‘Arrow’ season 5, episode 8 preview: The 100th episode, Deathstroke, and crossovers galore

Tonight, “Arrow” is giving you an episode in “Vigilante” that is especially important not only for its own singular story, but also for what it will lead to: The 100th episode in two weeks (there is no episode airing next week), and the epic four-part crossover between this show, “Legends of Tomorrow,” “The Flash,” and “Supergirl.”

In setting up the “Arrow” episode, which will be the third of four parts of the crossover, the biggest thing that we can say at the moment is that it will pick up following the arrival of the Dominators, an alien race that will be inflicting a tremendous degree of harm to Central City. We’re not entirely sure how we get specifically to the “Arrow” part of the equation, but there’s certainly part of this story that will feel like a throwback.

Synopsis – “Oliver (Stephen Amell) wakes up to a life where he never got on The Queen’s Gambit. Robert (guest star Jamey Sheridan) and Moira Queen (guest star Susanna Thompson) are alive and well. Laurel (guest star Katie Cassidy) is his loving fiancée and their wedding is imminent. Everything seems perfect, but Oliver starts to notice small imperfections that make him question this new reality. Meanwhile, Felicity (Emily Bett Rickards) and the recruits take on a new threat with help from The Flash (guest star Grant Gustin) and Supergirl (guest star Melissa Benoist).”

We definitely do feel like there is a big part of this episode that on paper sounds controversial, mostly because we’re less than two months removed from “The Flash” doing Flashpoint and “Supergirl” telling a similar sort of sliding-doors storyline last year. The one thing that could eventually make this different from the other episodes we mentioned is what gets us to this point. Is Oliver dreaming, or under some sort of spell? This matters when it comes to how much this alternate-universe really matters … and if this could be something that brings Cassidy back to the show on a larger basis.

As for Deathstroke, we know that he’s turning up thanks to set pictures … and that’s about it. Our biggest concern for Oliver is that somehow, this character either gets released through the crossover or is changed due to Flashpoint.

Be sure to check back later tonight for some more coverage of this episode over at this link. If a promo is made available, we’ll have it for you here! (Photo: The CW.)