Arrow: Why Oliver Ended Up With Felicity (Not Laurel)

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Laurel Lance (Katie Cassidy) was clearly set up to be Oliver’s primary love interest on Arrow, so why did the Emerald Archer end up with Felicity Smoak (Emily Bett Rickards) instead? Oliver (Stephen Amell) and Laurel had romantic feelings for each other in the beginning of Arrow, but at least one of them moved on. A love story between Oliver and Felicity took shape starting in Arrow season 2, culminating in a wedding in season 6.

Laurel Lance was introduced in Arrow's pilot episode as the ex-girlfriend that Oliver Queen betrayed by sleeping with her sister, whom he took aboard the Queen’s Gambit, where she was presumably killed. Laurel was working as a lawyer when Oliver returned from his five-year absence. She understandably resented Oliver for what he did and initially served as a staunch opponent of Green Arrow’s initial persona, named “The Hood.” Despite their problems, romantic feelings between Oliver and Laurel lingered, but Arrow eventually moved on from their relationship and focused instead on putting Oliver and Felicity together.

Related: Superman & Lois Introduced A Major Arrow Finale Plot Hole

Of course, Laurel Lance, a.k.a. Black Canary, is the love interest that Green Arrow actually ends up with most often in DC comics. Felicity Smoak, by contrast, is a character original to Arrow.  Thus, a big part of Arrow’s decision to pair Oliver and Felicity rather than Oliver and Laurel comes down to the show’s desire to tell its own story. Here’s why Oliver ends up with Felicity and not Laurel in Arrow.

Naturally, Arrow’s Oliver Queen love interest problem is one of the show’s biggest points of discussion. A big part of why Oliver and Felicity got together in Arrow comes down to the strength of Emily Bett Rickards’