8 Unforgivable Mistakes Arrow Made (From Which It Never Recovered)
7. Introduction Of The Supernatural
It's hard to admit this one because, in all honesty, this writer loves metahumans, magic and the multiverse - and the introduction of these three elements really opened the Arrowverse up to greater possibilities. So yes, in a way, the arrival of The Flash and all the madness that came with its wonderful debut season was of major benefit to the shared universe. However, as far as Arrow is concerned, it was a major issue.
Arrow worked best when it remained stripped back, gritty and grounded - that's why the first two seasons remain its best. But the moment that the writers had access to all the supernatural elements associated with comic books, they ran wild with them - which came at Arrow's decline.
Suddenly, we weren't watching compelling tales about tortured souls and instead were given offerings centred on magical potions, bloodlust and even metahumans of the week.
That kind of stuff was just too big when Arrow was a show that needed to remain small (saving the big stuff for the crossovers). As a result, Arrowbecame corny (see Oliver overcoming Damien's darkness with light magic), its villains were even cornier and its episodes just weren't as meaningful.