The mid-season finale of “Arrow” saw one of the most dramatic events in the show’s plot so far, if not the most major one – the duel between Oliver Queen and Ra’s Al Ghul ended with the apparent death of Oliver. At the end of the duel, Ra’s managed to break through his guard, stabbing him and throwing him over a huge cliff. With the way the ending of the episode was presented, one thing was implied very strongly – Oliver Queen seems to be dead.
However, it wouldn’t really be “Arrow” if they let such a major plot element go on without a twist, and rumors indicate that the death of the character is only temporary, and he’s coming back later in the season. There have been previous reports with similar hints as well, so it’s very likely that the death of the character was just a temporary move used to spice things up a little bit for the ending of the midseason.
According to an interview with people on the crew, the death of the character might be temporary (although this wasn’t confirmed officially for sure), and there will be some changes in the overall dynamic of the show in the coming episodes. While Oliver is gone, Roy will be shown more prominently and his presence in the show will increase. Additionally, the episodes that immediately follow the mid-season finale are going to show some rather dramatic events, and a scene in episode 11 has been specifically mentioned as something that will grab the interest of fans.
So far, the most common speculation among fans regarding the future of the show, is that Oliver will be resurrected with the help of the Lazarus Pit, which is precisely what allows Ra’s Al Ghul to stay alive. While the pit hasn’t been shown in any of the episodes before, it’s likely that it will be involved in the coming plotline, unless the writers have another idea up their sleeve with regards to how they’re going to bring back Oliver Queen.
And it actually wouldn’t be that surprising if there is indeed something more unusual planned for the character’s revival. At this point, it seems rather unlikely that the writers will want to keep the character dead for good, as that would change the dynamic of the show too much. On the other hand, killing off a character only to have them brought back “surprisingly” a few episodes later is something of a cliché in TV lately, so they should plan it very carefully and ensure it won’t result in any eyes rolled in annoyance in the crowd. The writers on this show definitely seem to know how to handle that.