How the Arrow writers have done right by Olicity
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We here at The TV Junkies are big ‘shippers and one of our favourite ships is Olicity from Arrow. If you’re a fan of Arrow then you know there is something special between Oliver Queen (Stephen Amell) and Felicity Smoak (Emily Bett Rickards), and for a lot of us that special relationship is what keeps us coming back week after week.
Mixed in between the great stories and impressive action sequences, the Arrow writers have unsuspectingly snuck in an incredibly sweet, endearing and addictive love story. They haven’t thrown it in our faces or teased it out over for 4 long seasons, but rather they’ve eased us into it in the most perfect of ways. Here’s a review of just how they’ve done it.
A slow build that’s not too slow
We first saw signs of Oliver and Felicity’s chemistry back in Season 1 (remember that scene with the red pen?) but instead of throwing them together right away the writers let their chemistry build and simmer over a few seasons. The fans jumped on the Olicity bandwagon early on in Season 2 and with that fan support, the writers knew they were heading in the right direction.

With many other shows out there who plan to eventually get their two leads together it tends to be a long, drawn out process that feels like it takes forevers. Many have taken four or five seasons before their characters ever even admit that they have feeling for each other. This can be frustrating as a viewer and even cause some to stop tuning in. The Arrow writers have thankfully taken a different route in their slow build. We’ve known since early Season 2 that both Oliver and Felicity had feelings for each other and we knew that eventually it would become something serious.

They have stepped away from the original comics
Moving away from the original storylines in comic book adaptations can be risky, especially when there are hard core comic book fans out there, but the Arrow writers seem to have found the perfect way to change things. In doing so, they are making the fans happy and giving them a great story to follow.
In the comics, Oliver and Laurel Lance are married (at least until they divorce and she moves away) but here in the TV show it’s been a different story. Many fans have developed a strong dislike for Laurel and it seems like the writers have caught on to that dislike. Laurel, or The Black Canary, is still a large part of the show but (thankfully) not as a love interest for Oliver.
Felicity isn’t even in the original comics — at least not the Felicity Smoak that we know and love. In fact she wasn’t even supposed to be a major character in the show. Emily Bett Rickards was hired for one day of work back in Season 1 but the showrunners (and the fans) saw the incredible chemistry between her and Amell and thankfully decided to keep her around. The rest, as they say, is history.

They aren’t sitting around pining for one another
Felicity isn’t waiting around for Oliver to figure things out. She isn’t sitting around at home all sad and lonely thinking about what could have been with Oliver. That’s not who she is. She’s moving on, she’s living her life, and she’s trying to be happy without him. As hard as it is to watch Ray Palmer (Brandon Routh) and Felicity together, it’s nice to see that she is still putting herself out there. She may not be over Oliver, but she’s doing her best to keep him out of her head and to be happy.

There’s no awkwardness between the two of them (besides Felicity’s usual awkwardness). Felicity and Oliver are adults and they are behaving as such. They have not let one bad date ruin their professional relationship. They continue to work together and work well together at that. Yes we get the occasional snarky remark from Felicity or longing look from both sides but they continue to keep things profession in the Arrow cave.

Felicity & Oliver continue to be awesome individuals
Felicity is still an integral part of Team Arrow and continues to help out in their mission to save the city. She is also working with Ray and has helped him develop his Atom suit and set him well on his way into his mission of saving the city. (Felicity really does have a type doesn’t she?)
For his part, Oliver has continued on his mission to save his city, he battled Ra’s to protect his sister and has teamed up with Malcolm Merlyn (his sworn enemy) in order to better prepare himself for future battles.
They give the fans bread crumbs
Even though Oliver and Felicity have yet to hook up, the writers aren’t leaving the fans begging and pleading for more. They have given us fans these tiny, yet amazing moments to keep us satisfied.
The looks

Yeah those looks

Mhmmmm…

Those amazing Oliver & Diggle’s talks

The date

I know you remember the date

That kiss in the hospital

That other kiss

This moment

And that unbelievable forehead kiss

These moments give us hope. Even though Oliver has said that he can’t be with anyone right now.

And Felicity said this.

We know that it’s not over
The second half of this season has been a little short on Olicity. Those special moments are still there but lately they have been few and far between. The writers have used this time, and used this time well, to develop the story, a story that will eventually bring Oliver and Felicity back together. I think some fans were actually starting to think that maybe it really was over between the two of them, maybe it was time to give up hope. Then they saw that promo. That unbelievable promo. You know the one we’re talking about. We know we weren’t the only ones squealing in happiness when we saw it, and we’re pretty sure we weren’t the only ones watching a certain part over and over again. It’s happening guys. It’s really happening. OK we’ve watched enough TV to know it will probably get interrupted, or end short, or be in a dream, but we don’t care. We are still getting something and we could not be more excited to see it!

Are you as excited as we are about that Olicity hookup? How do you think Arrow writers have done dealing with this relationships? What is your favourite thing about Olicity? Sound off and share your thoughts with us in the comments below.
Just for good measure let’s take one last look at that promo here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WFk7uixvN9s
Arrow airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET on the CW.
Christy! Thank you for this article! It is perfection! Bless you for stating the obvious that they are the LEADS of this show & ‘ship. Your article is like a love letter to Olicity! A slow burn but we are working our way to that relationship! Again, thank you very much for this article!
LOOOOVE THIS!!! Episode 3×20 needs to come faster.
Love the Oliver and Felicity relationship, both the friendship and the romance. It does something to both of their characters that makes each one better. I can’t figure it out and don’t care. All I know is they’re fun as heck to watch on the screen, hot as hades given that new promo, and they just make watching Arrow every week something I look forward to. You can’t beat that with a stick.
Thank you! The Arrow writers really have done a wonderful job with Oliver and Felicity, in general and, yes, even this season. I just enjoy watching them and rooting for them. There is such love, respect and trust there. And both Stephen Amell and Emily Bett Rickards have been amazing, imbuing this couple with their special chemistry. In Oliver and Felicity, the Arrow writers have truly created something epic.
You’re more optimistic about the portrayal of their relationship than I am. Though I loved them in the first two seasons, I think the writers screwed it up this year. They skipped over all the fun, flirty slow burn stuff and went straight to them crying and yelling all the time. It’s been too tortured and not fun to watch. I agree with your point about how it’s great that she didn’t stick around and pine for him, but I don’t understand how they’re going to believably move Felicity from being in a serious relationship with Ray to sleeping with Oliver in the span of one episode without damaging her character.
When have they yelled and cried about their relationship? Of course in the Sara’s death episode they had one heartbreaking scene, but that was about lossing a team member and them handling the pain differently. It had nothing to do with their relationship drama. Of course when they first had their fallout their was tension but that was over pretty quick. Felicity has been her sweet self around the team and Oliver has been more brooding but I blame that on the stress of the current plot line. I’m not disagreeing with wanting more of the flurry stuff we missed over the summer but I guess the writers just assumed people understood the seven months over the summer were like the happy couple we saw in the season opener.
Awesome article. I may be unhappy with a number of things in Arrow season three, but Oliver and Felicity seem to be the one thing they have yet to disappoint me over. I love the slow burn great love story they’re telling. This is how the story of true love is built. And what’s most important is the respect and deep friendship, and unwavering trust that exists between the two. I can’t wait to continue on this journey with them.
This is such a great article!And I agree with all of it!The writers have done an amazing job with Olicity and the show in general and I really hope that keep sticking to that.Oh and that trailer was definietly the best 16 seconds of my life!<3
This is spot on!! I know a lot of Olicity haters and Laurel/Oliver fans complain the show is all about Olicity drama, but I don’t see it that way at all. It’s been such a minor part of the air time but the few moments we have fit into the main story so well. Oliver is on a journey this year and figuring out his relationship with Felicity is part of that journey. Ray and Felicity are adorable but we know they are both still in love with other people but they have each other for support and love. Can’t wait for this weeks team up between Ray and Oliver and I’m SUPER excited for the sex next week. lol!! 🙂
I love Oliver and Felicity even though i think the writers create too much melodrama this season to delay them getting together. I hate love triangles and unfortunately i hate Arrow’s too. I just hope Oliver and Felicity are gonna be in better terms next year without pointless drama getting in their way but with the fun(some comedy would be good) flirty banter we show in the premiere. Even if the writing is weak this season, i think the actors have even better chemistry than last season so its hard to not ship for Olicity to happen!
Oliver and Felicity’s love story is very special. It stemmed from the natural chemistry between Stephen And Emily. You can’t deny a connection like that. Even in a group shot where they could be standing in different corners of the scene, you can still feel the connection between them.
Totally agree with you. The chemistry was immediate and universal to Oliver’s character transformation. Felicity lit up the screen with wit and charm. Emily and Stephen light up the room at Paleyfest and interviews. I love them together.
Thank you for the article. I appreciate your belief in this season’s storytelling. I have loved season’s 1 and 2. However, this season is not my thing. I’ve missed the comradory of Team Arrow. I’ve missed the humor that Olicity had brought to the show. This season has been a huge downer with the over the top drama. Not a fan of love triangles. Nor am I a fan of a couple of Arrow’s characters. I just soon do without them. Season 3 has been a season to develop them and make them fit into their hero place in the comics. I adore Olicity and look forward to 3/20 and beyond. I just want to end this season and move on. This is how little I’ve cared for season 3.
Thanks for this article. Yes, I’m as excited that you are by Olicity. It was a very difficult season for Oliver & Felicity, painful to watch actually but also necessary to make them grow… I’m glad they’ll have this moment in 3×20 & I hope the writers will go easy on them from now.
If you’re a fan of Arrow then you know there is something special between Oliver Queen (Stephen [Amell) and Felicity Smoak (Emily Bett Rickards), and for a lot of us that special relationship is what keeps us coming back week after week.]
{ In doing so, they are making the fans happy and giving them a great story to follow.}
You really need to stop speaking for every fan this is bad journalism.
[Even though Oliver and Felicity have yet to hook up, the writers aren’t leaving the fans begging and pleading for more. They have given us fans these tiny, yet amazing moments to keep us satisfied.]
Pretty much admitting to fan pandering.
Great article summarizing this epic romance. Totally on point. The writers have developed two strong, independent characters (who also happen to be quite outwardly gorgeous) who also fit so well together as a couple. Their chemistry is so obvious!
I love Olicity a lot. Oliver and Felicity are perfect together
and I hope they end up together and stay together for a long time.