i went whispering as i pass myself down to my knees

[redbrunja]

There is a really interesting article with (one of the?) the exec producer(s) of Arrow. It’s vaguely spoilery with a few specifics thrown in. (The deciding factor on whether or not I read it was that there was no way tumblr wasn’t going to be quoting the hell out of it without tagging for spoilers, so, why bother not reading it?)

vonnie_k pretty much lays out my thoughts on what the article means in a way more articulate manner than I could manage today right here.

I will add, that I find the comments about being willing to throw out the plan promising in regards to Oliver and Felicity having a consummated relationship at some point, although I wish they’d apply them to Laurell. I’m sure it’s hard to handle all the hate for Laurel but she’s just not working on pretty much any level (and fyi, it is NOT that hard to take a character from public defender to vigilante, in fact, with a more dynamic character it is easier than taking a self-absorbed rich dickhead to vigilante) but Laurel is just not working, and I don’t think a four episode arc about her drug addiction is going to make me care.

The other thing is that I am tentatively excited for the possibility of a Felicity-heavy season three. That could be fabulous, and I'd love if Felicity's silence about her life in general was actually a semi-conscious choice by the character. Like, she had a happy childhood and something bad happened when she was mid-to-late teens and she kind of boxed it up? And choose to be/present herself as a very happy person? And/or didn't let herself spiral down into grief? That could be awesome (and a fantastic contrast to how both Oliver and Diggle deal -or don't- with tragedy.)

Comments

[errant-shadows.livejournal.com]

Laurel is boring and the prospect of a multi-episode Laurel-centric story arc does not interest me in the slightest. At this point I am not even sure they could legitimately transition her into Black Canary at all. Given the amount of grief she's given the Arrow, I can't see it happening without her coming off as the worst sort of hypocrite.

And yet she's why I can't invest in Sara as the Canary at all, because the only future I see for the character is a bloody death which the writers will use as a catalyst for Laurel becoming the Canary herself. It's hard to give a damn about a character when her whole storyline screams temporary. But the writers have been making huge mistakes with the Lance girls from the very beginning. For one thing, the actress they used in the pilot for Sara was a brunette, which made sense, since a blonde wig for a blonde girl doesn't seem like the best disguise.

I would have thought after the obvious problems that came up with Laurel in season one, the writers would have been driven to rectify the situation in season two, and yet she's basically fallen into bitchy obscurity - but they're still determine to see her become Black Canary. All right, we'll go there, but I can't see it working very well, and I hope they bear in mind that superhero titles can be passed on and Laurel may be a Black Canary, but she doesn't have to be the last one. If it will work better for the show, I hope they'll eventually ditch her and bring in someone worthy of the name, whether or not they put the new person in a relationship with Oliver.

As for Felicity, I'm kind of leery of the idea of going into detail with her backstory. She's awesome as she is, on personality alone - rare commodity - and a tragic, angsty back story did not work for Laurel at all, and the last thing I want is for Felicity to be cast in the role of Laurel Mk. II. A small connection to canon is okay - like Thea's middle name being Dearden (revealed during her Vertigo court case) as a connection to the second Speedy - but I don't want her background to come out in a way that's detrimental to her character. Sure, I'd like to learn more about her, but I think we know more than we realise already.

She's not a natural blonde, so she probably grew up as a mousy-haired, bespectacled, skinny girl, and she probably blossomed after her awkward teenage years - maybe during her time at MIT. The fact that she's an incredibly smart geek with a tendency to babble would mean that she likely had very few friends - other kids would either be intimidated by her intelligence, unable to share her interests, or scornful of her babbling. Her "pot brownie" experience was the only time she'd come close to breaking the law outside of hacking, so she would have been well-behaved and generally respectful of her elders. Due to her looks she's probably often underestimated in her field - young, pretty, verbally-incontinent blonde girl doesn't exactly scream badass cyber geek. She has a strong moral character, and is willing to stand up to Oliver knowing what he can do - probably the only person who is, even more than Dig - though she's willing to break the law to do the right thing, and put herself at risk to do so. She's never mentioned any family or friends and when Barry asked what she was doing for Christmas, apart from saying she's Jewish she didn't mention anything about plans for the holidays or spending time with her family - which means she probably doesn't have many close relatives, if any.

So if they do delve into her history, I hope they work with what they've already established (which I happen to like about her) rather than trying to rewrite everything. I honestly don't think she needs much development, and she's generally a happy person, so I don't think a big personal tragedy would work for her.

[vonniek.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the plug. :) The producers seem wedded to the idea of making Laurel Black Canary (sigh) and it's interesting they turn around and mention in the same breath about how plans are awesome but it's more important they know when to break them when the story demand it. I know show regulars sign, like, 5 or 7 year contracts at the onset, but hey, they killed off Tommy in S1 (from what I hear, this was not their plan from the beginning) after giving him some great character beats in the second half of S1. They can do the same for Laurel! COME ON, YOU CAN DO IT.

Like, she had a happy childhood and something bad happened when she was mid-to-late teens and she kind of boxed it up?

This totally works for me. I'm, like, 80% determined in my headcanon that Felicity is an orphan. I mean, she doesn't even go home for the holidays! They has to be a reason for that.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

You’re welcome!

The producers seem wedded to the idea of making Laurel Black Canary (sigh) and it's interesting they turn around and mention in the same breath about how plans are awesome but it's more important they know when to break them when the story demand it.

Yeah, that struck me as really weird, too. Because if they’re willing to change the plan (which they are, by word and by deed) why are they so invested in one of the biggest elements of the show that isn’t working, ESPECIALLY when it is 100% doable to write Laurel out in several really respectful ways?

I would love Felicity as someone who was orphaned in her mid-teens.