7 things Arrow needs to do to save itself
Photo Credit: The CW
2. Craft a compelling villain to fight Arrow
Season one, two, and five stand out in Arrow because the main villains are all terrifying. When Oliver is forced to face off against some compelling bad guys, the series flourishes but the seasons dragged down by Darhk, Ra’s Al Ghul, and Helix have seen a serious dip in viewership. The Green Arrow is supposed to be good in fights where he can shoot his arrows and thrive in hand-to-hand combat. When he’s facing people he can’t touch, the show loses it’s greatest weapon of all: Oliver.
There are some great Green Arrow villains from the comics that have yet to be used in the series. Characters like Onomatopoeia or Constantine Drakon could make compelling enemies for a season seven. In fact, the former was created by Arrowverse regular, Kevin Smith, and he could be brought on to save the sinking ship that Marc Guggenheim has created.
Photo Credit: The CW
1. Felicity
Olicity has become one of the most contentious ships within the Arrowverse universe. A large number of fans love the relationship, but there’s an even bigger number of viewers who can’t stand the coupling. At this point, the series isn’t going to dump its main couple in favor of starting fresh but it could begin to fix the character of Felicity. Emily Bett Rickards was once an early highlight for the series, offering some much-needed levity to the bunker. However, when Arrow fully committed to her character as a love interest, it’s like the series completely forgot all of her characterizations. The coupling was used to fuel soap opera type storylines that made most viewers cringe at the contrived drama.
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How exactly can this be fixed? Take Felicity back to the beginning as a supporting player. At this point, the character and the actress take so much abuse online that she could take a break from being the center of controversy. Get rid of any relationship drama between Oliver and Felicity, in fact, treat their romance scenes like a procedural drama would. Allow the father-son relationship to take the spotlight while she gets to be casually supportive rather than add unnecessary drama. When Laurel Lance was at her best, she had become a confidant to Oliver who had shed some of the angst. It’s time for Felicity to take on a similar role.