Laurel Lance (Arrowverse)

Dinah Laurel Lance is the name of several fictional characters in The CW's Arrowverse franchise based on the DC Comics character of the same name, created by writer-artist team of Robert Kanigher and Carmine Infantino, and adapted by Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim and Andrew Kreisberg for "Arrow" in 2012. Katie Cassidy portrays the several multiverse versions of the character within the "Arrowverse", all of whom are mostly referred to by their middle name, "Laurel", unlike the comics.
The first version of Laurel is introduced in the pilot episode of "Arrow" as a legal aid attorney and Oliver Queen's ex-girlfriend, who later becomes a vigilante and takes up the mantle of Black Canary in subsequent seasons of "Arrow" until her death in season four. The character also appears in spin-off shows "The Flash" and "Legends of Tomorrow" as well web series "Vixen", which are all set in the same shared fictional universe.
In 2016, the penultimate episode of "The Flash" season two introduces an antagonist doppelgänger of Laurel Lance from the parallel universe Earth-2, who is known as Black Siren. The character subsequently recurs in "Arrow" season five and becomes one of the main characters from season six onward. This version of Laurel is gradually redeemed in the following seasons of "Arrow" and eventually assumes the heroic 'Black Canary' moniker, like her late Earth-1 counterpart.
Following the events of the sixth annual Arrowverse crossover "Crisis on Infinite Earths", Earth-2 Laurel is revived in the rebooted universe called Earth-Prime. The penultimate episode of "Arrow"s final season served as a pilot for a potential spin-off series "Green Arrow and the Canaries" set in 2040 in the new timeline, co-starring Cassidy as the character. However, the series was not picked up.
Storylines.
Laurel Lance (Earth-1).
Dinah Laurel Lance is first introduced in the pilot episode of "Arrow" as a legal-aid attorney working for a legal assistance group called CNRI (City Necessary Resources Initiative) in Starling City. Her father Quentin Lance is a detective and her younger sister Sara Lance and ex-boyfriend Oliver Queen are both presumed dead, while having a secret fling during the sinking of Queen's Gambit five years ago.
Season 1.
Over season one's course, Laurel pursues a relationship with Tommy Merlyn, and often works with "The Hood", unaware that the vigilante is actually Oliver who has returned. Laurel initially blames Oliver for Sara's death but after her breakup with Tommy, she briefly resumes her relationship with Oliver. Tommy's death during the events of 'The Undertaking' eventually causes Oliver and Laurel to part ways.
Season 2.
In season two, Laurel becomes an Assistant District Attorney, but also struggles with Tommy's death, leading her to fight her own battles with alcoholism and use of prescription drugs. She learns that her sister Sara is alive. She also learns that Oliver is the vigilante known as "The Arrow", and her sister is also a vigilante, whom she eventually names "The Canary".
Season 3.
In season three, Laurel witnesses Sara's murder and resolves to become a vigilante to find her sister's killer and to help people as Sara did. This leads her to begin combat training with Ted Grant, and later Nyssa al Ghul. Initially impersonating "The Canary", Laurel eventually assumes her own mantle as the "Black Canary" and joins Oliver's crusade. As Black Canary, she uses a side-handle baton as her trademark weapon, and later uses an updated version of her sister's sonic "Canary Cry" device designed by Cisco Ramon.
Season 4.
In season four, Laurel is shown to be still active as a vigilante in Starling City (now renamed Star City) alongside John Diggle and Thea Queen. She and Thea convince Oliver Queen and Felicity Smoak to return to aid their mission, which leads to Oliver adopting the moniker "Green Arrow". Soon Laurel learns about the Lazarus Pit's power and attempts Sara's resurrection, which succeeds with John Constantine's help. Laurel soon convinces Sara to join Rip Hunter's team later known as the Legends; Sara does so, adopting the moniker "White Canary". 
Laurel is mortally wounded by H.I.V.E. leader Damien Darhk and later dies in the hospital surrounded by the team and confessing to Oliver that she still loves him. At her funeral, Oliver reveals Black Canary's real identity to the public to stop Evelyn Sharp's impersonation from inadvertently labeling her as a criminal. Laurel's death is avenged when Oliver kills Darhk.
Later seasons.
In later seasons of "Arrow", the Black Canary mantle is passed on to Dinah Drake, while Laurel's civilian identity is assumed by her Earth-2 doppelgänger, Black Siren. In season 6, Laurel appears in Oliver's hallucination when he is drugged with Vertigo, accusing him of her death. In season 7, archive footage of Laurel as Black Canary is seen in "Emerald Archer", a documentary about Oliver's vigilante activities. In season 8, Laurel appears as a speed force illusion in Arrow's episode of "Crisis on Infinite Earths", where she mourns Sara's death alongside Diggle. 
After the events of "Crisis", in the new Earth-Prime, Laurel is said to have married Tommy Merlyn, who survived the events of the first season in this new universe, although Laurel herself still later died.
Laurel Lance (Earth-2).
Black Siren is introduced in "The Flash" season two's twenty-second episode "Invincible" as a criminal and member of Zoom's metahuman army. Her scream is a metahuman power that she uses to take down buildings on Zoom's order, but is stopped by Barry Allen / The Flash's team and imprisoned at S.T.A.R. Labs.
Season 5.
Black Siren later re-appears in season five of "Arrow". Initially posing as Earth-1 Laurel, she is revealed to be working for Prometheus. But her true identity is soon discovered by Felicity, and her together with Team Arrow imprison E2 Laurel at A.R.G.U.S. She later assists Prometheus again in kidnapping and taking the Team on Lian Yu.
Season 6.
In season six, Black Siren becomes a recurring menace for Team Arrow, as she works initially as part of Cayden James's cabal and then with Ricardo Diaz. She also becomes an archenemy of Dinah Drake for killing Dinah's partner-lover Vincent Sobel on James's order after he was revealed to be a double-agent. She eventually goes public as Earth-1's Laurel with a cover story of being abducted, and starts living with Quentin Lance, who remains optimistic about her redemption. Quentin is later shot and killed by Diaz which leaves Laurel devastated and eager for revenge.
Season 7.
In season seven, Laurel takes on her Earth-1 counterpart's position as District Attorney and becomes an ally of Team Arrow. She gains Felicity's trust and the duo start a crusade to kill Diaz, but both eventually overcome their vengeance. Laurel later learns from Ben Turner that Diaz was murdered in prison by Oliver's half-sister Emiko Queen, who tries to discredit Laurel by exposing her criminal past. She briefly relapses into her Black Siren persona but Felicity, Dinah and Sara manage to stop and convince her. Laurel then goes back to Earth-2 in pursuit of full redemption with Earth-1 Laurel's Black Canary outfit, given to her by Felicity. 
A flashforward set in 2040 shows Laurel working with a female vigilante group known as the Canary Network while helping a resistance movement against Galaxy One. She later returns briefly to help the team battle Emiko and the Ninth Circle, now operating as the "Black Canary".
Season 8.
In season eight, Laurel encounters Oliver on Earth-2, where she is shown to be actively working as Black Canary alongside Earth-2 Adrian Chase / The Hood. She is also reunited with John Diggle and the group works together to stop "The Undertaking", orchestrated by Tommy Merlyn / Dark Archer of this Earth. As Earth-2 is destroyed by antimatter, Laurel escapes with Oliver and Diggle to Earth-1 where she learns that Oliver is working for Mar Novu / The Monitor, to save the multiverse from a forthcoming crisis. Laurel assists Oliver and Team Arrow for subsequent missions, leading them to places like Hong Kong, Russia and Lian Yu and encountering several past and future enemies in often time-altering settings designed by Novu, leading to "Crisis on Infinite Earths".
Rebooted universe, future timeline.
Following the events of Crisis, Laurel learns about Oliver's death and his role in rebooting the universe as the Spectre, resulting in a new universe in which several people including Quentin and Tommy, never died. She attends Oliver's funeral and learns from Tommy that her original Earth-1 counterpart had married him in this new universe but died later. At some point after the funeral, Laurel travels to the year 2040 in this new timeline to warn Oliver's daughter Mia Queen of an impending danger, and is reunited with Dinah Drake who is revealed to have been time-displaced since Oliver's funeral.
Development.
Creation and casting.
In January 2012, after The CW ordered a television pilot for a potential Green Arrow series, its executive producers Andrew Kreisberg, Greg Berlanti and Marc Guggenheim developed the character of Dinah "Laurel" Lance, based on the Black Canary from DC Comics. The official character breakdown pitched Laurel as "a 28 years old, smart sexy, legal aid attorney determined to use her life as a one-woman war".
In February 2012, Katie Cassidy was cast for the role. Regarding the differences between the characters on the show and in the comics, Warner Bros. Television president Peter Roth stated in an interview with "TVLine", "We are working very closely with DC. We are making sure that each of the original characters are honored, are respected, and any changes that we make are being made with the sanction and endorsement of DC."
In an interview given in October 2012, Cassidy stated that she loved the script when she read it. She went on to say that, "It was everything that I wanted to get involved with, so I was beyond thrilled."
Characterization.
In DC Comics, Dinah Laurel Lance is one version of Black Canary, a superhero in her own right, and a love interest and eventual wife of the Green Arrow. However, the series takes a different route and introduces the character as a legal attorney and childhood friend of Oliver Queen, with whom she shares a romantic past. The character is known by her middle name, Laurel. Oliver and Laurel's relationship is one of the key plots in season 1, as she initially blames him for cheating on her and causing her sister's death, but later forgives him and attempts to rekindle their relationship.
Laurel's sister Sara Lance, an original character developed for the series, is introduced in season one and returns in season 2, as a female vigilante known as the 'Canary'. In an interview with "TV Guide", then-executive producer Andrew Kreisberg revealed that Lotz's character was the beginning of the Black Canary's story. He further stated that, "Everyone knows that Laurel Lance is the Black Canary. But how we get from A to B is the story of our show – People will see how Caity Lotz fits into Laurel's journey along the way".
Sara's story serves as a backstory for Laurel's eventual path to becoming the 'Black Canary', who is also a legacy character in the comics. Before assuming the mantle, Laurel's character goes through various personal tragedies such as losing her boyfriend Tommy, being kidnapped multiple times, dealing with her father's alcohol-addiction, and then her own addiction and finally witnessing Sara's murder in the season 3 premiere. In an interview dated January 2015, Katie Cassidy stated that, "You can't just overnight all of a sudden be a superhero. You have to go through things and hit your rock bottom and then be able to come out on top and build character and be strong."
Character death.
In April 2016, during "Arrow"s fourth season, the character was killed off in the episode "Eleven-Fifty-Nine". The-then showrunners and executive producers Marc Guggenheim and Wendy Mericle cited the decision to kill off Laurel as a "creative choice", at a press screening. They also stated that, "Death does not mean goodbye on any of these shows" hinting at a possible return for the character/actress. Cassidy mentioned in an interview that she learned about Laurel's fate only two episodes before shooting began on "Eleven-Fifty-Nine". However, she explained that, "I've had such an incredible arc, so it made sense to me, creatively, that we've told Laurel's story".
Multiverse, return to "Arrow" and character redemption.
In May 2016, Cassidy appeared as Laurel Lance's Earth-2 doppelgänger known as Black Siren on "The Flash", which had already introduced the concept of multiverse in its then ongoing second season. The alias "Black Siren" serves as a callback to the Justice Guild of America member from the "Justice League" animated series who herself was based on the Golden Age Black Canary. In July 2016, Cassidy was promoted to a series regular across all Arrowverse shows, as part of a special contract that allowed actors to recur on multiple shows simultaneously, previously signed by fellow actors Wentworth Miller and John Barrowman. In March 2017, it was announced that the actress would return to "Arrow" full-time for its sixth season and portray Earth-2 Laurel Lance.
Towards the end of "Arrow" season seven, Earth-2 Laurel eventually finds redemption and takes up the mantle of Black Canary. Regarding the character's new costume in season eight, Cassidy stated in an interview, "It really truly feels like the Black Canary. It feels like Laurel Lance. It feels almost truer to the comic book than we’ve seen, and I think that's really cool. I wish I had it sooner".
Spin-off.
In August 2019, "Newsarama" reported that Katie Cassidy had pitched a "Birds of Prey" spin-off to the network. When asked about her previous interest in the team, Cassidy said, "I’ve pitched it. I think they should. It's time for women". In September 2019, "The Hollywood Reporter" confirmed that The CW are developing a female-led spin-off series, with Katherine McNamara, Cassidy and Juliana Harkavy as the leads, reprising their roles from "Arrow", titled "Green Arrow and the Canaries". However, the series was ultimately not picked up by The CW.
Reception.
Critical reception.
The character received mixed response from the critics during initial seasons of "Arrow". David Hinckley of "New York Daily News" wrote, "Cassidy starts off well and is likely to get better as Laurel starts to figure things out", in his review of the pilot episode. Other critics wrote Laurel as "a scrappy legal aid attorney" or "plainly a good girl". Laurel's character was often compared to Rachel Dawes from Christopher Nolan's "The Dark Knight Trilogy", with some critics calling Laurel as "Arrow"s version of Dawes. Jesse Schedeen of "IGN" included the character among "hit and miss" characters in his "Arrow" season one review. Shunal Doke of the same website criticized Cassidy's portrayal for making the character "unlikable" but appreciated the motivations behind the character and wrote her as "eventually proving worthy of becoming a costumed heroine."
The critical response towards the character improved in subsequent seasons. In "IGN"s review of season three finale, Schedeen praised Laurel's team-up with Nyssa and wrote, "It seems Laurel has finally graduated to the big leagues, and she didn't even need to rely on her Canary Cry." Writing for "Entertainment Weekly", Chancellor Agard observed in his review of season three, that "Laurel, who was once the show's biggest problem, came into her own this season".
In his review of season four episode "Eleven-Fifty-Nine", Schedeen called Laurel's death a "huge emotional moment" and her final conversation with Oliver as Cassidy's finest moments on the series. Writing for "TV Overmind", Andy Behbakht criticized the decision to kill off Laurel, feeling the character was underutilized and "The Black Canary was in many ways one of "Arrow" big hearts and seeing the show losing that character, makes the series lose a lot of its remaining magic". Eric Francisco of "Inverse" called the decision "a bold move that would have been a good one for the show... if it had been handled with delicate care. But "Arrow" is not delicate." Laurel's death also drew criticism from some fans, prompting an online backlash.
The Earth-2 version of the character – Black Siren received positive reviews. Angelica Jade Bastién of "Vulture" wrote in her review that, ""The Flash" better serves Laurel than "Arrow" did in several seasons – Black Siren has swagger". Schedeen also praised the character and wrote, "It was refreshing to see Cassidy cut loose and play a twisted version of her character". The "Arrow" season seven episode "Lost Canary" focuses primarily on Earth-2 Laurel's eventual redemption, which mainly garnered positive reviews. Scheeden wrote in his review, "We see Laurel at her best and truly embodying the redemption being Black Canary offers." Season 8 episode "Welcome to Hong Kong" sees Laurel deal with the fallout of her home world's destruction. In his review, Schedeen wrote, "...this version of the character has never been more sympathetic or identifiable than when confronting the death of a world where she finally found happiness. Her ultimate decision to bounce back and continue saving the living in order to honor the dead feels like the culmination of a major arc for this character." Chancellor Agard of "Entertainment Weekly" said, "Overall, I loved Laurel in this episode more than anything else. The exploration of Laurel's grief over the loss of Earth-2 is some of the best material Cassidy has ever had on the show and yields one of her best performances."
In other media.
Web media.
"Vixen".
Cassidy provided the voice for the Earth-1 version of her character in the second season of the CW Seed Arrowverse animated web series "Vixen". In the story, Laurel (Black Canary) provides assistance to Mari McCabe (Vixen), along with Ray Palmer (Atom), in capturing Mari's sister Kuasa in Star City. They later help Mari in combating former warlord Benatu Eshu in Detroit.
The Blu-ray and DVD re-release of the first two seasons was combined into a single story as "Vixen: The Movie". It added fifteen minutes of never-before-seen content, including a few scenes of Earth-1 Laurel that were not included in the CW Seed release. The third season of "Legends of Tomorrow" ultimately changes the continuity of "Vixen", resulting in an altered timeline where Mari McCabe now shares the 'Vixen' mantle with Kuasa. It is unclear to what capacity the events of "Vixen" season 2 get affected.
"The Chronicles of Cisco".
The Earth-1 version was mentioned in "The Chronicles of Cisco" Post 9 "Chapter Seven: Hannibal Bates", and a video footage of the Earth-2 Laurel is seen in Post 40. The Earth-X version was mentioned in Post 79 "#BestListenerEver".