The first episode of Arrow's fourth season showed Oliver Queen in a graveyard scene, and the promo released on March 30 gave us an idea that viewers will finally get to find out whose fresh grave he is visiting.
Arrow's Facebook page has already hinted that Team Arrow will fall apart in the previous episode - which it definitely did - so now the producers and cast will explain why it had to happen.
Do not scroll down if you have not watched episode 18 titled "Eleven-Fifty-Nine."
Spoilers Ahead!
The Black Canary is dead and, yes, that is her grave that Queen was in front of in the first episode. It is all because Damien Darhk wanted to show Quentin Lance that it was a bad idea to betray him so he makes good on his threats.
Executive Producer Marc Guggenheim revealed that they did not originally have Laurel's death in mind at the beginning of the season even if they did tease a character death. He explained that the creative team explored different possibilities before they decided on killing off the Black Canary.
"[We] realized that the thing that will give us the most pop going into the end of the season and going into next season unfortunately would be Laurel," he said.
As for Katie Cassidy who plays the recently deceased member of Arrow's team, there are no hard feelings. Cassidy says she understands why the creative team decided to take out her character.
"I think the shock value is good. It gives you such a jolt and it's such a turn in the story that it gives [the writers] so much more to do and places to go with it," she said.
As for all the negativity and hate that the creative team has most likely been receiving since the episode aired, Guggenheim says they were prepared for it.
"We recognize that that upsets a lot of fans [...] but at the same time we've always made no bones about the fact that we are telling our own version of the Green Arrow mythos," he explained.
Executive Producer Wendy Mericle is already looking at the devastating aftermath of the Black Canary's demise. She said that, just as in real life, the characters of the Arrowverse will have to face the aftermath.
"The episodes we've written in the aftermath are devastating. They're meant to be. We wanted to explore that and to really have everybody feel the impact of this loss, because it is significant," she said.
But it is not the end of Laurel Lance or Black Canary and Katie Cassidy in the DC Universe.
For starters, Cassidy will show up in flashbacks in the next episode of Arrow, titled "Canary Cry," and she will be playing the same role in season two of Vixen. Cassidy will also take the identity Black Siren, her Earth-2 counterpart, in The Flash.
Another exciting new prospect Guggenheim revealed is that Oliver Queen will meet the Laurel Lance of Earth-2 somewhere down the line and the series will be opening up the concept of time travel in the Arrowverse.
But will someone else take over as Black Canary now that Laurel Lance has passed? We'll just have to stay tuned in the next episode as the team will be discussing that.
