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cogentranting · 7 years

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Oliver Queen as a Slytherin: A Character Study

When asked what Hogwarts house I believed Oliver Queen to be in I very adamantly declared him to be Slytherin. I was asked to explain my reasoning and (with the editing and co-authorship of @emeraldoliverqueen) I wrote this absurdly long exploration of Oliver and his character as a Slytherin. (These are my own thoughts and interpretations- I’m not trying to fight anyone; you’re free to imagine him/write him in whatever house you prefer)

These are the traits that the Harry Potter wiki listed for Slytherin: Resourcefulness. Cunning. Ambition. Determination. Self-Preservation. Fraternity. Cleverness. And if those don't describe Oliver I don't know what does.

Resourcefulness- the ability to find quick and clever ways to overcome difficulties.

He made a bow from materials found entirely within his hotel room. He rigged together a booby trap in the middle of a jungle. He devises weapons on the fly. He may have come back to his city and have billions of dollars at his disposal to help him on his quest, but his origins are on a deserted island where his resourcefulness sustained him.

Cunning- skill in achieving one's ends by deceit (aka lying)

He came up with a plot to get himself arrested so that he could have someone else pose as him in order to throw the police off his trail. He dug up information and used it to blackmail Amanda Waller. He came up with a ploy to destroy the League of Assassins from the inside. He planned the ruse to get Sara Slade and himself onto the Amazo. Plans and strategies are his strong suit. Here we could also include, Oliver’s impressive skill at lying (he manages to convince virtually everyone that he is something he’s not for years. And he beat a lie detector test.).

Ambition- a strong desire to do or to achieve something, typically requiring determination and hard work; desire and determination to achieve success.

admittedly not one of his more notable traits in that he doesn’t really seek success for it’s own sake. However, he is the mayor, was a CEO, was high-ranking Bratva member, was the head of the League of Assassins and also has a zeal he puts into perfecting different skills. So there is some element of ambition present in those things, because he rises to the top of everything he does. And of course, there is the incredibly ambitious endeavor that is Oliver’s crusade- the sheer size of the tasks he sets for himself speaks of his ambition. The idea that he would hold himself accountable for saving a city, and punish himself for failing (running away after the Undertaking) indicates his ambition.

Determination- the process of establishing something exactly, typically by calculation or research.; firmness of purpose; resoluteness

His name is Oliver Stubborn Queen. Stephen Amell described stubbornness as Oliver’s superpower. Oliver’s sheer force of will is what propels him through most of his experiences. His determination is part of why he’s so able to resist torture (Oliver NEVER breaks under torture- except with Prometheus, but that was on a special psychological level and didn’t involve endangering anyone else). It’s why he’s able to endure so much. It’s why he is able to achieve such skill and physical fitness. It’s why he butts heads with literally everyone. And it’s why he is able to accomplish so much more than anyone thinks he’s capable of. Also think of his dedication to the list and his evolving crusade.Think of how absolutely impossible it is to dissuade Oliver from this course he has set for himself, either through arguments (Diggle, on multiple occasions but the Claybourne incident in particular) or through harm to him (Oliver going out to chase down the Count while still being affected by Vertigo). Once Oliver has set himself a purpose he does not back down.

Self Preservation- the protection of oneself from harm or death

This one is unusual because it’s very present, but it’s also paired with self-loathing and suicidal tendencies. However, this only makes his sense of self preservation even more evident. Because it’s undeniable that Oliver fights hard to survive- in his ten years there were countless times when he could have given up, or should have died and he kept going and made it out. Oliver’s inclination of self preservation is so strong that for ten years it has managed to overcome those suicidal thoughts even in the face of the number of impossible situations he’s been in. Consider the fact that he survived his five years through sheer force of will. A few specific moments stand out: Oliver breaks his own hand to get free and stop Slade from killing him when they first meet; Tatsu claims that his “will to live” is what saved him on the mountaintop; digging the bullet out of his own stomach; undergoing a week of torture and then still stabbing Kovar in the hand and trying to fight his way out; his suspicious nature, especially in instances such as when he finds the guy in the cave claiming to be shipwrecked and chooses to leave him, and with Andy.

Fraternity- the state or feeling of friendship and mutual support within a group.

The list of Oliver's "brothers": Tommy, Diggle, Anatoly, Slade, if you want to take Barry on to that even though he's never verbally identified Barry that way. Oliver loves his bromance. In fact, Oliver is all about family. From his mile-high prioritization of Moira and Thea, to the found families he creates everywhere he goes (the island, hong kong, team arrow etc.). That sense of brotherhood and that form of love is something Oliver can’t go long without, and that’s why he almost always has at least one close friend he refers to as his brother.

Cleverness- the quality of being clever; ingenuity or shrewdness.

Arrow has a pretty common mystery element and puts a lot of focus on Oliver’s detective skill- piecing together clues, discerning motives, tracking people down. His sense of humor, when he shows it, is sort of clever dry sarcasm. He has an extraordinary skill with languages. Tactics are his specialty. He’s good at figuring out how machines work (fixing the plane radio). He rigged a computer system to help him when he worked solo. Oliver’s extremely intelligent and most of that veers toward the clever and cunning classifications.

Slytherin is also associated with tradition and family names. Oliver is from Old money- an established family name with wealth and power (btw, Thea, Moira and Robert are ALL Slytherin- it’s why Merlyn relates to them more than to Tommy, who is decidedly NOT a Slytherin). His idea of honoring the dead is also a somewhat tradition oriented mindset. His choice of weapons (bows and arrows and swords) could also be considered traditionalist.

The Slytherin wiki page also talks about how they make strong leaders, and that is something I strongly associate with Oliver. (I’ve talked about it before, here)

The biggest thing however is that Oliver (and all the Queens) is defined by a ruthless pursuit of his goals. “whoever I am, I'm someone who will do whatever, whatever it takes to save my sister.” “he had you and he was gonna hurt you. There was no choice to make.” “To live I had to make myself more than what I was, to forge myself into a weapon.” “There's no length that I will not go to to avenge Laurel. To stop Darhk from ever hurting anyone again.” “Do you remember what you told me? It takes a monster to kill a monster.” “To do what I do, Barry, takes conviction. But more often than not is the will to do what's ugly.” “There are people in the world who deal only in extremes. And it would be naive to think that anything less than extreme measures will stop them.” What sets Oliver apart is his moral pragmatism, his willingness to cross lines, the fact that if you stand in his way he WILL destroy you. And that’s ALL Slytherin all the way.

Here’s an additional Slytherin description that seems to sum up Oliver pretty well:

Slytherins are usually ambitious, goal based learners, who can be very perfectionistic. They can be resourceful, subtle, charming, self-reliant, and adaptable. Just because they’re not loyal in the same way Gryffindors are doesn’t mean they’re not loyal people- they’re just extremely selective about who they are loyal to; which is usually a very small amount of people who they know they can trust and confide in, and they are usually extremely passionate and caring towards this small group. They also feel great deals of respect for people they feel are deserving of respect. (http://unicornachos.tumblr.com/post/46241425124/diffusing-some-hogwarts-house-stereotypes)

What about the other houses though? How does Oliver compare to their key characteristics?

Ravenclaw- Intelligence, wit, wisdom, creativity, originality, individuality, acceptance.

Oliver is certainly intelligent. I have a whole ongoing soapbox about how smart Oliver is and how it never gets acknowledged. Note that: it never gets acknowledged. That’s important. Because there is a reason Oliver isn’t often thought of as being one of the smart characters (and why characters will make comments calling him dumb “you’re very handsome but not especially bright)- Oliver doesn’t have a particular inclination toward the pursuit of knowledge or a value for intelligence/knowledge in and of itself, and those things are defining Ravenclaw qualities. It’s for this reason that Oliver never did well in school- the knowledge itself was not interesting to him. For Oliver, intelligence is a tool to achieve his ends; his intelligence is channeled into a goal- getting off the island by fixing a plane radio, using computers to steal from Adam Hunt, learning a language to survive whatever country he’s trapped in, memorizing ARGUS tactical maneuvers etc. His intelligence craves utility much more so than someone like Felicity, or Nate, or Caitlin. This pushes it away from a Ravenclaw trait more towards the Slytherin sortings of “cunning’ and “resourcefulness”. And really it all falls back under the purview of Oliver’s ‘by whatever means necessary’ mentality- sometimes “whatever it takes” is torture, sometimes it’s learning a new language in under a year. Oliver has wit- his humor is defined by snark and dryness. But the fact that it only makes rare appearances keeps it from being a defining trait of his, and indicates that it’s not of particularly high value to him. Oliver isn’t a character I would define as creative- creativity is defined by imaginativeness, which is never something highlighted in Oliver, and original ideas. Oliver has plenty of original ideas, but creativity has a strong artistic connotation, something Oliver does not demonstrate. Rather his more inventive ideas lean toward tactics and strategy, something related to resourcefulness- again, a Slytherin trait. Likewise, originality/individuality is not something Oliver actively cultivates- he’s original and unique as a person because everyone is and he’s by no means a conformer. But rather than coming from a desire to be original or exercise his individuality, Oliver’s contrast with others comes from ambition. Acceptance can have many different definitions/connotations but Ravenclaw definitions seem to put an emphasis on accepting eccentricities. Oliver is not un-accepting… but neither is his acceptance clearly shown. While Oliver is very adaptable and will work with all sorts of people, there are a number of people whose eccentricities he meets with clearly expressed annoyance, especially when first meeting them (Cisco in 3x08, Curtis at various points but 4x17 particularly, Ray in 3x18, Kara in Legends 2x07, Barry at various points). As to Oliver’s wisdom, that’s a contentious point. Many would argue that Oliver is not wise at all, he makes terrible decisions and never learns from his mistakes. (I would not be one of those people). Others would say that Oliver has a lot of experience to offer and gives strong advice. I would argue that while Oliver’s experience has lead to him becoming much stronger at giving advice, his practicality and comfort operating in morally gray areas, as well as his extensive trauma, cost him the moral viewpoint that would be needed to truly be considered wise.

Hufflepuff- Dedication, Hard Work/Unafraid of toil, Fair play, Patience, Kindness, Tolerance, Loyalty

Dedication comes very close to Oliver’s “determination” trait so in most instances it is present, however, dedication could also be applied to relationships and there you run into the issues of Oliver’s cheating in his younger years. Oliver is also very hard-working (won’t stop until he drops from exhaustion type of hardworking). But that’s where Oliver’s Hufflepuff traits end. Hufflepuff’s value fair play- fair play doesn’t particularly interest Oliver. He’s a no holds barred fighter, his primary tools for accomplishing things are fear, intimidation and pain. He’ll sever your tendons to end a fight, physically intimidate you in an argument, keep countless secrets, torture an innocent man for the greater good, use any trick he thinks of to win. Fairness is not something Oliver considers. Hufflepuffs are patient. Oliver is patient in accomplishing a task, but not when dealing with other people. Watch the scene in 5x02 where he berates the recruits after Rene messes up. Watch him get frustrated with Barry in Flash 2x08. Even consider the way that he charges off to climb the elevator shaft in 5x20. Kindness. No. Oliver is not kind. He’s good, with a big heart and a lot of love. But that’s not the same thing. He can be kind, to the people he cares about, but in general he is not a kind person. Oliver has a temper, Oliver is very blunt, Oliver is often focused on his goal to the point of neglecting the emotional needs of others. Oliver shot three different mentees with arrows to teach them a lesson, Oliver has yelled at every single member of Team Arrow and most members of Team Flash. Oliver has gotten frustrated and made several different grown men cry. He’s not kind. Tolerance really depends on which definition. Go back and look at what I have to say about “acceptance” and adjust as necessary. And loyalty. Oliver is loyal… until he’s not. He’s loyal until he cheats on you with your sister. Or until he feels he needs to lie about something or do something alone. Or until you do something that makes him feel he can’t trust you- and his trust issues are substantial so there’s a lot that can do that. But mostly just consider that Hufflepuff is most commonly defined as being the friendly, cheerful house. And Oliver Queen is most commonly referred to as brooding, dark, and “doesn’t play well with others”. To the extent that the woman he was dating made a joke about how an alternative version of Oliver might be “agreeable”.

And Gryffindor (the one that more people probably sort him into)- Bravery/nerve/daring/courage, chivalry, recklessness/impulsivity (not listed but very commonly associated with them)

Oliver certainly does share some traits of this house-. However, Oliver isn’t actually what I would call chivalrous. Chivalry is defined by being courteous and gallant- Oliver is more often blunt, cold and pragmatic. He isn’t given to large gestures and when he is charming, it isn’t with the same nobility that chivalry implies. Secondly, though many people deny it, Oliver is not impulsive. Occasionally he acts impulsively, in times of duress or anger or fear. But in general, most of his behavior is very controlled, very calculated. He’s the planner of the Arrowverse. He’s the strategist. He’s the one who spent years planning his crusade. He’s the one who researched his team members before telling them anything. He’s the one who taught Barry to case a situation before rushing in. He’s the one who insists on having a plan before a confrontation, the one who wants all the information before deciding whether or not to trust someone. Nor would I describe Oliver as arrogant. Confident, yes. Arrogant is defined by overestimating one’s abilities. In his younger days Oliver may have been a touch arrogant. But now Oliver’s confidence is simply awareness of his oft-proven skill. Oliver knows what he’s capable of (a lot) and has confidence to match. Gryffindors are also often thought of as self-righteous, which is defined as “characterized by a certainty, especially an unfounded one, that one is totally correct or morally superior.” And Oliver is quick to praise the morality of others (whether they are deserving or not)- Thea, Laurel, Diggle, Felicity, even someone like Moira. And not just praise what a good person they are, but tell them how much better they are than him. He’ll call himself a monster, talk about being “beyond redemption”, or “broken.” He can be made to believe that he is undeserving of any kind of love, that he is poisonous to the people around him. It took years of working as a superhero before anyone could convince Oliver to see himself as a hero. Oliver is sometimes proud, it’s not unusual for him to think he’s smarter than someone else, or to think they’re naive. But most of the time he does not believe that he is a good person, let alone better than others. He’s not self-righteous.

And Oliver is without a doubt brave (daring/courageous- Gryffindor’s trait list is a bunch of synonyms) but this trait is rarely emphasized. In its place the narrative focuses on his toughness and determination- his passion and willingness to do whatever it takes. The emphasis on his willingness to sacrifice rather than bravery in and of itself. And Bravery is rarely a trait that Oliver expresses any particular value for. It’s rare that he praises something like that. What’s more, Oliver’s bravery is not a trait unto itself. His bravery comes naturally from all that is Slytherin in him. It comes from his cunning, resourcefulness and skill which he is acutely aware of to the degree that he doesn’t have to fear anything.It comes from a passionate sense of fraternity. A loyalty to his brothers (and any family, biological or otherwise, that he claims) which supersedes everything else. And most of all it comes from his single-minded determination, ambition and ‘whatever it takes’ mindset which will not let anything stand in the way of him accomplishing his goal- not even fear. (And, unfortunately there is also an aspect where some of what might be considered bravery is actually disregard for his own life- what is there to fear when you’ve embraced pain and the possibility of death?). Oliver’s bravery is result, not a cause.

[That being said, there is a decent chance that, were he in the books, Oliver would get sorted into Gryffindor. Because there is a tendency for Harry Potter to treat bravery as a trump-card trait- it doesn’t matter how many of your other traits line up with another house, if you’re brave, you’re Gryffindor. It’s like the golden snitch of character traits- if you have it, everything else is irrelevant. And that’s something that happens in practice but in theory shouldn’t happen. It’s the tendency which turns four equally valid houses and personality types, into the Protagonist House, the Antagonist House, aaaannnnddd everybody else. And it’s a tendency that I think Rowling actively tried to counteract further down the road (hence, Newt Scamander). So I don’t accept Oliver’s bravery as overriding all his prominent Slytherin traits.]

In the end, I think that the qualities that most distinguish him from other characters (characters like Diggle, Barry, Ray, or even Felicity) are very much Slytherin traits. His key characteristics, the ones that really define him and his style of heroics, are his cunning, his determination, and his ruthless pursuit of goals. And those are all Slytherin.

Plus…. Come on guys. Green.

TL;DR-- Oliver is a Slytherin because he is cunning, resourceful, stubborn, ambitious, and always has a plan which he will be ruthless in executing.

#arrow #oliver queen #oliver queen meta #cogent metas #slytherin

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therewas-a-girl · 7 years

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promeytheus replied to your post: would you believe that there are literally zero...

AhahhHhahahahabah.

Can u believe every time I want to see a diggle meta it turns into an ota/olicity thing

Yes. yes i can believe that. easily.

can you believe that i want to punch someone every time i hear him called Yoda. serious question here, but am i really the only one bothered by this. idk, its not teh name per se but just the feel of it. i cannot put it into words, but it bothers me cause it feels reductive. john is not the holder of some great truth and universal wisdom. he is a wise man, its tru, and very good at balancing his issues out, but i feel like every time someone calls him ‘yoda’ it nullifies those issues and therefore, his depth?

idk its a weird feeling

Is it me, or is it not okay to want a meta that everything to do with diggle and not somehow be tied back to ota or felicity or oliver

it is not you.

it most definitely is not fucking okay. it’s tiresome. its bothersome. if you wanna blather my ear off about ota and how important it is - and not mean it as an exclusionary term the way so many mean it - then lets give all the characters involved their own importance and standing. diggle doesn't only matter when he’s propping up the other two white faves. like, please, he is his own person with his own life and i wanna talk about him a while and how he came to be this person, and where this wisdom in him comes from, and the sadness in him comes from and how come that he is so well balanced and how hard he tries, to look that way. if he fails, and breaks sometimes and how he puts himself back together.

or if he’s not the type to do that at all!

maybe john is with himself the way he is with everything else. maybe he is the kind that feels conflicted and is in great pain and lost when he doesnt know what to do, how to solve a problem. but once he makes up his mind, that’s it. he will be unshakable from then on, and he will force everything to make sense because he has already decided and THAT is where this sense of certainty and security that he gives off comes from

but tho i have these thoughts i would love to compare them to other people’s. i would love ot hear more talk of john, of the workings of his mind, expand my own understanding of him. i cant do that if everything circles back to the two assholes in love he shares a tea with.

or if you wanna play it like that, then make it an OT3 and we’ll all be happy.

but no, that’s not okay is it?

Like ke where are my metas about his relationship with lyla and what it must be like to have a son but know he had a daughter.

Yes where? how did john and lyla fall in love? who fell first? why does john love her? why does she love him? as in, what are the traits that one is most drawn to in the other? what are the things that they appreciate the most? are attracted to the most? you have one of the greatest, best love stories of Arrow here - these people fell in love when they were at war.

how did that fail them? how does it feel, when love fails you? how does it leave you? how does it change you? how did it change john and Lyla? what did they do differently the second time around? do they think about the mistakes they made, do they knowledge them. how do they deal with the things that never change: their pov-s about the world, about right and wrong, means and the ends. how do they deal with their differing ideas on necessity and morality? at the end of the day they must agree with each other on at least a part of their worldviews.

who is this man anyway? how does he like his coffee? what smells can’t he stand? is he the kind that does spring cleaning? who, between him and lyla, goes grocery shopping more often? how does he like to be kissed, touched? how do john and lyla prefer to fuck? these are all valid questions! who is the one between them with a real taste for pretty things (i think it’s john); who likes to go shopping for tickets? both, neither? who goes to war and comes back with souvenirs? what cant they stand about the other? the little bits of irritating habits? do they ever laugh about those? what does a fight between them look like?

how did it feel when John left for the army again? what did they talk about? what did lyla feel? what did john feel? how would it hurt them to see their marriage flounder so dangerously for the second time. they are both matter-of-fact people but they are both people who love with their whole hearts. how many times can the two same people break each other’s hearts? and yet they keep loving each other. i mean - come on!

can john imagine having a daughter? he’s the realist, the practical person. to him a never-there daughter is imaginary. but he was still very upset when he learned what barry had done. does he think about her? does he talk to lyla about her? does this sara they have never met come up when tehy talk about having another child? does it scare them?

Or about how he went from seeing Andy and literally was having hallucinations and then his story was just wrapped up. Since his s/l was my favorite last season it disappointed me so much how his s/l this season played out. So much potential wasted.

OH ANDY. people talk about oliver’s sacrifices a lot but imagine for a moment of oliver had to kill thea with his own hands. because making a parallel with the white male fav is the best way to get ppl to stop and think, so yeah i went there.

imagine sara having to kill laurel, felicity having to kill her mother.

john was so shaken, so traumatized that he doubted his whole world. he didnt know what was right and wrong anymore and for a man who relies so much on those set definitions that is like having him continuously tumbling down a rabbit hole.

he sought some steady ground in a structure that he knew, that he had relied on before: the military. he wanted the simplicity of being a soldier again. of not having to decide right and wrong, of just following orders. he wanted to detach himself from people he had failed, from the normal life he couldnt adjust to, from the every day responsibilities because how could be fulfill them when he couldn’t judge anything right. which is very important for someone like him. he needs a structure, clear lines that he needs to keep himself within. he believes those clear lines will keep him from making huge mistakes in judgment - he told this to oliver in s1 when oliver started fucking around with Helena and making excuses for her murderous streak.

this is literally like when oliver went back to lian yu after season 1 man.

the military failed him. he coudlnt rely on anyone thinking for him, making decisions for him. maybe it was also a kind of punishment though - going away.

no, it was. he hated himself so much over what he’d done that Deadshot - a man he’d hated for years - came to keep him company. which means that john hated his own self about as much as he’d hated Deadshot. which means that he really wanted to give up. john diggle wanted to give up on himself, to find some kind of atonement. or maybe he was just so tired and didnt believe he was worth it.

oliver got him out - john went back to his family. how did he and lyla reconnect? what did they talk about? how did he explain himself to lyla? did he? what exactly changed - how - in him, that he went from the man happy to rot in a cell to the man that wanted to fight for himself. was being with his family what changed him? was the team? oliver? lyla? was feeling how loved and dear he was to everyone whose life he’d touched what brought him back to some semblance of the man he was?

these are all things worth discussing.

#promeytheus #arrow thoughts #john diggle thoughts #dyla #that mr and mrs au with john and lyla is happening be it the last thing i do

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briangroth27 · 7 years

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Arrow Season 6 Wish List

Full Spoilers…

I loved Season 5 and thought it completed Season 4’s return to Arrow’s Season 2 high point. I can’t wait to see where the show will go next, but here are some things I’d love to see in Season 6!

Oliver Queen/Green Arrow I love that Ollie fought through the darkness of the “monster” inside him and it seems like we’re headed for a more hopeful hero. Ollie doesn’t need to be as sunny as Flash or Supergirl, but an arc arguing that you can always come back from your sins (no matter how awful) is a great tack to take with a character so steeped in personal improvement as Green Arrow. There’s a valid story in becoming a beacon of hope after overcoming your mistakes, and watching Oliver and the rest of Team Arrow lift each other up and stay in the light despite the darkness of their pasts will be great to watch. Despite being a show about redemption, it doesn’t have to become any less gritty: Ollie can be the light and center of hope in a dark world. I do want them to define the “pleasure” Ollie took when he liked killing criminals. My feeling is his “monster” was the awareness that killing was never off the table for him and the fact that he would gladly do whatever it took to save others (connecting to his role as Star City’s sin-eater), coupled perhaps with a bit of happiness knowing he’d permanently made the world a little safer by eliminating a criminal (that was never implied and I can’t believe we were supposed to infer Ollie is a serial killer who became a vigilante to scratch his murderous itch). Assuming everyone he loves isn’t dead, I can’t wait to see a happier, free-from-his-past Oliver!

I’m also very interested to see how Ollie develops now that William is back in his life. I felt Season 4 missed an opportunity to play with that entirely fresh relationship, so hopefully William will stick around for a long time and we’ll see Ollie grow into a father. The scene or two we got of him bonding with William last year was sweet, but with what seems like Samantha’s death, I’m sure Ollie and William’s relationship will take a dark turn this year. I hope they can work through it.

What I still want to see most—and what I think Amell’s version needs to fully be Green Arrow—is his left-wing politics. Comics Ollie stands apart from other heroes for railing against the system that creates criminals and societal problems in addition to fighting supervillains, so that should translate here. Oliver’s mayoral arc in Season 5 saw him making several baby steps and at least one major leap toward this iconic status, so I hope that continues. Executive Producer Marc Guggenheim told me in a Tumblr ask long ago that it’s difficult to get too far into the political aspect, so I appreciate any strides they can make. I’d settle for Ollie becoming the voice of the common man—something similar to Chris Evans’ Captain America, perhaps—if they can’t go full-on liberal with him. They could incorporate Ollie’s time as a Bratva captain to utilize his first-hand experience with the criminal perspective; if he understands what motivates criminals, not only can he fight them better, but he can work to ease the systemic issues that create crime. Ollie can also use the darkness of his past to better understand and connect with the criminals he faces, both as Green Arrow and as mayor, to hopefully lead them down a better path. Whether those factors come into play or not, Ollie trying to run a broken government and realizing it needs to change to truly save everyone would be a great step forward. If the theme of Season 6 is family, perhaps it’s time Ollie took an even bigger interest in the larger “family” of Star City’s residents.

While I’m glad there will be danger in the form of the Feds looking into Ollie’s Green Arrow connections—a good outgrowth from being investigated by Susan and a perfect result of making GA a target—I hope they don’t derail his mayoral administration. There’s so much more drama they can mine from that setup. They can frustrate him with companies who don’t want to pay to help people who “don’t help themselves” and the limits of his mayoral position that don’t allow him to make the changes that will really help save the city. Ollie navigating how to convince people to care could be his hardest fight—and an especially relevant one—yet. Give Ollie as many obstacles he can’t just shoot as possible!

Allies -Thea Queen/Speedy: Thea’s fear that her darkness is leading her to become like Moira is a brilliant idea, and while she went away to deal with it in Season 5, I think we definitely need to see that battle onscreen in Season 6. Malcolm’s death will surely complicate things and I can’t wait to see where Thea goes from here because of her complex feelings towards him. Were she to truly embrace her inner Moira, I wouldn’t be opposed to Thea becoming a villain for a bit.

-John Diggle/Spartan: I’d like to see more conflicts about the legality and limits of superheroes vs. the government overstepping its bounds with Lyla. I’d also love for these two to meet Connor Hawke/John Jr., particularly now that he’s been rewritten into the timeline via Flashpoint. If there’s more for John to deal with in terms of his guilt over killing Andy, then let’s see that too!

-Felicity Smoak/Overwatch: While I’m all for most of the characters fighting past their darkness, Felicity indulging in hers is kinda fun. I liked her subplot with Helix in Season 5 and I absolutely think they need to deal more with her choosing to destroy Havenrock than they have. I wouldn’t mind Felicity’s spinal tech being damaged in the destruction of Lian Yu to the extent where she has to deal with her paralysis far more than we saw in Season 4. That was a rushed arc in Season 4 that could’ve yielded much more drama and growth to her character, in addition to being a realistic and relatable chance for greater representation on the show. I’d love Donna Smoak to return too, which could be especially interesting given the darkness Felicity has experienced since we saw her last. I’d also love to see more of her relationships with her father and Ollie; Noah leaving is full of possibilities and I really like how Felicity fits into Ollie’s arc of becoming a better man (even if conversely, I like Felicity going darker).

-Roy Harper/Arsenal: I’d love Roy back on the team full-time! I really liked the partnership he and Ollie forged and if his return in Season 3 showed us nothing else, no one Thea dates holds a candle to the connection she has with Roy. I’d love to see where Roy is now and if he’s continued his heroics in his own way. If we can’t ever get Dick Grayson, Agent of Spyral because of the Batman rights limits, what about Agent Harper? Roy worked with the Suicide Squad in the comics, so this wouldn’t be that big a change from the source material. The world even thinks he’s dead—like they did Grayson when he went undercover in Spyral—and Spyral is too cool and fun a spy organization not to use on one of The CW’s shows. Reinventing Roy as Ollie’s mole in a mind-bending international spy ring could be an awesome arc! Colton Haynes said he’d be back soon, so I can’t wait!

-Curtis Holt/Mr. Terrific: I want to learn more about him and see how the show deals with super-science beyond what Ray brought to it. Personally, I’d like to see him become the low budget/homemade tech guy to differentiate him from the heroes of Legends, Supergirl, and Flash. Curtis found a good balance between using his fists and his brain to fight crime this year and I’m excited to see that develop even further. Curtis is also working really well as the beacon of untainted light/hope on the show (with a sense of “fair play”) and I’d love for that to continue. We saw his marriage to Paul fall apart this year, so I’d like to see more fallout of that, in addition to flashbacks or something to show us their happier times so we have a better idea of what Curtis lost. I really think Paul is Vigilante, so that’d be a great conflict! I also wouldn’t mind if Curtis and Rene became a thing.

-Dinah Drake/Black Canary 2: I still would like to see more of why the team needs Dinah. I like her, but Team Arrow doesn't feel more complete with her on it. Ollie brought her in reasoning that Laurel left a hole they needed to fill and while her death definitely left the team feeling shattered in Season 4, it felt rebuilt before Dinah was brought in. I don’t think she’s extraneous, I just don't see what Dinah's bringing that no one else is; had Ollie not made that declaration, it wouldn’t stick out like it does. That said, I think there’s great potential with her job as a cop to look at how the rest of the force views superheroes and a chance to examine when it’s appropriate to deal with a crime as a cop and when being Black Canary is necessary. Her policework is also a good source of conflict for her superhero ID, since things like her fingerprints are now on record and she’s surrounded by detectives who’ll notice if she slips away and Black Canary appears; she’ll have to be that much more careful when in the field. I’m also very interested to see how she lives up to Laurel’s legacy in both her and Quentin’s eyes, and how her ongoing conflict with Black Siren develops.

-Rene Ramirez/Wild Dog: I don’t know anything about Wild Dog in the comics and while it took a while for him to grow on me, I left the season a fan. I hope he and Quentin can get his daughter back and I’d also love to see their working relationship at City Hall to continue: that was key to improving and rounding out Rene for me and I loved the bond he built with Quentin. I’m up for anything with his character, but one idea for a fun subplot I had was for him and Zoe to have a playdate with Ollie and William. I doubt it would happen, but I’d absolutely be down for it. At the very least, it seems like it’d be logical for the two kids who seem like they’ll be on the show for a while to bond and become friends. The other key relationship Rene had in Season 5 for me was his friendship with Curtis, so I’d definitely love to see that expanded on and fully explored.

-Quentin Lance: If any member of Team Arrow were to die in the destruction of Lian Yu, my money would be on Quentin. He seems to have mostly cleaned himself up, approved of Dinah carrying on Laurel’s legacy, and found a renewed purpose; it might seem like his arc is complete. However, I think there’s plenty of potential with Laurel-2 around. Black Siren’s presence and the attempt to save her soul can fuel at least another season of plotlines for Quentin. The writers also found a fun reversal of his relationship with Ollie by working as his Deputy Mayor last year and surprising bonds with both Thea and Rene, all of which I’d love to see continue in Season 6.

-Slade Wilson/Deathstroke: I loved the older and wiser version we met in the Season 5 finale, so I’m up for whatever his deal with Ollie to find his son brings. But will the fact that Slade killed Moira be a sticking point for Ollie, no matter how much he wants to believe his old friend has changed?

-Nyssa al Ghul: I just hope she survived Lian Yu. She’s one of my favorites, so I’d love it if her feud with Talia could continue! I’d also like to see her reunite with Sara at some point.

-Dick Grayson/Nightwing: Dick Grayson would be an awesome example of a vigilante who permanently beat the darkness, since Robin came from tragedy yet helped Batman move into the light. Dick’s bright and friendly attitude mixed with his background with a much darker mentor would make for an interesting combination and he’d be a cool foil for Roy or, more pressingly, Thea. This is highly unlikely given Nightwing’s not only getting a movie but leading the Titans…but since that’s a Greg Berlanti show too, I hope they can cross over down the line!

-Barbara Gordon/Oracle: I doubt we’ll get her on the show (maybe on Titans, though), but Ollie has mentioned she exists so it’d be fun to develop a friendly rivalry between Babs and Felicity. Even if she only appeared offscreen via text or email, like Superman in Supergirl Season 1, it could work: they could encounter her Birds of Prey operatives and we wouldn’t necessarily have to see her in the flesh. If that’s the most we can get, I’d take it.

-Helena Bertinelli/Huntress: Guggenheim says she could return and I’d be all for her development beyond the angry vigilante she’s been so far. How does Ollie’s administration deal with a vigilante who isn’t working with his team? Could she be working with Vigilante? With Helix? Perhaps she could mention that she’s working with “someone new,” and she could be one of Oracle’s Birds of Prey operatives. Regardless, I’d like to see her and Ollie patch things up and forge a healthier relationship.

-Vic Sage/The Question: Vic Sage’s brutal style of vigilantism clashes with Ollie’s efforts to find peaceful solutions (think Daredevil and Punisher), while his day job as a reporter would allow him to put pressure on Ollie’s mayoral position as well as threaten to expose his Green Arrow double life. Though it’s true Vigilante and Susan Williams just played very similar roles, Question’s insane Mulder-esque conspiracy theories—which are usually right—would be extremely entertaining with everyone around him thinking he’s completely nuts. Question has struggled with whether or not to take a life in the comics, which would be a cool parallel of Ollie’s recent internal battle. The character’s original objectivist beliefs would be a great contrast to Ollie’s growing liberal mindset too. I’m also up for introducing Renee Montoya (the second Question) as his partner-in-training or as the current Question (and maybe Dinah’s partner on the force!)…though she’s appeared on Gotham so she’s probably off-limits.

Enemies -Robert Queen-2: Either as an enemy or an antagonistic ally, I’d love to see Ollie meet this alternate universe version his father, who became the Arrow of Earth-2. Not doing this would be a major misstep, particularly as Ollie will be a father this season as well and the season’s theme is family. I’d love to see how Robert-2 has developed differently from Ollie and how Ollie reacts to seeing his father in his role. I don’t see them really getting along for some reason (at least at first), but I’d love to see them try! It’s also likely Robert-2 has some history with Black Siren, so that’d be a great connection as well!

-Laurel Lance-2/Black Siren: I’d love to learn about her history on Earth-2 and I can’t wait to see where she goes next season, since Laurel-2 is one of my favorite additions to the show. What does she want now that she’s marooned here? Whether Oliver and Team Arrow are successful in redeeming her or if she goes completely evil, I’m down. I can’t wait to see her battle with Dinah over the Black Canary legacy and how she reacts to Quentin on an extended basis. I’d love to see her interact with Sara over on Legends too! Whatever she does, I hope she’s an independent operative this season rather than working for another bigger bad. There’s a team of villains this year, but I hope they’re equal partners rather than Laurel-2 being a lackey. I’d also like to see a flashback to when and how Barry broke the news to Team Arrow that they had her locked up—and how Ollie reacted—since Team Flash chose to keep her a secret at first.

-Dinah Lance-2: I’d love it if Alex Kingston could return as Laurel-2's mom and the original Black Siren of Earth-2. Either as a hero disappointed by Laurel-2’s villainous turn or a villain who passed her mantle on to her daughter, this would be a cool twist on the comics’ Black Canary legacy, as well as an awesome evil version of Laurel’s legacy on the show. And what if she met our Quentin? Was her Quentin a corrupt cop?

-Vigilante: I can’t wait to find out who’s under the mask and I’m certainly hoping he’s Paul Holt. The clash between him and Curtis—not to mention Curtis’ reaction to finding out Paul is a vigilante too—would be fantastic. I wonder if he’s working with Helix as their muscle, but either way, I hope to see more of his “kill all the villains” philosophy clashing with Ollie’s new mindset.

-Evelyn Sharp/Artemis: I would’ve loved to know how she felt about finally getting to work with Laurel’s old team. Did she feel she was living up to Lance’s legacy? Did once holding the Black Canary mantle make her second-guess her decision to side with Prometheus at all? In hindsight, she was one of Season 5’s bigger missteps, as she had both built-in tension with Oliver from Season 4 that could’ve been focused on and they could’ve done a lot more with her journey from Canary acolyte to villain. She had the makings of a solid supporting enemy and I liked what McLaughlin did with the screentime she had. Unfortunately, she didn’t get enough time to really dig into Evelyn’s potential. If she survived the island, I’d most like to see her played up as a dark foil for Thea; an externalization of Thea’s struggle like Chase was for Ollie. Evelyn being driven by her parents’ deaths is a perfect parallel to Thea feeling the darkness of her parents taking hold of her.

-Werner Zytle/Count Vertigo: An actual count would be awesome—I really like the idea of a criminal with diplomatic immunity—but I doubt we’ll get it now that we’re two Vertigos deep (though Werner Zytle could be disgraced foreign royalty for all we know…or maybe he’s distantly related to royalty and doesn’t know it yet). I loved Seth Gabel’s insane Count, but Zytle could use more personality and grander ambitions IMO. What does he want? What drives him? Could he get into a turf war with Brick? The comics’ reality-warping Vertigo device falling into his hands would give him a more powerful attack and an awesome visual effect! Most importantly, warping Ollie’s perception of reality would be a wholly unique way to mess with Green Arrow’s primary attack strategy. If nothing else, it feels like Vertigo could fill the mob boss role Brick and Church have tried to hold over the course of the series. They could do so much more with Zytle, so I hope they explore him to his fullest!

-William Tockman/Clock King: I’d like to see him return in a larger supervillain role, maybe as someone who organizes other criminals’ crimes so they’re more effective.

-Onomatopoeia: An extremely tough assassin who only speaks in onomatopoeias, he’d be cool and creepy. He’s one of the few major Green Arrow villains who haven’t appeared on the show yet, so it’d be cool to finally get him in live action!

-Lonnie Machin/Anarky: I have no idea where Thea’s arc is going to take her, but I bet there’s a good chance it leads directly to him. I loved the point he made about her always following others and I hope that the two of them have a few more climactic battles.

-Owen Mercer/Captain Boomerang: I don’t see how Digger Harkness could have survived Lian Yu, so perhaps Arrow—or Flash—can introduce his metahuman son! Owen has super speed that manifests in bursts (allowing him to bring a whole new level to his boomerang attacks), but he’s more interested in family than he is in crime. With Season 6 being about family, it’d be cool to see him introduced this year!

-Spyral: A UN covert operations agency from the Cold War, they recruit lone operatives like daredevils and mad scientists rather than agents from established espionage agencies. They’re spies with tech like hypnos implants that create illusions and hallucinations in the minds of enemies, can link operatives’ vision, and can upload information directly to the mind. They also have identity protection implants that “swirl” their face in the minds of enemies and on camera so they can’t be remembered. Maybe they’re interested in taking advantage of the worldwide lack of nukes Damien Darhk caused. Maybe their Cold War ties could connect to Ollie’s time in Russia somehow. They’d also give ARGUS an interesting opponent, to loop Lyla into the story.

-Cheshire: If Roy is coming back, they should introduce her! As the world’s “second-deadliest assassin”—an excellent fighter and acrobat who employs poisoned blades and other weapons—she’d be a great challenge for the team. Her comic history with Roy (she’s the mother of his child) could be twisted in new and interesting ways on the show; if they went with Spyral, maybe she could be his handler or partner. Perhaps a semi-redeemed assassin like post-Roy Cheshire could be a cool foil for Thea as well.

-Edward Nygma/Riddler (or Enigma): It’ll probably never happen, but I’d love to see Team Arrow go up against Riddler, my favorite Batman villain and an entirely different type of challenge for the team. If Cory Michael Smith could play the Berlanti-verse doppelganger of his Gotham character it’d be perfect, as he’s one of the best parts of that show. But since he likely can’t, maybe they could use Riddler’s daughter Enigma instead. Just have her refer to wanting to impress her dad by “improving” on his methods to take down a superhero. I doubt Gotham will ever get to her and if we can have an unnamed Harley Quinn cameo on Arrow, Enigma shouldn’t be that big a stretch.

I don’t have specific ideas for what they could do, but I’m always game for more Cupid, Brick, Chien Na Wei, Liza Warner, Talia, and Calculator! I love that CW villains recur like in the comics and hope that continues. If Season 6 features villains who are deliberate opponents for specific members of Team Arrow, perhaps they could team up to form Arrow’s very own Injustice Gang!

General Show Notes I hope Arrow—and Oliver himself—continues taking on real-life social issues and systemic problems to the extent that Supergirl takes on feminist struggles. Our ongoing real-life political standoff between the rich and poor—as well as the movement for greater equality and representation—makes this the perfect time to dive into that aspect! Dealing with the issues of today could be the key to reinvigorating the show's ratings, direction, and purpose in Season 6 and beyond. Arrow's CW’s grounded show and Ollie is one of the most political characters in comics (in addition to Ollie literally being involved in the politics of Star City), so it’s already a perfect fit!

I certainly hope that any future flashbacks follow Daredevil’s example: use them when needed, but don’t put them in all or even most of the episodes. I like that they’re something of a metaphor for drawing an arrow back before letting it fly, but it’s time to move past them. I can’t wait for the majority of episodes (at least) to use their full runtime—flashbacks took up an average of eight minutes each week—to flesh out the present-day adventures!

This is the absolute smallest nitpick I could possibly come up with, but I’d still like them to start calling the Arrow Cave “The Quiver.” Ever since Harley Quinn pointed out how much more sense that makes for Green Arrow’s base of operations in an issue of Injustice, I’ve thought it should be the canon term. It sounds cool and pulpy too!

Finally, I’d love for them to find a way for Justin Hartley to appear on the show. I don’t know who joked about it years ago, but the idea of Hartley being the actor hired to play Oliver in a movie would be funny! However, if we can go to Earth-Smallville, I’d love to see Team Arrow’s reaction to a much lighter Oliver!

I can’t wait for Arrow to return tomorrow! What do you want to see?

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