Legacy (Arrow)

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Legacy is the fifth-season premiere of The CW’s Arrow, the 93rd episode overall. It aired on October 5, 2016, was directed by James Bamford, written by Marc Guggenheim and Wendy Mericle from a story by Greg Berlanti, and introduces new vigilante Wild Dog (Rene Ramirez) and villain Tobias Church.

Plot in brief
- Months after Oliver Queen killed Damien Darhk, Oliver travels to Russia to find Kovar; Anatoly helps him escape the Bratva.
- In present day, a dying Laurel Lance urges Oliver not to let her Canary legacy fade. Years later, Thea helps cover Oliver’s lateness to a city function.
- Oliver clashes with Lonnie Machin, who is confronted by a mysterious vigilante who later helps him. Oliver shoots the vigilante in the leg.
- At a party and in the bunker, Felicity briefs Oliver on Wild Dog, a new vigilante. Oliver resists starting a new team.
- A new crime boss, Tobias Church, begins harming corrupt cops who killed drug dealers. Lance approaches Oliver about returning to the team.
- Oliver surrenders to masked gunmen to protect his identity. Thea and Lance race to help, and Oliver helps rescue hostages, though some must be abandoned due to danger.
- Thea contemplates retirement after witnessing Oliver’s violent actions. Curtis and Felicity work on tech, and Curtis asks to join Oliver’s new team, which Diggle supports.
- Felicity’s personal life becomes a subplot, and an ACU officer is killed by an unknown archer. A police sketch of the archer is drawn by Neal Adams.

New characters
- Wild Dog (Rene Ramirez), a reckless new vigilante played by Rick Gonzalez.
- Tobias Church, a formidable new criminal antagonist played by Chad L. Coleman.
- Detective Billy Malone, introduced in this episode, played by Tyler Ritter.

Production notes
- Filming took place July 5–15, 2016, with prep in late June.
- Collider suggested viewers could expect one of Arrow’s most violent fight scenes in this episode.
- The episode features a memorial element for Laurel Lance.

Reception
- Viewers: about 1.87 million, with modest ratings in the 18–49 demographic.
- Critical response was mixed to positive: Den of Geek praised the action and the Church character; The A.V. Club offered a more cautious take; Empire gave it 4 out of 5 stars; IGN rated it 7.4/10, noting it didn’t fully deliver the season’s momentum but had strong performances and set up new directions.