Arrow: Why That Major Character Death was a Mistake
*** Warning: Major spoilers ahead for the most recent episode of Arrow, “Eleven-Fifty-Nine” ***
The Canary sang her last song this week on Arrow, as Laurel Lance was brutally murdered by Damien Darhk after the villain regained his mystic powers. While the episode itself was full of terrific performances, Katie Cassidy in particular, it certainly doesn’t offset the fact that killing off Laurel Lance was a bad move for Arrow.
Not everyone was a fan of Laurel, especially when her character was often set aside or went off the rails for the sake of plot convenience, but her role as Black Canary was essential to the Green Arrow mythos. Not only that, but her struggle to overcome trauma and addiction made her a compelling character when she was given a too rare chance to step into the spotlight.
Cassidy is already tapped to guest star on The Flash this season, so thankfully this won’t be the last we’ve seen of Laurel. However, the producers have been adamant that Laurel’s death is permanent, meaning we’ll only get to see her in time jumps and alternate universes.
As we begin the mourning process for one of DC’s iconic superheroes, here are a few reasons why Laurel’s death was a big mistake–and no, Olicity isn’t one of them.
Laurel’s story had so much untapped potential left
Laurel Lance had all the makings of an epic superhero origin story. She experienced real trauma in her life, first with the apparent death of her sister and cheating boyfriend, then a whirlwind of sudden deaths and reunions, leading to a serious alcohol addiction that she was forced to overcome. Her work as ADA in a troubled city like Starling meant she was well aware that, as much as she hated to admit it, the justice system wasn’t always enough to overcome all the corruption in the world.
It was fantastic watching Laurel crawl her way up from the bottom to become the superhero fans always thought she could be. Unfortunately, once she grew into her mask, she quickly settled into her role as a supporting character, with little storyline of her own to work with.
Ultimately, her death not only felt unearned, she had almost no complicity in it, and will end up being another step in the ongoing narratives of Quentin Lance and John Diggle. There was so much more Laurel had left to do, far beyond being Oliver’s ex-girlfriend. Would she find a way to advance her law career and keep wearing the mask? Could she find love again? Meet her own arch-nemesis? Find her own battles to fight? I guess we’ll never know.
We can’t afford to lose more female superheroes
While it’s true that Supergirl has done wonders in proving that the television comic book world is by no means a “boys only” club, she can’t carry that burden all on her own. Black Canary is an iconic hero in the DC Universe, yet both Laurel, and her sister Sara before her, were reduced to plot devices to keep the story rolling. While Sara at least got a second chance in the Legends of Tomorrow ensemble, it’s doubtful Laurel will get that same opportunity.
Maybe we should have seen it coming. One of the more obnoxious elements of the Supergirl series premiere was the self-congratulatory way the writers repeated how great it was that there was “finally” a female superhero. Even they didn’t know that they had one all along.
The CW really can’t afford to offend more fans
Anyone who thinks representation doesn’t matter hasn’t been following the fan outrage that’s been directed towards The CW over the last month, largely thanks to two major character deaths on The 100. It’s becoming increasingly hard to endure the deaths of so many minorities, especially when writers and producers continue to justify it as an important part of the overarching narrative.
It’s understandably painful for audiences to see their TV heroes, the character that they resonate with, be reduced to stepping stones for the protagonist to cross in order to keep the story moving. Laurel and the Black Canary meant something to fans and her death has far more significance than Oliver losing his ex-girlfriend, even if the producers haven’t quite figured that out yet.
It reduced her to a love interest
For reasons unknown to me, there are so many shows out there that simply don’t know what to do with their female characters if they don’t have a love interest. In the case of Laurel, once Tommy was gone and it became clear any romantic future she had with Oliver was out of the picture, it felt like the writers had no idea what to do with her.
Even worse, her final moments in the show had her professing that Oliver was the love of her life, in spite of the fact that she’s not the love of his. I’m sorry, but what? He was a terrible boyfriend who constantly cheated on her, including with her own sister. To have those be her final words may be the biggest miscalculation of how Laurel was treated throughout the show, which is saying a lot.
It was the easy way out
At the end of the day, killing Laurel was an easy solution to a problem the Arrow team wrote themselves into. The start of the season promised a shocking death that they had to deliver, in spite of the fact that by Season 4 essentially all of the main characters maintained “untouchable” status. Except that, out of all the main characters, Laurel still had the least impact on the story. This way they could kill two birds with one stone–create a real shock value death that won’t completely derail the show and get rid of a character they had no idea what to do with.
The immediate backlash is proof enough that fans and critics alike have easily recognized the cop out. It’s too early to say what effect Laurel’s death will have in the long term for Arrow, but from where I’m standing it was a mistake simply too big to ignore.
Do you think Laurel’s death was a mistake? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
Arrow airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET on CTV and The CW.
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About The Author
Kelly Townsend
Associate Editor Kelly Townsend always had strong opinions on TV growing up, so it was only natural to evolve from couch musings to online journalism. She can't ever choose a favorite series, so please don't ask. Her writing has also appeared on IndieWire and Tribute.ca. You can find her on Twitter at @kellybtownsend.
It was a awful mistake. I never watch Arrow again. Laurel was my hero.
So, which is it? Is she so important to the show that she shouldn’t have been killed or is she not relevant enough to be killed? I’d rather have this show focus on fully fleshed out and grounded characters than getting whiplash every time they write her one way and her next decision derails the brand new characterization. They never knew what to do with her. It’s not taking the easy way out when decide to get rid of character that do not fit. You’re talking about female superheroes but this was never about female superheroes. Laurel was a superhero but guess what, Thea is one too. Sara is a superhero. Felicity has been a superhero before these ladies became superheroes but because she’s not a fighter, she’s not considered one in some circles. Lyla Diggle, head of argus: a superhero. All of the females in the show are empowered, this is not an issue. The issue is about the character and their relevancy.
People are allowed to be angry that they lost a character they loved but the writers made the best decision possible if they didn’t know who will be the victim at the beginning of the season (still not sure I believe that). She hasn’t had a meaty storyline since s2. Her rise to black canary has been about honoring her dead sister, who is no longer dead. Her only storyline this season has been about her sister, once again. Get rid of the dead weight, and focus on your main character, as it should be. This is what I’m all for.
They’re saying that she was the character who had the most potential and who was still growing into her role as the Black Canary. They’re saying that she was severely underutilized and overlooked in order to push the Olicity drama forward.
I would have been okay with her death if they DID IT PROPERLY. If they let her die with honor, as the BC, instead of being force choke hold and killed to send a message to her father that DD isn’t someone to cross. About her not having a storyline, that is the fault of the writers, not the character.
Dead weight would be Felicity. What role does she play now, that Curtis can’t fulfill? Laurel came from a legacy of comics, YEARS of being more than Oliver’s love interest. She deserved better than what she got.
They have been focusing on Felicity for the past two seasons. Her enemies, her struggles, her inconsistent behavior. Not Oliver. He’s been reduced to nothing but being Felicity’s boy toy, who occasionally runs around at night, shooting arrows. He dropped out of the mayoral election, he no longer runs a nightclub or a company. He’s no longer the Arrow, in any sense of the word.
The best decision would have been Diggle or Quentin. Their storylines are to be considered complete. They have fulfilled their purpose, and their deaths would have made sense.
Laurel however, still had a long way to go. And they never acknowledged her sisterly relationship with Thea before she died. Oliver didn’t have the balls to say “We love you too.” Quentin lost a daughter for the THIRD TIME, wouldn’t this impact him the most? Is it going to destroy him?
In S1, she has always been about saving the city, even as just an ADA. Sara’s death merely showed her another way to do it, because she knew how corrupted the city was and how difficult it would be to punish those who seek to destroy it.
Just food for thought.
No, she was not the character who had the most potential. This is not a fact, it’s your personal opinion. The writing did not support it. There’s a difference. If you feel like Laurel was consistent in her characterization, that’s only because she had none this season.
What makes you think this is gonna be about olicity besides the moaning you’ve read on the internet? This death will be delt by every character including oliver and felicity, as separate entities, sth that the EPs said multiple times. In which point did the fandom decide that they could not be a couple while laurel was still alive? They did it for almost two seasons, half of the longevity of the show. I would understand this POV if she was the reason they broke up. She was not though. You found a scapegoat in the element of the show that’s the most exposed on social media because it’s the easiest way for your anger to be heard. There was never a love triangle between those three characters but you’re the one reducing her to that. So while you’re trying to defend a character you loved and lost, you’re bringing her down with you. The irony is laughable.
You’re contradicting yourself by saying Felicity is deadweight but she’s also taking over the show, both statements also laughable. WHAT ROLE DOES THEA, OR DIGGLE, OR LAUREL PLAYS WITH OLIVER IN THE TEAM? Just because they’ve introduced a new hacker doesn’t mean Felicity is disposable. Oliver was fine by himself in the first season, wasn’t he? Yet, everyone decided that their purpose was vigilantism and they joined the team for themselves, because they wanted to help. If anything, I’m angry about the fact that they felt the need for Felicity to step out so that they can bring Curtis in the lair. But with the spoilers I’m seeing, she’ll be back in there soon. Sorry.
The fact that Lance had more storylines this season than Laurel should tell you a lot about finished story arcs. 2-0 with a storyline entertwined with the main arc (damien darhk operation) & a love interest VS. literally nothing for Laurel besides resurrecting her one-year-long dead sister to ship her off on another show. Same goes for Diggle with his brother. I don’t think that’s what a finished arc means.
Laurel’s final moment not living up to your expectations? Blame the fandom but not the one you’re thinking of. It’s ridiculous that they felt the need for her last scene to be with Oliver instead of her father who once again lost a daughter without being able to say goodbye to her. It’s ridiculous that of the two meaningful relationships she had, they decided it was more meaningful for her to tell her college boyfriend he was the love of her life when he slept left and right and into her sister’s bed behind her back while they were together. A+ self worth. Not to mention Tommy Merlyn, bless his dead sacrificing soul…
Oliver & Laurel overcame that and became friends and they both clearly moved on. But this was a nugget for the fandom who pushed Oliver & Laurel for so long because a hundred year old comic book said so, even after the horrible butchering of their relationship from the pilot. Even Katie Cassidy feels the same way from the interviews I’ve read and the cons I’ve seen. The love-of-her-life was dropped multiple times. This was all on the writers though, it shouldn’t have happened but I have a feeling you’re more pissed about the fact that his relationship with Felicity was mentioned in a discussion involving significant romantic partners. Which she is considering she had a ring on her finger.
I would have loved seeing Laurel being an ADA but we stopped seeing that because the EPs felt those scenes didn’t bring enough gravitas. From the moment she became BC, that’s all her character was about. This is not a recent development. It’s almost as if the writers/audience value vigilante heroism more than actual realistic heroism. when it comes to her. Understandable considering the genre but the whole point is to be both at the same time. If the writers can’t do both, I’m fine with it but I’m don’t have to be interested.
As for Oliver, he’s always in deep sh*t because it’s what the show has always been. Just when he thinks he’s got it together, they have to bring him down because he’s the main character of a very dramatic show and he’s a superhero with a very dramatic back story and no superpowers and star city is a dark dark place. You signed up for this. You can check out of it because the writers don’t owe you anything and you don’t owe them anything in return.
It is a huge mistake. Made so that the Olicity fans can now have a smooth road. Which is amazing. Think of Batman, Harry Potternow think if they killed off Selina Kyle or Vicki Vale, Herminoe Granger or Ginny Weasley. That is what they did when they killed the charecter!!!!!!!!
Kill Laurel was a big mistake of fact. She had so much potential to be explored and she in fact the only real heroine of the series.
Since the first episode, it was clear to all that “Dinah Laurel Lance, always trying to save the world.”
She was a heroine from the beginning, enquando Oliver still see the mask as a burden.
Sara was a killer, all the “good” things she did was influenced by Oliver, the punica thing she did was to kill at will misogynist thugs. When Sara was taking a decição arise from them to help someone ALWAYS involved killing. Sara is at most an anti-heroine. She made her own righteousness.
Lyla never had enough room to turn out to be a true hero in fact, she is a soldier. She works serving someone higher.
Thea is a heroine, but a heroine without purpose. Why does she wear the mask? What is her motivation?
Felicity Smoak … please. All the good she did was at the request of Oliver, or because he was jealous. When Oliver disappeared in season 3, she was the first to give a “fuck you” and leave the Team Arrow. Now in season 4 she helped Team hidden Arrow Oliver because he missed the adrenaline, not to help people. And again dropped the Arrow team because he can not work with Oliver … she was a real heroine, this does not hinder her. It is NOT a hero.
Laurel was the only Arrow’s real heroine. She was the beacon of hope to fans that the series could improve. She was my beacon of hope when I went through difficulties. And now she’s gone.
No Laurel. no black canary, I’m not coming back to attend Arrow.
The fact that you clearly degraded all the ladies’ hero status to prop up Laurel contradicts one of the points in this article, especially Felicity, by reducing her to the love interest, something that Laurel once was. The problem is that when she was the main character’s love interest, that’s the only purpose she served. Which cannot be said for Felicity considering all the storylines she’s had as an individual character. Nice attempt. Lyla is a soldier but so is Diggle. The rules don’t mean anything to them from the moment they go against what they believe in, which is justice. Thea wears the mask because of the darkness arounds her. Lost her entire family, found out she’s the daughter of the demon, literally, and then forged herself into a hero the moment she used that anger to help people, even if it means risking her own life. Same thing can be said about Felicity. It is an actual line in 4×17 when she told Thea she wasn’t in it for the thrill, and never was. She joined team arrow in the first place because she wanted to find Walter. She put herself in jeopardy with undercover missions because she wanted to find a person she barely knows but who was nice to her. She convinced Oliver to come back because she knows her purpose is to help people and she knows it’s his purpose too. She quit team arrow after the break up and the first thing she wants to do is market the technology that made her walk and make it affordable for regular people. This is the closest you’ll get to a realistic portrayal of a hero. No matter how hard you try and how much you want it, you cannot reduce her to a love interest because the writing doesn’t support it.
And then there’s Sara. Sara is the most honest representation of an anti-heroine (a word that I’ve seen being applied to Merlyn who is a class A villain) but Sara has a lot of potential to evolve into a superhero. Or not. Either way, it’s an interesting story (that happens to be on another show). These words cannot be applied to any of the Laurel Lance’s storyline since a long long time.
Well said.
I have to wonder that if the group of nonFans currently organizing get their way, and destroy Arrow because the show had the audacity to write their own version of the main protagonist’s journey, WHY would any other company or network EVER want to do a comic book show again? Their hands would be forever tied by the dictates of a entirely different medium.
That doesn’t seem very conducive to creativity to me. Nor would the almost complete lack of control over your own project, be very encouraging to the idea of spending the millions of dollars necessary to create and produce a new show.
Many of the those complaining the loudest and the most crudely, readily admit they don’t, and haven’t watched Arrow for weeks, if not months. It’s the very definition of “mob mentality.”
As the situation stands right now, one person has lost their job. If successful in destroying Arrow, hundreds will be out of work. Hundreds of “real” live people, who will not have a bunch of livid fans on twitter trying to find work for “them”.
I should also have said this: Arrow has the rest of S4 and S5. Either it gets an S6, or it doesn’t. Either way, “I” will be there for however many more episodes it gets. Proudly.
“nonFans”? This is a joke right? The “REALFans” are organizing BECAUSE they were fans of the show and the writers of Arrow have been absolute idiots since midway through Season 3. And it’s one thing to “write their own version of the main protagonist’s journey”, but involving Green Arrow… Black Canary is always THE constant you HAVE to have. They’re too busy working on this idiotic Olicity ship and left Laurel out to dry on MORE than one occasion that it was NO surprise when they killed off Laurel… And THAT is the sad part. They just do NOT care. So why shouldn’t the REAL fans of the show the Arrow writers what their major LACK of caring has brought them? “BUT BUT BUT they’re going to have Laurel pop up again as an Earth 2 counterpart” blah blah blah. THAT is not the same
Here’s a brand new information. Comic canon is not a factor. It was not from the very first season. It was not from the moment Thea and Sara and Tommy and Diggle and Felicity and Moira (etc) existed, it was not when we found out Roy wasn’t Oliver’s adopted son or when Shado didn’t rape Oliver or when Oliver cheated on Laurel several times. OH WAIT. You got your wish on that last one.
The writers don’t owe you anything. Get that. They showed you that in the pilot. They never owed you anything because of the comics. Comics are not the holy grail of superhero shows because you’re working with real actors, it’s not you and your pencil. Some storylines work, some don’t. Some actors have chemistry, and some really don’t. Therefore, since your whole argument is resting on her comic book persona and her comics relationship with Oliver, it’s not really an argument. The fact is the actress got fired, and she probably got fired for reasons beyond story-telling from what I’ve seen. I’m sorry that your anger of losing a favorite character is blinding your judgement.
But here’s the thing, every time you blame “olicity” for killing Laurel, which are, by the way, two different entities and have been for a long time, Laurel’s worth as a character is reduced to a third party in a love triangle that never really existed. At least not in the CW standards. I can appreciate the irony. While you’re venting out your anger, you’re also managing to bring the character you claim to love, down with you.
Wow… You’re an opinionated little fuckwit aren’t you? Going on the attack out of nowhere. Got news for you bub, if you are going to do an “adaptation” you have to actually honor your source material. If you can’t be creative enough to make an adaptation your own without shitting on 70 years of legacy then you don’t need to be making the adaptation.
The source material was honored when she became BC. The source material that showed you how messed up GA/BC were, considering their marriage ended in divorce because of cheating + other factors, that was honored too. Source material doesn’t mean the ending has to be the same. That being said, didn’t BC die in Injustice? This opinionated little fuckwit can back up her arguments with facts instead of resorting to name calling.
The only mistake was the time they waited to kill her. The show will be so much better without her
It’s going to be much worse. Just wait and see.
So it’s going to be much worse if you really liked the character they killed but for those that are indifferent to it, the show is still awesome since her character really didn’t affect much else. GA is still GA as are all the other characters and if nothing else, it will bring out some awesome performances in the coming weeks. That was the intention of the writers. So this bickering is just pointless.
Totally agree, she was a nausiating pain in the *ss and I’m glad she’s dead and gone.
Huge mistake and it does nothing but prove the incompetence of the writing staff when it comes to Laurel Lance. Also, a lack of imagination as well. Why even add her to show in the beginning anyway? Made her an attorney yet we barely saw any courtroom drama.
They gave her an abysmal origin story that nearly everyone hated, made her into a superhero without showing any of the hard work she put into it and then had the audacity to kill her off just when she finally found herself. Oh and also had the nerve to not even give her a GRAND death.
I only hope Earth-2 Laurel Lance gets better treatment and respect than her Earth-1 counterpart. The writers on The Flash will probably do better with Black Siren in one or two episodes than the Arrow writers did with Black Canary in 4 seasons and they should feel ashamed.
You’re talking as if she was the main character – which she wasn’t. This was NOT ‘Black Canary’, this is ‘Arrow’. A show which uses the characters from the comics, but has freely admitted for YEARS that they were writing their own interpretation…..with permission from DC comics! It all comes down to this – Laurel was the one character whose death would move the storylines along, but wouldn’t send the protagonist (Oliver Queen, if anyone forgot) backwards in his progression to a fully formed superhero.
There’s also the fact – and her fans may not like this- that she just did not connect with the audience at large. She had a fanbase who seemed more interested in pushing for comic storylines and complaining that other characters were getting screen time, than they were pushing for GOOD storylines. There was never a spark between Laurel and Oliver (the whole cheating and sister swapping storylines put an end to the idea that viewers would ever see them as a ‘fated love story’) and in modern tv land viewers need to connect with a ‘ship’.
Also, I may not be a huge DC comics fan but even I know Black Canary and Green Arrow are not always together.
I also have to majorly disagree with another of your comments- there was no major and immediate backlash. Her fans couldn’t even get their hashtag- or even her name, in her last episode!- to trend worldwide, which in a social media driven world means this wasn’t even a murmur. Also, sending death threats to the writers…..that’s an easy way to make sure she’s never seen again, even in future flashbacks.
The best way to know they didn’t give a damn about the character is that they keep referring to her as the black canary and not Laurel Lance. It’s probably why they also don’t give a damn about Oliver’s personal relationships that are not comic canon and are more eager for comics easter eggs to drop than the story presented to them.
The backlash wasn’t near as monumental as her fans thought it would be. If they only surround themselves with her fanbase, of course that’s all they’ll see. But when her name doesn’t trend and she just died, she wasn’t that loved by the majority, only a vocal minority. Meanwhile, “arrow”, “oliver”, “felicity” and I think even “diggle” trended.
I’m just so amazed by the hypocrisy in the argument that Arrow can’t go on without Laurel but having them say – at the same time – this show is about Oliver and not Felicity, who had like 2 minutes of screen time in the last episode. Outstanding logic.
The fact that so many people are debating over it, proves the point. And having said that i like all the characters on the show, laurel had her shares of ups and downs and grew along. The writer’s dint hve the skills to write better for her or any character, proves their incompetence nothing else. That character deserved a better ending. I feel her death was poorly written because the writer’s themselves were confused.
People are debating over this because it’s a controversial decision. A lot of people strongly agree with their decision and a lot of people strongly disagree. Controversial. It’s why it was the smartest move to kill her off and not any other character who would have caused more uproar than discussions. The writers were confused with Laurel from the start. Watching her make decisions was like getting whiplash thus she worked better when she was in the background. But when she became invisible, she became the n°1 candidate for a lifetime seat on that grave. You said they never knew how to write her properly and yet she deserved a better ending. Proper writing compared to what exactly? If they ‘never’ knew how to write her, why do you seem to care about the way they’ve written her off?