Arrow‘s cast and crew have been pretty clear about the flashbacks being a thing of the past, as it were, but the CW drama has (at least) one more big flashback coming. And while some fans may already be already letting out a huge sigh, it’s one we all want to see. Unfortunately, it isn’t a flashback in which we see Vigilante’s secret alter ego donning his mask for the first time, but it is definitely important. Stephen Amell shares more on the flashback fans can expect to see in the Season 6 premiere below:
“There are flashbacks in the first episode that take us back to the immediate aftermath of the events in the finale. Which is one of the reasons that I had to shave my beard, so I could match up with [the finale].”
If you take this Stephen Amell quote from the most recent Heroes & Villains Fan Fest panel (via ComicBook.com), and then blend that with the same info we learned from Arrow co-creator Marc Guggenheim a couple months ago, it looks like we won’t be waiting long at all to find out some big answers regarding who’s alive and who’s dead following the explosive Lian Yu showdown. Whatever carnage unfolded on the island will apparently be covered in full in the premiere’s timespan, as Amell went on to confirm that the second episode of Season 6 will not feature any flashbacks whatsoever.
There’s also the possibility that viewers will only see Oliver’s account of the events from that episode, since Stephen Amell also hinted that elsewhere in Season 6, we’ll see flashbacks focusing on other characters. It’s not known whether all the answers regarding the explosive showdown will come in the premiere episode of Season 6, or if some facts will perhaps get stretched throughout the whole season. After all, it’s more than possible that Oliver thinks a certain character is dead in the premiere only for that person to be alive in some future episode shocker, with a non-Oliver flashback showing how he or she survived the explosion on Lian Yu.
The news also appears to confirm that Arrow‘s premiere will be jumping ahead in time to possibly link up alongside The Flash, as a good flashback can’t really take place without enough time progressing. Considering the two shows are set to crossover this year and are set in the same world, it makes sense the showrunners would try to keep the timelines somewhat consistent between both shows. Hopefully Team Arrow is in better shape than it appears to be, since Team Flash isn’t currently in a position to spare anyone to help Star City, what with Barry trapped in the speed force.
Arrow will return to The CW for Season 6 on its new night, Thursday, October 12th, at 9 p.m. ET on The CW.
