Season four of Arrow comes back this Wednesday, October 7! So let’s catch up on the craziness that happened in season three before the new season premieres.
Season three consisted of a few plot lines but most of them revolved around the League of Assassins, which was catapulted from Sara’s violent murder in the beginning of the season and ended in Oliver facing and killing Ra’s al Ghul and giving the title to Malcolm Merlyn. The League storyline stretches across the season, and is slowly integrated with the flashbacks of Oliver’s time in Hong Kong alongside Maseo Yamashiro and his family, wife Tasu and son Akio.
In the present storyline, Maseo and his wife, Tatsu, are estranged. It’s heavily hinted that a tragedy occurred in the past to their son, Akio. It’s revealed that in their time in Hong Kong, Oliver and Maseo discover the creation of a virus called the Alpha/Omega. We find out that a General Shrieve plans to release the virus on Hong Kong. After successfully doing so, Maseo and Tatsu watch their son die, having been vaccinated themselves along with Oliver. This causes a rift between the couple and leads to Maseo joining the League, and the virus is later obtained by Ra’s.
Taking the title of Al Sah-him after joining the League, he is trained and broken by Ra’s. During this time, when he is acting as Ra’s heir, he destroys his relationship with Diggle after kidnapping Lyla and almost killing Diggle. Although Olive reveals that this was all a ruse set up by him and Malcolm in order to take down the League, his actions as Al Sah-him have permanently damaged his relationship with Diggle, or at the very least their trust.
She’s not the only superhero in the making, after Roy publicly takes the fall as the Arrow he fakes his own death in order to make the city believe that the Arrow is dead and leaves town. He leaves his mantle to Thea, who has been training with Malcolm Merlyn. After being told about her hand in Sara’s death, Thea becomes extremely estranged from Malcolm.
She is brought to Lian Yu to train alongside Oliver and learns about his identity and his past. After being killed by Ra’s as part of a lure to bring Oliver in as Ra’s heir, she is brought back to live from the Lazarus Pit. It’s still up in the air on the effects of the pit, but it undeniably messed with her mind. The second half of the season showed Oliver trying to keep the darkness from taking over Thea, especially in her desire to kill Malcolm. He wants her to have a relationship with her biological father. By the end of the season, she has adopted the role of Speedy, fighting crime alongside the team and taking Roy’s place.
The season ends on a high note for Oliver. Although it seems like Damien Darhk is on the rise as the new villain, the team has proven that they can function without him and still protect the city. They still have a purpose even without the Arrow leading the team. It’s up in the air on how Oliver will return back to fight in Starling City, but it’s clear from the marketing that season four doesn’t just bring back the Arrow, but the Green Arrow.
![[farfarawaysite.com]](http://www.nerdophiles.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/arrow1-470x235.jpg)