The ultimate trick arrow may be needed for The CW’s Green Arrow series to get done all it needs to get done in its eighth, final and abbreviated season.

For in addition to further setting the stage for the five-part “Crisis on Infinite Earths” crossover event — which launches in December and wraps up in 2020 after the holiday break — the seminal Arrowverse series may want to tend to any unfinished business involving characters who have been missing as of late. Thea (played by original cast member Willa Holland), for one, seems due for a finale encore, if only to fill in some blanks on Roy’s death, resurrection and self-imposed exile to Lian Yu. Plus, it’d be fun to get visits from two of the superhero drama’s best-remembered frenemies, Slade Wilson (Manu Bennett) and (the presumably late) Malcolm Merlyn (John Barrowman).

“There are so many characters [to consider]. So many characters,” showrunner Beth Schwartz acknowledged with a laugh during her most recent TVLine interview. “And we’re definitely thinking about all of that, because just as much as our fans want to see it, as people who have been on the show for a long time, we are also fans of these characters. So we’re going to make sure that everyone has a great final season.”

And while it might seem a superhuman task to service the current story — Oliver was last seen being removed from Felicity and wee Mia’s life, when the Monitor came to square away their “Elseworlds” deal — while also making time for qualified comebacks, and in just 10 episodes, Schwartz relishes the challenge.

“That’s the exciting part of next season, only having 10 episodes,” she said. “We’ve [been] brainstorming and thinking about who we want back, because there are so many characters that we love.” And if everything goes according to the ambitious plan, “I think every episode is just going to be humongous,” Schwartz offered. “We’re going to fit it all in, and it’s definitely going to be an amazing season.” (With reporting by Vlada Gelman)

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