Arrow is on its way back to television, and with its return comes Oliver Queen's promise he's turning over a new leaf. At least, that's what he's saying in the latest midseason trailer for Season 7, although his promise made to the general public feels like one that he can't possibly hope to keep going forward. Take a look!
Oliver was off to a good start there, but he really put himself in a pickle by declaring he's always going to remain on the right side of the law. Given the past seasons of Arrow, that seems like a tall order, and not necessarily realistic given the number of illegal things he and the team have done since The CW series started. Is it really possible for the Green Arrow to save the day without breaking the law?
His prior adventures on the show say no, but if there's any hero capable of undergoing substantial character development and evolving, it's Oliver Queen. He went from rogue killing machine to commanding and noble team leader over time, although this is something entirely different. Just think of how many of Oliver's missions would've failed if he had gone by the book and not done anything that's technically defined as illegal?
Does this mean he's going to have to wait on a judge for a warrant before exploding through glass windows to stop criminal operations? What about hacking secure sites? Even Team Flash does that, and they're saints compared to the things Oliver has done. Put simply, Oliver's always been more about the endgame then he has been about following the rules. Given that, we shouldn't be surprised if we find out that television interview was just a bunch of lip service.
That means there's a good chance Oliver is going to continue breaking the law to capture bad guys, and Star City either just has to accept that or take him down. That's going to be much easier to do now that everyone knows who he is, as well as the people he's associated with and cares about. Perhaps that will be more incentive for Oliver to tread lightly, or may just be what ultimately drives him away.
With that said, the citizens and law enforcement of Star City need to come to grips with the world they live in. Sure, vigilante heroes can be a menace, but is a skilled bow and arrow marksmen protecting the public really worse than the alternative? With Gotham City as miserable as it sounds, you'd think everyone in town would have a vested interest in letting him do his thing so they can live a somewhat normal life.
The extended Arrow trailer only shows a brief shot of Emiko Queen, which is weird considering the trailer is for the episode "My Name Is Emiko Queen." That said, this felt like more of an over-arching trailer of the rest of the season, so no doubt we'll get to see Oliver's mystery sister in action.
Arrow returns to The CW for the back half of Season 7 Monday, January 21 at 8:00 p.m. ET. 2019 has been underway for a while now, which means there are an obscene amount of new television shows premiering and old programs returning. Keep up with the madness by visiting and bookmarking our midseason premiere guide.
