Arrow star Stephen Amell has provided new information regarding the use of flashbacks in season 6 given the recent wrap-up of Oliver Queen's five years on the island of Lian Yu. The season 5 finale ended on a huge cliffhanger with Lian Yu exploding while most of Team Arrow was still on the island. While there was no definite indication of a casualties, fans are already eager to know what happened and how it will affect the events of the show moving forward.

For a time, it was assumed that flashbacks will no longer be a storytelling device for Arrow given the conclusion of Oliver's five-year arc. But it turns out the show still has plans to incorporate flashbacks, as ti will with the season 6 premiere. But what about beyond that?

As reported by Comicbook.com, while appearing at this weekend's Heroes and Villains Fan Fest in Nashville, Amell revealed that Arrow season 6 premiere will include a flashback to Lian Yu right after it exploded:

"There are flashbacks in the first episode that take us back to the immediate aftermath of the events in the finale. Which is one of the reasons that I had to shave my beard, so I could match up with [the finale]."

That said, flashbacks will be minimized in the long run and will not always be about Oliver. Meaning, we could also get back stories on other Team Arrow members and maybe other characters as well:

"There are no flashbacks in the second episode. You know how occasionally over the course of five seasons, typically it's been Oliver's flashback? Sometimes there have been episodes where there's no flashbacks, and sometimes we've had flashbacks where we focus in on Diggle or Felicity or Renee. I think that's what will happen this year, that we will have the occasional flashback. We're not telling a linear story anymore about Oliver's time on the island. We've brought that one full circle."

Arrow co-exec producer Marc Guggenheim, previously teased the matter, saying that with the Lian Yu storyline almost over, the show will no longer have to incorporate flashbacks in season 6. Although at that point in time, he also said that they are not totally closing the door on it and might use the storytelling device if the narrative that they will be treading calls for it.

Season 6 premiere episode title has recently been revealed as 'Fallout' with filming officially well underway. While Arrow will be a little bit jarring without any flashbacks given that a lot of its present day stories somehow linked to Oliver's past in Lian Yu, the change in direction might be a great way to infuse new and fresh themes in the series to keep fans interested.

Source: Comicbook.com