Arrow's five year plan and the possibility of how they went wrong?

[Aquahyde]

I think most of the future decisions after season 1, were made because of fans' demands

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Good point

Shows you how weak the Arrow writers have been. Too vulnerable to fan groups' influences.

[President_Luthor]

I'd say in 2016 the entire Berlantiverse is and will continue to be vulnerable to this or that fandom. No one is immune, not even the so called favorites SG or LoT. Arrow may have been the biggest offender re: shipping in S3-4 but let's not kid ourselves here. They've all doubled down on melodrama. Ray/Kendra/Savage? Caitlin/Zoom? Winn/James/Kara/Lucy? Barry's no stranger in being in non-Iris ships. And let's just say I'm more worried than excited about what they are doing with Barry/Iris.

None of these series are rookies any longer .... this is soo the season I will call a spade a spade when they go overboard on the soapy angst. Sorry Team Barry, Team Riip and Team Kara - time's up, no more immunity idols for you

[Dagenspear]

Your analyses are very good. Oliver should have stopped killing and become happy in the end of season 5. Ditching Shado's tattoo and hood was a mistake. Rushing his development into lighter hero just to reverse him back is also a mistake.
I think most of the future decisions after season 1, were made because of fans' demands.
The creators had one year plan and that's it, also their plan was only about Oliver Queen. They never intended to bring Sara back or to make Laurel a vigilante in season 1.
What happens after season 1 seems a decision made because fans wanted it. Fans didn't like Oliver killing - so he stops killing.
Fans wanted Black Canary and they bring in someone who can step up to the game and live up to the expectations of the raised bar.
Fans wanted lighter show - so in season 4 we've got lighter show.
When this creators stop listening to what the fans want the show will be good again.
About the romance - I am tired of all the circle jerking between Laurel and Felicity. A realistic thing is that person moves on, he moved on from Laurel, he is moving on from Felicity and those two romances should never come back.
If they can't make up their mind of him having one woman in his life, can he at least be a playboy. This - I love Felicity, no now I dream of loving Laurel, is disturbing.

Except Oliver never stopped killing and he never became a lighter. None of these things happened. That's the real problem. After season 2 forward momentum for Oliver's character comes to a screeching halt. And we ping pong between Oliver romance break up, main villain kills supposed friend or family member, new commitment to his mission, becoming lighter, then becomes depressed again, it's all connected to Oliver's past somehow!, rinse and repeat. Even SV didn't repeat this many of the same things so much. Have a very great day!

God bless you all!

[canaryalive]

Except Oliver never stopped killing and he never became a lighter. None of these things happened. That's the real problem. After season 2 forward momentum for Oliver's character comes to a screeching halt. And we ping pong between Oliver romance break up, main villain kills supposed friend or family member, new commitment to his mission, becoming lighter, then becomes depressed again, it's all connected to Oliver's past somehow!, rinse and repeat. Even SV didn't repeat this many of the same things so much. Have a very great day!

God bless you all!

Yes you are totally right, he never got light, it was just talked about too much, there were speeches against the killing and speeches about hope. That's the thing, it should have never been put on the table the killing delema. This is a show about crime and fighting crime with a mask, there is no way the hero can't kill anyone.

[canaryalive]

And to add an observation again supporting the fact that the writers do not have plan, is that they are now bringing Katie Cassidy for episode after they killed her character. How ever they deal with Laurel's character now, it will be total waste of screen time and just a token to her fans. And I think like that because I don't see how she will be tied to the current story, how her character will advance the narrative and how she will be different from what we have already seen about her. Even if she is not Laurel, then people who don't watch Flash probably won't even get it.