When Arrow first came on television in 2012, it had virtually no competition when it came to other live-action superhero TV shows. Fast-forward seven years, four official spinoffs (plus the non-Arrowverse Black Lightning), and a television landscape so full of superheroes that there are multiple takes on the anti-superhero show. This fall Arrow Arrow heads into the home stretch, wrapping up eight seasons with a ten-episode victory lap. Den of geek caught up with David Ramsey at the TCA’s to discuss Arrow season 8, reflect on the impact the show has hadm and how it feels to have been a part of the CW DC renaissance.

DEN OF GEEK: As someone who’s been around from the beginning, what’s it like to be here at the end?

DAVID RAMSEY: It’s cool, man. It’s good to be here at the end. It’s kind of surreal. Some of this experience is kind of like you’re sitting out of your body watching it a little bit. And then the other parts you are trying to make sure you grasp it, because you know it won’t happen again, right? What are people wearing? What are you wearing? What’s the attitude? What’s the energy? Because you’re trying to remember, because, you know, this doesn’t happen. This never happens. Ever. Eight seasons with how many spin-offs? It just doesn’t happen. So you just try to soak it all up.

This thing kind of broke the mold. This set up TV universe of superheroes.