'Arrow' Recap: 'Dark Waters' Season 4 Episode 9, Mid-Season Finale

Unfortunately this episode marks the mid-season finale of CWTV's Arrow. In "Dark Waters," episode nine of season four, things get very real for Oliver and his mayoral candidacy.

Oliver enters a very scary game with HIVE after the city is attacked and he chooses to handle it in a very bold manner.

Meanwhile, Malcolm wanted to know how Thea is dealing with the effects of the Lazarus Pit and when she doesn't go with he he warns her about what the future could hold.

Then, Damien Darhk crashes Oliver's mayoral party where Felicity, Diggle, Thea and the rest of the team are in attendance and retaliates for Oliver's actions in a devastating way.

The mid-season finale of Arrow began with a cleanup crew near the docks. Oliver, Thea and his campaign manager are looking on. Oliver gives a few statements to reporters and and speaks with Diggle about his brother Andy, who is under Darhk's control. The entire dock area full of innocent volunteers is attacked by a helicopter drone firing off bullets.

Felicity uses her tablet to get control of the drone and disable it. Oliver and his crew look at the news and he learns that no one has died.

He is livid at the fact that Darhk would attack a group of volunteers. They need to understand why the docks are so important to Darhk and Oliver intends on using Andy to help.

In a flashback, Oliver and the woman he saved are pushing on through the island and he convinces her to keep moving, using her brother as motivation. Diggle is in charge of questioning Andy about the docks. He brings him some photos of his wife and child.

He tries to make him feel guilty but he isn't taking blame for leaving his family. Diggle says that Andy's friend attacked the bay area and harmed innocent women and children.

Diggle says he is giving Andy a chance to do the right thing to make up for all of the bad. He asks him what Darhk wants with the bay but Andy replies, "I don't know."

Felicity's mom has decorated the entire loft for Oliver's campaign party. Then, when Felicity leaves to take a shower, he mother lets out a scream. She has found the engagement ring that Oliver had stashed in the Christmas lights.

They are both taken by surprise and so might Oliver when he finds out. Oliver and the entire team plan an attack on HIVE by exposing the operation.

Oliver makes a speech to the public about the war being waged with the ghosts.

He also exposes Damien Darhk as the leader of the ghosts and also releases the photo to the public in hopes that together everyone will be able to stop HIVE.

The team is expecting to get Darhk's attention with the announcement and when Felicity points toward the Christmas party, Oliver alerts them about what they just did. Thea, Felicity and Diggle convince him that going underground is the wrong move to make after unloading the information he did. Meanwhile, Oliver gets down on one knee to ask Felicity a question, however, it has nothing to do with a proposal.

He asks her if he did the right thing. She tells him that they will be ready when Darhk comes.

Malcolm visits Thea who is very cold towards him. He tells her that the effect that Darhk has on her is not of this world. He urges her to be careful with the mystical powers. She pinky promises him that she will.

Things get pretty awkward at the holiday party when Curtis brings his husband. They tell the story of how they met and she puts two and two together and realizes that Oliver was going to propose to her when he made the souffle three months ago.

She runs to tell her mother and finds out that her mom is dating Lance. Lance tells her that Laurel doesn't know yet and after leaving Felicity tells her mom that Oliver was planning on proposing now.

Felicity approaches Oliver about the ring and he tells her that he needed to rethink things when they moved back to Star City. Felicity says she doesn't understand why they can't have both lives which consist of saving Star City and being happy together. Their argument is interrupted by Damien Darhk who interrupts the party with gunfire.

He says he wants a word with Oliver. He said he wants Oliver's alliance but he can't have that. In order to teach Oliver a lesson, he attacks him and takes Thea and Felicity as prisoner.

Oliver comes too and Felicity's mom rushes over to tell him that Darhk kidnapped Felicity. He learns that Thea was taken as well and Lance tells him that he couldn't make a move to give up his alliance with Darhk. Oliver tells the campaign manager to get the people to safety and stall the police. Oliver goes on a tear throughout the city beating up ghost after ghost.

He doesn't learn a thing and Laurel has to talk him down. She tells him not to blame himself for everything and that all of the team members can take care of themselves.

However, Oliver says this isn't what they need tonight. Oliver leaves to continue his ghost smashing.

In a flashback, Oliver and the woman argue over who should swim to the island and he elects to go. Laurel found out that her father was aligned with Darhk and they discuss it behind closed doors. Laurel finds out that Oliver knew and Lance gets a call from him.

They leave to meet with him and are quickly interrupted by Malcolm.

He has important information and an encrypted phone from one of the ghosts that can help them track Darhk. Oliver intends on using the information to find and take out Darhk.

Darhk is entertaining his richer allies and he has a hard time convincing them that everything is under control. Darhk gets a message from Oliver. The two meet in private and Darhk is surprised that he was summoned. Oliver tells him that he has made his point but Darhk says he has yet to actually do so. Oliver follows Darhk to his headquarters and he asks for Darhk to let his friends go.

Darhk says that it is not quid pro quo and he can't have his friends back yet. Instead, Darhk issues a demonstration of the project he wants help with.

Darhk compels a man, tells him he will forever be a part of HIVE and sends him into a gas chamber. The man is knocked out and Darhk wants to adjust the ratio of the bloom.

Lance, Laurel and Malcolm are getting ready to find Oliver and Darhk's location. Lance wants to go but Laurel doesn't want him to blow his cover. Malcolm reminds them that they are on the clock and leaves them to talk alone. Laurel says she gets to choose whether or not she needs protection. He tells her to be careful.

Oliver is taken to Felicity to say his farewells. Felicity is very happy to see him and she knows that Oliver had to turn himself in in order to save her and Thea. He tells her it had to be that way.

Felicity tells him that he is not the boss of her and she is the one who decides if she needs protection.

She brings up their argument and he says he had more to tell her before they were attacked. She tells him if he would have asked her, she would have said yes.

In another flashback, Oliver arrives to find a treasure chest. He opens it and takes the map that he finds inside of it. As he swims away, a shark chases after him unbeknownst to him.

Darhk brings Oliver and Felicity to the room where he has Thea in the gas chamber.

They also take Felicity and adds her to the chamber which also holds Diggle. Oliver watches on helplessly as they are all set to meet their end.

Oliver is looking for a way to get them out and he tells Felicity he loves her through the glass. Laurel and another Green Arrow jump in to save the day. She is able to break the glass with her Canary vocals and Malcolm is actually the one in the Green Arrow suit. Malcolm squares off with Darhk and almost gets the best of him however, Darhk gets him in his clutches and begins to choke him out. Oliver saves him while Felicity, Diggle and Thea look for a way to escape.

They are approached by some of the experimental ghosts and Lance joins the fight. He has also brought reinforcements that helps them all get away.

Darhk puts a beating on Oliver but Malcolm saves him with an arrow. He sets a few bomb arrows around Darhk and high tails it out. Darhk utters some mystical words before a huge explosion goes off.

Laurel wants to know if they are sure that Darhk didn't make it out. Felicity says he hasn't made it out and Oliver admits he owes Malcolm one. Oliver's team tells him about his surprise. In a flashback, he washes up on shore with a shark bite in his leg.

The woman with him attends to him but he is caught by the evil renegade who was trying to expose him as a spy. He threatens to expose him.

In present day Diggle tries to convince Andy that he is the man who pulled him out of "Dark Waters." Andy refuses to listen and Diggle tells him he will treat him like a ghost.

Darhk is actually alive and leaves all of his clients to an alternate area with large crops built from the algae he was gathering. One of his clients asks him what he will do about Oliver Queen.

Oliver attends his second holiday party and makes a speech about not letting the darkness win. He lights the candle at the bay and thanks each and everyone for helping him. Oliver says there is someone he is particularly grateful for. He tells her that she is the one that lights his way and proposes to Felicity. Felicity and Oliver are engaged when she says yes and he places the ring on her finger. As the entire crowd cheers on he and Felicity head out in a limo and she is busy admiring the ring.

She then tells Oliver that all she cares about is him but something happens. SUV's surround the limo bringing it to a halt. Ghosts hop out and riddle the limousine with gunfire.

Darhk goes home to what looks like his family. Oliver takes the wheel of the limo and drives Felicity and himself to safety.

He calls out to her but when he opens the door she has been shot multiple times and is unresponsive. Is this the end of Felicity and more so, Olicity?

"Dark Waters" is a pretty devastating mid-season finale for Arrow fans. The show is among one of CWTV's most thrilling and dynamic.

It adds a lot to cover in the second half of season four and it will be interesting to see how the writers deal with it after such a big close.

Fans who want more Arrow extras can head over to The CW to find out updates on the upcoming second half of season four at the end of January.

Photos that sum up tonight's episode.