'Arrow' Season 3 Spoilers: Will Oliver Return In Episode 11? Synopsis, Promo Released

Felicity (Emily Bett Rickards, left), Ray (Brandon Routh, right) and the rest of Team Arrow will have to go without Oliver (Stephen Amell, not pictured) for awhile in "Arrow" Season 3. The CW

Back in December, Season 3 of “Arrow” ended its midseason finale in a shocking fashion when Oliver (Stephen Amell) lost his duel with Ra’s Al Ghul (Matt Nable) and, seemingly, his life. In Wednesday’s midseason premiere, “Left Behind,” Team Arrow started to cope with the possibility that their hero was gone for good, but the show had another surprise in store for the final scene.

In Wednesday’s episode, Merlyn (John Barrowman) showed up to confirm Team Arrow’s worst fears – that Oliver Queen was dead. The news left Felicity (Emily Bett Rickards) distraught. Meanwhile, Roy (Colton Haynes) and Diggle (David Ramsey) were left to take on Starling City’s new bad guy, Brick (Vinnie) Jones, without the help of the Arrow. However, in the last scene of the episode Maseo (Karl Yune) found Oliver’s body and brought it back to Tatsu (Rila Fukushima) who was able to revive the dead hero. So, will Oliver be back in Starling fighting crime in the next episode?

Not exactly. First, the show’s producers want to have a little fun seeing how Team Arrow handles Oliver’s absence in an arc that will last three episodes, including Wednesday’s premiere.

“You can't do an ending like we did in episode nine and resolve it in one episode,” “Arrow” EP Andrew Kreisberg told the Hollywood Reporter. “Even beyond this sort of trilogy, the repercussions of Oliver's actions are felt throughout the rest of the season. It's that moment that really changes the world of ‘Arrow’ forever. One of the things that characters discover along the way is there is no going back.”

So, what does the next Oliver-less episode have in store for fans? Well, the promo for episode 11, “Midnight City,” reveals that Laurel (Katie Cassidy) will go full Black Canary, stepping into her sister’s shoes to keep the city safe while Oliver is gone. Meanwhile, according to synopsis, Ra’s Al Ghul will be after Merlyn – a.k.a. the person actually responsible for Sarah Lance’s (Caity Lotz) death.

Watch the promo for “Midnight City” below:

How will Laurel fare as the Black Canary? When will Oliver return? Fans will have to wait to find out. “Arrow” airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. EST on the CW.

How will Laurel do as the new Black Canary? Tweet your thoughts to @Ja9GarofaloTV.