The season’s entire gimmick was a flash-forward to Oliver standing over a grave, crying. For months, fans speculated. Was it Diggle? Thea? Lance? The suspense was actually fantastic.
The show stopped being about saving Star City and started being about whether Oliver remembered to call Felicity before a mission. When the protagonist's relationship drama overshadows the villain nuking a city (yes, that happens), you have a writing problem. Arrow - Season 4
Arrow Season 4 isn't unwatchable. Neal McDonough is a delight, and the "Green Arrow" costume is the best in the show's history. The episode "Eleven-Fifty-Nine" (Laurel's death) is actually well-acted, even if the decision is infuriating. The season’s entire gimmick was a flash-forward to
The fourth season of Arrow picks up where the third season left off, with Oliver Queen (Stephen Amell) having returned from his self-imposed exile on Lian Yu. The season's early episodes focus on the consequences of Oliver's actions during the "Damien Darhk" storyline, as the city of Starling faces the threat of the villainous A.R.A. (played by Michael Socha). A.R.A. is a highly advanced assassin created by the company A.R.G.U.S. (Advanced Research Group Uniting Super-Humans), which had been experimenting with metahuman DNA. The show stopped being about saving Star City
The flashback structure, a staple of Arrow , chronicles Oliver’s time in Coast City (a nod to Hal Jordan/Green Lantern) and later on Lian Yu with the mystical idol that powers Darhk. While Season 2’s flashbacks were perfection, Season 4’s felt disjointed, serving mostly to explain the magical McGuffin rather than develop Oliver’s character.
Season 4 opens with a deceptive sense of peace. After the catastrophic events of Season 3—where Oliver was killed, resurrected, and lost his friend Ra’s al Ghul—Oliver and Felicity Smoak (Emily Bett Rickards) are living a quiet life in Ivy Town, far from the bloodshed. But trouble is brewing back home. The episode title, "Green Arrow," signals the change: Oliver ditches the League of Assassins black leather for a brighter, more classic green suit with sleeves.