Guest: 1: In the crossover, the only time Samantha brings up Oliver's playboy past is when explaining why she chose to keep William a secret, which is almost immediately followed by her saying she knows he is not that person anymore. And by the end of 4x15, Samantha clearly trusts Oliver a great deal, considering she left the ultimate decision on what to do about Darhk and William up to him and she listened when he told her to take William and tell no one where she was going.
2: I've already answered that in my response to other guests last chapter, I'm not going to repeat myself.
Oliver is led into the cell with the others by Black Siren and some of Talia's students. As the others express shock upon seeing him, Black Siren reveals it was Slade who caught him as the man in question entered. Oliver sneers he should never have trusted Slade but Slade doesn't respond, simply leaving with Black Siren and Talia's students. Oliver demands to know where William is, becoming frustrated when the others say they haven't seen him.
Thea frowned, worry for her nephew clutching at her heart. She may have never met him, but he was her family. More than that, he was an innocent child whose only crime was being Oliver's son.
Moira was having similar thoughts on the matter, as well as wondering what Chase had done with her grandson.
The recording flashes back five years earlier. Oliver runs, dodging the barrage of bullets from the chopper before taking cover behind a log. Oliver then returns fire, hitting the chopper's tail. This causes the pilot to lose control and the chopper crashes several feet away from Oliver, exploding.
So not only was Oliver a skilled archer, but a skilled snipper as well, Quentin mused. It took skill to land that kind of hit. Oliver obviously knew what he was doing.
Back in the present, Thea is attempting to reconcile her feelings on Malcolm's death, remembering all the terrible things he did to her. Felicity then brings up her own experiences with her father, pointing out how he 'abandoned' her but still took a bullet for her.
Arsenal frowned. He knew enough to know that Felicity had just lied to Thea. But, considering it was to help Thea, he really wasn't going to fault her there.1
Curtis rushes over, making a Fantasy Island reference to let them know they found the plane. The group walks over to the plane, where Curtis walks off after seeing something.
Moira visibly relaxes, relieved that at least one of her children is getting away from that hellish island. However, Quentin frowned, wondering what it was that Curtis saw. His Detective instincts were screaming at him, telling him that something was about to go horribly wrong.
As Felicity and Samantha discussed who would fly the plane, Thea made an exclamation of horror. Samantha and Felicity walked over and saw Curtis digging up Antennas, linked to C4. Curtis points out there has to be more than one and Felicity uses her tablet to bring up the map of the island, revealing the explosives are all over the island.
"Son of a bitch," Quentin said as the time travelers stared in shock. "I hate it when I'm right."
"Chase put explosives all over the island?! Just how crazy is he?!" Thea exclaimed in shock.
"Making Oliver suffer is the only thing that matters to him. Not even his own life means anything to him in that regard. If it will make Oliver suffer, he'll gladly slit his own throat," Arsenal said grimly.
"He's a madman," Moira said horrified.
"That's an understatement Grandma," Mia said.
Back with the others, Oliver pulls out Curtis' device and gives it to Dinah. Rene tells Dinah to 'sing Canary'. Quentin corrects him, calling her Black Canary.
"Black Canary?" Laurel asked confused.
"That was your mantle," Arsenal said, to their shock. "You were part of Oliver's team, you went by Black Canary. On your death bed, you told Oliver to find someone to carry on your legacy, to find another Black Canary. It's why Oliver recruited Dinah."
Dinah used her Canary Cry, breaking the chains.
The sound alerted Talia and her students that Oliver had played them. However, as they turned around, they found Nyssa blocking their path.
"Sister against sister. Pretty ironic," Mia noted.
"They're sisters only in name. Whatever bond they may have had was broken when Talia left Nyssa to suffer with Ra's," Arsenal noted.
Talia calls Nyssa a fool for giving up the position of Ra's. Nyssa coldly points out it was Talia's selfishness that forced her to grow up alone. Talia remorselessly say she had to forge her own path, as Ra's would never make her his successor. Nyssa angrily says that Talia knew she would suffer at Ra's hands. Talia inquires on whether Nyssa wishes to settle the score now. The sisters take several steps away from each other, preparing for battle. Talia says Ra's would be ashamed of Nyssa for siding with Oliver, but Nyssa, unaffected, says Ra's was always ashamed of her.
The two then rushed each other, exchanging blows with swords. At first, they appear evenly matched, but Nyssa lands a blow on Talia's face and then knocks her off her feet with a kick to Talia's knees. Talia's students move to intervene, but Slade jumps down, easily taking care of them.
"So now he's on their side again?" Laurel asked confused.
"You'll see in a minute," Arsenal said tiredly.
Nyssa puts her blade to Talia's chin, lifting her head up. Talia eggs her on, trying to goad Nyssa into killing her. But Nyssa ultimately decides not to, punching Talia and knocking her out.
"Not sure it's wise, leaving her alive," Quentin sad uneasily.
"Maybe, but no one should have the blood of family on their hands," Arsenal said wisely.2
Nyssa tells Slade he's late, but he says they're not as the others round the corner. Slade's 'betrayal' had simply been a ruse so Oliver could get Curtis' device to Dinah.
"Like I told you, the Slade for your time may still be a homicidal lunatic, but the Slade in these recordings is the good man who Oliver met all those years ago," Arsenal told the time travelers.
Oliver asks about William, but Slade regretfully says William isn't there. Determined to find his son, Oliver orders them to move. After finding Oliver's gear, they move out. Oliver thinks if they find Chase, they find William. However, a door opens up and Chase walks out with Black Siren and several of Talia's students. William is not with them.
"Well, there goes that idea," Quentin muttered.
Oliver demands to know where William is but Adrian just continues to taunt him. If you want your son back, you know what you have to do, Adrian taunts him. Oliver vows he will never kill Adrian no matter what he does. Adrian disagrees, rushing Oliver with his sword. Oliver dodged the two sides begin to fight.
Five years earlier, Oliver walks up to the chopper, finding Kovar, injured, pulling himself out of the wreckage of the chopper. Oliver tries to open fire but the rifle is out of ammo. Kovar reveals he knows about Oliver and Anatoly's plan. He doesn't have to kill Oliver; he just has to make sure Oliver never makes it to the boat.
"The rescue, it was staged?" Laurel asked shocked, as were the rest of the time travelers..
"People would wonder where he's been if he just showed up in Starling City. There were less questions if Oliver was simply found on Lian Yu. An ally of Oliver's helped him arrange everything," Aresenal explained.
"Nothing's ever simple with him, is it?" Roy asked dryly.
"Nope," Rene said simply.
Kovar pulled out a gun and opened fire on Oliver. Oliver managed to knock the gun out of his hand and the two began to fight hand to hand.
Back in the present, as their allies fight, Black Siren and Dinah exchange blows. They two unleash their cries at each other and the resulting sonic explosion sends them both flying back. Dinah is sent flying into a cabinet, becoming trapped there while Black Siren lands on her back. Black Siren goes over, intending to kill her with a scream but Quentin walks over, knocking her out with a blow to the head from a stick.
"Kind of ironic," Mia said and they all looked over at her. "Grandpa protects her when, a year later, he's the one who needs protecting from her."
"What?" Quentin asked confused as they all looked over at her.
"Five months after this, Oliver's identity was leaked to the public, there was a trial. The FBI agent in charge, Samantha Watson, she blackmailed me, made me agree to testify," Rene said with shame on his face. "Told me I'd never get my daughter back if I didn't cooperate. Looking back, she was extorting me. I could've gone to Oliver, gotten the case dismissed with that. But at the time-"
"You wanted your daughter back. And you would've done anything to make that happen," Quentin said with understanding and Rene nodded.
"When they found out someone on the team was betraying them, Oliver Diggle, and Felicity put me, Curtis, and Dinah under surveillance," Rene explained. "We knew the reason, but we felt betrayed, so we left the team, formed our own. Black Siren was working with the enemies we were all trying to take down. She killed Dinah's old boyfriend, Vincent Sobel because he betrayed them. Dinah became obsessed with vengeance, nearly letting Star City burn in order to get it. Quentin got in the way, so she beat the crap out of him."
"I think I'm gonna have to take with Ollie about his recruitment," Laurel said darkly, knowing Dinah Drake was not someone she would have wanted to take her place.3
Back at the plane, Curtis is trying to raise the Comms as Felicity is trying to locate the trigger, all she can do with the tablet.
Back at the Monastery, as their teams fight below, Oliver and Chase fight on the altar. Oliver knocks Chase's sword out of his hand and Chase taunts him before Oliver angrily slugs him.
Five years earlier, Oliver cried out as Kovar forces Oliver's back against the fire, burning his back. Kovar lets him go and mocks him about his hood.
Back in the present, Oliver demands William's location, slugging Chase twice more, knocking him over the ledge before jumping after him.
Five years earlier, Oliver and Kovar continue to exchange blows before Oliver throws Kovar to the ground. Oliver taunts Kovar before getting down, putting him in a neck lock.
Back in the present, Oliver has Chase in a neck lock, demanding to know where William is. But Chase refuses unless Oliver kills him.
Five years earlier, Oliver's stop watch goes off. Kovar taunts Oliver about being trapped on Lian Yu and an angry Oliver breaks his neck before dropping him, walking off.
Back in the present, the fighting is dying down, Oliver's team emerging victorious. Chase taunts Oliver, telling him he'll only tell Oliver where William if he shows everyone, even himself, who 'you really are'.
But Oliver refuses; releasing Adrian and stabbing up, having grabbed Adrian's pistol he had on him. Oliver removes the bullets as he glanced over at Adrian, telling him that he is not the man he thinks he is. Adrian can blame Oliver for his daughter's death for the rest of his life, Oliver tells him, he is done blaming himself for his father's death.
Moira smiled, proud of her son and glad he would no longer punish himself for Robert's choices.
However, Adrian has one last card: He tells Oliver William is dead.
The time travelers froze, horror washing over them. Thea put a hand to her mouty, horror on her face, not even feeling Moira's nails digging into her. Quentin remembered the loss of Sara and felt a mixture of empathy for Oliver and rage at Chase. Laurel simply mourned the loss of a child, as did Roy.
Even though he knew William was still alive, Rene winced, remembering Zoe's death. Mia simply remembering her brother's fate sadly.
Oliver does not believe him, rightfully suspecting that Adrian is trying to manipulate him into killing him. But even if Chase killed his son, he still won't be the man Adrian wants him to be, Oliver says as he grabs Adrian's head roughly before letting go.
Oliver then gets a call from Felicity. Chase has linked all the explosives to a Deadman switch. Chase dies, they all go off. He wants Oliver to kill him so it kills everyone on the island.
"That son of a bitch," Quentin said as the time travelers all stared in shock.
"This guy really is insane," Roy said in disbelief.
"What was your first clue?" Mia said sarcastically.
"Like I said, his own life means nothing in pursuit of his goal to convince Oliver he destroys the life of everyone he touches," Arsenal said grimly.
Chase stands up and takes off his jacket. Balling it up, he throws it to the ground as everyone takes cover. There is an explosion of sparks and when everyone lifts their heads, Chase is gone. Oliver orders everyone to get to the plane, telling them what Chase has done. Oliver is going after his son. Quentin asks what if Chase is telling the truth. Oliver doesn't believe him, or rather won't. But either way, Chase is not leaving, Oliver says before taking off after Adrian.
"Chase is certainly crazy enough to kill William," Laurel said uneasily.
"Oliver won't believe it until he sees the body," Quentin said, understanding. "He can't believe it until that moment."
"Is William really…" Thea trailed off, unable to say it.
"No, Oliver was right, Chase just wanted Oliver to kill him," Arsenal said, to their relief.
"Buckle up kids, because it's not over yet," Mia said, to their confusion. "In some ways, it's just beginning."
1: Behind the scenes, this is probably an inconstancy, maybe a recon. But in the show, Felicity appears to be lying, since she knows Noah did not abandon her, but Donna basically kidnapped her and lied to her her whole life. Which is probably the cause of Felicity's emotional issues throughout the show, just saying.
2: There has been a lot of debate on whether or not Nyssa should have killed Talia or not. Personally, I'm okay with it. I don't think Nyssa should have the blood of a sister on her hands. Plus, if she had, we never would have gotten Talia in season seven, who was so much better than she was in season five.
3: My feelings on Dinah Drake are, to be honest, mixed. I liked her in season five, even though I thought she was basically appeasement to sooth the rage of killing off Laurel in such a disrespectful manner. Then, in season six, she was written as a villain who was obsessed with vengeance while somehow operating under the delusion that her mass murderer boyfriend was an innocent victim and she was somehow better than Oliver, Felicity and Diggle. In season seven, I found her annoying but warmed up to her in 7x08 but 7x18 made her annoying again. In short, Dinah Drake is a character that I put in the same category as Diggle and Felicity, a character I probably won't write unless I have to.
So, next chapter will be our last viewing chapter, then e will get, at most, three more chapters to set up the sequel to this that I plan to write at some point down the line.