENA
8 BEST - THEA AND ROY
7 WORST - RAY AND FELICITY
6 BEST - TOMMY AND LAUREL
5 WORST - OLIVER AND SARA
4 BEST - DIGGLE AND LYLA
3 WORST - OLIVER AND LAUREL
2 BEST - OLIVER AND FELICITY
1 WORST - MOIRA AND WALTER

Edited November 19, 2019 by tv echo

[Josh371982]

On 11/17/2019 at 8:43 AM, tv echo said:

If they can redeem Black Siren (who acted pretty much like a cold-blooded killer in past seasons, murdering innocent people even when it was unnecessary), then they can redeem JJ. However, if the future has been changed now, then maybe they won't need to redeem him.

I just think People can be warped if they ship Mia with someone who was gonna kill her. But I also hate Love Triangles and dont understand why they are needed. I turned off Vampire Diaries cause of that disgusting triangle, Elena was becoming detestable and  Siblings fighting over a woman or man is not entertaining/Hot/Sexy to me 

Just now, Josh371982 said:

I just think People can be warped if they ship Mia with someone who was gonna kill her. But I also hate Love Triangles and dont understand why they are needed. I turned off Vampire Diaries cause of that disgusting triangle, Elena was becoming detestable and  Siblings fighting over a woman or man is not entertaining/Hot/Sexy to me 

Also wanna add JJ and Connor at odds like Their dad and Uncle is lame, lazy and Repetitive also unneeded writing. 

[tv echo]

One of the lessons that The CW should take away from Arrow is the following:

Always do a chemistry test for actors auditioning for the main romantic couple.

Edited January 30, 2020 by tv echo

[tv echo]

Over the past several years, I have been transcribing all Felicity, Olicity and OTA scenes (and the occasional Lauriver scene) from all eight seasons of Arrow. In order to trace the evolution of the Olicity relationship, I am thinking about posting those transcriptions from the very beginning to the very end (including scenes from the tie-in comics and novels that are considered to be part of the show canon).

However, I'm not sure whether to post them in the individual episode threads (then where to post transcriptions from the comics/novels?) or in this thread in straight chronological order.

Obviously, it would take some time to post (probably months) and would be spread over many posts. But once the dust from the series finale settles, I may start doing that.

ETA: Okay, I'm thinking of something like this...

• Episode scene transcriptions -> individual episode threads
• Tie-in comics scene transcriptions -> comics thread
• Tie-in novels scene transcriptions -> relationships thread
   

Edited January 30, 2020 by tv echo

[way2interested]

23 minutes ago, tv echo said:

Obviously, it would take some time to post (probably months) and would be spread over many posts. But once the dust from the series finale settles, I may start doing that.

Ha, all part of that slow withdrawl, huh?

[scarynikki12]

15 minutes ago, Mellowyellow said:

I just need to know when he started chasing Felicity!!!!

Hit me with your theories people!!!!

Fuck I had on all typed out and then it deleted. Give me two minutes to re-type.

Let's see...ok

Basically I argued that what we saw over the series would be mostly the same. Seasons 1, 2, and 3 would unfold almost identically, with the changes being no romantic reunion of Oliver and Laurel, and Moira and Tommy both survive. Since Talia referred to him as Nyssa's husband I think that points to the new timeline being mostly the same. My theory is that there are significant changes with regard to Felicity starting in the season 4 year. Either Oliver has known about William all along or this time he tells Samantha to stuff it when she tells him not to tell Felicity. This time around he won't lie to her. So, that would put their marriage in season 4 like the characters planned and they have shared custody with Samantha for roughly a year before Chase kills her. Diggle promised Oliver that he would make sure William and Mia grow up together, and we know that both characters have memories of exactly that in the backdoor pilot so we know that it happens. But, that promise was made before the multiverse was reset so who's to say that Oliver doesn't step in and get it done himself? He arranged for Moira, Tommy, Quentin, and Emiko to come back so why not have William join them at the cabin instead of going to live with his grandparents? He could have easily been visiting them when he was kidnapped since they wouldn't have the same level of security as the cabin's neighborhood.

I think that's everything.

[tv echo]

Laurel (to Oliver in 102): "I can't exactly picture you as the master of the universe."

Oliver:

Edited February 1, 2020 by tv echo

[Mellowyellow]

8 hours ago, tv echo said:

Laurel (to Oliver in 102): "I can't exactly picture you as the master of the universe."

Oliver:

I would like to add to that.

Felicity at 1.07:

I am going to turn you into corporate master of the universe.

Of course he does turn into that and puts her into a corporate office for their reunion 😝🤣

 

 

Edited February 2, 2020 by Mellowyellow