My "Arrow" Theory About Malcolm Merlyn

SPOILERS FOR THIS WEEK'S ARROW, AHOY!

Wednesday's Arrow episode, "Sins of the Father," ended with an embittered and one-handed Malcolm Merlyn telling Damien Darhk about Oliver's son, William. 

This scene really gave some support to a theory I've been tinkering with in my head since the third season finale, so I decided to share it just in case it's revealed to be true in the next week or so. If it is, I win absolutely nothing. Also bear in mind that I have zero inside knowledge or foreknowledge on Arrow, so it's not like I saw a press screener of an upcoming episode or I know a guy who works st the production office. It's just something I thought of, plain and simple.

That's enough fanfare. Here we go...

Malcolm has been pseudo-working for HIVE for a while now. Since the end of season 1, I think.

Here's why:

At the climax of the first season finale, Oliver battles Malcolm and is able to drive an arrow through the Dark Archer's chest. We see Malcolm die, and it looks like a real death. If I was impaled through the chest, I wouldn't be able to fake my death, because I'd be dying. 

Then he pops up again in Season 2, and no explanation is given as to how he survived, except when he says something along the lines of "There are places where death is just an illusion." When Oliver finds out he's alive at the beginning of Season 3, he theorizes that Malcolm may have recovered somehow and then paid doctors and legal folk to maintain the facade that he is dead. Good thinking, but we haven't really, legitimately told how he survived. 

Flashforward towards the end of Season 3, when Ra's Al Ghul is talking to Oliver about Damien Darhk. Ra's says that Darhk and his followers stole a bit of that glorious Lazarus Pit water and made themselves scarce. That explains how Darhk's been able to live as long as he has...and how Malcolm recovered from his wounds.

Malcolm couldn't have been revived by the League because, you know, Ra's hates him. So what if Darhk took Malcolm in and revived him with the Pit water? In exchange, Darhk instructed Malcolm to pass on any noteworthy information that he came across to HIVE. 

But wait a second? How come he hasn't told Darhk that Oliver is the Green Arrow, then? That's easy. Because of Thea. It seems as though Malcolm finding out that Thea was his daughter was a discovery he made on his own. If he was considering telling Darhk about Oliver's vigilante activities, that would have changed when he found out about Thea. If Darhk knew about Oliver;s alter ego, Thea would be in immense danger.

I think the first really solid piece of evidence to support this theory is in last season"s finale, "My Name is Oliver Queen." The team learns Ra's has targeted Starling City because Darhk is there and they decide to capture and hand him over to Ra's. When Oliver confronts Darhk's decoy, it's implied Darhk found out about Ra's' and Team Arrow's plot somehow. What if Malcolm warned him?

In "Dark Waters," Malcolm, disguised as the Arrow, teams up our heroes to fight Darhk. He does so to save Thea, and disguises himself not only to hide Oliver's identity and, by extension, protect Thea, but also does it so he wouldn't look he was betraying Darhk.

In "Sins of the Father," Darhk seems to already be acquainted with Malcolm and remarks that he heard about Malcolm being kicked out of the League. Also, why would Darhk agree to meet Malcolm, the now former Demon's Head, in a seemingly immediate way. And how did Malcolm know how to contact Darhk?

So that's my theory. Malcolm's been a HIVE rat for longer than we think.

Any holes in this theory? Any more support? Let me know!


Noah