By now, I think it’s safe to say that whenever we tune in for the season finales of each DC TV show, we not only expect to be on the edges of our seats, but also like to have some hint of whom the villain may be the following year. In the past, Arrow teased the likes of Ra’s al Ghul and Damien Darhk before they actually showed up – and it’s beginning to look like we’ll soon find ourselves in a similar situation.
As it turns out, the Longbow Hunters are set to be name-dropped in tonight’s episode (check out the preview clip at the top if you’d like to spoil yourself ever so slightly). And based on what executive producer Marc Guggenheim had to say to TV Line, we could be seeing much more of them in season 7:
“I will say that the reference to the Longbow Hunters is us planting a flag, much the same way we referenced Damien Darhk in the Season 3 finale. We would be [not nice people] to name-drop the Longbow Hunters and not see them in Season 7.”
So, while the jury’s still out on whether the Longbow Hunters will be our next big bads, we won’t let our eyes waver from the mysterious Thanatos Guild that was introduced a few months back. Who knows, we could be looking at factions warring with each from different sides come fall.
Getting back to the more immediate future, we’ve recently read comments from both Stephen Amell and Katie Cassidy saying how impactful season 6’s finale will be. Though not blowing the lid off it, Guggenheim’s words regarding its structuring are quite intriguing:
“This is a very unconventional finale — at least, it’s very different from the five that preceded it. By my count, there are four big surprises-slash-developments in the finale, which I want to say is the most we’ve ever had in a single finale.
“Usually the climax is in Act 5; in this one it happens in Act 4. We achieve an emotional denouement that is, I want to say pretty rare for a finale for us. Usually our finales are very bombastic and visceral and with a lot of fireworks — and there are plenty of fireworks here; James Bamford directed the episode! — but by the end of it you feel emotionally spent. I feel like it’s the most emotionally affecting of the series finales we’ve had on the show.”
Aside from Arrow achieving an early climax tonight (heyo!), it sounds like the final minutes could serve as an epilogue of sorts, but I guess we’ll just have to wait and see. Plus, one has to wonder if Batwoman will be name-dropped because, don’t forget, she’ll be showing up in the next crossover event.