The CWWarning: major Arrow spoilers below! Do not continue reading until you've seen tonight's dark episode, "This Is Your Sword." All others may proceed. You've been warned!
Um, hey, Oliver Queen (Stephen Amell), buddy, we need to have a little chat with you.
We understand you're under a lot of stress lately, what with the whole becoming-the-next-Ra's-al-Ghul thing. The League of Assassins is no joke, and the grueling training you've been undergoing to accept your position as Wareeth al Ghul, Heir to the Demon, has been a lot to handle. No, really, we totally get it.
But locking up all your friends in a cell in Nanda Parbat and dropping the deadly Alpha Omega virus in there with them and sealing the room?
While tonight's Arrow ended on one of the most shocking and soul-crushing cliffhangers to date, leaving fans to wonder if Diggle (David Ramsey), Felicity (Emily Bett Rickards), Laurel (Katie Cassidy), Malcolm (John Barrowman) and Ray (Brandon Routh) are all dead, we are so not buying it.
Sure, we've been along for the ride this whole time as Oliver Queen shed his Arrow persona to become Al Sah-Him, the Dark Archer, but more than one clue in tonight's episode is leading us to believe that Team Arrow is actually going to be okay despite that mysterious vapor that knocked them all out, and Oliver isn't really as evil as he seems.
1. Oliver has been faking it this whole time
It's a ruuuuuuuse! This is the biggest indication we have that Oliver isn't evil: he's been pretending to be Al Sah-Him this entire time! He's actually been working with Malcolm behind Ra's' back since the very start, all so he can stop whatever plan Ra's has against Starling City. Of course, Oliver and Malcolm were unpleasantly surprised to learn that Ra's wanted to put his plan into motion so soon, speeding up their timeline to thwart it, but the fact that Oliver is still working to protect the greater good, despite the personal cost, means our Oliver Queen is still there...he's just covered by a black hood instead of a green one.
2. It's not the Alpha Omega virus
It's the oldest trick in the book...a switcheroo! In the flashbacks, we learned that when the Alpha Omega virus was released in Hong Kong, everyone who wasn't inoculated (and even children who were, but their immune systems weren't strong enough to fight) died from the virus within hours of being infected. As they died, they bled profusely from their mouths. Now, when Oliver released the "virus" in the room with Team Arrow, the vial looked the same, and the vapors certainly looked deadly. Team Arrow was knocked out almost immediately. But curious, none of them seemed to be bleeding from their mouths...leading us to the conclusion that Oliver must have switched out the virus for something less deadly, knocking them out to keep up the ruse to Ra's.
3. Oliver still cares about Diggle and Felicity
We were not prepared for all these OG Team Arrow feelings, you guys. All throughout the episode, Oliver kept trying to convince Diggle and Felicity that they could trust him even after everything he's done as Al Sah-Him. He point blank tells Felicity to trust him as he leads them throughout the League headquarters in Nanda Parbat. He even takes Diggle out of his cell for a private chat in his room, trying to apologize for kidnapping Lyla (Audrey Marie Anderson), explaining that was the lesser of two evils in his quest to bring Nyssa (Katrina Law) back to Nanda Parbat. Why would Oliver be so intent on getting forgiveness from Diggle and Felicity if he was just going to kill them minutes later?
4. That wedding though...
Okay, even we can't deny the fact that Oliver and Nyssa are now married. And it feels really weird to type those words. But the fact that Oliver made sure he was the one who broke the news to Felicity instead of Ra's has to count for something...right? That look he gave Felicity when he told her he was betrothed to Nyssa...he was communicating something...right? Olicity can't be over!
Now it's your turn: do you think Oliver has gone full-blown evil and killed all of Team Arrow? Or do you agree with us that it's still all a ruse to save Starling City from the Alpha Omega virus? Hit the comments section below to let us know now!
Arrow airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. on the CW.