In the past TV shows based on comic books haven’t been as successful as they potentially could have been. When Arrow was first broadcast on the CW network back in 2012, no one could have predicted how successful the program would be. As it turns out six years later, the gritty dark take on the Green Arrow graphic novels was a winning formula.
Before joining the cast of Arrow; Stephen Amell and Katie Cassidy were both previously unknown actors, despite having many roles previously, including in Supernatural and The Vampire Diaries although both roles were short lived. To date a few famous faces have had supporting roles, the most notable one being John Barrowman as Malcolm Merlyn – father of Tommy Merlyn, Oliver’s best friend. However, despite this and Malcolm later being revealed as Thea Queen’s true father, Oliver and Malcolm have been at odds with each other throughout five seasons of Arrow. This hasn’t prevented the pair from working together when the situation required it but there has always been a clear distrust and even a spark of hatred between them. Although Malcolm himself hasn’t done much to improve his relationship with the Queen’s, even manipulating his own daughter to further his own plans, at the end of season five he sacrificed himself in order for Thea, Oliver and the rest of the team to escape.
Over the six seasons of Arrow, Oliver Queen’s secret identity has been known to a variety of different people, most of these have survived against the odds and have become part of his team – it eventually being christened Team Arrow by Roy Harper after he joins the team. Oliver Queen, John Diggle – Oliver’s former bodyguard – and Felicity Smoak – Oliver’s former lovestruck secretary – are the three original and founding members of Team Arrow and form a solid foundation for the team. Their ability to speak freely with each other and know each others next move allows them to work seamlessly together and keep each other on the right track; this becomes a useful skill as in season five they recruit five new members of Team Arrow and all three founding members are forced to use all the knowledge they have gained over the first four years of protecting Starling City to train the new recruits to be able to assist them in keeping the city safe.
