Lucky S1E7 Recap: “All Good Things” (Finale) — A Happy Ending

The following recap contains spoilers for Lucky S1E7, “All Good Things” (written by Cassie Pappas and directed by Jonathan Van Tulleken)

Does the finale of Lucky have a happy ending? By the episode’s end, Lucky has managed to free herself from Wayne, Priscilla, Agent Rand, the FBI, and, most importantly, her father, John. She’s lost pretty much everything at this point, but she seems at relative peace on that beach, the rest of her life available to her in a way it never has been before. In my opinion, “All Good Things” definitely has a happy ending.

When we last left everything, there was a plan in place. Lucky was to meet Priscilla and Wayne and ultimately hand them over to the FBI. Of course, due to John’s abduction at the end of last week’s episode, I was curious how everything would shake out. Seeing Agent Gates taken out was a bit of a bummer, but it helped to set the stakes for this week. It also helps that this is a limited series, so I wasn’t entirely sure if someone like John would make it to the end. I was, however, demanding that Wayne wouldn’t.

Kudos to the writers of Lucky, as well as William Fichtner, because there’s a very clear villain in this show, and it’s Wayne. He’s a horrible, violent human being who doesn’t care about anyone, including Priscilla, the mother of Cary, their son. While Rand can be unlikeable and Priscilla is pretty much a rotten person, they both clearly care. They are truly human individuals, and I found myself caring about them throughout the course of the season. Wayne has no redeeming qualities, and though some might say that makes him one-note, I disagree. There are levels to this monster, but truly, I wanted him gone.

Thankfully, the show delivered. Not only is Wayne ultimately taken out, but Lucky also manages to save her father and get them both out of the FBI’s crosshairs. She delivers to Rand a dead Wayne and someone Rand never saw coming. I’ve always felt that Lucky could see a few moves ahead of everyone else, even as she made rash decisions based on emotions sometimes that impeded any kind of planning on her part. Still, it wasn’t a complete shock to me when she lets it be known that she’s figured out that someone in the FBI has been helping “the bad guys.”

We’ve met this character before, a few times. His name is Kershaw, and he’s played by the always awesome Eric Lange. Kershaw is Rand’s boss, and he’s the typical boss of a character like Rand’s, always on her case for her obsession with taking Priscilla down. On the one hand, he has a point, but there was an ulterior motive. He wants money, a simple motive. In his opinion, why not work for the bad guys? After all, it’s not as if Lucky and John are “good people,” right?

This is interesting, because Rand is faced with a truth. Lucky wasn’t the person Rand thought, and neither was Kershaw. It’s a big moment, but even as she gets Kershaw and Wayne (albeit with Wayne out of the picture, not in custody), she’s not satisfied. She still doesn’t get Priscilla. It’s an obsession she’ll never let go, and I wonder where this adversarial journey takes them now.

I also want to note how satisfying it was to have Priscilla be the one to take out Wayne, to see her truly take hold of her agency and punish the man who’s made her life hell for who knows how long. No, I don’t see her as some hero or anti-hero, but I was happy for her catharsis. It’s a dark way to go about it, for sure, but in this case, the decision made sense to me. I applauded that moment.

When Priscilla let John and Lucky go, that made sense to me, too. She’s got a new position in her world now, and honestly, what good does it do to take out Lucky and John now? Priscilla also comes to understand, I believe, that Lucky did love Cary, and that this daughter would do anything for her dad, the way any child might, or any parent for that matter. Priscilla was not a good mom, but she knows that. It’s tragic, but I see her letting Lucky and John go as a way to fix something in the universe her decisions have wrought.

As for Lucky and John, I saw it coming, and no, it didn’t bother me in the slightest. In fact, I’d argue the show wanted us to figure it out. In the previous episode, we knew how much John cared about the money, and I figured there was no way he was going to walk away without it. When he asks how to access it, both Lucky and I understood: John cares more about the money than his daughter.

In a flashback, we’re shown a time when John had Lucky drown herself in a hotel pool so that he could show how upset he was with the management in order to get a free room. She did it, and yes, nearly drowned before other guests came to her rescue. This was not something Lucky wanted to do, and it’s stayed with her. In fact, a few episodes ago, we saw a flash of her drowning. John never apologized, because he never saw anything wrong with it. She was going to be fine, and he knew it. But what did that matter?

Lucky’s hurt in this final episode actually moved me. To see her come to understand her father sort of mirrors the story John told at the start of Episode 6. While he learned his father was a so-called “sucker” and became a cynical person because of it, Lucky learns that the man who raised her is not a good person, and makes the decision to leave him behind.

Of course, at first, it looks as if John is the one who leaves her behind, taking away the laptop that has access to the money he claims is his, but we find out that Lucky gave all the money away beforehand. It was a test. She told her dad how to get the money, and he chose it over her. When he listens to her goodbye, he seems angrier than hurt, and I was so upset. Lucky deserved better. At that beach at the end, I want a better life for her.

It will be difficult for her to completely change, no doubt, but I have faith that she’s willing to put in the hard work and leave her past behind. Will she find someone else eventually? Perhaps. Will she get an actual job? She needs to. Friends? I hope so. Lucky should never see John, Priscilla, Dutch, Agent Rand, or anyone from her old life ever again. I hope that she’s that lucky.

Overall, the show was very good. I’ve talked about the rocky start it had in the first two episodes, but it found its groove, and I have to say, I loved Lucky. It’s well made, and the cast is excellent. I’m still rooting for awards recognition for Annette Bening and Timothy Olyphant, not to mention Anya Taylor-Joy, who gave so much, both physically and emotionally, to this series. Also, that Fiona Apple theme song is so good. As I talked about when recapping the first two episodes, I’ll watch anything with Anya Taylor-Joy in it. In the case of Lucky, it’s something I’ll definitely rewatch in the future.