CHOO CHOO!!!!! All aboard The Olicity Wedding Train!!!! We are chugging right along.
For those of you who want to catch up - The Olicity Wedding Theory and all the updates are linked in my Top5 posts.
Dug up a few more interesting tidbits this week for you guys to feast upon and yes…I saw the 3x22 and 3x23 episode descriptions. We’ll get to those.
Post 3x20 Evidence
If all I had was Marc Guggenheim’s spoiler of a second wedding and the evidence in the show that would be MORE than enough to convince me that Oliver & Felicity will be married by the end of the year.
Ra’s Al Ghul serves as a dark foreshadowing of who Oliver will become if he is The Arrow and ONLY The Arrow : Al Sa-him (Look guys I finally figured out how to spell it!!!) The writers drove this point home even further in 3x20. Ra’s Al Ghul confesses to Felicity that like Oliver he once had a great love. He was married to a woman he loved deeply and they had two children, a boy and a girl. To save their lives, he abandoned them and became Ra’s Al Ghul. He never said goodbye.
Sounds familiar doesn’t? This is the exact same circumstances essentially that Oliver is now facing. He is abandoning all he loves to save Thea’s life. Only the difference is…Oliver and Felicity did say goodbye? Or did they?
Felicity says something incredibly poignant to Ra’s Al Ghul. She tells him that he gave up too easily.
When Oliver says goodbye he reminds Felicity of what she said to him in 3x02:
Felicity: I’m afraid I’ll never forgive myself for leaving you here.
Oliver: You told me once that life is precious and that you wanted more from it than I could offer you. Don’t give up on that. The only way I’m going to survive this is, is if I know that you’re out there, living your life, happy.
Felicity: We’re always saying goodbye to each other. You’d think we’d be good at it by now.
Oliver: Well then let’s not say goodbye this time.
Oliver tells Felicity not to give up on her happiness. Joining the LOA is no different than the Island for Oliver. He’s facing another separation. More isolation. Another hell. He tells Felicity that the only way he’ll survive is if he knows she’s happy, living her life. Oliver needs Felicity to be happy for his survival.
And then they refuse to say goodbye, even though they are facing an impending separation unlike any they’ve faced before. It’s different than 3x09. Oliver knows for certain he’s not coming back. And yet…no goodbye.
Part of Felicity’s identity theme this year was figuring out what made her happy. A life outside of Oliver, separate from him, or a life with Oliver? She answered those questions definitively in 3x16, 3x17, 3x19 and 3x20.
Felicity: You know you’re always saying that you want me to be happy. The thing is, as long as your in my life I am. (3x16)
Felicity: What I deserve is to be with someone who isn’t afraid of being happy. (3x17)
Felicity: Whether you are in a suit or a hood you’re the man that I - you’re the man that I believe in. (3x19)
Felicity: I don’t regret a single moment. And you shouldn’t either. You have done so much. You have saved so many people’s lives and you have changed so many for the better. Including mine. Knowing you has changed my life and opened up my heart in a way I didn’t even know was possible. I love you. (3x20)
Felicity: I can’t lose you. I won’t (3x20)
Well alrighty then. I think that definitely answers what or rather WHO makes Felicity Smoak happy - Oliver Queen. So Felicity tells Ra’s he gave up to easily, Felicity tells Oliver she won’t lose him and Oliver tells Felicity not to give up on her happiness.
Felicity won’t give up on Oliver. Oliver is telling Felicity NOT to give up on him.
Oliver Queen is branded on his soul like The Arrow is branded on his body. No matter what Ra’s does to him…eradicating Oliver Queen will not be easy. Felicity and Team Arrow will fight for him and Oliver will in turn fight for himself.
And when he does finally reclaim his identity, Oliver has already answered what he needs to survive. He needs Felicity to have the life she’s always dreamed of. That is what will make him happy. So if Oliver has the opportunity to give her that life, he will take it. He will need to make one of his only certainties in life, his love for Felicity, permanent.
It was as close to a marriage proposal as he could get.
The Bouquet
I wanted to mention something about the bouquet. When Marc first announced they were filming the wedding he told us that Felicity was going to catch the bouquet. He said it very much like it was a spur of the moment, “they couldn’t resist” sort of thing. So that’s why I never really gave the bouquet a second thought until I saw 3x17. Catching the bouquet is ingrained in American culture. That woman will be the next to get married. If Marc simply had Felicity catch the bouquet and talk to Laurel or even dance with Palmer, I would have bought the “spur of the moment” troll he was selling on Tumblr. But he paired catching the bouquet with a meaningful discussion about “happiness” with Oliver. As they watch Diggle & Lyla, newly married, dance.
Still…if that was the only scene I may have even discarded it.
But they shot the bouquet TWICE. Once is easily discarded. TWICE? That’s a symbol. A foreshadow. That’s a message. He specifically had Felicity smell the bouquet IN THE LAIR, the home she’s built with Oliver. There was NO REASON to film the bouquet twice. It didn’t serve the story for any other purpose than foreshadowing. That’s why I can’t let the bouquet go. Is it obvious symbolism? Yes…but as Oliver & Felicity kiss by the fire I think you’ll agree, subtle in symbolism is not Arrow’s forte.
3x22 - This Is Your Sword
The title of the 3x22 episode is after a Bruce Springsteen song - This Is Your Sword. Have you taken the time to look at the lyrics? You should.
Now brothers and sisters listen to me
These are the few things that I leave to thee
The sword of our fathers with lessons hard taught
The shield strong and sturdy from battles well fought
Well this is your sword, this is your shield
This is the power of love revealed
Carry them with you wherever you go
And give all the love that you have in your soul
The times they are dark, darkness covers the earth
This world’s filled with the beauty of God’s work
Hold tight to your promise, stay righteous, stay strong
For the days of miracles will come along
Now this is your sword, this is your shield
This is the power of love revealed
Carry it with you wherever you go
And give all the love that you have in your soul
In the days of despair you can grow hard
Till you close your mind and empty your heart
If you find yourself staring in the abyss
Hold tight to your loved ones and remember this
This shield will protect your sacred heart
The sword will defend from what comes in the dark
Should you grow weary on the battle field
Well do not despair, our love is real
This is your sword, this is your shield
This is the power of love revealed
Carry it with you wherever you go
And give all the love that you have in your soul
And give all the love that you have in your soul
Essentially the song is about love conquering all. LOVE is the sword & the shield. Which love story is about love conquering all in Arrow? Oliver & Felicity. What episode is the wedding? 3x22.
Logical Conclusions are just that - logical
Finally - if you look back at Season 2 the logical conclusion, the story they were building, was that Oliver was falling in love with Felicity. Yes, 2x23 was a surprise with the ruse, but in hindsight…Felicity was the logical conclusion. A surprise? Yes. Logical? Yes. It made sense with the story. What sense did it make for Oliver to choose Laurel? They spent season apart, Oliver began a relationship with her sister and don’t even get me started on 2x14.
Conversely, Oliver & Felicity grew closer and closer over the course of the season. If Oliver chose Laurel in 2x23 as the person he loves the most, the evidence for that certainly wasn’t built in Season 2. The evidence built for the person Oliver loves the most in Season 2 was all around Felicity. The 2x23 finale was the LOGICAL conclusion to the season long journey Oliver & Felicity were on.
The end of the Season 3 will be no different. THE STORY HAS TO MAKE SENSE.
Additional Evidence
Tiffany Vogt
Anyone who read Tiffany Vogt’s tweets knows that she was at a special screening of 3x20. Tiffany had some VERY interesting takeaways from her screening.
Post 3x20 I found these impressions to be extremely hopeful given the circumstances. I was absolutely hopeful by Oliver and Felicity’s goodbye, but I tend to view them with a rainbows/unicorns slant. Also, I have the theory in the back of my mind. Tiffany is a reporter, yes an Olicity shipper, but a reporter nonetheless. Mer ( mersayseh), Calli ( callistawolf), and myself found her tweets post 3x20 rather well…cheerful. So the wonderful mersayseh went undercover and got some answers.
Oh really Tiffany? Hmm….
Tiffany Vogt knows something. Of that we’re certain. If she says Oliver & Felicity are just beginning and that the confession for Oliver seeing Felicity for the first time is coming…that means something. BIG.
Marc Guggenheim
As with any big episode, Marc Guggeheim was out in full force.
The last three episodes spend a lot of time addressing the question of: ‘Is there hope for Oliver?‘” the EP says. “And: ‘Is there hope for Oliver in Felicity’s mind?’ [Episodes] 21 and 22 have some very specific things to say about that and Felicity’s coming to grips with the conclusion of Episode 20. (x)
It finally happened: Oliver and Felicity succumbed to their feelings. Guggenheim says, while the episode was coming together in the writers’ room, “there was a strong desire to have Oliver and Felicity sleep together before the events of the season finale, which isn’t to say that we were going to have them sleep together in the season finale.” He adds:”We wanted to take that off the table prior to the season finale. We knew Episode 320 was the episode to do it in. (x)
So really the focus for the remainder of the season is - is there hope for Oliver and is there hope for Olicity? As 3x20 specifically stated - NOBODY is giving up. Of course there is hope for them.
It’s interesting to me that the writers wanted Oliver and Felicity to sleep together before the events in the finale. They wanted sex off the table. In their May Sweeps Preview - TVLine brought up the EXACT same question I had regarding Oliver & Felicity sleeping together - it happens BEFORE SWEEPS. They tossed a little shade Marc’s way and forced him to explain.
Also to come is (what looks like) a pre-sweeps Oliver/ Felicity love scene (“What you saw in the trailer was certainly not the entire story,” Guggenheim notes) and a wedding between… well, you’ll have to wait and see, on May 6. (x)
Look you guys - I majored in communications and I’ve built a successful career in marketing. I’m not kidding around with this Sweeps week stuff. TV’s entire reason for existence is to make money. Sweeps week (3 weeks) sets the ad buy rates for the next three months. So either Arrow is running an advertising charity or offering the equivalent of the Blue Plate Special on Arrow ad buys. 3x20 was Arrow’s HIGHEST rated episode since March - 2.72/1.0 (18-49). It was nearly 100% Olicity focused and they slept together. That’s one of the five jewels of story telling for Sweeps (sex, breakups, marriage, death, babies). Doesn’t matter though - ad rates recalculated starting 4/23. 3x20 does not factor into new Arrow ad buy rates.
The logical conclusion is they have something bigger planned for for Sweeps weeks. There’s absolutely NO WAY Pedowitz signs off on one of the CW’s biggest couples, on one of their most popular & financially lucrative shows, sleeping together BEFORE Sweeps, unless the writers have something even juicier cooked up. And yes…story lines are approved by upper management. Executive Producers often talk about “notes” they get back on scripts. That’s what a note is - top brass putting in their two cents. Marc essentially confirmed a bigger storyline is coming. No what we saw in the trailer was not the full story. Oliver and Felicity do sleep together, but they are immediately separated…so what’s the rest of the story? Then TVline immediately drops in the wedding spoiler. Are they alluding to Olicity wedding to pull in viewers or throw people off the scent? Remains to be seen.
So WHY would Marc and Co. want sex off the table specifically before the finale? If the point of the season is simply to reunite Oliver & Felicity at the end…well then it makes MORE sense if they finally sleep together during Sweeps when they reunite - to close out the season. That’s how you put the exclamation point on the reunion. So, Oliver & Felicity reuniting simply to date at this point, is a bit…ho hum. They’ve played their ace in the hole so to speak already. So why was it so important for Oliver & Felicity to sleep together BEFORE the finale?
Well…one logical conclusion, the writers may have wanted sex off the table because they wanted Oliver & Felicity to embark on a sexual relationship BEFORE they get married. This is Arrow…not Twilight.
Finally Marc has said repeatedly in interviews they are bringing Colton Haynes back to give Thea & Roy closure. Notice the difference in his words. Oliver & Felicity is about exploring hope. Thea and Roy is about gaining closure. Marc alludes to a Theroy ending versus an Olicity one. Given the state of Colton’s involvement with the show, it makes sense. It’s a goodbye.
Though Roy Harper (and Colton Haynes) left Starling, we will see him back before season’s end to wrap up a certain storyline. “The thing we felt we owed the audience more than anything was some closure with Thea,” Guggenheim says, teasing Roy will return in episode 22. “Obviously the circumstances under which Thea is in episode 320, she was too busy getting ‘killed’ by Ra’s to say goodbye to Roy. We owe the audience some closure for this three season long love story between these two characters.” (x)
Stephen Amell
If there’s one thing Nichole’s experience smoaknarrows with Stephen Amell taught me, the man has no chill. Nobody loves Oliver & Felicity more than Stephen. Nobody ships it harder. When there’s a big storyline coming, especially if it’s good news, Stephen can’t help himself. He loves the emotional storylines the best - 3x01, 3x09, 3x20 - all his favorites scenes of the year. All Olicity related.
Stephen liked an Instagram post that theorized Oliver & Felicity are getting married at the end of the year.
Like I said. NO. CHILL. Hang a sign out Stephen. It’d be easier.
Here’s something else Stephen never does - LIE about the show. He’s as coyly honest as he can be. Other times he just out and out spoils stuff. So this essentially confirmed it for me.
Episode Descriptions
Okay. Let’s deal with the episode description.
Arrow 3x22 - This Is Your Sword
AL SAH-HIM TAKES HIS FINAL STEPS TO ASCENSION; ROY AND THEA REUNITE — Oliver/Al Sah-him (Stephen Amell) finishes his training and is left with two final tasks to become the nextRa’s al Ghul. Ra’s (guest star Matt Nable) threatens Nyssa (guest star Katrina Law) and delivers some shocking news. Meanwhile, Malcolm (John Barrowman) makes a surprising offer to Team Arrow and Thea (Willa Holland) goes to see Roy (Colton Haynes). Wendey Stanzler directed the episode with story by Erik Oleson and teleplay by Ben Sokolowski & Brian Ford Sullivan (#322). Original airdate 5/6/2015.
Arrow 3x23 - My Name Is Oliver Queen
THE HEART-STOPPING SEASON FINALE — Everyone’s lives are in danger as Ra’s al Ghul (guest star Matt Nable) puts forth his final plan. Oliver/Al Sah-him (Stephen Amell) must decide if he’s strong enough to take on this new role and what it will mean for everyone on Team Arrow, and his soul. John Behring directed the episode with story by Greg Berlanti & Andrew Kreisberg and teleplay by Marc Guggenheim & Jake Coburn (#323). Original airdate 5/13/2015.
Can I just be honest here? I think episode descriptions are one of the WORST sources for spoilers or to gain any real information on the direction of the show. They are vague and more often than not purposefully misleading. The Arrow fandom absolutely lost their minds over the 3x22 description. Essentially everyone said “Oliver is marrying Nyssa. There is no Olicity wedding.”
Everyone just breathe. I’m not quite sure what people are expecting. Do you expect the CW marketing team to put in at the end of the description, “P.S. Oliver & Felicity get married at the end of the episode”? Or maybe “Oliver & Felicity make a life changing decision.” Umm….not going to happen folks. The key to episode descriptions is what is NOT said is often more important than what is.
A few things stand out to me. Felicity, the female lead and one half of the main love story of Arrow, is not mentioned at all in 3x22. They did this once before. In the 2x23 description. I encourage you to read it. Now, ignoring 20/20 hindsight - can you honestly say you could guess the 2x23 conclusion? No absolutely not. Nor will we be able to with the 3x22 or 3x23 descriptions. That being said - the fact that Felicity is NOT mentioned is very important. The other characters - Oliver, Nyssa, Roy and Thea ARE mentioned. So the episode description is intentionally focusing our attention on those characters. Why? Because they want us to think that Oliver marries Nyssa or that Thea marries Roy. That’s the vague misdirection and then they leave Oliver & Felicity out of it, so that’s the surprise.
To be honest the 3x23 episode description is even more vague. But “everyone is in danger” is normally code for Felicity. lol
Oliver is still Al Sah-him in 3x22 and 3x23. I never thought he wouldn’t be. Oliver has two tasks to complete before he ascends to Ra’s Al Ghul. It’s like Satan’s Shopping List. Creepy. So here’s what Calli, Mer & I theorized…
Ra’s Al Ghul may want to ensure the line of succession before he dies. The two tasks could be 1) Marry Nyssa and 2) Kill Felicity. Marrying Nyssa would ensure that the future Ra’s Al Ghul is still of Ra’s blood line (he’s enough of an egomaniac to want that). Killing Felicity, the last connection to Oliver Queen, could be the final task for Al Sa-him to become Ra’s Al Ghul. Obviously Oliver isn’t going to do it. Perhaps they use the same drug Roy used to fake Felicity’s death. Maybe Oliver allows Ra’s to believe he married Nyssa and in 2x23 it’s revealed that Felicity is still alive and Oliver married her.
Arrow production may have allowed Andy’s photos of Oliver & Felicity in the Porsche to leak, so that the Internet fandom doesn’t lose their shit at the end of 3x22. If we believe there’s real hope for Oliver & Felicity and it LOOKS like Oliver & Nyssa are married by the end of 3x22…we’ll tune into 3x23 to see how it all shakes out.
Marc said there would be a wedding in 3x22. He never said we would witness the wedding. He never said we would know WHO got married in 3x22. He just that there would be a wedding in 3x22. So, we might not find out until 3x23. Who knows.
I’ve been receiving A LOT of asks about HOW Oliver and Felicity will get married. “How is it possible if Oliver is Al Sa-him in 3x22?” And the usual “I just can’t believe it”. That’s fine…you don’t have to believe it. I DO. I am a big picture kind of girl. When I say I believe Oliver and Felicity are going to get married, I’m NOT saying I know every single event that’s going to lead up to that. People are asking for A to B to C to D to E…and so on. The Wedding Theory is simply A to Z. How we get there is the FUN! That’s the mystery. I just know Z. I can see the whole chess board. It’s up to Marc Guggenheim to reveal all the moves up to the end.
This is typically how my theories work. I just lay out the broad strokes. I’ve said all year Oliver will choose Oliver Queen and be with Felicity. I said Oliver & Felicity would have sex. I didn’t say the sex would happen in Nanda Parbat (although Calli did) just before Oliver joined the LOA. lol I just said “SEX”. If you look at the course of the season, I lay out the bigger picture, the end result, and the writers fill in the blanks.
My point? I don’t know every single step that’s going to lead Oliver & Felicity to marriage…nor am I going to pretend to. All I’m saying is there’s enough evidence in the show that says MARRIAGE is the final destination.
Calli had a BRILLIANT analogy for all of these spoilers. The interviews, Marc’s Tumblr, the spoilers - those are like road signs. They might lead us the right direction or more often than not or they turn us into tar pits. THE SHOW - THE STORY IS THE TRUE ROAD MAP. That’s the road to Disney World. That’s why I’m constantly saying that all the evidence we need is in the show. Why? BECAUSE THE STORY HAS TO MAKE SENSE.
Marc has said that the end of Season 3 is the end of trilogy. A marriage to Felicity would certainly end a trilogy. Remember - the focus of the story is Oliver Queen. Not Thea, not Roy, not Nyssa. If they saved a wedding for Sweeps…it’s an Oliver Queen wedding. A Roy & Thea wedding is no more bigger deal than a Diggle & Lyla wedding. Quite frankly, from my opinion, John Diggle is Original Team Arrow. His wedding is a far bigger deal than one between Roy & Thea, but that’s just my opinion. Roy & Thea don’t bring in the BIG numbers. Not to mention the illogical logistical nightmare that marrying a series regular character (Thea) to a character that’s off the show (Roy) would be. But I digress. If Oliver marries Nyssa - it’s over within 2 days. So Marc has a pretty loose term for marriage.
Marc said that they weren’t sure if the marriage would continue past S4. If Oliver “marries” Nyssa as some sort of bait and switch, while in reality truly marrying Felicity…that fits into his troll. But then again…it could just be Marc holding up a big LEFT turn sign to stop us from going RIGHT into Disney World. Why? So we’re surprised. Surprise is a writer’s main currency.
LOOK. AT. THE. SHOW. The strongest evidence for marriage is not Oliver & Nyssa, Thea & Roy or Nyssa & Sara…it’s OLIVER AND FELICITY. The end of the season has to tie ALL the pieces together, pull the puzzle together. The season long romantic puzzle IS Oliver & Felicity.
And if I’m wrong…well then the writers did absolutely EVERYTHING to convince us THROUGH THE SHOW that Oliver & Felicity will be married. I don’t feel bad about that at all. Being wrong doesn’t frighten me. But I have absolute faith in these writers, in the story they are telling. They do not screw with symbols & misdirection. That’s not their style of writing. At the end of the day they remain true to the love story.
So after that very long ramble…the current probability remains 98/2. We firmly believe there’s a 98% chance Oliver & Felicity will be married by the end of the season. How we’re a little less clear on, but the ending we’re damn near 100%. The 2% is the random other couple. Thea/Roy, Nyssa/Sara, but the evidence for Oliver & Felicity far outweighs those other couples.
This train is full steam ahead. YES, we have evidence. But you know what else we have that’s probably just as important, if not more? FAITH.
FYI - we came up with a tag for the Olicity wedding
Choo Choo motherfuckers!!!!!
Come on board!!!! I’m cranking up the speed, Calli is serving drinks,
Rebecca Yarros is taking everyone’s tickets and Mer is already drunk in the back.