Arrow: Mia Smoak Is the Show’s Biggest Failure
Mia Smoak was the culmination of the Olicity pairing, and she was also incredibly unlikeable to the point of not getting her own planned show.
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In adapting the character to the small screen, Arrow made a lot of changes and additions to the mythology of DC’s Green Arrow. This saw several original characters introduced throughout the show’s run, some of whom were more controversial than others. A later addition was Mia Smoak, the daughter of Oliver Queen and Felicity Smoak.
Much like her mother, Mia was an incredibly controversial character in Arrow, cementing one of its biggest criticisms and failing to truly take off. This latter element made her one of the show’s biggest failings as well, as her inability to spread out into her own series showcased her tainting the legacy of Arrow. Before she comes back in “Armageddon,” here’s a look at why Mia Smoak has been such a flop.
Mia Smoak Represents Olicity… For Better or Worse
One of Arrow’s most scandalous decisions was to kill off Dinah Laurel Lance, the second Black Canary, and instead make Felicity Smoak Oliver Queen’s one true love. Smoak, though she shared the same name as a minor DC Comics character, was for all intent and purposes an original creation who bore almost no resemblance to her obscure source material. Thus, many fans were upset that the iconic Green Arrow/Black Canary romance was upended for a show-original character.
Any subsequent child that came out of this union would of course be hated, as they would represent Laurel’s fridging and the pedestalization of Felicity. Lo and behold, many fans didn’t take to her for a variety of reasons, with her ties to the toxic Olicity pairing being chief among them. The fact that her character was written as being so whiny and unlikeable when the writers clearly wanted everyone to easily accept her only made matters worse. This alone would seem like a terrible idea for the show, but it’s Mia’s failure to stand on her own with a spinoff that really cemented her as the worst part of Arrow.
Mia Smoak Tainted the Legacy of Arrow
Mia was focused on as an adult in future flash-forward sequences, which again didn’t exactly paint her as the most likable of characters. Some fans remarked that they would’ve preferred future storylines in Arrow to focus on Connor Hawke or even Roy Harper, so to be stuck with the spawn of Olicity certain rubbed them the wrong way. Then there’s the fact that Mia was front and center in the last seasons of Arrow, showing how, again, the show had begun to focus on the child of the now hated Felicity.
One of these stories served as a failed backdoor pilot to a spinoff sequel, Green Arrow & the Canaries. After being passed over for what seemed like an eternity, the show was officially not picked up, making it all for naught. Thus, the legacy of Arrow ended with essentially Oliver and Felicity’s spoiled daughter who couldn’t even get her own show. This put a dark mark on the show as it ended its 8-year-run, ending it all on a relative whimper.
Compare this to shows such as The Flash, in which through time travel both of Barry Allen’s children have become big parts of the show’s present-day storyline. Even though Nora Allen has her own critics, she’s at least the daughter of a character actually based in DC Comics mythology. Likewise, the Arrowverse take on Bart Allen has been fairly well-received, and though neither of these characters are in talks for potential spinoffs, they’re both in a much better place for one than Mia was. Mia is now returning for the “Armageddon” crossover on The Flash, but it will likely be her last hurrah. Sadly, Oliver Queen himself is now dead in the Arrowverse, and though he may not have failed his city, his show certainly failed by introducing his daughter.
Link Source : https://www.cbr.com/arrow-mia-smoak-biggest-failure/