Arrow is taking a hiatus after Oliver’s climactic fight with Ra’s al Ghul, but when it returns next month, there will be plenty of comic book-goodness awaiting. Starling City will be dealing with crime leader Danny Brickwell, Black Canary will debut and Slade Wilson and Count Vertigo will return. Now, Marc Singer, best known for his starring roles in Beastmaster and V, will be joining the show in a recurring role on Arrow next year as General Matthew Shrieve.
We don't know a ton about Singer's upcoming stint. The only information released about the character so far is that he’ll have an important role in Oliver’s flashback storyline and will debut in Episode 14, according to Comic Book Resources. In the comics, Shrieve is the human leader of the Creature Commandos, a military team of super humans that fought during World War II. The soldiers were transformed to look like various monsters, like a mummy, werewolf and vampire, to instill fear in their enemies. This won’t be Singer’s first DC Comics role. He previously voiced Dr. Kirk Langstrom, a.k.a. Man-Bat, in Batman: The Animated Series.
Although the Creature Commandos have popped up occasionally over the decades, Shrieve hasn’t appeared too often in the comics, so the TV version of him may be significantly different from his comic book counterpart. Season 3’s flashbacks have followed Oliver in Hong Kong as he performs missions for Amanda Waller. Working with his handler Maseo Yamashiro, the two of them have been attempting to track down mercenary Chien Na Wei, who we know in the present day as China White. In “The Climb,” Maseo and Oliver discovered that Wei had obtained the OMEGA virus, as well as kidnapped Maseo’s wife Tatsu. How Shrieve is connected to all this is unclear, although since he’s a general, it’s possible he’s allied with Waller and A.R.G.U.S., meaning he could simultaneously be an ally and enemy to Oliver.
Earlier this year, executive producer Marc Guggenheim stated that Arrow would stay grounded this season and not delve into superpowers, but after the crossover with The Flash, he has changed his mind. However, the chances of a group of soldiers that have been surgically altered to appear grotesque are slim, unless they are just a regular paramilitary group that has earned the nickname. Shrieve may simpy be used as an authority figure that’s drawn into the conflict between Wei and A.R.G.U.S. The show has proven that it's not beholden to a character's gimmick from the comics, including how Anthony Ivo didn't have his android in Season 2. Just because we’re getting the guy who led the monsters doesn’t mean we’ll be getting the monsters themselves.
