One of the reasons why the bridge between Arrow and The Flash worked as seamlessly as it did was because the spinoff was nurtured and grown thanks to the efforts of Arrow executive producers Andrew Kreisberg, Greg Berlanti, and Marc Guggenheim. The development from Barrys first charming introduction in Arrows second season to the realisation of his abilities in the pilot of The Flash worked extraordinarily well, and The Flash continues to dazzle on a weekly basis. As it happens, the increasing quality of the material on the first season of The Flash has corresponded with an increased sloppiness for much of Arrow's third year, and its difficult not to wonder how much of a role the behind-the-scenes changes in the creative team dynamic played in the dip in organic storytelling. Both Kreisberg and Berlanti made the move over to executive producing on The Flash as a priority on The CW, leaving Marc Guggenheim at the helm of Arrow. Of course, the decrease in effective storytelling could be attributed to other factors. Nevertheless, the fact that the collaborative crossover produced two of the best episodes of both shows is pretty compelling - and discouraging - evidence that the creative team split has had negative consequences for Arrow. Will The Flash have a major negative impact on Arrow, or can both shows co-exist? Have your say down in the comments.
Fiction buff and writer. If it's on Netflix, it's probably in my queue. I've bought DVDs for the special features and usually claim that the book is better than the movie or show (and can provide examples). I've never met a TV show that I won't marathon. Follow on Twitter @lah9891 .