Arrow (TV series)

***Arrow*** is an American superhero television series developed by Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim, and Andrew Kreisbergbased on the DC Comics character Green Arrow, a costumed crime-fighter created by Mort Weisinger and George Papp, and is set in the Arrowverse, sharing continuity with other Arrowverse television series. The series premiered in the United States on The CW on October 10, 2012, with international broadcasting taking place in late 2012 and primarily filmed in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. *Arrow* follows billionaire playboy Oliver Queen (Stephen Amell), who claimed to have spent five years shipwrecked on Lian Yu, a mysterious island in the North China Sea, before returning home to Starling City (later renamed "Star City") to fight crime and corruption as a secret vigilante whose weapon of choice is a bow and arrow.

Throughout the series, Oliver is joined by others in his quest, among them former soldier John Diggle (David Ramsey), I.T. expert and skilled hacker Felicity Smoak (Emily Bett Rickards), former assassin Sara Lance (Caity Lotz), aspiring vigilante Roy Harper (Colton Haynes), Oliver's sister Thea (Willa Holland), and attorney-turned-vigilante Laurel Lance(Katie Cassidy). The group also receives support from Laurel and Sara's father Officer Quentin Lance (Paul Blackthorne). During the first five seasons of the show, characters from Oliver's past appear in a separate story arc based on Oliver's flashbacks, which highlight parallels from Oliver's history that shape events in the main story. Starting with season seven, a series of flash-forwards focus on Oliver's children William and Mia, exploring how present events would affect their future and Green Arrow's legacy.

The series takes a new look at the Green Arrow character, as well as other characters from the DC Comics universe. Although Oliver Queen / Green Arrow had been featured in the television series *Smallville* from 2006 to 2011, on The CW, the producers decided to start clean and find a new actor to portray the character. *Arrow* focuses on the humanity of Oliver Queen, and how he was changed by the 5 years he was presumably shipwrecked on an island.

*Arrow* has received generally positive reviews from critics. The series averaged about 3.68 million viewers over the course of the first season and received several awards and multiple nominations. To promote it, a preview comic book was released before the television series began, while webisodes featuring a product tie-in with Bose were developed for the second season. The first six seasons are available on DVD and Blu-ray in regions 1, 2 and 4; a series of soundtracks was also released.

In October 2014, a spin-off TV series titled *The Flash* premiered.[1] This was first extension of the shared universe that would be known as the "Arrowverse". *The Flash* was later followed in 2015 with *Vixen* and *Supergirl*, in 2016 with *Legends of Tomorrow*, in 2017 with *Freedom Fighters: The Ray*, and in 2019 with *Batwoman*, which are all part of the same shared universe.

The seventh season premiered on October 15, 2018, and concluded on May 13, 2019, with a total of 22 episodes. As of 2019, 160 episodes have been broadcast. In January 2019, The CW renewed the series for an eighth season, which is set to premiere on October 15, 2019. In March, it was announced this would serve as the final season of the series, consisting of ten episodes which would contribute to the "Crisis on Infinite Earths" crossover event.