Saturday Morning Musings

Good morning, everyone! (Or maybe good afternoon being that it's 11:43 AM at the moment.) This week has been tiring, but exciting. College talk has really started, so now I've got to start planning some school visits, but that's not what this post is about. I've got my cup of tea this morning, though it probably should be coffee, but nonetheless, let's get into the first post of "Saturday Morning Musings"!

Over the past few weeks and especially this past week, I've been noticing a lot of character development on the shows I watch, particularly Arrow. Character development is essential to tv shows, movies, books, etc., even everyday life. Not only does it allow a character to grow, but it allows the person seeing it to understand why it's happening and how the character's decisions are affected by it. However, it can also have a negative impact on a person's perspective of the character. I, personally, am usually able to see why it's happening as long as the show, or whatever type of media, is written well. It's not only needed for the character, but it's needed for the storyline, overall.

In the case of character's that have been disliked due to their changes, I'll bring up Felicity Smoak from Arrow. During the last few weeks, people have almost started to hate (maybe that's too strong a word) her character because of the decisions she's made and the things she's said. Honestly, watching her grow over the course of three seasons I entirely understand why she's been acting the way she has. We've seen her grow into an even stronger young woman. I think the one argument people are bringing to the table is: "Why is she so against Oliver, right now? Why is she challenging him so much?" From watching the show, I can't recall a single time where Felicity though Oliver was doing some irrational and didn't call him out on it. That's one of the things I've loved about her character from the beginning. She never fears Oliver's reaction by telling him the truth about her opinion. If she thinks he's acting in a way that he doesn't see that there are things bothering the people around him, she'll tell him. The simplest way to put it? Felicity Smoak doesn't put up with any of Oliver's bullshit. I contemplated changing that last word, but I feel like that's the only way to describe it in a way that gets my point across. The fact that Felicity Smoak and Oliver Queen's relationship is real, is why I've come to love it so much. Would I be happy if Felicity Smoak just ran to Oliver and told him how in love with him she is? Yeah, but would I appreciate their arc as much? No.

This has turned into an Arrow focused post, but that's the point of these musings. They'll take my in a direction that I necessarily didn't plan on going in, but wanted to share.

Oliver Queen, the other half to the relationship, is an absolute mess right now. He's convinced that he's going to have to sacrifice his humanity in order to save the others around him. We've seen him transition over the seasons, as well, in a multitude of ways, which I'm not going to go delve into right now. I will mention that Oliver Queen was going to give up his own life to save John Diggle, which proves the fact that he is such an unselfish person, so I don't know where the 'Oliver Queen is selfish' argument by some people has come from. Everything that is happening is needed for both Oliver and Felicity. They need to figure themselves out first before they can be in a proper and healthy relationship. Ultimately, Oliver needs to realize that his humanity is worth saving. The important thing is that people can understand why the character's are making certain decisions at this point in time, and I certainly do. When you can understand both sides to an argument, such as why Felicity is angry with Oliver for working with Malcolm or why Oliver feels like working with Malcolm is the only way, then the writers have done their job.

So, there's that little post of the day and I have now finished my cup of tea, which I guess means I've gotten my point across, and I think I have. So, there will be bumps in the road, there always are bumps in the road, but that's life. It's up to the characters to overcome those bumps and develop even further because of them. I hope you all have a fantastic Saturday, or whatever day it is when you read this.

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