Speaking of Malcolm Merlyn, another of the most persistent problems plaguing Arrow is that it seems to live or die by the strength of its villains and not its heroes. The most poorly received seasons, four and six, correlate directly with lukewarm villains, and vice versa with the stronger ones. With the rights to use fan-favorite Deathstroke now off the table for the foreseeable future, this might be even more of an uphill battle for the show.

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By far the hardest thing for Arrow to try and fix, however, is the competition it faces from Netflix’s mature Marvel shows. The Flash, Supergirl and Legends of Tomorrow largely escape this issue by virtue of leaning more heavily into sci-fi and fantasy than The Defenders-verse does. But, Arrow‘s street-level, grittier tone makes it a direct rival, and it often struggles to measure up. Given the show has to appeal to a younger audience this isn’t completely its fault but it often feels like its falling between two stools — not tough enough for adults and not fun enough for kids.

It doesn’t help, either, that Arrow keeps flirting with the kind of social and political commentary — drug addiction, gun control, political corruption, journalistic ethics, etc. — that Netflix’s Marvel shows are able to dive far deeper into. The worthy exception of Quentin Lance’s battle with alcoholism aside, Arrow frequently under-bakes these hard hitting themes that could strengthen it. For instance, Oliver’s relationship with Channel 52 reporter Susan Williams felt like it was leading to something explosive, not to mention timely, given the ongoing conversation about the role that the media plays in politics. Rather than a bang, however, it concluded with a fizzle. These are opportunities Arrow can’t afford to miss the target on anymore.

Arrow, even at its worst, is not a bad TV show, per se. And, like its former-playboy hero, it still has a shot at redemption. In terms of the villain problem, obviously consistency is key. The Rogues Gallery team-up is an exciting prospect, but with Malcolm Merlyn and Deathstroke gone, Arrow could benefit from replacing them with other minor returning villains in the way that Gorilla Grodd and King Shark are used in The Flash, rather than limiting fan favorite bad guys to one episode or one season runs.

The latest incarnation of Team Arrow seems to be on hiatus at this point in Season 6, so perhaps it’s time to consider, as we edge closer to a possible Season 7, whether that hiatus should be a permanent one. It sounds cruel, but a character “cull” might be a necessary way to stop the series feeling overstuffed with personalities who aren’t pulling their weight. This may, of course, seem like a bit of a cop out, so alternatively, if Team Arrow are here to stay then stronger characterization needs to be prioritized.

This is where Arrow could learn a lot from The CW’s longest running genre show, Supernatural. The sole reason Supernatural has survived so long is because the viewers fell in love with the characters, meaning weaker seasons slip by more easily because, to its longtime fans, tuning in has more to do with catching up with “old friends” than it is about the story those friends are part of.

The key to this for Arrow is to make more room for “downtime” episodes, which again, is something Supernatural has been very successful at. We don’t necessarily need as much “filler” as the latter show is sometimes guilty of, but one or two episodes in the vein of the bachelor party episode from the current season of The Flash, where our super-serious heroes and heroines can cut loose could really help us connect more with them. “Side quests,” like Oliver helping Slade Wilson track down his estranged son, are too heavy in tone to really count towards this. At the moment, aside from the bright spot of Oliver and Felicity’s wedding party, it feels as though Team Arrow works 24/7, both as heroes and civilians, and their relationships — aside from romantic entanglements — still come across as oddly formal. Team Flash, on the other hand, have a strong familial bond and the kind of zippy banter you might hear across the dinner table from your own family.

There’s still life left in Arrow but currently it seems like its fading fast for its fed-up fans. Despite all of its problems, it would be a shame to see The CW’s flagship Arrowverse series completely sink but, at the moment, it seems like anything less than a Lazarus pit-strength rebirth won’t be enough to save it.