The Arrow midseason finale threw our team of heroes several devastating curveballs, with fugitive Diggle (David Ramsey) getting caught, Curtis’s (Echo Kellum) husband leaving him because of his secret vigilantism, and Evelyn (Madison McLaughlin) being revealed as a mole for Prometheus. That formidable villain’s worst deed yet was tricking Oliver (Stephen Amell) into killing Felicity’s (Emily Bett Rickards) boyfriend, Detective Malone (Tyler Ritter).
That wasn’t the only major twist, however. A distraught Oliver returned to the Arrow cave only to find a surprisingly alive Laurel Lance (Katie Cassidy). A recent clip from the upcoming new episode of Arrow reveals Oliver confiding in an imprisoned Diggle about Laurel’s mysterious return, calling it “some kind of gift.” Judging by their conversation, it appears the newly returned Black Canary doesn’t have a full memory about the events that preceded her “death”.
Now a new trailer, which you can watch above, further explores Team Arrow’s reaction to Laurel’s appearance. Oliver seems determined to “embrace the miracle,” obviously hoping for something good to counter the negative feelings Prometheus has conjured in him about the death and destruction Green Arrow has caused. When questioned by new recruit Rene (Rick Gonzalez), Oliver attributes Laurel’s return to “time travel,” which likely refers to their new knowledge that Barry changed their reality through the Flashpoint timeline.
While there are hints of it in this trailer as well, a previous midseason clip heavily implied Laurel was not who she seemed to be. It seemed much more likely that she was Black Siren, the Earth-2 version of Laurel we saw in action on The Flash, judging by her villainous tendencies and metahuman sonic scream abilities - as opposed to the original Laurel’s technological scream. Black Siren’s last-known location was the S.T.A.R. Labs pipeline prison, but barring some sort of escape, this is another way that Flashpoint may have changed Team Arrow’s reality.
Whatever her origins, it looks like Team Arrow will have to deal with that powerful canary cry, which the above clip even seems to show destroying that statue tribute to Black Canary. With an ongoing battle against Prometheus, Felicity’s thirst for revenge, and Diggle’s fight to prove his innocence, it looks like Arrow will be action-packed when it returns with new episodes next week.
As for Laurel’s ultimate role, actress Cassidy is still booked for several appearances in the Arrowverse, and executive producer Marc Guggenheim said the next episode will lay some very specific groundwork for the character’s future. EP Wendy Mericle has also said that Black Canary will always be a part of Arrow, so whether that means this Laurel or a new character, remains to be seen.
Arrow season 5 returns with ‘Who Are You?’ January 25, 2017 at 8pm on The CW.
Source: The CW
