Art of the Finale
What shows stick the landing? Which crash and burn? Let’s discuss the art of the series finale
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The Leftovers Finale Offers a Moment of Transcendence
I’ve found myself thinking about The Leftovers a lot lately, and its finale (“The Book of Nora”) in particular. I wrote on the show rather extensively a few years back, in the Before Times, and I hope you might go read that work because I’m proud of it. But things feel quite a bit different […] More
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Futurama’s “Meanwhile”: Wanna Go Around Again?
Futurama is likely my favorite show of all time. It resonates with me in a way very little has. It’s funny, smart, and it’s filled with charm and imagination far beyond its years. I’ve watched and read just about everything I could get my hands on to help me understand episodes of the series even better. […] More
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Avatar: The Last Airbender Series Finale—Reaching the Avatar State
“Sozin’s Comet,” the four-part series finale of Avatar: The Last Airbender (ATLA) is that rarest of phenomena; it is a nearly perfect ending for an all-time classic television show. ATLA is one of those shows that has always been in the background, beloved by those who had found it and unknown or dismissed as “kid […] More
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Found Family, Free Will, and How the Supernatural Finale Disappointed Everyone
“Freedom is a length of rope. God wants you to hang yourself with it.” – Castiel, Supernatural S6E20 “The Man Who Would Be King” Content Warning: frequent usage of the word “queer” and mentions of suicide. On November 19th, some two million people around the world sat down to watch the final episode of the […] More
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Is Being Erica’s Finale Too Simplistic?
I know Canadian TV is kind of “having a moment” after Schitt’s Creek’s take off into superstardom and its Emmys sweep, but don’t get it twisted: Canadian TV is bad. There are only a few of my homeland’s programs that I can recommend—and, yes, Schitt’s Creek is one of them—but the first program that ever […] More
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Justice League Unlimited: The DCAU’s Stellar Sendoff
More than a decade before the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the DC Animated Universe produced a groundbreaking and successful shared universe with some of the greatest animated series of all time. I loved several of the shows in the DCAU while I was growing up—Batman: The Animated Series, Superman: The Animated Series, Batman Beyond, Static Shock, […] More
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The How to Get Away with Murder Finale Is a Poignant End to a Hot Mess
When How to Get Away with Murder was added to the ABC Shondaland docket in 2014, it was a fresh, soapy, mysterious drama starring the legendary Viola Davis with killer (pun intended) plot twists. However, over the course of six years, what felt fresh became stale, what felt soapy became overly soapy, what was mysterious […] More
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The Weeds Finale (“It’s Time”) Is a Smooth Landing for an Unpredictable Series
I should start this off with a confession: I’m a Weeds apologist. I know there’s a popular belief that Weeds got bad after it left Agrestic, but I’m here with a hot take to say that I disagree. Many would probably fight me to say that Weeds went on several seasons too long, which Showtime […] More
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Hawaii Five-0 Bids Its Fans “Aloha”
Hawaii Five-0 was one of my go-to shows in high school. It was the perfect escapism: scenic and tranquil Hawaii, where I could escape to the beaches and the surf or watch a case unfold. I’m a fan of watching cases unravel and bringing peace to the victims and justice for all. However, it’s the characters […] More
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The End: Why the Finale of Seinfeld Is Better Than People Think
Television series are often judged by their series finale, for better or worse. Here at 25YL, we’re going to be looking at both the best and worst finales and what made them great (or not so great) in our “Art of the Finale” series. This week, Edwin J. Viera takes a look at the finale […] More
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The Americans Series Finale Is Masterful While Leaving Questions Open
The Americans, which debuted on FX in early 2013, followed two Russian spies living undercover in the United States during the Cold War. Practically right away, I found myself wondering how things would eventually play out for Elizabeth (Keri Russell) and Philip Jennings (Matthew Rhys) and their two children. Would they be discovered and arrested? […] More
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“Not Fade Away” — Team Angel Goes Down Swinging
Finales are often problematic. And cliffhangers are almost always infuriating. So when you put these two things together, the result can be awful…or it can be absolutely perfect. “Not Fade Away” is the second half of the series finale, at the end of the fifth season of Angel. The show had changed drastically in the […] More
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