CWWe were beginning to think this day would never arrive, but it's finally here. Tonight, we finally get to see Arrow's Olicity settled down in a domestic bliss normally reserved for normal, non-crime-fighting couples. Plus, you know we also get fighting and running and stuff, but mainly, Olicity. We feel like we've been waiting for this forever, instead of just all summer.
We've seen Arrow's season premiere, and we can promise you that it does not disappoint, and neither did the Q&A with executive producers Marc Guggenheim and Wendy Mericle, who answered all of our questions (minus, like, one or two).
As if you weren't already positively buzzing with excitement, here are a few more reasons to get totally jazzed for tonight's season four premiere:
Olicity is here and it is real and it is great: They live in a house! They cook! Or one of them does, at least. You can bet their suburban living isn't going to last all that long, but we'd bet Olicity is here to stay.
There's a ring in the mix: You've seen that preview with Oliver (Stephen Amell) and the souffles, right? We can't tell if we're more shocked and excited by the prospect of an Olicity proposal or by the fact that Oliver's so good at souffles. Souffles are hard!
The show is funny: Arrow is, at times, one of the darkest and broodiest shows on TV, but there's a new, lighter tone this season, and it's all thanks to the end of Oliver's sadness (for now). "It's really more coming from where Oliver is as a character," Mericle said of the tone change. "He's happier now, he's in love with Felicity, he's no longer kind of the Post Traumatic Stress Disorder-suffering soldier he was in the first three seasons."
And so is Felicity! Our favorite IT girl/CEO did a whole lot of crying in season three, but have no fear, because she is back "with a vengeance," according to Guggenheim, whose gushing over Emily Bett Rickards might have gotten a little out of hand. "So funny, like really, really. She's just on the top of her game. She is hysterical."
But it's not all fun and games (in a good way). There may be humor, but Arrow is no comedy, and there are some dark times ahead. Stakes will be raised, and it's not going to be fun, except it will be, because what's what TV is!
Thea's a badass, as usual: She's fully taking on the role of Speedy and kicking a lot of ass while doing it. She also might be getting a new love interest! However, not all is well after her little dip in the Lazarus Pit last season, so her journey will not only "explore the side effects of the Lazarus Pit, but also to talk about her life as Speedy and how does she balance having a personal life with being a vigilante," according to Mericle.
Laurel is equally badass: "She's the full-fledged Black Canary, so she's going to be a crucial part of the team," Mericle told us. Laurel will have a lot to deal with, however as she grapples with both her blood-related family (thanks to a certain someone coming back from the dead to join a certain spinoff series) and her family on her team, which is a big theme for everyone this season.
Things are getting switched up: Get ready to see different people taking on new roles within team Arrow, as things become more "democratic" and a lot less angry…eventually. Oliver's not so much the boss anymore, but he's also no longer the only one making the really hard choices. "Everyone's learned their lessons from last year," Guggenheim explained. "I think the way we're finding conflict in the show is very different from the past three years. It's not as much about Oliver being angry or people being angry at Oliver."
Damien Darhk is our new favorite villain: Neal McDonough is just so dang good as the new bad guy and you won't have to wait long to get your first glimpse of him. He also really knows how to make an entrance! "The thing we said to him is that you're not only evil but you enjoy being evil, and there's a real glimmer in his eye whenever he's putting the screws to somebody, and it's something we haven't seen on the show before," Guggenheim said. "Damien has no conscience whatsoever. It's very freeing for him." Freeing for him, totally, exhilaratingly terrifying for us, and we can't wait to see more.
Season four of Arrow premieres tonight at 8 p.m. on the CW.