Arrow season 8 is the show’s last run and, if this new clip from its premiere episode tells us anything, it’s going to go heavy on the nostalgia and isn’t afraid to give the fans what they want.
This minute-long slice of footage from the season 8 opener, “Starling City,” takes the form of a near shot-for-shot remake of the first minute of Arrow‘s pilot episode from all those years ago. Just as in the original, it sees Oliver Queen finally rescued from the island of Lian Yu. But there’s one small difference that tells us this is not the same reality that we’re used to: in place of Deathstroke’s helmet on a pike is instead…Batman’s cowl!
Remember at the end of season 7, the Monitor took the Emerald Archer with him in advance of the incoming Crisis that threatens the entire multiverse. As such, we can expect season 8 to dip into other universes. In the first episode alone, Oliver will find himself in a world where his mother Moira is still alive and married to Malcolm Merlyn. Which makes his old pal Tommy his step-brother.
The Monitor’s narration in this clip also introduces a concept that will no doubt prove key to season 8 and “Crisis on Infinite Earths.” He speaks of “Paragons,” heroes of such importance that the fate of reality rests on their shoulders. We’re left to assume that the Green Arrow is one of these paragons. As we know, he’s destined to die in the crossover, presumably in a sacrificial act that’ll save the multiverse. Though fans are still anticipating a twist in the tale somewhere.
Arrow season 8 will run for 10 episodes, with most of them offering a salute to seasons gone by. The premiere obviously tips its hat to season 1 and you can catch it on The CW tonight, after The Flash.
