Arrow season 4, episode 14, “Code of Silence,” offered Felicity some hope of walking again. But is that the right move?
After the Arrow mid-season 4 finale left Felicity’s fate hanging in the balance, we learned in the mid-season premiere that the damage to her spine from a gunshot wound was irreparable. Despite multiple surgeries, she was told she would never walk again. Felicity took some time adjusting to her new way of life, including a powerful reconciliation with her past self in “A.W.O.L.,” but she eventually came to terms with the new status quo. Felicity’s work as Overwatch (Oracle was taken, though apparently her backstory wasn’t) wasn’t hindered by a wheelchair, and the inclusion of ramps in the Arrow cave made it accessible.
This arc not only gave Felicity something to work through for herself, but it was also something for her and Oliver to work through as a couple. Oliver never wavered in his love or desire to spend his future with Felicity, indicating a strong relationship.
But Curtis’ gift of a spinal implant that could potentially help her walk again changes things. And there is something worrisome about that. While it makes sense within the show that Felicity would want the chance to walk again, it seems like a strange narrative choice. Not only does it seem pointless to paralyze Felicity only to have her walking again within the span of a few episodes, it also implies that a disability is something to “fix” or “get over.”
That is simply not possible for most people. And in a wheelchair, Felicity is representing a group of people who don’t often get to see themselves in superhero narratives. When Barbara Gordon became Oracle in the Batman comics, shot and paralyzed by the Joker in The Killing Joke, there were numerous debates about the character being wheelchair-bound after being Batgirl for so long, such as whether it was exploitative or empowering.
And for the years she spent in a wheelchair, becoming an information broker for superheroes and leader of the Birds of Prey team, Oracle not only became one of the most iconic DC Comics characters, but she also became a character the disabled community could see themselves in. She became such an important character, said Batman editor Dennis O’Neil, because “[w]e had hoards of people in spandex beating up criminals. We didn’t have anybody like Oracle, who overcame a disability and was just as valuable and just as effective in a way that didn’t involve violence.”
We talk often about the importance having representation in media for women, people of color, and the LGBT community. All of these forms of representation are absolutely important. However, the disabled community is often overlooked in this discussion. According to the World Health Organization, disabled people comprise about 15% of the world’s population yet are disproportionately impoverished, victimized and discriminated against. With that background, the significance of having popular media representation should seem obvious.
To restore her mobility and put her back in the field was a betrayal to many Oracle fans, especially those she represented. Barbara also spent more than two decades paralyzed before her mobility was restored in the comics. For Felicity, it could only be a handful of episodes — assuming Curtis’ implant works. Her paralysis then, unlike Barbara’s, becomes a temporary speed bump. That completely diminishes the trauma she suffered and its consequences.
Instead, the strength of the narrative should come from Felicity being a key member of the team and living her life with a successful job and fulfilling relationships — all while being in a wheelchair. A disability is a life-long change, and there is something incredibly powerful in a piece of entertainment not only acknowledging but embracing that fact.
Of course, Curtis’ implant may not work or it could malfunction, leaving Felicity in the wheelchair after all. Time will tell where this narrative goes, but I hope the writes on Arrow treat the subject with the respect it deserves.
Arrow airs Wednesdays at 8:00 p.m. ET on The CW.
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