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Theory Thursday: How ‘Arrow’ Season 6 Could Give Us a Surprise Death Reveal!

We have exactly one week until the long awaited Arrow Season 6 premier. When we last left our heroes – and villains – it was unclear who survived the explosion on the island besides Oliver and his son. Now due to some scenes in the trailer and episode titles, we can clearly see that certain characters like Slade, Black Siren, Rene and Dinah survive; but when will we find out about any of the casualties? Well, that answer varies.

During an interview with comicbook.com, Executive Producer Wendy Mericle said that we will know who survived and who died “by the end of the premiere” as well as get to see Oliver deal with that/those loss(es). Then in a different interview with TV Guide, Showrunner/ Executive Producer Marc Guggenheim stated that it’ll be “a slow reveal” and that fans will have to wait a bit as the show will take place five months in the future and many of the flashbacks will be the moments leading up to the Season 5 finale cliffhanger.

Well this is awkward…. Which of them is right and which is mistaken? Is there a way for them both to be right? Are we being set up for a fake out of ghastly proportions? Well, if the Arrow team really wants to keep viewers in suspense/ surprise the hell out of us, there are two ways these reveals could play out. Let’s set up the two mind blowing scenarios:

Theory Thursday: How ‘Arrow’ Season 6 Could Give Us a Surprise Death Reveal!
Image: The CW

The Ghost Of Characters Lost – Beware Private Convos:

If we’re to believe that both Mericle and Guggenheim are correct, then we need there to be more than one death – which is very much within the realm of possibility since an entire island was destroyed! We also already have VERY strong evidence that William’s mom is one of the casualties, and I’m doubtful it’ll end there. So what if in the first episode we learn that Samantha (or someone else minor) died and then see Oliver deal with it. Though where does Guggenheim’s claim that it’ll be more drawn out come into play?

Well we don’t need a mysterious tombstone like we got in Season 4. Instead, we could see that character still on screen and interacting with Oliver – but what if he’s the only one that character is interacting with? A brilliant twist – and one that I’m personally going to remain very vigilante for – would be if one of the characters we see on the show turns out to have been dead this whole time. The only reason we’ve been seeing them for half a season or so is because Oliver has been hallucinating from grief/ can’t let go. The best way to spot this is if we see a character speak only to Oliver and have no other characters address them.

Theory Thursday: How ‘Arrow’ Season 6 Could Give Us a Surprise Death Reveal!
Image: The CW

So for example, imagine if we hear that Thea wants no part of the team or public office anymore and she goes off on her own. Occasionally, we’ll see Oliver check in on her or chat with her, but no one else. And then BOOM! Via flashback and dialogue with a third character, it’s then revealed that Thea actually died on the island and that’s why Oliver is the only one who’s interacted with/ addressed her up until now. This twist could ring true for a couple characters. Lord, imagine if that happened with Felicity and the whole ‘wedding rumor’ is either untrue OR is true but is all in Oliver’s head?

That’s Not Actually Him/ Her – Mid Season Twist:

The second scenario is much less likely and honestly a lot more cruel. To be honest, I’d expect something like this more from The Flash, Legends of Tomorrow or Supergirl than Arrow, but since metahumans and magic are still a part of the world – and Lian Yu is a magical place – we have to address it.

Following the initial plan from above, we again need at least two people to die on Lian Yu. Though rather than Oliver being the only one to address them and hint at them being a figment of his imagination, everything checks out. Other people interact with them and everything seems fine; and then BOOM! We get a flashback scene that shows that this character actually died on Lian Yu. So then how are they here presently? Who is this copycat? Has the “Human Target” returned to help soften the blow? Is this someone impersonating this character for evil purposes? A reveal such as this would lead to far fewer feels and a lot more questions – and maybe some outrage.

So which scenario intrigues you the most? Do you enjoy the emotional reveal of Option 1 (Hallucinations) or the mind blowing Option 2 (Copycats)? Then again, maybe you would prefer something a little more straight forward and easy on the nerves. Either way, sound off in the comments below and let me know!

Theory Thursday: How ‘Arrow’ Season 6 Could Give Us a Surprise Death Reveal!
Arrow — “Canary Cry” — Image AR419b_0132b.jpg — Pictured (L-R): Katrina Law as Nyssa al Ghul, David Ramsey as John Diggle, Emily Bett Rickards as Felicity Smoak, Willa Holland as Thea Queen and Stephen Amell as Oliver Queen — Photo: Diyah Pera/The CW — © 2016 The CW Network, LLC. All Rights Reserved.