Category: Arrow – Season 7

Let me start this by saying I still have goosebumps from watching this episode. I didn’t know what to expect, I didn’t know where the story was going to go and had no clue how they would write Felicity out. The only word I can use to describe this is perfection. Everything fell into place perfectly. Everything is tied up and it really was the perfect end to a show I’ve loved from it’s beginning. It was also shot amazingly well too – there was a true Hollywood movie feel to this.

Both the present day and the future intertwine fantastically as Oliver and the team strive to stop Emiko from causing devastation throughout Star City and Felicity and the next gen race against time to corrupt the archer programme. Mia is given her father’s arrows and scenes play out showing them in combat practically side by side. Katharine McNamara really shone here, so much so that you’re left praying for a spin off just to see her in action again. Curtis and Laurel show up in the present day to help out and it was awesome to see Bronze Tiger offer his support too. It was great watching him fighting.

The Emiko storyline is wrapped up brilliantly. The Ninth Circle question her loyalties and end up turning their back on her, pushing her and Oliver to fight them off together. This doesn’t end well for Emiko who eventually dies in Oliver’s arms. She warns Oliver to get Felicity and the baby away from the city and hearing her last words that she just wanted to be a Queen really hammered at the heart. And as sad as this was to watch it’s not even a patch on what was to come.

There’s celebrations back at the bunker and an overpowering feeling of finality. Curtis and Laurel both return to where they came from and Roy decides that he needs to atone for the guards he killed. Oliver and Felicity announce that they are stepping back and leaving Star City. This is where the mark of 4 is made after Oliver describes the 4 pillars of heroism – courage, compassion, selflessness and loyalty. There’s a final moment for OTA in the bunker and the tears shed between them seemed like pure, genuine emotion. No acting. The lights go out and Oliver’s face is the last thing we see.

Diggle takes Oliver and Felicity to an ARGUS safe house and again the goodbyes here were just gut wrenching. Time speeds along and we see Felicity give birth and the beginnings of baby Mia growing up, they also decide to peruse joint custody of William. Everything is going perfect for them. A little too perfect and that’s when The Monitor shows up to make Oliver honour the promise he made during Elseworlds. We are taken back to the conversation they had and in order to save Barry and Kara, Oliver agreed to help the multiverse when the time was right. Well now is the time Oliver and he’s taken away from his family knowing that he’s going to die and not return home. Watching Felicity say goodbye to him pushes you over the edge of any type of socially acceptable emotions and again this didn’t seem like acting. Their emotions were real.

In 2040 the torch is passed to Mia, William, Connor and Zoe to continue protecting the people whilst the older folk take the blame for their actions and decide to go into hiding. Before Felicity leaves she shares one last moment with her children at Oliver’s grave. I think we all knew Oliver had died but didn’t want to admit it and say it out loud! Uncontrollable emotions now. His grave stone also reveals that he died in 2019 – so we can take a good guess at how the last 10 episodes will play out. Felicity begins her journey and is met by The Monitor. She’s fulfilled her final promise to Oliver and has protected their children for as long as they needed and now she’s taken to be reunited with him through a portal. And that’s the end of season 7. And the last time we will see Felicity Smoak.

No amount of words or descriptions can give justice to this episode. Like I said, it was perfect! Im no Olicity stan but this is the way the show should have ended. OTA are central to everything and it was so rewarding for Diggle to have a proper goodbye with Oliver and Felicity and to take them on their way to their new life. I’ve mentioned how real the emotions from Stephen, Emily and David seemed and as a fan of the show it means so much to see how invested they are with it. People have issues with Felicity but for me Emily Bett is one of the reasons I was initially drawn to Arrow. I’ve loved her character. It’s sad to see her go and it’s even sadder to know that Oliver does die but it’s sweet to see that they are reunited eventually.

I think it’s pretty clear what season 8 will be about and we will see how Oliver helps The Monitor in the multiverse. I’d be happy if Arrow ended here because I don’t feel like I want anything else from it, but knowing that we still have 10 more episodes softens the blow of an extremely emotional episode and an exceptional season.

This episode was very cleverly done. The events of Team Arrow catching up with Emiko again are told through them being interrogated by Dinah after two guards are found dead at an underground subway. Best of all, Confessions brought the return of Roy Harper to the present day as his unique parkour skills are needed for this mission.

Yes, we’ve had Colton Haynes back all season but there’s nothing like watching him back on screen as part of the team. I’ve said before that Roy was probably my favourite character from the start of the show and for that reason I’m just fan girling that he’s back properly. There’s a little update on what’s been going on with his quest, alongside Thea and Nyssa in destroying all the remaining lazarus pits. I liked this and I still live in hope that Willa Holland will return before Arrow is over for good.

During the interrogations they all take turns in squealing on each other one by one. Felicity’s time in the hot seat was hilarious as she’s quite clearly giving in to her pregnancy cravings by taking full advantage of eating for two. Obviously these guys would never be so backstabby and it evolves that they have orchestrated a story to cover for one particular member of the team. Even Dinah is in on the act and they are all pretty damn convincing. It’s all to protect Roy who is eventually revealed to be the killer, even though the blame has firmly been left at Emiko’s door. My initial reaction was that Roy must still have some mirakuru in his system but there’s a deeper, darker explanation which Oliver cleverly works out for himself.

Oliver has rid himself of any loyalty to Emiko and he really means business in stopping the Ninth Circle. There’s also a huge revelation from Emiko at the end of the episode which quite literally knocks him for six – she causes an explosion which leaves him trapped and unconscious under a huge amount of debris. And they might all be basking in their ability to lie but they’ve fallen straight into a trap laid by Emiko.

An episode which focuses on John Diggle and guest features Ernie Hudson. What more could you want?!

The search is still on for Emiko which leads Oliver and Diggle to meet with The General of ARGUS for some help. General STEWART just happens to be John’s stepfather and there’s quite a lot of animosity between them. And yes …. John Diggle, who we are all pretty certain becomes a Green Lantern at some point, has a stepfather called General Stewart! Eeeeek! More fuel to the John Diggle Stewart fire.

Who doesn’t love John Diggle, right? For seven years he’s been at Oliver’s side (sometimes from a distance) and after all this time it was fabulous to have an episode mostly revolving around him again. Throughout the years we’ve been drip fed more and more about him and this week’s episode kind of tells the story of Diggle’s past, present and future. General Stewart worked with John’s real father in the army and John blames him for his death after a mission went wrong. We learn that he and his brother had a tough upbringing after The General made a move on their mother and basically ran their home like a military operation.

The General gives the team the ARGUS assistance they need to locate Emiko and Dante after The Ninth Circle steal Felicity’s archer programme. I’m sure for many, just like me, Ernie Hudson is a legend. Having him in this episode was brilliant as he just has such presence on screen. Diggle manages to do some bonding with The General whilst being tortured by Dante and some home truths from Oliver causes Diggle to cut him a break. The relationship between Diggle and The General was completely believable and added some valuable depth to the character. Diggle’s legacy is featured in 2040 too as Connor is sent to find something Felicity needs. There’s lots of talk about John Jr and we discover that the two brothers, who were once best pals, have had a huge falling out due to different views. Future Diggle needs to come out of hiding now. We have theories we need answered and we need to meet John Jr.

In other Star City news, Oliver finally manages to pass on the message to Emiko that Dante was responsible for her mother’s death. They might be enemies but she clearly trusts him which has dire consequences for Dante. Felicity ends up feeling guilty after realising just how powerful archer can be in the wrong hands and after deciding to destruct it once it’s used by The Ninth Circle, Alena suggests the build a bigger, better version. We all know how that works out!!! Also, I don’t trust Alena. With Felicity talking about wanting more than just being Overwatch you can see the tracks being laid for Emily Bett’s exit at the end of the season.

Three episodes left and whilst I can’t wait to see how the present and the future patch together, I just don’t want this season to end. We still have the present day arrival of Roy to look forward to next week as well. It’s a shame to loose Adrian Paul who has done a great job with Dante but his execution adds to the build up of Emiko being the big bad this season. She’s gone power mad and doesn’t seem to be in a hurry to calm things down.

This episode felt special as it heavily featured the female cast. We saw it coming … Laurel has caved and in retaliation to the negativity and goading towards her she’s back as Black Siren and seems even more hell bent on causing havoc. Once she finds Shadow Thief, an old acquaintance, there’s no stopping her as they team up on a mission of causing hell.

What’s better than one canary? That’s right, 3 canaries (well 2 canaries and a siren). Sara Lance returned to Star City to help Felicity and Dinah stop Laurel’s mission of self destruction. Dinah and Felicity start off with opposing views as Dinah shows no sympathy for Laurel whatsoever and just wants to send her down for her return to criminal activity. Felicity on the other hand still believes that Laurel is good deep down, she believes the friendship they have struck is genuine and that all she needs is for people to give her a break.

All of this gives us a fantastic episode. We see the 3 canaries in combat which was brilliant to watch. Correct me if I’m wrong, but we rarely see Sara use her canary cry these days so seeing, or more to the point – hearing her use it again was so nostalgic. It’s not long before Felicity convinces the others that Laurel really does just need to be shown some love and once they take a different approach, Laurel comes through. It makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Scenes between Sara and Laurel were really meaningful. Sara must feel so much sadness when she returns home after the deaths of her sister and Quentin. I love that she’s willing to share her father with this Laurel who in reality shares no connection to him. An apology from Dinah practically sets Laurel free and she decides to take a step on the road of redemption.

I can’t compliment Katie Cassidy enough. She’s been sensational this whole season, which is huge when you consider she’s been on the show since season 1. Her portrayal of this Laurel has been engrossing and while she’s playing a different version, she’s just been amazing to watch! The end of the episode sees Laurel decide to right her wrongs on Earth 2 but I hope this doesn’t mean she will stay away for too long.

There’s a side story of Oliver and Diggle on the hunt of Emiko’s Mother’s killer which brings Kodiak back to our screen. Even though it was brief, it was nice to have him back. I would say I hope to see him again but with Diaz gone I guess there’s not much place for the Longbow Hunters. The Canaries feature in 2040 too and we discover that Dinah has built a rebellion group of women, initially as a support system. Mia finds herself in a spot of bother and she’s saved by a new, very familiar face which again just makes the flash forwards that bit more exciting.