#my arrow meta

[smoakmonster]

I was just pondering...WHY does Oliver have to be the one to make the ultimate sacrifice? "Why does it always have to be you?" Why this man--this hero--when there are so many others, dozens and hundreds from across the multiverse? Why did the Monitor choose HIM?

And then it hit me...the reason it has to be Oliver Queen is because in order for a sacrifice to be made, the cost in exchange has to be worth something of greater or equal value. Oliver Queen's life...for the multiverse.

The one who least deserves to lose his life...is the only one whose life and ultimate act will be valuable enough to counteract the crisis.

The reason Oliver's sacrifice carries the highest weight is because his life carries the highest benefit. We've seen the effect of a world without Oliver Queen...and how much more that world suffers. But it is only by losing the hero most worth keeping that everyone else can be saved. If the hero were anything less than truly worthy, then the hero's death would have no merit, and the salvation it ensues would be void.

Life is precious, and the essence of heroism is to die so that others might live. This has always been Oliver Queen's story. This is who he is. His journey has been a chain of smaller sacrifices and heroic acts linked together, forging him into someone better...something better, something beyond even other heroes. A paragon. The ultimate example. Every difficult choice, every lesson learned, every loss...has all been to prepare him for this.

The greatest gift--saving humanity, saving life itself--comes at the highest price, from the heart strongest enough to bear the weight.

The Monitor chose Oliver Queen, because he was the only one worth choosing.

[smoakmonster]

I love that in a crisis Oliver Queen is always the guy who just goes straight to the source and says, “Fight me, bro.” He confronts the Monitor using his specialized Arrow growly voice and demands, not just help, but the answer for saving the world. No superpowers. No “gifts” to speak of. And yet it’s that same hubris the Monitor condemns that is an extension of Oliver’s strength. 

The pith of Oliver’s power comes from his painful past, as he explains to Barry in Part 1. Thus, all of his abilities--and by extension, himself--Oliver views as tainted as a result. The irony is that Oliver’s goodness also stems from the humble perception he has of himself. He knows his own faults, which is why he can address the Monitor with such confidence. He doesn’t have anything to try to prove. He doesn't have a gold-star reputation to lose. He doesn’t have anything to offer but himself--one man, trying to make the world and himself a little better every day. (There’s a lesson we can all learn from Oliver Queen that we can’t necessarily learn from “super” characters like Barry or Kara.) 

And even though Oliver continues to see himself as someone filled with darkness, he is still the guy willing to die so that others might live; he is still someone who believes in the goodness of others. He remains loyal to the friends he calls the best the world has to offer, perceiving their examples of heroism as having greater value than his own wishes. He is selfless at his core. And, in this case, it is because of Oliver Queen’s secret sacrifices and raw willingness to work in the shadows that heroes like Barry and Kara are able to shine as bright as they do. 

[smoakmonster]

Star City 2040 presents a fun, yet aptly-timed depiction of the heroes of old passing the baton (or bow, as it were) on to the next generation. As this beloved OG vigilante show enters into its senior and soon-to-be final season, the stage is set for the children of OTA to continue their parents’ legacy. We see the wisdom that has come with age in Felicity and Dinah and Roy. We see the young enthusiasm in William and Zoe that we saw in the early years before. We see a multi-generational family helping each other.

And, profoundly, through it all, we see the legacy of Oliver Queen coming into fruition—in Mia especially but also in the way all these former teammates talk about saving the city. There’s a reverence for what has been done before and a desire to continue to fight the good fight.

Despite his severe lack of physical presence, the essence of Oliver Queen and his mission remain the underlying pulse of the episode. The man himself may be absent, but the ideals he inspired in others will live on. The cycle of violence continues, but so does the cycle of heroism.

All the crumbling, visual evidence points to a colossal failure in Star City. But Oliver Queen has been victorious; his mission will ultimately be completed. Because, while his children may not see it yet, deep down they want to be just like him—saving the city and helping people. What has given Oliver and Felicity purpose is now giving William and Mia purpose. And that is true valor, true leadership. Sacrificial love that inspires other to be better, to be heroes in their own way.

[smoakmonster]

“I’m not entirely sure I’m meant to be a leader.” 

-- Oliver Queen

Here’s the thing, Oliver. It is because you perceive yourself with honesty and humility that people are that much more drawn to you. All the best leaders maintain a sober perspective. All the best leaders feel unqualified to lead. 

Throughout the documentary, one by one, underneath all the criticism and the uncertainty, each interviewee conveys a thread of respect. And no matter what happens, no matter how bleak the future looks, Oliver Queen has already achieved and surpassed what he set out to do: right his father’s wrongs and save his home. His legacy is set. In his family. In Team Arrow. In the lives he saves every day. 

To quote Quentin Lance: “All these masks. They started with him.” This all started because one--yes, damaged, but also lost, broken, hurting--guy decided to channel the worst things that ever happened to him into something better. He used his own sufferings to try to relieve the sufferings of others. He faced the most frightening parts of himself in order to free others. So, Oliver, you were half-right when you said you were the original vigilante. You’re an original hero. 

[smoakmonster]

Oliver Queen deserves more--

More down time. More hang outs with his son. More cuddles with his wife. More healthy conversations (where people do not blame him for their problems). More job opportunities where he gets to apply his intelligence and skills. 

More screen time. More episodes that are central to his own hero arc (a shocking concept, I know, that was executed beautifully in Season 2). More plot contrivances that are beneficiary to HIM as a hero and as a person. More kindness and respect from other heroes. More emotional support from “friends.” And, yes, more R E L A X A T I O N.

And, more than likely, in the end, Oliver Queen will deserve more time here on earth with his family--growing old with his wife, retiring, watching his grand kids grow up. All the simple, normal, wonderful things he once never dreamed he could have and then has sacrificed many times, and now these dreams could be taken away again any time, because he’s the Green Arrow and everyone knows he’s the Green Arrow.

All I can say is Oliver Queen will always deserve better than what he’s been given. At this point, it doesn’t matter what happens or how long Arrow goes from here, that will always be true. And that is frustratingly tragic, and yet it’s also what makes him remarkably heroic. To quote the wife of the Green Arrow, “It’s what makes you you.” Oliver Queen >>>> all other Arrowverse masks/capes. 

[smoakmonster]

The reverse arrow scene from the first crossover was pretty cute. And this whole “we need to channel certain emotions to harness each other’s abilities” is a cool twist. I appreciate that Kara and Barry are trying to get Oliver to lighten up a bit. Maybe some time as the Flash will be good for him, get him to smile more and let go of some of the weight of the past.

Though I do appreciate even more Oliver defending himself and explaining to Barry why it hurts when others mock or take for granted his abilities. Everything Oliver can do, he’s earned with such a heavy price. His gifts were never just “given” to him. So I’m glad to see him speaking up for himself and not just standing around and taking the offhand comments anymore. He deserves better. He’s finally fighting for better.

[smoakmonster]

Even though Oliver and Felicity are experiencing a shift and a bit of uncertainty in their relationship right now, their foundational love is clearly still there--evidenced in the little and big things peppered throughout this episode--the sweet intimacy of getting ready (and unready) together; Oliver remembering the vows he said at their wedding; Felicity mentioning her famous red pen.

And even as Felicity declares that the woman Oliver fell in love with is gone, she’s still behaving like the woman he loves, just in new, edgier ways--such as the way she notices him struggling with conversation at the gala, the way she still makes him laugh, the way she defends her man to the press, going out of her way to protect him. At the same time, Oliver wants more than simply having his wife return to “the way she was.” He wants them to be a team, to pull in the same direction. He wants to continue fighting for the same things as her, and right now it doesn’t feel that way. It feels even less that way when she says, “I just don’t know if what’s best for me right now is the same thing as what’s best for us.” 

But in order to make their marriage work, what Oliver and Felicity will need to learn is that what affects one of them affects them both. For so long, Felicity has been the one to reach out to Oliver and bring him back from the edge. Felicity never quit on Oliver--that’s part of what has always made her strong, part of what made Oliver fall for her in the first place. Now Oliver will have to do the same for his wife, pursuing her even if she doesn’t want to be pursued.

[smoakmonster]

In. Episode. 7x12. When. Mia. Said. Vigilantes. Deserved it. Did she. Mean. That. She thinks vigilantes. Killed. Her. Dad. Or. Did she know. That. Here dad. Was. Green. Arrow. I. Don’t understand. The. End. Your. Thoughts. And opinions. I love. Mia. She is so much. Like here dad. Oliver.

Hey Anon, great question! (Not sure why there are so many periods, but reading your message was quite a ride, like getting a telegram.)

I love seeing the hints of Oliver and Felicity in Mia’s personality.

I do wonder if the writers tossed that line in there partly to throw us off the trail of figuring out who Mia was too early. Mia being vehemently anti-vigilante certainly deters us from thinking she’s Olicity’s kid, right? 

Based on episode 7x16, it seems Mia has always known that her dad is the Green Arrow. Felicity probably told her as much of the truth as she could. And yet, that knowledge is what fuels her resentment towards vigilantes. 

I think Mia blames vigilantes as a whole, because in her mind they are the reason she doesn’t have a father. After all, if her dad wasn’t the Green Arrow, she and her mom wouldn’t have had to live in hiding for so long; and so, she probably thinks her dad is responsible for his own demise, “getting what he deserved” in that way. Ultimately, I think Mia is burying a lifetime of loss and hurt beneath the anger–much like her father. 

(For example: in ep 7x16, you notice how angry Mia is at her mom for lying to her about being a vigilante? That likely stems from a place of fear–she doesn’t want to lose her other parent to vigilantism either.)