This week's episode of the CW's Arrow will see Oliver Queen coming face-to-face with a character who has been dead since the show's inaugural season.
Photos from "Living Proof," the 21st episode of Arrow Season 7, show Oliver Queen in the aftermath of the previous episode, which saw Emiko Queen drop a building on him and Team Arrow. Oliver escaped with his life, but appears to have suffered some form of trauma, as standing alongside him is none other than Colin Donnell's Tommy Merlyn.
Of course, Tommy died in Arrow's Season 1 finale all the way back in May of 2013. However, Donell has since reprised his role as Tommy multiple times, typically in flashbacks, alternate realities or hallucinations. Considering Oliver's surroundings, this version of Tommy Merlyn is almost certainly a hallucination of some sort.
As the official synopsis for "Living Proof" states:
OLIVER IS PUT TO THE TEST -- Oliver (Stephen Amell) finds himself in a precarious position. SCPD shows up with a warrant for Felicity (Emily Bett Rickards). Gordon Verheul directed the episode written by Oscar Balderrama & Sarah Tarkoff (#721). Original airdate 5/6/2019.
Considering who is joining Oliver in his escape from underneath the rubble, it seems that a "precarious position" doesn't even begin to describe his situation. Given how distressed Oliver looks in the stills, one can only wonder what this vision of his childhood friend has to get off his chest.
Airing Mondays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on The CW, Arrow stars Stephen Amell as Oliver Queen, David Ramsey as John Diggle, Emily Bett Rickards as Felicity Smoak, Rick Gonzalez as Wild Dog, Juliana Harkavy as Black Canary, Colton Haynes as Arsenal, Kirk Acevedo as Diaz and Katie Cassidy as Black Siren.