Hopes and Fears: How Will We Survive This Island? (Speculation WITHOUT Spoilers)

[Balaclava]

I wonder if the name Simon is a play on Simon Dark. Considering dark cult that mixes ancient mysticism with technology

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simon_Dark

  

I thought about that too, it also occurred to me that Simon might be FS father name.

[jay741982]

Could it be possible DD isn't Felicitys Dad but her Uncle or Granddad?

[kismet]

foreverevolving, on 12 Jun 2015 - 4:36 PM, said:

It was an okay speculations. nothing we haven't discussed already. I got pissed at her #1 speculation about Felicity handing the company back to Oliver and him making her the VP to which there is only one respond:

 

Gotta say I TOTALLY agree!!! If Felicity just hands the company back to OQ, I will be so PISSED!!!

 

Girl may or may not be qualified to be CEO, but she is certainly more qualified than OQ! Graduate Degrees from MIT & on the job experience certainly should count for something. OQ frankly needs to get an education or go through some type of internship before I will just accept that he is even close to qualified just because he knows the heart of the company. Nice try at spin in s3, but that pitch was gonna fail as it should have. Heart does not pay the bills or keep the stock prices up. Heck, Felicity probably had a better shot at it in the s3 premiere. I wouldn't mind if she hires OQ back in some capacity to work at the company. But she at no point in the season should just hand the company back over to him.

 

Honestly, I'm curious as to how they are going to resolve the workplace situation. It seems like they don't write work scenes well. But having them all sit around during the day makes no sense either considering they need to fund their nightly activities some how. I wouldn't mind if she brought back Walter Steele to help run the company. Maybe a co-CEO thing. Or at least make WS the CFO again. That would be a nice addition to the supporting cast, even if he only shows up in a handful of episodes. It would resolve the problem of having to address mundane business plot points.

 

I would like to see them bring back some of the charity balls & random gatherings they had in s1&2. S3 felt very monotonous when it came to settings & events.

[AyChihuahua]

It's difficult to know where they're going with the company, but it seems most likely that it's a public company, of which Felicity now owns a controlling interest of shares.  That doesn't mean 51%, necessarily.  For public companies there are so many shares owned by so many individuals, other companies, mutual funds, etc., that a controlling interest can be small-ish, just basically the largest single holder.  It would make much more sense if Ray had bought enough shares to take the company private, but it's unlikely Felicity would have been so worried about the company's shareholders when Ray disappeared to work on his supersuit if he had.  

 

So, while who the heck knows what these people will do with the corporate issues, if she owns the company in some sense, she doesn't have to be CEO.  It would actually make the most sense for her/the Board to hire someone qualified and experienced to be CEO instead, while she keeps the more tech-y job she seemed to love.  I would dearly love for them to bring Walter back, both because he's awesome and because getting them the hell out of the lair and interacting with regular people was something I really missed in S3.    

[tv echo]

I don't want DD to be Felicity's father either, but it's not outside the realm of possibility.  He might've had an ulterior (evil) motive for being in Vegas at that time, or he might've fallen in love with Mama Smoak, tried to balance a personal life with HIVE and given up, and/or he might've just traveled a lot "for work" when he was with Mama Smoak.

Edited June 13, 2015 by tv echo

[BkWurm1]

I don't want DD to be Felicity's father either, but it's not outside the realm of possibility.  He might've had an ulterior (evil) motive for being in Vegas at that time, or he might've fallen in love with Mama Smoak, tried to balance a personal life with HIVE and given up, and/or he might've just traveled a lot "for work" when he was with Mama Smoak.

I just can't buy it.  The speech about cutting ties so he's not vulnerable, that can't be something he only figured out twenty years ago.  He wouldn't MAKE the ties in the first place. 

 

I could see a scenario where it's his heir who briefly slipped out into the world and had a life before being forced to cut ties (either daddy dearest insisted or he ran before DD could find out about his family.) 

 

Personally I doubt they would go there either but I have to admit, that would be kind of cool.  Like what if Nyssa had tried to rebel against dad with Sara but left the LoA?

Edited June 14, 2015 by BkWurm1

[tv echo]

I agree that it's unlikely, but not impossible.  In "This Is Your Sword", Ra's gave this speech to Nyssa about how he met her mother (when he gave her a necklace to wear at her wedding to Oliver).  That could only have been around 30 years ago.  So it's possible that DD had a similar moment of infatuation with Mama Smoak in the not too distant past but, unlike Ra's, kept his real identity a secret from her.

 

Ra's (to Nyssa):  "When I was in a desert tending to some affairs, I crossed paths with a woman. She was breathtaking in her visage and fortitude. Her name was Ameena Raatko. I had taken other lovers before, but she was different. She had a wit and a fire about her that I found myself I could not live without. So she became my concubine and the mother of my child. This was my gift to her in honor of you. A gift that she gave me. And so I kept it in the hopes that one day, you would wear it on your wedding day."

Edited June 14, 2015 by tv echo

[Kordi]

I agree that it's unlikely, but not impossible.  In "This Is Your Sword", Ra's gave this speech to Nyssa about how he met her mother (when he gave her a necklace to wear at her wedding to Oliver).  That could only have been around 30 years ago.  So it's possible that DD had a similar moment of infatuation with Mama Smoak in the not too distant past but, unlike Ra's, kept his real identity a secret from her.

 

Please, stoooppp! Since they seem to love parallels on this show, I´m now imagining a S4 episode in which Damian Darhk forces his daughter Felicity into a marriage with his successor as leader of H.I.V.E.... Nooo! :-(

[tarotx]

And Las Vegas is a Desert. So maybe Ra's is just obsessed with Damian Darhk and took up with a girl and had a child because DD did? Nyssa and Felicity can be the same age. Perhaps Ra's knew Felicity was Damion's child and the real reason he was obsessed with Oliver was because of his connection to Felicity. Lol. I can believe it. Ra's does seem much more odd and weird dangerous than kick ass vilian.

Felicity being DD's daughter aside Ra's getting Obsessed with men suits how he was with Oliver and maybe Malcolm. I mean not in a sexually attracted to them way but in a I wish I had a brother or son like them way.

I still think the Arrow Casting call might be for 3 different characters. DD, Felicity's father and Vandal Savage.

[EmeraldArcher]

I agree that it's unlikely, but not impossible. In "This Is Your Sword", Ra's gave this speech to Nyssa about how he met her mother (when he gave her a necklace to wear at her wedding to Oliver). That could only have been around 30 years ago. So it's possible that DD had a similar moment of infatuation with Mama Smoak in the not too distant past but, unlike Ra's, kept his real identity a secret from her.

Ra's (to Nyssa): "When I was in a desert tending to some affairs, I crossed paths with a woman. She was breathtaking in her visage and fortitude. Her name was Ameena Raatko. I had taken other lovers before, but she was different. She had a wit and a fire about her that I found myself I could not live without. So she became my concubine and the mother of my child. This was my gift to her in honor of you. A gift that she gave me. And so I kept it in the hopes that one day, you would wear it on your wedding day."

Ra's was so freaking inconsistent! At the table with Oliver and Nyssa, Ra's responds to Nyssa's refusal to bear Oliver's child with "Yes, you will. And, you'll be given no more say than your mother." (Or something like that.) so, he speaks of her as someone he controlled and probably raped in one scene and then speaks of her with admiration in the next scene during the necklace giving.

So, I don't think there can be actual parallels between him and Nyssa's mom and any possible relationship between Damien and Donna. I really, really don't want Damien to be Felicity's father. I can easily imagine a super villain having sex with Donna, but I can't envision him even remembering her name the next day, let alone creating a domestic life with her.

Edited June 14, 2015 by EmeraldArcher

[BkWurm1]

I agree that it's unlikely, but not impossible.  In "This Is Your Sword", Ra's gave this speech to Nyssa about how he met her mother (when he gave her a necklace to wear at her wedding to Oliver).  That could only have been around 30 years ago.  So it's possible that DD had a similar moment of infatuation with Mama Smoak in the not too distant past but, unlike Ra's, kept his real identity a secret from her.

 

If Donna had walked out on him I could maybe just maybe buy that he only recently came up with his cut all ties so he won't be weak, but Felicity's dad walked out on them. 

 

So since it is implied that Dahrk is the bigger of two evils between he and Ra's, I'd expect that he'd do worse things than Ra's.  Ra's took Nyssa's mother and forced her into his lifestyle.  I just can't see Dahrk conforming to Donna's lifestyle. 

[Chaser]

Someone on Tumblr told MG that people have high expectations for Felicity's Dad and he said he was aware, so I'm hoping that they are putting a lot of the thought and not just going for the big shock factor.

 

I'm curious about the conflicting vibes we got on him. IIRC, Felicity said in S2 that she didn't remember much about her father just that it hurt when he left. In S3, I got the impression that she did remember her Dad. Her and Mom seem to have good memories of him, but he apparently was shady. It's difficult to get a handle on him.

[apinknightmare]

I got the feeling the Felicity knows what her father was up to and why he left, not necessarily that she remembers that much about him. And the way Donna talked about him seemed like he got into some kind of a mess and took off to "protect" them. Given that seems to be just about everyone's motivating factor on this show, that's probably it, haha.

[statsgirl]

Wasn't Felicity 7 when he left?  At that age she would remember specific events, like helping him take apart a computer or a day at the zoo but she wouldn't have had a sense of what he was like as a man. That requires being older..

 

Not that you can count on anything being consistent in this show, but Donna talking in a positive way about Felicity's father.suggests that he's not all that evil. Anyone as bad as DD or even Ra's would have left very different feelings behind. Donna telling Felicity "that's what your father would have done" as a way to encourage her to do it implies more positive feelings about the man who left her to work 60 hours a week in high heels to raise their child.

I agree that it's unlikely, but not impossible.  In "This Is Your Sword", Ra's gave this speech to Nyssa about how he met her mother (when he gave her a necklace to wear at her wedding to Oliver).  That could only have been around 30 years ago.  So it's possible that DD had a similar moment of infatuation with Mama Smoak in the not too distant past but, unlike Ra's, kept his real identity a secret from her.

A moment of infatuation maybe. But not enough to stick around for 8 years to live middle/lower class in Las Vegas. Ra's forced Nyssa's mother to join, him, not left his life for her.

Edited June 14, 2015 by statsgirl

[Happy Harpy]

My fear: Once more, S4-A is only a set up to that other spin-off and Arrow, Oliver and Team Arrow will be afterthoughts all over again.

 

My hopes:

-Moar Diggle. Lotsa lotsa lotsa Diggle. Diggle/Oliver being on the odds lasting one episode, then Original Team Arrow back in business for good -personally, I think I won't tire of them fighting crime for three or four seasons at least. And afterwards? I'll just have to remember the disaster that was S3 to count my blessings.

-Thea integrating Team Arrow and bonding with Diggle and Felicity as Roy did before her. While having her own agency, for a change.

-Lots of Sara cameos, lots of Roy cameos, Sin and Walter. Back. Now!

-Oliver/Felicity together and happy (married, pregnant, I don't care as long as I don't get a redux of S3 artificial will they-won't they) but partners first, and kicking ass together and with Diggle. Modern Hart to Hart, without the cheesy love scenes.

-Donna Smoak back, Quentin/Donna (UST or whirlwind, I don't care, she's what he needs) and Quentin back in a Jim Gordon role.

-Laurel being as "important" and "part of Team Arrow" as she was in 3x23. *blinks innocently*

-Compelling flashbacks. Anatoly comes to mind, although I'm not in the Bratva fangirling movement.

 

Asking for the moon: ditch the superpower comics nonsense and get back to basic nonsense. If only, sigh.

Edited June 15, 2015 by Happy Harpy

[Morrigan2575]

My fear: Once more, S4-A is only a set up to that other spin-off and Arrow, Oliver and Team Arrow will be afterthoughts all over again.

If the rumors are true there's another one in the works already. Watch S4A of Arrow and S2A of Flash will be used to set up LoT.

Then 4B and 2B will be used for the next Spinoff because apparently they're trying to beat All in the Family for most spinoffs.

Edited June 15, 2015 by Morrigan2575

[Chaser]

What other spin-off is in the works?

[BkWurm1]

Oliver/Felicity together and happy (married, pregnant, I don't care as long as I don't get a redux of S3 artificial will they-won't they) but partners first, and kicking ass together and with Diggle. Modern Hart to Hart, without the cheesy love scenes.

 

One of the obscure channels I have has been running Hart to Hart. I watch every once and a while and some of it is cheesy (like the clothes and the styles and the fact that Jennifer Hart spent the entire first season as just the damsel - by season two she's at least allowed to once and a while defend herself against women - or at least help Jonathan) but  their relationship was a lot less saccharine than I remembered.  And they are kind and supportive of each other.  Modern TV could do worse than use them as a starting point. 

If the rumors are true there's another one in the works already.

 

Please let that be just a rumor. 

[Happy Harpy]

@Morrigan2575 I think this notion put me in the perfect mood for the GoT finale, i.e it deeply depressed me.

 

Modern TV could do worse than use them as a starting point.

That's what Castle was supposed to be -except even better since the premise in S1 was "cop meets writer, they get married, they deal with it"- and I hoped that Oliver/Felicity, being born spontaneously, would be it. Ah, well.

[Morrigan2575]

What other spin-off is in the works?

No idea what the spinoff might be but, there was a tweet from Canadagraph not to long ago. He said he heard there was already another spinoff in the pipe...he was actually complaining about it. Edited June 15, 2015 by Morrigan2575

[statsgirl]

I hope there isn't another spin-off. Just as every female character doesn't need to be Felicity Smoak, every CW show doesn't need to be about comics.

 

If i were the head of the CW, I'd be very careful about that all my eggs in one basket thing.

[Starfish35]

I can't possibly imagine what another spinoff could be at this point, unless they really do try to do Birds of Prey. I just figured that was out of the question.

[Chaser]

With the TV market adding LOT/Supergirl and possibly the Mockingbird spin-off (is that confirmed?), I'm think it's already oversatured. Personally, I'm feeling a little burned out.

[Starfish35]

The Mockingbird spinoff got killed. But yeah, I take your point.

[wonderwall]

With the TV market adding LOT/Supergirl and possibly the Mockingbird spin-off (is that confirmed?), I'm think it's already oversatured. Personally, I'm feeling a little burned out.

 

This is why I'm only sticking to two superhero shows. This year it was Arrow and Flash. Next season it'll be Arrow and Supergirl. I could care less about Flash, Gotham, or AoS... Maybe I'll try LoT but it'll have to be REALLY good for me to watch it. 

[Starfish35]

Flash, LoT, and Agent Carter for me. I'm on the fence about AoS. And I'm only watching Arrow for Sara's return. Supergirl's a HUGE maybe at this point.

Edited June 15, 2015 by Starfish35

[tarotx]

I'm watching them all :) I absolutely adore Peggy Carter.

I think they each have a unique quality about them. Except for potentially LOT, which I haven't seen yet to know either way. But I'm looking forward to it cause I love Sara plus VG and AD who I adore as actors. And I'm looking forward to seeing the first "real" live action version of Hawkgirl.

Edited June 16, 2015 by tarotx

[wingster55]

I'm really not burned out from the idea of Supehero movies or shows in general but am for some specific ones. Like Spiderman and Wolverine. 

Kinda Batman (esp as this show is basically Batman with a quiver), but I want to see the JL so bad. 

 

As for Arrow s4 hopes...I want Oliver to be right about something. Especially during an argument with Felicity. 

Oh, and Thea to be Oliver's right hand..woman on the field (especially when Diggle has daddy duty)

[tv echo]

Some of the concerns I have about S4 keep showing up as fan postings on Laura Hurley's tumblr page -- here's one in which she responds to the following concern (I hope she's right)...

 

Hi! Do you think Olicity and Felicity hatred in facebook and other sites will affect Arrow's direction in S4? Show runners always claim they listen to fans. If Lauriver was sidelined because of poor reception it received in S1, what prevents the show runners to let Olicity meet the same fate? I know story-wise it will make zero sense but after seeing S3 and Laurel's BC arc,I have a feeling that Arrow writers forgot how to say a good story and are focussing more on moments than a coherent story
Jun 14, 2015 6:02 pm
http://laurawritesabout.tumblr.com/post/121538005988/hi-do-you-think-olicity-and-felicity-hatred-in

[kismet]

Loved she called s3 a mad lib! Perfect analogy- the plot was already set for season. How they picked the words to fill the blank spaces seemed completely random as if they all were playing a long game of mad libs on our road trips from sc to np , corto Maltese & cc.

[BkWurm1]

Thea to be Oliver's right hand..woman on the field (especially when Diggle has daddy duty)

 

I'd enjoy that a lot.   Oliver had a nice bond with Roy but the dynamic between him and Thea would be so much deeper.  Thea would be snarkier, less in awe of Oliver and Oliver would be more affected by her teasing and jokes AND also more worried and protective when she got in trouble.  Yeah, there is a great dynamic to mine there. 

Edited June 16, 2015 by BkWurm1

[kismet]

Alright, back on the speculation train. (Full admission, I have been reading fanfiction - so some of the inspiration of having Raisa be part of Bratva stories may come from that, but the thoughts are my own). Also I was inspired to think again about the pilot after the lively convo in the FS regarding OQ needing her computer skills.

 

Anyway, I really enjoyed the few minutes of Raisa & discovering that OQ spoke Russian out of the blue. I will admit that it peaked my interest. I honestly never imagined it would then lead to him having ties with Bratva - but I went along for the ride and accepted that the show would slow reveal & surprise me in their own time. So I bought into the journey.

 

I have read that they were unable to secure the actress to play Raisa beyond the pilot. Therefore they nipped any possible Raisa storylines as they had so much other they could focus on. Not a major loss, just the nature of bringing a show from pilot to series. But I wonder if she may come back into play in s4 or s5 whenever they address the Bratva portion of the fb. Bonus, if they wanted to do it - its been long enough that they could recast the actress if she remains busy or make some other familial connection to Raisa if they wanted to hint at it, but not be bogged down in details.

 

It might be something that comes into play with Robert perhaps having some Russian connection and that connects back to Raisa. Also Isabel was Russian and they connected her back to Robert as well. I just wonder if the writers will try to connect & weave all these small backstories into something bigger. Perhaps OQ Bratva connections were not that unexpected considering who/what his father was. I know he had a connection to Anatoly & saved his life. I just wonder if there is more to the familial side of the story. Perhaps, the Bratva was so willing to accept an American because his father had laid a path for him.

Edited June 17, 2015 by kismet

[wonderwall]

If I had it my way I would:

• Move Ray to LoT (which is already happening)
• Make Laurel the floater because she worked well on the Flash, and she's more likable when she's around Sara. She could become more independent that way which apparently is what her comic counterpart is like? Or so I hear so it's a win-win. 
• Bring back Colin Salmon and he could've been Oliver's campaign manager (because in my scenario Oliver will be running for Mayor at some point) and Felicity's business liaison
• Keep Quentin Lance so Laurel can come back once in a while and help team arrow whenever they need it
• Give Malcolm as little role as possible because I'm tired of the show twisting everything around to make him relevant
• Have Nyssa come and go as she pleases
• Make Lyla more of a regular

[wingster55]

I'd like an ep where Oliver goes out on patrol without the aid of anyone. Just do his thing solo. Show that for the average night he doesn't need anyone else...just his own brain and skill. 

[EmeraldArcher]

<p>If I had it my way I would:

• Move Ray to LoT (which is already happening)
• Make Laurel the floater because she worked well on the Flash, and she's more likable when she's around Sara. She could become more independent that way which apparently is what her comic counterpart is like? Or so I hear so it's a win-win. 
• Bring back Colin Salmon and he could've been Oliver's campaign manager (because in my scenario Oliver will be running for Mayor at some point) and Felicity's business liaison
• Keep Quentin Lance so Laurel can come back once in a while and help team arrow whenever they need it
• Give Malcolm as little role as possible because I'm tired of the show twisting everything around to make him relevant
• Have Nyssa come and go as she pleases
• Make Lyla more of a regular

Yes, a thousand times to everything you said.

I would also add having Diggle and Lyla get married again (vow renewal) because they had the best, most in-character wedding vows I've ever heard on television! They didn't really have the slow burn that gave me Olicity-level feels, but I love them as a couple just as much.

[BkWurm1]

I'd like an ep where Oliver goes out on patrol without the aid of anyone. Just do his thing solo. Show that for the average night he doesn't need anyone else...just his own brain and skill. 

I half expect to see Oliver out on his travels with Felicity randomly running down to the grocery store and coming across a mugger or a burglary and casually nipping it in the bud before picking back up his bag of mint chocolate chip and heading back to Felicity. 

[tarotx]

Ok the one thing I NEED to happen for sure is Oliver NOT to be weakened as a fighter to put Laurel at his level. Ew just thinking about it :× I was just reading some comments and there are people really wanting Oliver to have stopped training for 5 months JUST to get the Green Arrow/Black Canary equality dynamic. I'm over in my corner praying to the TV gods that this never ever ever ever ever happens. Why do you want to weaken Oliver just to see him and Laurel in an equal fight? We had that Dynamic with Oliver and Sara. The stunts already took a nosedive to get Laurel in the field.

Why not hope that Laurel becomes a metahuman like she is in the comics? Yes I know she's barely a meta but still. There are better things to hope for than to have the show's hero weakened for Laurel.

Why not hope that KC is training to make her transitions more believable. Maybe a stunt double who can pick up some of Laurel's mannerisms.

I like Laurel but the more I think about her as BC on team Arrow I don't know :(

I can see Laurel training and fighting alongside Thea but not Oliver in the feared weakened to equalize dynamic. Thea's the Arrow Queen that needs to have a BC in the field dynamic.

Edited June 18, 2015 by tarotx

[wingster55]

I half expect to see Oliver out on his travels with Felicity randomly running down to the grocery store and coming across a mugger or a burglary and casually nipping it in the bud before picking back up his bag of mint chocolate chip and heading back to Felicity. 

That would be awesome actually. 

 

Oh and when Barry inevitably crosses over, I want him to have a scene with Thea. Really, just because everyone else has except her. 

Edited June 18, 2015 by wingster55

[BunsenBurner]

This is the Arrow show not the BC show. I NEVER want to see BC be better than him. She is too old and hasn't and won't have the skillset until she is only the BC and not working a second job, ADA. If TPTB make her better I will quit the show. She is too old to be believable. Had she done this training at an earlier age maybe, I really doubt it though.

[Sunshine]

That would be awesome actually. 

 

Oh and when Barry inevitably crosses over, I want him to have a scene with Thea. Really, just because everyone else has except her. 

Now that she has a "uniform" she might get to go to Central City this season too!

[EmeraldArcher]

In the John Diggle thread, BkWurm1 posted this: 

 

Maybe with Diggle the show will work out a path that shows a masked hero can have "it all" despite what Oliver previously said about the life he leads making being with someone he cares for impossible. :)

 

I'm interested to see how this notion of "having it all" is handled with the masked female heroes.  Although Laurel might have to balance a career (we'll see), neither she or Thea have romantic partners or children right now.  The show has an opportunity to participate in the discourse about feminism and gender roles and redress its relegation of Lyla to a stay-at-home-mom when she clearly can have it all.

 

Also, unlike Oliver, none of the masked female heroes on Arrow have dealt with lying to their family or friends about their alter egos.  Thea suited up and immediately shot Oliver, and Laurel's dad knew from her first beat-down what she was up to.  Her lie about Sara was of a different nature than the whole rationale that loved ones must be lied to to protect them from bad guys.  Of the two female heroes without masks, Felicity didn't divulge her involvement with Arrow or ATOM due to her integrity and keeping others' secrets, and Lyla had no reason to be secretive about her role in ARGUS.

 

If the show/writers bother to contemplate any of this, I hope that they highlight the rationale why the subsequent heroes did things differently than Oliver or had his same struggles.  I'll be interested in whether Thea and/or Laurel get new love interests and how their relationships are handled, given that they're masked vigilantes now.

[AyChihuahua]

There's no way Oliver would just sit around and eat ice cream and watch tv for five months.  Or, to be clear, since these showrunners suck the big one re character consistency, there's no way the Oliver Queen we've seen for three years would.  I mean, he and Felicity would pretty much not leave their bed for at least two weeks, but that's still good exercise (esp. the way he probably does it).  More importantly, he's just too energetic and BUSY for that.  He'd be up at dawn every day going for parkour runs and doing one-armed pushups in parks.  He'd do pull-ups on tree branches and climb them for kicks.  He might slack a bit on archery practice without a bow, but he'd definitely keep up on general training.  I also agree that he's too much of a trouble magnet not to come across some criminal shenanigans, and there's no way he wouldn't get involved once he noticed it.

[calliope1975]

There's no way Oliver would just sit around and eat ice cream and watch tv for five months.  Or, to be clear, since these showrunners suck the big one re character consistency, there's no way the Oliver Queen we've seen for three years would.  I mean, he and Felicity would pretty much not leave their bed for at least two weeks, but that's still good exercise (esp. the way he probably does it).  More importantly, he's just too energetic and BUSY for that.  He'd be up at dawn every day going for parkour runs and doing one-armed pushups in parks.  He'd do pull-ups on tree branches and climb them for kicks.  He might slack a bit on archery practice without a bow, but he'd definitely keep up on general training.  I also agree that he's too much of a trouble magnet not to come across some criminal shenanigans, and there's no way he wouldn't get involved once he noticed it.

 

These are the kinds of flashbacks I want. Well, I want Bratva flashbacks, too, but I also want the crime fighting, traveling duo who break up small time theft rings in between tourist attractions. Then, something bigger brings them back to Starling.

[KenyaJ]

I was just reading some comments and there are people really wanting Oliver to have stopped training for 5 months JUST to get the Green Arrow/Black Canary equality dynamic.

 

Oliver could stop training for 5 years and there still wouldn't be equality between him and this Black Canary. Stop smoking crack, people.

Edited June 18, 2015 by KenyaJ

[jay741982]

There's no way Oliver would just sit around and eat ice cream and watch tv for five months.  Or, to be clear, since these showrunners suck the big one re character consistency, there's no way the Oliver Queen we've seen for three years would.  I mean, he and Felicity would pretty much not leave their bed for at least two weeks, but that's still good exercise (esp. the way he probably does it).  More importantly, he's just too energetic and BUSY for that.  He'd be up at dawn every day going for parkour runs and doing one-armed pushups in parks.  He'd do pull-ups on tree branches and climb them for kicks.  He might slack a bit on archery practice without a bow, but he'd definitely keep up on general training.  I also agree that he's too much of a trouble magnet not to come across some criminal shenanigans, and there's no way he wouldn't get involved once he noticed it.

Not only I do want Oliver to NOT stop training I'm wanting him to be training Felicity to defend herself even better. She don't need to be some overnight badass but still

[statsgirl]

I have read that they were unable to secure the actress to play Raisa beyond the pilot. Therefore they nipped any possible Raisa storylines as they had so much other they could focus on.

 

Not buying it, nope.  Kathleen Gatti has a small enough role on General Hospital that she could hop a plane to Vancouver for a few days to shoot some Raisa-involved arc.  And these guys have done it already -- Roger Howarth has a much bigger role on General Hospital and yet he was cast to play Iris' mentor on The Flash.  It just depends if they want Raisa to be on the show again or not.

 

So I hope that the EPs care enough to involved Raisa somehow in the Bratva arc.

 

I half expect to see Oliver out on his travels with Felicity randomly running down to the grocery store and coming across a mugger or a burglary and casually nipping it in the bud before picking back up his bag of mint chocolate chip and heading back to Felicity. 

I want Oliver and Felicity to be out having adventures taking down smuggles in Coast City and somehow slipping them to McKenna to arrest.  I know it won't happen because they will be back in Starling City by the middle of the premier, but I'd like an indication that Oliver didn't put aside his vigilante tendencies entirely as he went on his self-exploration. Because wanting to be a vigilante and help people, that's who he is.  And that's who Felicity is too.  Back into the fray, you two.

[Delphi]

Being unable to secure her doesn't mean that she couldn't make it to Canada consistently. It's very possible that she didn't want to fly out of country every time they wanted to use her. She very well mIght have not wanted to make the trips based on a pilot episode maid character.

[wingster55]

Roger Howarth has a much bigger role on General Hospital and yet he was cast to play Iris' mentor on The Flash.

 

He barely had 5 minutes of screentime per episode across 2-3 eps and then was  killed off. 

[EmeraldArcher]

This is the Arrow show not the BC show. I NEVER want to see BC be better than him. She is too old and hasn't and won't have the skillset until she is only the BC and not working a second job, ADA. If TPTB make her better I will quit the show. She is too old to be believable. Had she done this training at an earlier age maybe, I really doubt it though.

Your points highlight all the reasons I want LL/BC to be the floater. I just don't think Arrow can honor her comic legacy. And, it divides the fandom: part of the fandom will be upset if her fighting skills are unbelievably more advanced given her brief training period (these fans reject the in-show reference to her previous self-defense class as evidence that she's always been a warrior), and the other fans will be upset if her skills aren't commensurate to the comic BC, who is a legendary fighter.

Making her fall and flail for a few episodes simply didn't ease our concerns that she too quickly became an insta-hero. Furthermore, it was beyond ridiculous that Ted Grant handed her a brochure titled "Learn To Fight" when they first met in "Sara." The writers missed an easy opportunity there; an appropriately titled brochure ("Boxing for Badasses"?!) could have at least implied a more advanced skill and negated the need for the flails once she suited up.

LL/BC as the floater could be brilliant. She could be free of her messy relationship history with Oliver and assert herself in ways that don't seem merely reactionary to him. She was always right that she didn't need his approval to have a mission, but that was negated by her continued proximity to him and her joining his team. Her interactions with Cisco were adorable, and she could benefit from meeting new people so we could see different aspects of her personality. She's already established relationships with characters on the other two shows, so her showing up to help would feel right. Also, imagine how fun a BC/WC team-up could be--much lighter and more awesome than the disturbing Black Canary vs. Canary fight.

[BkWurm1]

I want Oliver and Felicity to be out having adventures taking down smuggles in Coast City and somehow slipping them to McKenna to arrest.  I know it won't happen because they will be back in Starling City by the middle of the premier, but I'd like an indication that Oliver didn't put aside his vigilante tendencies entirely as he went on his self-exploration. Because wanting to be a vigilante and help people, that's who he is.  And that's who Felicity is too.  Back into the fray, you two.

If TPTB weren't probably intent on bringing them back before episode one was over, I'd expect to see signs from each of them separately that they were missing the fight (we still might get that) but neither wanting to disappoint the other by suggesting their trip should end. 

 

A scene maybe where as Oliver turns the door handle on the hotel room, Felicity quickly whips off her head set and hides it under a pillow so he doesn't know she just finished helping hack something for Thea in Starling.  (Bonus points if she seeks to distract him with sexy times)  Maybe for Oliver, instead of the Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream run scenario, Felicity runs into a gift shop to buy a postcard to send and in the three minutes she's gone, he takes on a couple hard core muggers (you know the kind, the really tough ones that hang in dark alleys- the kind Laurel has trouble with) and leaves them in a heap for the police to deal with as he and Felicity walk away, Felicity non the wiser. 

 

I think character wise, both WANT to be doing what they were doing, it's just after the relentless misery of everything in season 3 they NEEDED a break or they'd both have had a mental breakdown.   They both NEEDED a break much, much earlier and I hope somewhere in season four they acknowledge that all of them are human and need to take a step back sometimes.  It would be lovely and fitting if Oliver could have a chance to be the voice of reason for Diggle if/when things get too intense with HIVE and finding out about his brother's murder. 

 

It's also an interesting idea to explore what that would equal for Laurel and Thea.  Sara warned that it was too easy to get lost in their masks and while having people in their lives that don't wear one is important, having other interests outside of work and the familiar bonds created from childhood, I think is important too.  Oliver didn't exactly take up hobbies or friendships or find love far from his most intense interests but the friendships and the love he has found do exist with or without the mission.  What does Laurel and Thea do in their down time?  What refreshes their spirits?

 

Maybe for Thea growing closer to her brother and finally getting to know the real man is quite enough right now as she immerses herself into the life of the city's protector.  Plus she has her day job at Verdant (which is also a night job but I guess she can at least use it as an alibi when she slips out)

 

Laurel somehow is supposedly keeping up with her day job and training and out every night looking after the city.  ANY time I let myself seriously look at her life I start feeling the rant about the impossibility of pulling off any meaningful training hours plus a full time job (that frequently would entail late hours) plus tracking and apprehending the bad guys (plus maintaining costumes and equipment) PLUS sleep just start to froth and foam within me.   I guess before I start looking for anything in Laurel's life that resembles real life that she can turn to in order to feel rejuvenated when the stress of the mask starts weighing her down, I just want to stop face palming every time I think about her supposed life. 

 

The hours just don't add up. 

Edited June 19, 2015 by BkWurm1