The fourth season of the American television series ''
Arrow
An arrow is a fin-stabilized projectile launched by a bow. A typical arrow usually consists of a long, stiff, straight shaft with a weighty (and usually sharp and pointed) arrowhead attached to the front end, multiple fin-like stabilizers c ...
'' premiered on
The CW
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
on October 7, 2015, and concluded on May 25, 2016, with a total of 23 episodes. The series is based on the
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery.
DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...
character
Green Arrow
Green Arrow is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Mort Weisinger and designed by George Papp, he first appeared in ''More Fun Comics'' #73 in November 1941. His secret identity, real name is Olive ...
, a costumed crime-fighter created by
Mort Weisinger
Mortimer Weisinger (; April 25, 1915 – May 7, 1978) was an American magazine and comic book editor best known for editing DC Comics' ''Superman'' during the mid-1950s to 1960s, in the Silver Age of comic books. He also co-created such features a ...
and
George Papp
George Edward Papp (January 20, 1916 – August 8, 1989) was an American comics artist best known as one of the principal artists on the long-running Superboy feature for DC Comics. Papp also co-created the Green Arrow character with Mort Weising ...
, and is set in the
Arrowverse
The Arrowverse is an American superhero media franchise and a shared universe that is centered on various interconnected television series based on DC Comics superhero characters, primarily airing on The CW as well as web series on CW Seed. ...
, sharing continuity with other Arrowverse television series. The showrunners for this season were
Marc Guggenheim
Marc Guggenheim (born September 24, 1970) is an American screenwriter, television producer, comic book writer, and novelist. He is best known as the creator of the television series ''Eli Stone'' (2008–2009), ''Arrow'' (2012– 2020), and ''Lege ...
and
Wendy Mericle
Wendy Mericle is an American television writer and producer. She is known for her work on the ABC dramedy ''Desperate Housewives'' and The CW's superhero series ''Arrow''.
Life and career
From the age of seven on, Mericle grew up without a tele ...
.
Stephen Amell
Stephen Adam Amell (born May 8, 1981) is a Canadian actor. He came to prominence for playing the lead role of Oliver Queen on The CW superhero series ''Arrow'' (2012–2020). Amell also appeared in subsequent Arrowverse franchise media, along wi ...
stars as
Oliver Queen
Green Arrow is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Mort Weisinger and designed by George Papp, he first appeared in ''More Fun Comics'' #73 in November 1941. His secret identity, real name is Olive ...
, with principal cast members
Katie Cassidy
Katherine Evelyn Anita Cassidy (formerly Rodgers) (born November 25, 1986) is an American actress. Following several minor television roles, she came to attention as a scream queen after starring in the horror films '' When a Stranger Calls'' ...
as
Laurel Lance,
David Ramsey
David Paul Ramsey (born November 17, 1971) is an American actor, director, and martial artist, best known for his roles in The CW Arrowverse series '' Arrow'', '' The Flash'', ''Supergirl'', and '' Batwoman'' as John Diggle / Spartan, portrayin ...
as
John Diggle
John William Diggle (2 March 1847 – 24 March 1920) was an English Anglican bishop. He was Archdeacon of Westmorland from 1896 to 1901, Archdeacon of Birmingham from 1903 to 1904, and Bishop of Carlisle from 1905 to his death in 1920.
Early l ...
,
Willa Holland
Willa Holland is an American actress and model. She is known for her roles as Kaitlin Cooper in the Fox teen drama ''The O.C.'', Agnes Andrews in The CW series ''Gossip Girl'', Aqua in ''Kingdom Hearts'', and Thea Queen / Speedy in ''Arrow''.
...
as
Thea Queen
Thea Dearden Queen, also known as Speedy, is a fictional character portrayed by Willa Holland on The CW television series ''Arrow'', created by Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim, and Andrew Kreisberg. She is the maternal half-sister of series protag ...
,
Emily Bett Rickards
Emily Bett Rickards (born July 24, 1991) is a Canadian actress. She is known for her role as Felicity Smoak on The CW series ''Arrow'', her first television credit. She has also reprised the role in the Arrowverse shows ''The Flash'', ''Legends ...
as
Felicity Smoak
Felicity Smoak is a fictional character appearing in comics published by DC Comics. Her first appearance was in ''The Fury of Firestorm'' #23 (May 1984), created by writer Gerry Conway and artist Rafael Kayanan. She was originally the manager of ...
,
John Barrowman
John Scot Barrowman (born 11 March 1967) is a Scottish-American actor, author, presenter, singer and comic book writer. He is known for his role as Captain Jack Harkness in '' Doctor Who'' and ''Torchwood'', and as Malcolm Merlyn in the Arrow ...
as
Malcolm Merlyn
Merlyn (Arthur King), otherwise known as the Dark Archer, is a supervillain appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. He is a deadly bow-wielding assassin and contract killer and the archnemesis of Green Arrow, though writers have developed ...
and
Paul Blackthorne
Paul Blackthorne (born 5 March 1969) is an English actor. Although born in Shropshire, he spent his early childhood on UK military bases in Britain and Germany.
Blackthorne broke into acting via television commercials in England. His breakthro ...
as
Quentin Lance
'' Arrow'' is an American superhero television series developed by Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim, and Andrew Kreisberg based on the DC Comics character Green Arrow, a costumed crime-fighter created by Mort Weisinger and George Papp, and is ...
also returning from previous seasons.
The series follows billionaire playboy
Oliver Queen
Green Arrow is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Mort Weisinger and designed by George Papp, he first appeared in ''More Fun Comics'' #73 in November 1941. His secret identity, real name is Olive ...
(
Stephen Amell
Stephen Adam Amell (born May 8, 1981) is a Canadian actor. He came to prominence for playing the lead role of Oliver Queen on The CW superhero series ''Arrow'' (2012–2020). Amell also appeared in subsequent Arrowverse franchise media, along wi ...
), who claimed to have spent five years shipwrecked on
Lian Yu
Lian Yu (; born 1886) was a diplomat, politician, judicial officer and lawyer in the Republic of China. He was an important politician during the Reformed Government of the Republic of China and Wang Jingwei regime (Republic of China-Nanjing). H ...
, a mysterious island in the North China Sea, before returning home to
Starling City
Star City is a fictional city that appears in stories published by DC Comics, best known as the traditional home of the superheroes known by, or affiliated with, the shared alias of Green Arrow. Beyond that, it is also known to other characters ...
(later renamed "Star City") to fight crime and corruption as a secret vigilante whose weapon of choice is a bow and arrow. In the fourth season, Oliver and Felicity try and start a new life in
Ivy Town
This page list the locations in the DC Universe, the shared universe setting of DC Comics.
Sites
* the Arrowcave – The former base of operations of the Green Arrow and Speedy.
* Avernus Cemetery – A burial ground located in Central City for t ...
, but returns to Starling City, now renamed Star City, when a terrorist group known as
H.I.V.E.
The H.I.V.E., which stands for the Hierarchy of International Vengeance and Extermination, is a fictional terrorist organization appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics.
The H.I.V.E. organization appeared on the fourth season of ...
led by the mystically enhanced
Damien Darhk
Dan the Dyna-Mite
Dan Turpin
Damien Darhk
The enigmatic Damien Darhk is an elusive and dangerous criminal mastermind and enemy of the Teen Titans. He makes his first appearance in ''Titans'' #1 (March 1999). Claiming to be a major player in t ...
(
Neal McDonough
Neal McDonough (born February 13, 1966) is an American actor. He is known for his portrayal of Lieutenant Lynn Compton, Lynn "Buck" Compton in the HBO miniseries ''Band of Brothers (miniseries), Band of Brothers'' (2001), Deputy District Attorney ...
) is attacking the city. Oliver resumes vigilantism under the new moniker of "
Green Arrow
Green Arrow is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Mort Weisinger and designed by George Papp, he first appeared in ''More Fun Comics'' #73 in November 1941. His secret identity, real name is Olive ...
".
John discovers his brother
Andy
Andy may refer to:
People
*Andy (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters
*Horace Andy (born 1951), Jamaican roots reggae songwriter and singer born Horace Hinds
*Katja Andy (1907–2013), German-American pianist and piano ...
(
Eugene Byrd
Eugene Byrd (born August 28, 1975) is an American actor. He is best known for playing Wink in the film '' 8 Mile'' and Dr. Clark Edison on the FOX series '' Bones''.
Early life
Byrd was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He graduated from Gre ...
) is alive and a H.I.V.E. soldier; Thea works with Oliver as "Speedy", but with a violent temper; Laurel attempts to resurrect Sara using the Lazarus Pit; and
Curtis Holt (
Echo Kellum
Echo Kellum (born August 29, 1982) is an American actor and comedian. Kellum is best known for his roles as Curtis Holt on The CW drama series ''Arrow'', Tommy on the FOX sitcom ''Ben and Kate'', and Hunter on NBC's ''Sean Saves the World''.
Ea ...
) aids Felicity and the team. Oliver's life as a vigilante and with Felicity are complicated by his mayoral run and the discovery of the existence of his son,
William
William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...
(Jack Moore). Laurel dies in a fight with Damien and Oliver discovers his plan to detonate nuclear weapons and rule the Earth's remains. The season features flashbacks to Oliver's fourth year since he was presumed dead, where Amanda Waller sends Oliver back to Lian Yu to infiltrate
Shadowspire, where he meets
John Constantine
John Constantine () is a fictional character who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Constantine first appeared in ''Swamp Thing'' #37 (June 1985), and was created by Alan Moore, Stephen R. Bissette, Rick Veitch, and John ...
(
Matt Ryan) and encounters a mystical idol used by Darhk in the present-day narrative.
The series was renewed for its fourth season in January 2015, and filming began in
Vancouver
Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...
,
British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
, Canada that July and ended in April 2016. The season premiere received a positive critical response, however the season as a whole was received more negatively. The season averaged 2.9 million viewers each week. This season includes the
second annual Arrowverse crossover with TV series ''
The Flash
The Flash (or simply Flash) is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Harry Lampert, the original Flash first appeared in ''Flash Comics'' #1 (cover date ...
'', which served as an introduction to spin-off TV series ''
Legends of Tomorrow
''DC's Legends of Tomorrow'', or simply ''Legends of Tomorrow'', is an American Time travel in fiction, time travel superhero fiction, superhero television series developed by Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim, Andrew Kreisberg, and Phil Klem ...
''. It also featured the first live-action appearance of
Megalyn Echikunwoke
Ebubennem Megalyn Ann Echikunwoke ( ; born May 28, 1983), also known as Megalyn E.K., is an American actress, known primarily for her roles in television and film.
Born in Spokane, Washington, she was discovered while performing in a theatri ...
as
Vixen
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelve sp ...
, from the eponymous animated
web series
A web series (also known as a web show) is a series of scripted or non-scripted online videos, generally in episodic form, released on the Internet, which first emerged in the late 1990s and became more prominent in the early 2000s. A single i ...
, as well as an appearance by Matt Ryan reprising his role as John Constantine from the
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...
series ''
Constantine
Constantine most often refers to:
* Constantine the Great, Roman emperor from 306 to 337, also known as Constantine I
* Constantine, Algeria, a city in Algeria
Constantine may also refer to:
People
* Constantine (name), a masculine given na ...
''. The season was released on DVD and Blu-ray on August 30, 2016. The series was renewed for a
fifth season on March 11, 2016.
Episodes
Cast and characters
Main
*
Stephen Amell
Stephen Adam Amell (born May 8, 1981) is a Canadian actor. He came to prominence for playing the lead role of Oliver Queen on The CW superhero series ''Arrow'' (2012–2020). Amell also appeared in subsequent Arrowverse franchise media, along wi ...
as
Oliver Queen / Green Arrow
*
Katie Cassidy
Katherine Evelyn Anita Cassidy (formerly Rodgers) (born November 25, 1986) is an American actress. Following several minor television roles, she came to attention as a scream queen after starring in the horror films '' When a Stranger Calls'' ...
as
Laurel Lance / Black Canary
*
David Ramsey
David Paul Ramsey (born November 17, 1971) is an American actor, director, and martial artist, best known for his roles in The CW Arrowverse series '' Arrow'', '' The Flash'', ''Supergirl'', and '' Batwoman'' as John Diggle / Spartan, portrayin ...
as
John Diggle / Spartan
*
Willa Holland
Willa Holland is an American actress and model. She is known for her roles as Kaitlin Cooper in the Fox teen drama ''The O.C.'', Agnes Andrews in The CW series ''Gossip Girl'', Aqua in ''Kingdom Hearts'', and Thea Queen / Speedy in ''Arrow''.
...
as
Thea Queen / Speedy
*
Emily Bett Rickards
Emily Bett Rickards (born July 24, 1991) is a Canadian actress. She is known for her role as Felicity Smoak on The CW series ''Arrow'', her first television credit. She has also reprised the role in the Arrowverse shows ''The Flash'', ''Legends ...
as
Felicity Smoak / Overwatch
*
John Barrowman
John Scot Barrowman (born 11 March 1967) is a Scottish-American actor, author, presenter, singer and comic book writer. He is known for his role as Captain Jack Harkness in '' Doctor Who'' and ''Torchwood'', and as Malcolm Merlyn in the Arrow ...
as
Malcolm Merlyn / Dark Archer
*
Paul Blackthorne
Paul Blackthorne (born 5 March 1969) is an English actor. Although born in Shropshire, he spent his early childhood on UK military bases in Britain and Germany.
Blackthorne broke into acting via television commercials in England. His breakthro ...
as
Quentin Lance
'' Arrow'' is an American superhero television series developed by Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim, and Andrew Kreisberg based on the DC Comics character Green Arrow, a costumed crime-fighter created by Mort Weisinger and George Papp, and is ...
Recurring
Guest
Production
Development
In January 2015,
The CW
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
President
Mark Pedowitz
Mark Pedowitz is the former chairman and CEO of The CW. He replaced Dawn Ostroff in 2011, who had been the Head of Entertainment since the network's inception in 2006. Pedowitz oversaw all aspects of The CW, including programming, sales, marketing ...
announced ''Arrow'' renewal for a fourth season at the 2014
Television Critics Association
The Television Critics Association (TCA) is a group of approximately 200 United States and Canadian television critics, journalists and columnists who cover television programming for newspapers, magazines and web publications. The TCA accepts app ...
event.
Series creator
Marc Guggenheim
Marc Guggenheim (born September 24, 1970) is an American screenwriter, television producer, comic book writer, and novelist. He is best known as the creator of the television series ''Eli Stone'' (2008–2009), ''Arrow'' (2012– 2020), and ''Lege ...
returned as showrunner, while co-executive producer and writer
Wendy Mericle
Wendy Mericle is an American television writer and producer. She is known for her work on the ABC dramedy ''Desperate Housewives'' and The CW's superhero series ''Arrow''.
Life and career
From the age of seven on, Mericle grew up without a tele ...
was promoted to co-showrunner.
Writing
The season introduces two major changes to the series: Starling City being renamed as
Star City, and
Oliver Queen
Green Arrow is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Mort Weisinger and designed by George Papp, he first appeared in ''More Fun Comics'' #73 in November 1941. His secret identity, real name is Olive ...
returning to vigilantism as the "
Green Arrow
Green Arrow is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Mort Weisinger and designed by George Papp, he first appeared in ''More Fun Comics'' #73 in November 1941. His secret identity, real name is Olive ...
", the same vigilante identity he uses in the comics. Regarding the latter, speaking before the season premiere, Wendy Mericle said, "It felt right for the natural evolution of Oliver's character to become what we know in the comics". Teasing
Damien Darhk
Dan the Dyna-Mite
Dan Turpin
Damien Darhk
The enigmatic Damien Darhk is an elusive and dangerous criminal mastermind and enemy of the Teen Titans. He makes his first appearance in ''Titans'' #1 (March 1999). Claiming to be a major player in t ...
, the season's big bad, series co-creator
Andrew Kreisberg
Andrew Kreisberg (born April 23, 1971) is an American television writer, producer and comic book writer. He is best known as the creator of the television series ''The Flash (2014 TV series), The Flash'', ''Arrow (TV series), Arrow'', ''Supergirl ...
said, "We've always referred to
Ra's al Ghul
Ra's al Ghul, commonly pronounced correctly as ''Re'sh'', hence or ; "The Head of the Demon" or, in a rougher translation, "The Chief Demon". is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly as an adversary o ...
Matt Nable">nowiki/>Matt Nable">Matt_Nable.html" ;"title="nowiki/>Matt Nable">nowiki/>Matt Nableas the worst thing that can happen to Oliver and his team, but when you see the first two episodes of season four, you'll quickly realize that Ra's was in the nursery compared to what Damien's got in store for everybody". He called Darhk a "different" villain than the previous ones, saying "He's a bit more colorful, a bit more fun and is very dangerous and commanding and leads an army of followers who would die at his command. But he's funnier, more charming and fits in with our whole shading this year where we've made things lighter."
The season also sees many of the characters taking on vigilante codenames: Spartan (
John Diggle
John William Diggle (2 March 1847 – 24 March 1920) was an English Anglican bishop. He was Archdeacon of Westmorland from 1896 to 1901, Archdeacon of Birmingham from 1903 to 1904, and Bishop of Carlisle from 1905 to his death in 1920.
Early l ...
), Speedy (
Thea Queen
Thea Dearden Queen, also known as Speedy, is a fictional character portrayed by Willa Holland on The CW television series ''Arrow'', created by Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim, and Andrew Kreisberg. She is the maternal half-sister of series protag ...
), and Overwatch (
Felicity Smoak
Felicity Smoak is a fictional character appearing in comics published by DC Comics. Her first appearance was in ''The Fury of Firestorm'' #23 (May 1984), created by writer Gerry Conway and artist Rafael Kayanan. She was originally the manager of ...
). Guggenheim originally hoped to bring Helena Bertinelli (Arrowverse)">Helena Bertinelli / Huntress (
Jessica De Gouw
Jessica Elise De Gouw (born 15 February 1988) is an Australian actress. She is known for her role as Helena Bertinelli/The Huntress in the television series '' Arrow'', as Mina Murray in the NBC TV series '' Dracula'', and as Elizabeth Hawkes ...
) back after failing to include her
last season, describing that the crew had a "kick-ass" idea for a Huntress episode.
Casting
Main cast members
Stephen Amell
Stephen Adam Amell (born May 8, 1981) is a Canadian actor. He came to prominence for playing the lead role of Oliver Queen on The CW superhero series ''Arrow'' (2012–2020). Amell also appeared in subsequent Arrowverse franchise media, along wi ...
,
Katie Cassidy
Katherine Evelyn Anita Cassidy (formerly Rodgers) (born November 25, 1986) is an American actress. Following several minor television roles, she came to attention as a scream queen after starring in the horror films '' When a Stranger Calls'' ...
,
David Ramsey
David Paul Ramsey (born November 17, 1971) is an American actor, director, and martial artist, best known for his roles in The CW Arrowverse series '' Arrow'', '' The Flash'', ''Supergirl'', and '' Batwoman'' as John Diggle / Spartan, portrayin ...
,
Willa Holland
Willa Holland is an American actress and model. She is known for her roles as Kaitlin Cooper in the Fox teen drama ''The O.C.'', Agnes Andrews in The CW series ''Gossip Girl'', Aqua in ''Kingdom Hearts'', and Thea Queen / Speedy in ''Arrow''.
...
,
Emily Bett Rickards
Emily Bett Rickards (born July 24, 1991) is a Canadian actress. She is known for her role as Felicity Smoak on The CW series ''Arrow'', her first television credit. She has also reprised the role in the Arrowverse shows ''The Flash'', ''Legends ...
,
John Barrowman
John Scot Barrowman (born 11 March 1967) is a Scottish-American actor, author, presenter, singer and comic book writer. He is known for his role as Captain Jack Harkness in '' Doctor Who'' and ''Torchwood'', and as Malcolm Merlyn in the Arrow ...
and
Paul Blackthorne
Paul Blackthorne (born 5 March 1969) is an English actor. Although born in Shropshire, he spent his early childhood on UK military bases in Britain and Germany.
Blackthorne broke into acting via television commercials in England. His breakthro ...
return from previous seasons as Oliver Queen,
Laurel Lance / Black Canary, John Diggle / Spartan, Thea Queen / Speedy,
Malcolm Merlyn
Merlyn (Arthur King), otherwise known as the Dark Archer, is a supervillain appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. He is a deadly bow-wielding assassin and contract killer and the archnemesis of Green Arrow, though writers have developed ...
, and
Quentin Lance
'' Arrow'' is an American superhero television series developed by Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim, and Andrew Kreisberg based on the DC Comics character Green Arrow, a costumed crime-fighter created by Mort Weisinger and George Papp, and is ...
. This was initially Cassidy's final season as a regular, due to her character dying in the episode "
Eleven-Fifty-Nine"; she would later return as a guest star in season 5, and be reinstated as a regular starting with season 6.
Colton Haynes
Colton Lee Haynes (born July 13, 1988) is an American actor and model. He is known for his starring role as Jackson Whittemore in the MTV supernatural drama series ''Teen Wolf'' and as Roy Harper / Arsenal in the CW superhero television ser ...
, who portrayed
Roy Harper / Arsenal as a regular in seasons two and three, returned in a guest capacity.
Neal McDonough
Neal McDonough (born February 13, 1966) is an American actor. He is known for his portrayal of Lieutenant Lynn Compton, Lynn "Buck" Compton in the HBO miniseries ''Band of Brothers (miniseries), Band of Brothers'' (2001), Deputy District Attorney ...
recurs as Damien Darhk.
Design
The Green Arrow costume was designed by Maya Mani. It is more armored than the Arrow costume, eschews sleeves and features shoulder pads and archer's gauntlets, in addition to having many pockets and holsters. Diggle's Spartan costume consists of a steel gray jacket-and-pants combination along with a face-protecting helmet. In response to criticism of the Spartan helmet resembling that worn by the
Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...
character
Magneto
A magneto is an electrical generator that uses permanent magnets to produce periodic pulses of alternating current. Unlike a dynamo, a magneto does not contain a commutator to produce direct current. It is categorized as a form of alternator, ...
, Ramsey said, "I know there's a lot of criticism that it looks like the Magneto helmet. But by the time you see Diggle in action – we also get into what the helmet can do – you won't be thinking of the
X-Men
The X-Men are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, first appearing in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 by artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby and writer/editor Stan Lee in 1963. Although initially cancelled in ...
at all."
Filming
Filming for the season began in mid-July 2015 in
Vancouver
Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...
,
British Columbia, Canada
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, for ...
, and ended in late April 2016.
Arrowverse tie-ins
In May 2015, Amell revealed he had had discussions with DC Entertainment to portray Oliver Queen on ''
Constantine
Constantine most often refers to:
* Constantine the Great, Roman emperor from 306 to 337, also known as Constantine I
* Constantine, Algeria, a city in Algeria
Constantine may also refer to:
People
* Constantine (name), a masculine given na ...
'' because its title character,
John Constantine
John Constantine () is a fictional character who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Constantine first appeared in ''Swamp Thing'' #37 (June 1985), and was created by Alan Moore, Stephen R. Bissette, Rick Veitch, and John ...
is an expert on the Lazarus Pit, a concept used on ''Arrow''. In August 2015, it was confirmed that ''Constantine'' star
Matt Ryan would appear on ''Arrow'' in the fourth season episode "
Haunted
Haunted or The Haunted may refer to:
Books
* ''Haunted'' (Armstrong novel), by Kelley Armstrong, 2005
* ''Haunted'' (Cabot novel), by Meg Cabot, 2004
* ''Haunted'' (Palahniuk novel), by Chuck Palahniuk, 2005
* ''Haunted'' (Angel novel), a 200 ...
", per a "one-time-only" deal that would involve his character being "brought in to deal with the fallout of the resurrection of
Sara Lance
Sara Lance, also known by her alter-ego White Canary, is a fictional character in The CW's Arrowverse franchise, first introduced in the 2012 pilot episode of the television series ''Arrow'', and later starring in ''Legends of Tomorrow''. The c ...
(Caity Lotz) via Ra's al Ghul's Lazarus Pit."
As ''Arrow'' and ''Constantine'' were both produced by
Warner Bros. Television
Warner Bros. Television Studios (operating under the name Warner Bros. Television; formerly known as Warner Bros. Television Division) is an American television production and distribution studio of the Warner Bros. Television Group division of ...
, the producers of ''Arrow'' were able to acquire Ryan's original outfits.
John Badham
John MacDonald Badham (born August 25, 1939) is an English television and film director, best known for his films ''Saturday Night Fever'' (1977), ''Dracula'' (1979), ''Blue Thunder'' (1983), ''WarGames'' (1983), ''Short Circuit'' (1986), and ...
, who was a director on ''Constantine'', directed "Haunted".
On filming the episode, Guggenheim stated it felt like the production team was "doing a ''Constantine''/''Arrow'' crossover, and it's so exciting... we're just really glad we got the chance to extend Matt Ryan's run as Constantine by at least one more hour of television. I think you'll see he fits very neatly into our universe. It never feels forced, it feels right."
Season four includes the second annual crossover with ''
The Flash
The Flash (or simply Flash) is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Harry Lampert, the original Flash first appeared in ''Flash Comics'' #1 (cover date ...
'': "
Heroes Join Forces
"Heroes Join Forces" is the second Arrowverse crossover event that features episodes of the television series ''The Flash'' and ''Arrow'' on The CW. The event began on December 1, 2015, with ''The Flash'' episode "Legends of Today" and concluded ...
",
which also serves as the setup for ''
Legends of Tomorrow
''DC's Legends of Tomorrow'', or simply ''Legends of Tomorrow'', is an American Time travel in fiction, time travel superhero fiction, superhero television series developed by Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim, Andrew Kreisberg, and Phil Klem ...
''.
The season also saw the live-action debut of
Vixen
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelve sp ...
with,
Megalyn Echikunwoke
Ebubennem Megalyn Ann Echikunwoke ( ; born May 28, 1983), also known as Megalyn E.K., is an American actress, known primarily for her roles in television and film.
Born in Spokane, Washington, she was discovered while performing in a theatri ...
reprising her role from the
animated web series of the same name.
Release
Broadcast
The season began airing in the United States on
The CW
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
on October 7, 2015,
and completed its 23-episode run on May 25, 2016.
Home media
The season was released on
DVD
The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kin ...
and
Blu-ray
The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of sto ...
on August 30, 2016, with special features including the second annual
Arrowverse crossover event
The Arrowverse is an American superhero media franchise and a shared universe that is centered on various interconnected television series based on DC Comics superhero characters, primarily airing on The CW as well as web series on CW Seed. ...
titled "
Heroes Join Forces
"Heroes Join Forces" is the second Arrowverse crossover event that features episodes of the television series ''The Flash'' and ''Arrow'' on The CW. The event began on December 1, 2015, with ''The Flash'' episode "Legends of Today" and concluded ...
". It began streaming on
Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...
on October 5, 2016.
Reception
Critical response
The season premiere earned positive reviews, with Jesse Schedeen of
IGN
''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...
giving it 8.5, stating "''Arrow'' is showing every sign of addressing the flaws that bogged down Season 3", and Morgan Jeffery of ''
Digital Spy
Digital Spy (DS) is a British-based entertainment, television and film website and brand and is the largest digital property at Hearst UK. Since its launch in 1999, Digital Spy has focused on entertainment news related to television programmes, ...
'' describing the series as being "back on form".
However, the response to the season as a whole was more critical. Whilst overall Alasdair Wilkins of ''
The A.V. Club
''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...
'' considered the season finale to be a "perfectly decent end to a perfectly decent season", and that season four addressed some of the weaknesses of previous seasons, in particular in terms of a strong villain presence in Neil McDonough he also noted that "This season was a step in the right direction, but a proper return to past glory still feels awfully far away." ''
Entertainment Weekly
''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...
''s Jonathon Dornbush summarized the season as "one that at times hinted at the promise of the show's glory days but often was almost as at odds with itself as Oliver is with himself." Overall, he criticized the lack of focus in the flashbacks, a failure to build up Dahrk's plans and motivations consistently and the lack of hope in a season where Oliver was attempting to give hope to others.
Writing for
TV Overmind, Andy Behbakht criticized the decision to kill off Laurel Lance, feeling the character was underutilized and "The Black Canary was in many ways one of ''Arrow'' big hearts and seeing the show losing that character, makes the series lose a lot of its remaining magic". For the same website, Caroline Schlafly criticized the way Felicity was written throughout the season and felt that at times it gave her too much focus. However, overall she was pleased with the change in tone the season brought, and in particular praised the growth in Oliver's character, noting that, "''Arrow'' is no longer a dark show about a vigilante who's willing to murder. It's about Oliver Queen and his teammates, and how they develop and interact as they fight crime and villains and Star City. Sure, right now the team is monopolized by Felicity – but hopefully that will change, and we'll still be left with these other fantastic changes." In his review of "Canary Cry", Eric Francisco of ''
Inverse
Inverse or invert may refer to:
Science and mathematics
* Inverse (logic), a type of conditional sentence which is an immediate inference made from another conditional sentence
* Additive inverse (negation), the inverse of a number that, when ad ...
'' said, "''Arrow'' is not a good TV show anymore
..The centerpiece series that started the evolving, expansive DC TV universe has mutated into a horrid, audio/visual white noise", and was particularly critical of the portrayals of Oliver, Diggle, Thea and Felicity in the season, along with the handling of Laurel's death.
Reviewing the season as a whole for IGN, Jesse Schedeen noted that "The fourth season made some significant strides, but ultimately failed to address the show's fundamental problem ". He praised the addition of McDonough as Darhk, as well as guest appearances including Matt Ryan as Constantine which helped seat the show within a wider DC Universe. He noted how the season suffered at times in its first half from having to lay the groundwork for spin-off ''Legends of Tomorrow''. Whilst he praised the work of directors
Lexi Alexander
Alexandra Mirai ( ar, الكسندرا ميراي; born 23 August 1974), known professionally as Lexi Alexander, is a German-Palestinian film and television director, martial artist, and actress. She is a former World Karate Association world c ...
and
James Bamford
James Bamford (born September 15, 1946) is an American author, journalist and documentary producer noted for his writing about United States intelligence agency, intelligence agencies, especially the National Security Agency (NSA). ''The New Y ...
, as well as actress Emily Bett Rickards and felt the first half of the season built well, overall he felt that the season was failed in the second half by a feeling that "the writers were merely spinning their wheels before ushering in the final battle against HIVE". He was particularly critical of the narrative structure of the flashback sequences and the way in which many of the season's major plot lines ended where "the payoff didn't do justice to the setup." Giving the season a 6.6, he concluded "''Arrow''s fourth season had plenty of great episodes but ultimately failed to come together as a satisfying whole."
Rotten Tomatoes gave the season an 85% approval rating based on 10 reviews, with an average rating of 7.55/10. The critical consensus reads: "Season four of ''Arrow'' flourishes with a refreshing new tone, a thrilling new villain, and a gripping story arc."
Ratings
The fourth season averaged 2.90 million viewers across the 23 episodes and ranked 145th among television show viewership.
Accolades
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, rowspan="5" ,
Leo Awards
The Leo Awards are the awards program for the British Columbia film and television industry. Held each May or June in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, the Leo Awards were founded by the Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Foundation of British C ...
, rowspan="2" , Best Costume Design Dramatic Series
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This Is Your Sword")
,
,
, -
, data-sort-value="Mani, Maya" , Maya Mani ("
Legends of Yesterday
"Heroes Join Forces" is the second Arrowverse crossover event that features episodes of the television series '' The Flash'' and '' Arrow'' on The CW. The event began on December 1, 2015, with ''The Flash'' episode "Legends of Today" and conclud ...
")
,
,
, -
, Best Direction Dramatic Series
, data-sort-value="Bamford, James" , James Bamford ("
Brotherhood
Brotherhood or The Brotherhood may refer to:
Family, relationships, and organizations
* Fraternity (philosophy) or brotherhood, an ethical relationship between people, which is based on love and solidarity
* Fraternity or brotherhood, a mal ...
")
,
,
, -
, Best Stunt Coordination Dramatic Series
, J. J. Makaro, James Bamford, Eli Zagoudakis, Curtis Braconnier ("
Brotherhood
Brotherhood or The Brotherhood may refer to:
Family, relationships, and organizations
* Fraternity (philosophy) or brotherhood, an ethical relationship between people, which is based on love and solidarity
* Fraternity or brotherhood, a mal ...
")
,
,
, -
, Best Lead Performance by a Female Dramatic Series
, data-sort-value="Rickards, Emily Bett" ,
Emily Bett Rickards
Emily Bett Rickards (born July 24, 1991) is a Canadian actress. She is known for her role as Felicity Smoak on The CW series ''Arrow'', her first television credit. She has also reprised the role in the Arrowverse shows ''The Flash'', ''Legends ...
("
A.W.O.L.")
,
,
, -
,
MTV Fandom Awards
The ''MTV Fandom Awards'' was an annual pop culture, television and film awards show presented by MTV
MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, i ...
, Ship of the Year
, data-sort-value="Amell, Stephen and Emily Bett Rickards" , Olicity (Stephen Amell and Emily Bett Rickards)
,
,
, -
,
People's Choice Awards
The People's Choice Awards is an American awards show, recognizing people in entertainment, voted online by the general public and fans. The show has been held annually since 1975, with the winners originally determined using Gallup Polls until ...
, Favorite Network TV Sci-Fi/Fantasy
, data-sort-value="Arrow" , ''Arrow''
,
,
, -
,
Saturn Awards
The Saturn Awards are American awards presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. The awards were created to honor science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, but have since grown to reward other films be ...
,
Best Superhero Adaptation Television Series
, data-sort-value="Arrow" , ''Arrow''
,
,
, -
, rowspan="3" ,
Teen Choice Awards
The Teen Choice Awards is an annual awards show that airs on the Fox television network. The awards honor the year's biggest achievements in music, film, sports, television, fashion, social media, and more, voted by viewers living in the United S ...
,
Choice Sci-Fi/Fantasy TV Actress
, data-sort-value="Rickards, Emily Bett" , Emily Bett Rickards
,
,
, -
,
Choice Sci-Fi/Fantasy TV Show
, data-sort-value="Arrow" , ''Arrow''
,
,
, -
, Choice TV Liplock
, data-sort-value="Amell, Stephen and Emily Bett Rickards" , Stephen Amell and Emily Bett Rickards
,
,
References
External links
*
*
{{Arrowverse
Arrow (TV series) seasons
2015 American television seasons
2016 American television seasons
Television series set in 2010
Television series set in 2011