Slade Wilson

"Death would be a release from this life, and his sentence has yet to be carried out. I'm going to tear everything he cares about away from him. Destroy those who choose to follow him. Corrupt those he loves. Once he has lost everyone and everything he values, I will drive an arrow through his eye."

- Slade to Sebastian Blood

Slade Wilson (born 1968) is a former member of the Australian Secret Intelligence Service, and the leader of Blood Cult. He is also the former friend and ex-partner of the late Bill Wintergreen, the father of Joe Wilson, and one of the former mentors and friends of Oliver Queen. He was sent to Lian Yu to recover Yao Fei, along with his then friend and partner, Bill. Both of them wore the same bi-colored masks as a part of Team 7, Slade went under the codename Deathstroke. Eventually, it was revealed that he is alive, and intends to destroy Oliver and everyone he cares about.

Biography
Some time before 2007, Slade Wilson and his partner, Billy Wintergreen, arrived on Lian Yu by plane to rescue Yao Fei, as well as to uncover what Edward Fyers was planning. However, their plane was shot down and they were captured by Fyers. Slade was tortured by Fyers for almost a year, but Slade didn't give him any information. Slade was put in a cell with Yao Fei. Yao asks who he is, but Slade refuses to tell him. However, Yao figures out that Slade is from ASIS (Australian Secret Intelligence Service) because of his accent and In order to escape, Yao temporarily cuts off Slade's blood flow slowing down his heart rate to make him appear dead. Yao lures a guard into the cell telling him that Slade is dead but when the guard goes to examine Slade, Yao takes him out. Yao takes the keys off the guard, and uncuffs himself and Slade. Slade and Yao flee the cell and attempt to find Billy, who to Slade's shock and dismay has joined Fyers. Slade and Bill fight, with Slade ultimately knocking Billy unconscious and fleeing the camp with Yao. Not much is known about what occurs afterwards, other than that Yao and Slade had plans on escaping the island together on a supply plane that comes on the island every few months.

Season 1
In "Betrayal", When Oliver searches a crashed plane, that turned out to be the one Slade came on, Slade attacks him. Although Oliver reveals that Yao sent him there, Slade views him as a liability and knocks him unconscious. When Oliver comes to, his wrists are tied and he's sitting in a chair. Slade explains that he had to kill him but before he does, Oliver frees himself, dislocating his thumb in the process and punching Slade in the face, proving that he's worth keeping alive. Slade explains that he needs another person to help kill guards in order to escape the island via a supply plane. When Oliver is choosing a weapon, he finds Slade's mask which is identical with the one his torturer wore when he was first captured. Oliver accuses Slade for deceiving him but Slade explains that it is the mask worn by him and his ex-partner Wintergreen to protect their identities. He also reveals that they are in the service of ASIS (Australian Secret Intelligence Service), who wanted to free Yao Fei from the island.

Slade begins training Oliver, who struggles and nearly gives up until Slade gives him the option to escape or die. Choosing escape, Oliver continues his training. They only have 10 days before the plane arrives that they will attempt to escape on, leaving very little time to train. They ventured towards the camp, but Oliver got himself caught on a land mine, presumed to be from World War 2. When some of Edward's men begin to approach, Slade seemingly abandons Oliver, only to return, swiftly killing all of the men and rolling one of the bodies over the mine, freeing Oliver.

That night Slade reveals that Bill betrayed him immediately after they were captured, and that he was the godfather of Slade's son. Once they reached the camp, Slade proceeds to take out the soldiers with his sniper rifle as Oliver reaches the communications tower, his only duty to kill the man in the tower. However, Oliver hesitates and after a brief fight, is left with a gun pointed at his head. Slade comes to his aid, killing the man right before he gets to shoot Oliver. Disgusted that he couldn't complete one task, Slade instructs him to stay in that one spot until he comes back. He promptly returns, disconnecting the phone after Oliver calls Laurel Lance, furious that he risked them being caught. Slade reveals that after they leave, he will call in airstrike and blow up the island. When Oliver asks about Yao, Slade states that it's not his concern anymore. However, a determined Oliver left to find and bring Yao back with him. Slade stays, warning Oliver that he has 3 hours or Slade will leave him alone.

In "The Odyssey", Oliver gets captured and right before he is executed by Slade's ex-partner, Bill, Slade himself causes a distraction in the form of multiple explosions. As Oliver runs to safety, Slade snipes a large number of soldiers. Once it was clear, Slade came out to face Bill. The two fought, ending with Slade stabbing him in the eye, killing him. Believing they were safe, Oliver and Slade began to walk away, only for Slade to be shot in the arm by Fyers. Oliver brings Slade back, at one point overpowering a soldier and disarming him as Slade taught, to the plane and removes the bullet from Slade's arm. Slade acknowledges that Oliver has proved that he had grown as a fighter and can survive, and the two of them begin a partnership.

In "Dodger", Oliver brings water to Slade whose bullet wound is getting infected. Oliver recalls Yao Fei having special herbs in the cave, that are capable of healing Slade's wound, and goes back to the cave to get them. Oliver returns with the herbs which help Slade's wound. Slade says to Oliver "I owe you one". He then asks Oliver if he got into any trouble to which Oliver says "No, not a bit".

In "Dead to Rights", he is training while Oliver attempts to fix the damaged radio. Not believing that Oliver can fix it, he jokes that 'pigs will fly' before he fixes it. Ironically Oliver does fix it as the radio begins to work much to Slade's shock. Slade attempts to call for rescue but the radio is only going one way so they can't call for rescue. Later Slade tunes the radio into the soldiers frequency, overhearing Fyers talking to an unknown male. They talk about Cilla, in which Oliver explains that Cilla was in the Odyssey, and was a monster. Slade leaves to meet this monster with Oliver tagging along. They find Cilla and it is a missile launcher.

In "The Huntress Returns", Slade pretends to be captured by Oliver to get near the missile launcher before he kills all the soldiers. He and Oliver are about to destroy the launcher until Oliver takes the circuit board stopping the launcher from working. Slade is impressed seeing as they now have leverage over Fyers. He gives the radio to Oliver to talk to Fyers saying "Your Plan, Your Call"

In "Salvation", following after the last episode, Slade & Oliver make an agreement with Fyers with the circuit board traded for a way off the island. When meeting, Fyers questions if they have the circuit board but Oliver mentions it is safe. When asked if they would be truthful, Slade mentions he wouldn't but Oliver has a thing of principals. Fyer's takes advantage of that and reveals Shado, Yao Fei's daughter and threatens to kill her. Slade threatens Fyers which leads to a fight. Slade, Oliver, Shado & Yao Fei escape but Yao Fei is shot and tells them to leave. Later after discovering the circuit board is missing, Slade is angry at Oliver for being played, until Shado mentions that Fyer's couldn't risk Slade & Oliver leaving knowing what was going to happen.

In "Unfinished Business", he is having a fight with Shado and both are equals. When Shado asks how Oliver is in a fight, Slade mentions that he has tried to train Oliver with limited success. Shado then decides that she will try to train him. Later he returns to find Oliver slapping water, which he has been doing all day. It is then revealed that the water slapping was all part of a plan to get Oliver stronger allowing him to pull the bow they have, which impresses Slade.

In "Home Invasion", Slade & Shado are discussing in how to rescue Yao Fei, mentioning how they would need someone to watch their backs and when Shado mentions Oliver in watching their back with a bow, he mentions that Oliver is not ready. Shado takes Oliver away to train him to shoot and if he hasn't by the end of the day, they will try a new plan. After returning, Slade finds out that Oliver failed to hut a target, but before anything can be done, Yao Fei arrives having betrayed them as the soldiers surround them. Angry Slade attempts to grab Yao Fei but is knocked down by one of the soldiers.

In "Darkness on the Edge of Town", Slade, Oliver and Shado are taken to Fyer's camp and is shot in the leg by Fyers when he wants to make a point to Yao Fei. Slade witnesses Yao Fei's death when Fyers shoots him in the head after his usefulliness reaches it's end.

In "Sacrifice", Slade, along with Oliver and Shado break their bonds and fights Fyers and his men. Slade survives the blast from the missle launcher and jokes how Oliver couldn't save the day without making a mess. Fyers arrives with Shado revealing that he has survived and is angry that Oliver derailed his two year operation.Oliver uses Yao Fei's bow to kill Fyers impressing Slade that he has ended Fyers.

Season 2
In "City of Heroes", Slade continues to mentor Oliver. While sparring, Oliver gets distracted and he hits him saying, "You're not the first one to learn the hard way. Women are a distraction". A few minutes later, a proximity detector device they had salvaged from the wreckage of Fyer's camp goes off, and they go looking for the people the device had detected, but Shado is quickly captured and Oliver and Slade chase after her. Later, Slade and Oliver catch up with Shado and the people who captured her. Slade tries to stop Oliver from doing anything rash, but the leader hits Shado, and Oliver becomes enraged and attacks the leader while Slade attacks the others. Slade and Shado are shocked when Oliver is unable to control himself and kills the leader. Moments later, Slade picks up a radio that goes off, and the three are left wondering how many more men are on the island and where they came from.

In "Identity", Slade talks to Shado and, knowing what he's going through, asks her to comfort Oliver. He finds a map, similar to the one provided to him by ASIS. Later, Slade sees Oliver and Shado by the river, becoming closer. He reminds Oliver that women can be a distraction, and that that can get him killed, as they leave the riverside. They go to the location in the picture, and Oliver soon after directs him and Shado to a cave. There he discovers a blade, in which he says is 60 years-old, and they also discover the remains of World War II Japanese soldiers.

In "Broken Dolls", Slade has Oliver tag along with him to scout for the new threat to the island, telling him that Shado can take care of herself as they leave. As they are going up to higher ground, Slade once again reminds Oliver that woman can be a distraction, while in conversation Slade almost falls off the cliff side if not for Oliver catching him in time. Slade and Oliver make it to the top of the cliff and spy the ship firing at a fixed location where they work out is where the plane is which causes Oliver to run with Slade giving chase. Slade is chasing Oliver while the area is still under fire. Slade is last seen being hit by an explosion, with his hands and the right side of his face on fire, yelling in pain.

In "Keep Your Enemies Closer", it is revealed in a flashback that Slade survived the attack and is seeking refuge on the island. The impact of the explosion has left severe burns on one side of his face, however, as Shado tends to his wounds. Despite his warning to leave him for safety, Shado declares that she is here to stay, and would never leave anyone she cared for alone.

In "State v. Queen", Slade is still weak and extreme pain, with a herbal ointment covering to the left side of his face. When Ivo's soldiers attack the plane, Slade and Shado hide. Although quite bruised, they later managed to rescue Oliver and Sara from Ivo. Oliver says that if they find the serum, it could possibly heal Slade's wounds.

In "The Scientist" Slade is near death from his injuries. On the Japanese submarine, he confesses his feelings for Shado just before being injected by Oliver with Mirakuru. The injection causes blood to come out of his eyes, then he collapses into unconsciousness.

In "Three Ghosts" Oliver is suffering from psychological hallucinations, Oliver tells his hallucination of Slade that he is dead. Contrary to what Oliver believes Slade remains alive in the modern day and is the true leader of the Blood Cult, allowing Sebastian Blood to use the Mirakuru from his blood to make more. Afterwards Sebastian asks him if he knows who the Arrow is. Slade responded that he is his friend, and he will not stop until he has taken from Oliver everything and everyone he values. Then he will drive an arrow through his eye.

During the Lian Yu flashbacks, Slade awakens after his injection with Mirakuru, calling Shado's name. He runs out of the sub to the site where Ivo has killed Shado. He proceeds to slaughter Ivo's men with enhanced strength and speed, then picks up Shado's body and declares that the person responsible for her death will suffer.

Personality
Unlike the DC comics character counterpart he was based on, Slade appears less cold and distant, but retains his appearance of an anti-hero. Slade is a man of good morals, who puts up a tough act, but underneath is a caring individual, as shown by his rescue of Oliver from Edward Fyers and Bill Wintergreen, even after stating that he'd leave the island if Oliver didn't return in time. Slade does not take well to traitors, which he shows by killing Bill Wintergreen, his friend and partner for many years until he betrayed him for his own life. Slade only trusts and cares for people who have proven themselves to him. In the present day, Slade Wilson appears to be more cold and evil, more like his comic counterpart.

Abilities

 * Enhanced Physical Condition: The Miracle injection he received on Lian Yu granted him enhanced strength, speed, and stamina. He was able to toss Ivo's men into trees with almost no difficulty, as well as tear an assault rifle in half with his bare hands while showing no visible effort. The full extent of his enhancements are unknown.
 * Regenerative Healing Factor: The Miracle injection has greatly enhanced Slade's ability to heal. By the time he awoke after the injection, the injuries on the right side of his face were completely healed. There appear to be limits to this ability, however, as Slade's missing eye did not regenerate.
 * Master marksmanship: Slade is shown to be an excellent marksman as he took out many soldiers with his sniper rifle in the episode "The Odyssey", and was able to take out several soldiers with only two handguns in "The Huntress Returns".
 * Master hand-to-hand combatant/Martial artist: Slade is shown to be an expert hand-to-hand combatant and martial artist, and mentors Oliver in his ways. He sparred with Shado in "Unfinished Business", in one of Oliver's flashbacks, and was able to stalemate her in combat, although it can be implied that Slade held back a little. He was also able to beat his partner in combat, even though Bill Wintergreen was able to beat Yao Fei in a fight. His main fighting style is Eskrima with Muay Thai and other unidentified fighting forms in the mix. His combat skills are at the very least on par with Oliver's though, considering Slade was one of Oliver's mentors on the island.
 * Master swordsmanship: Slade has shown himself to be a master swordsman, cutting down multiple armed mercenaries in mere seconds. He has explicitly stated his weapon of choice are swords. He killed his former partner in a sword-fight, who was also a master swordsman.
 * High tolerance for pain: Slade has a high tolerance for pain. In "The Odyssey", Oliver had to pull the bullet out of Slade's arm without any form of anesthetic, albeit he had to tie him up (on Slade's suggestion) because he might kill Oliver otherwise. He was also able to take down several of Edward Fyers' henchmen with an injured leg in "Sacrifice".

Appearances
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Season 2

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Comics
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 * Arrow #19

Trivia

 * A Deathstroke mask is seen mounted on a wooden stake in "Pilot", as Chinese fishermen investigate Oliver's distress signal. It is unknown whether or not this is Billy's Deathstroke mask or Slade's. Although the mask seen did have an arrow going through the right eye hole, and Billy was killed by a sword in the right eye. This same mask is seen in "City of Heroes," when John Diggle and Felicity Smoak travel to Lian Yu to find Oliver, And in both occurences the mask seems to be burnt, which Oliver references having to burn someone injected with "The Miracle" to kill them.
 * In "The Odyssey", Slade mentions that Bill Wintergreen was the godfather of his son. Slade has had three children in the comic books, two boys and a girl. His oldest son, Grant, was known as Ravager, and his other son, Joseph, was the Teen Titan Jericho. His daughter, Rose, became the new Ravager after Grant's death.
 * Slade has only been seen wearing the Deathstroke mask in the comics.
 * Unlike most other incarnations outside of the comics, this version of Slade appears more heroic. This changes as of.
 * According to an interview with Manu Bennett, he thought he was auditioning for a character named Halloway/Holloway.
 * Slade Wilson was Oliver Queen's second mentor, after Yao Fei.
 * Slade has been promoted to main cast for season 2 from his recurring role in season 1.
 * In the scar tissue and medicine on his face, made his face look like the Deathstroke mask he and Billy Wintergreen used to wear.
 * In, we see that Slade has an eyepatch over his right eye, and says that he wants to drive an arrow through Oliver's eye.