The final moments of the Arrow season 4 premiere had Oliver and Barry at a fresh grave, though we never saw who it belonged to. We look at the potential suspects.
Arrow Executive Producer Wendy Mericle said of who is in the grave, “We don’t necessarily know who it is right now. We’re still planning out the whole season, but we want it, obviously, to have resonance, and if it doesn’t mean anything to the characters, it won’t to the audience either.”
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With that being said, we consider the potential deaths:
Felicity
Felicity seems like the most obvious choice, considering the transition from Oliver and Felicity’s domestic bliss to the cemetery scene. It would also explain Barry’s presence, since the two are close. However, considering that closeness, it seems unlikely Barry would a) miss Felicity’s funeral (though a super villain attacking is a good excuse to miss just about anything), and b) be as calm as he was if the deceased were Felicity.
Barry seemed to be present more for Oliver’s sake than his own, offering any support he could, and with him being so close to Felicity, he would undoubtedly be grieving as well. This, most likely, will be a red herring through the season until the truth is revealed.
Diggle
As the other member of the original Team Arrow, Diggle’s death would have emotional resonance with both the characters and the audience. It would also make sense for Barry to be at the funeral, since he is friends with Diggle. The EPs have said that Diggle and Oliver will eventually find their way back on track, but it would definitely be painful for Oliver to lose his right-hand man and best friend not long after the two made up. There would clearly be feelings of regret for the time they lost.
However, considering Damien Darhk’s connection to Diggle’s brother’s death, Diggle has a ready-made season-long arc. We suppose it will depend on whether this is a mid-season finale reveal or a season finale reveal (or somewhere in between) as for how likely this possibility is.
Thea
The death of Oliver’s sister would undoubtedly have a major effect on him and would explain Barry’s presence being more in support of Oliver than his own grief. Thea’s arc this season is also being built up around the effects of her coming out of the Lazarus Pit; if she is overtaken by the effects and becomes too reckless in the middle of a fight, it wouldn’t be surprising to see her die. This would also explain why there is no revival via the Lazarus Pit, as Malcolm Merlyn (the new Ra’s) was opposed to her going in the first time, even though she is his daughter.
Laurel
Another character whose death would affect both the cast and the audience would be Laurel’s, who is just now coming into her own as the Black Canary. Oliver’s grief makes sense considering their history, and Barry’s presence post-funeral in support of Oliver would also make sense, as he doesn’t seem to know her well. She is risking her life every time she goes out to fight crime, so the risk is there.
But with Sara coming back from the dead later this season, it would seem like overkill (rimshot) for the Lance family to lose a daughter again. Quentin Lance’s heart can only take so much!
Captain Lance
Speaking of Lance, the threat of death has been hanging over him for a while now, as he collapsed at the end of season 2 and was popping pills for his heart all throughout season 3. Laurel didn’t tell him about Sara’s death out of fear for his health. And with Lance signing up to work with Damien Darhk, the risks of his job have only gotten worse. Oliver and Lance are set up to have a complex relationship this season, so Oliver working through that after Lance’s death could be interesting to see play out.
However, it seems like it would make more sense to see Laurel and Sara standing at the grave after the funeral rather than Oliver and Barry. And, again, how much death can the Lance family take?
Lyla
Admittedly, this doesn’t seem likely, but we could see Oliver struggling with Lyla’s death after kidnapping her at the end of season 3. Barry also knows Lyla, so he would have reason to be at the funeral. Though Lyla had forgiven Oliver for his actions, it was this action that put Oliver and Diggle’s relationship on the rocks. However, it seems more likely that in the event of Lyla’s death, Oliver would be there to support Diggle, not at her grave after the funeral.
Oliver’s baby or baby mama
Another theory that’s floating around is that the deceased is either Oliver’s child or the mother of the child. While it could be, this seems unlikely for a few reasons. First, why would Barry be there? He has no connection to that part of Oliver’s life. And second, there would have to be a lot more build up of that plotline before it could have emotional resonance for the audience — and the characters, considering Oliver doesn’t even know he has a child in Central City.
Of course, there is also the option that the grave belongs to none of these individuals, but for there to be emotional resonance, as Mericle mentioned, we assume the death will have to be someone we’re already familiar with.
Arrow season 4 airs Wednesdays at 8:00 p.m. ET on The CW.