With the death of Laurel Lance aka the Black Canary came the appearance of her Earth-2 counterpart on The Flash who eventually made her way to Star City and Arrow.

This version of Laurel went down a path of evil on Earth-2; she had lost her Oliver for good on the Queen's Gambit (and presumably Sara, too) and took to a life of crime.

Flash forward to her current status on Arrow: stranded on Earth-1, she's found another chance at a family, another chance to have friends, and she has an opportunity to change her fate and find redemption for the terrible acts she's committed.

And with Katie Cassidy's renewed series regular contract with the series, we'll be seeing a lot more of Black Siren (considering they have stated they're set on keeping Earth-1 Laurel dead).

Laurel's Legacy

When Laurel died, she asked Oliver to make sure she wasn't the last Black Canary.

After Sara died, Laurel tried to be the Canary, but as we saw, that couldn't fulfill why she was putting on the mask and roaming the streets. She couldn't fight for the same reasons as her sister, and in becoming Black Canary established her legacy of justice.

That legacy has now been passed to Dinah Drake, but does it really fit her?

Dinah Drake's Unfit Canary

Dinah was brought on to replace Laurel, essentially. That's why she was given the name Dinah; in an attempt to appease the fans that were angry over Laurel being fridged like every other deceased woman on this series.

For those who aren't familiar with the phrase, being fridged is a TV trope that is described as:

"A character is killed off in a particularly gruesome manner and left to be found just to offend or insult someone, or to cause someone serious anguish. The usual victims are those who matter to the hero, specifically best buddies, love interests, and sidekicks." - TV Tropes

I wish that had never happened.

Dinah Drake isn't fit to hold the Black Canary mantle. No, she didn't receive it until the season finale, but that's still why she joined the show. If not, why did she need carry an original comic book Canary name?

Dinah has worked with a gun and shot people repeatedly throughout Arrow Season 5 while working with Oliver, and her main motivation was/is revenge. The only thing similar to the Black Canary was her meta-human cry.

The Black Canary stands for justice, and that's what Laurel was all about. That's why she was the Assistant District Attorney during the day and the Black Canary at night. She wanted justice by law, not by revenge.

Dinah has more in common with Sara's Canary than Laurel's Black Canary; it's almost as if the writers didn't learn anything from the backlash they received for Sara being the Canary.

The Black Canary mantle shouldn't be passed along like it means nothing. Replacing one woman with another is a harmful thing, and that's what Arrow is doing.

They grew tired of Laurel so they killed her (because they couldn't think of other stories for her) and replaced her with Dinah. If it weren't for The Flash, we wouldn't have Black Siren.

Black Siren's Redemption

If Black Siren were to be redeemed and earn the Black Canary mantle, it would honor the true legacy of her Earth-1 counterpart. It's not about replacing Laurel.

It's about this new Laurel from another Earth learning how to be good again, how to get justice, and continuing what her late counterpart left behind. It's about what could be an interesting journey of redemption and justice.

Not only that, but there's a life for her on this Earth, whereas there isn't at her home. On Earth-1, she has Quentin, Sara (when she's not time-traveling), and Oliver.

Perhaps this could give Black Siren the relationships she needs to turn her life around. Not by replacing the Laurel they lost, but by giving each of them a piece of her back.

During Arrow Season 6, I'd like to see Black Siren take over as Black Canary and struggle to hold the mantle while trying to honor Laurel's legacy.

Black Canary is a skilled fighter, but more importantly, she stands for lawful justice. Seeing Black Siren struggle with fighting her urge to do whatever it takes would be an interesting inner struggle for her in the new season.

The mantle shouldn't switch around through different women because women shouldn't be considered so easily replaceable. If Earth-2 Laurel were to pick it up, it would make more sense considering they are the same person, even if they faced different challenges leading to different individuals.

Their lives were different, but they're both still Dinah Laurel Lance.

Also, Katie Cassidy deserves to play the Black Canary. She waited so long to fully realize the potential of embodying Laurel and once she had achieved it, it was taken from her too soon.

What do you think? Would you like Black Siren to take up being Black Canary? Do you think she'll find redemption? Leave your thoughts in the comments below!

Arrow premieres October 12 on The CW.

Jay Ruymann was a staff writer for TV Fanatic. He retired in January 2018.