Even the most ardent Arrowverse fans would agree that the founding father of the shared DC TV universe has had a mixed bag of seasons since it began in 2012. Arrow‘s first two outings were excellent before the rails started to come off in season 3 and then things hit rock bottom in season 4. Season 5, meanwhile, was a massive improvement but unfortunately, season 6 mostly failed to keep this level of quality going.
What Arrow probably needs, then, is to take a look at its earlier seasons to remember how it works at its best. Thankfully, that seems to be exactly what it’s doing. Beth Schwarz is stepping in as showrunner for season 7 and one of the series’ stars is promising that she’ll take Arrow back to its roots. And he should know, because it’s Colton Haynes AKA Roy Harper/Arsenal, who’s finally returning as a regular this season after a few years away.
Here’s what he had to tease about the new run while speaking to ComicBook.com:
“I can’t say much, but we’re returning back to our roots on the show. Not the characters, but the show — We’re going back to how we were a couple of seasons ago. But it’s going to just be so good. Beth Schwartz, our new showrunner, is just — She’s a dream. She’s changing everything and she’s making everything the way I think the show was at the beginning.”
Season 7 certainly will shake up Arrow‘s status quo. The end of the season 6 finale saw Oliver Queen finally outed as the Green Arrow, leaving him to be carted off to jail for his vigilantism. When we next see the Emerald Archer, he’ll be locked up in Slabside Maximum Security Prison where he’ll have to fight to survive alongside the very criminals he put in there. Star Stephen Amell has teased that Ollie will have to get his hands dirty to make it out alive, too, as he’ll have to do something “reprehensible.”
But how exactly will season 7 recapture the magic of the first run? Well, Beth Schwarz herself has promised that the tone of the season will be much darker than what we’ve got used to and will return to the grittier demeanor of Arrow‘s debut run. She also teased that “there’s lots of demons” that will come out to roost when season 7 makes its premiere on The CW on Monday, October 15th.
