Season 5 of Arrow is fast-approaching, and fans can expect to see the show go back to some of its basics for Oliver's next set of adventures. New villain Prometheus will be a big part of the shift away from the magic of Season 4. Producers have kept pretty quiet on what's coming with the villain, but we've pieced together everything that has been teased to this point. Read on for our breakdown of what we know so far about Prometheus and what he'll bring to Star City in Season 5.
Who is he? Prometheus will be the latest and possibly greatest dark archer to face off against Oliver Queen in Star City. As the big bad of Season 5, he should rise above and perhaps even lead the new team of villains who will next vex Team Arrow. There's a villain known as Prometheus in DC Comics lore, but Arrow executive producer Marc Guggenheim has revealed that the Arrow Prometheus will be an original character, and Oliver will apparently be shocked when he discovers the true identity of his latest arrow-shooting foe.
What are his talents? Arrow will be heading back to the realm of the semi-realistic with Prometheus in Season 5. Magic will always exist in the Arrow-verse, but the show will move away from the fantastical elements of Season 4 and even Season 3 to an extent. Without magic or mysticism or immortality, Prometheus will have to rely on skill and force similarly to the Dark Archer of Season 1. We've seen him in action with a bow and arrow in the trailer, but he doesn't seem like the kind of villain who only brings a bow to a vigilante fight. Expect for his hand-to-hand skills to possibly complement the intense action happening in the Russian flashbacks.
Why is he here? According to executive producer Wendy Mericle, Prometheus will serve a purpose beyond just giving Star City trouble. Here's what she had to say about why he was chosen for the fifth season villain:
I think for Season 5, just because it is an answer to Season 1, and we are sort of closing this chapter out, we did want to go back to our roots and figure out what is specific to this show. What is our universe? Go back to 'What is Arrow?'
Wendy Mericle's tease in her chat with IGN proves that Arrow will be embracing its darker early days as Oliver's five-year journey comes to a close, and Prometheus' prime motivation for his villainy is a classic: revenge. The time has come for him to act on his anger toward Oliver and strike out as violently as necessary. He'll be connected to Oliver in a way that could make him even more of a formidable foe in Star City than either Ra's al Ghul or Damien Darhk, and Prometheus as the big bad could add an element of narrative symmetry to the first five seasons of the show.
How does he tie to Oliver's past? Oliver's latest archer archenemy will have suffered at the hands and/or arrows of Oliver Queen in years past, and he's had time to stew over his misfortunes. Wendy Mericle went on to explain more about why Prometheus will set his sights on Oliver, saying this:
He has a very personal grudge and axe to grind with Oliver and he's going to come at him in a really interesting, sociopathic kind of way.
Given the fact that Prometheus is being introduced in Season 5 as a way to connect the show to Season 1, we can probably bet that this plan to strike back against Oliver has been forming for about four years now. It should be interesting to see if the villain has a sudden lightbulb moment of realization that the Green Arrow is actually the same vigilante as the Arrow who had presumedly died in Season 3. He evidently has good enough vision to see out of his Scarecrow-esque mask and hood, so maybe he just had clear enough vision to see that they are totally the exact same person.
When will we meet him? Luckily, we won't have to wait too much longer to see Prometheus on the streets of Star City. The new big bad will appear in the Season 5 premiere. The first three Arrow supervillains weren't actually introduced as villains until at least a few episodes into the season, and only Damien Darhk made his grand villainous debut in a premiere. We'll have to wait and see if Prometheus plays a big part in the episode or if he just shows up at the end to shoot somebody full of arrows for a killer cliffhanger.
Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for the latest updates on what's coming next for Oliver Queen on Arrow, and check out our breakdown of what we know so far about Season 5 as a whole. Don't forget to take a look at our fall TV premiere schedule to see when your other favorite shows will return to the airwaves.
