THE FINAL EPISODE

Friends, Breaking Bad, Lost, E.R., Six Feet Under, Mad Men…

When a TV series ends, a world disappears. Especially for those who loved it and lived in it. A whole universe unfolds, then snaps shut in an instant. The illusion a series will stay with us forever collapses the moment that last scene fades to black.

A series finale is a fascinating concoction: it has to distill the essence of years of thought invested by writers and viewers. Over a series’ lifetime, it is usually the end that evokes the most intense response: emotion takes over, then mourning. Then, sometimes, hysteria.

Five years after Lost, there are still furious tweets lambasting the finale — as if the writers committed some sort of crime. David Chase, creator of the Sopranos, is still asked to explain the ambiguous final episode of his masterpiece, eight years later.

In the age of social networks, discussing last episodes has become a sport in itself. It is an expression of love — sometimes violent, sometimes ecstatic, usually disappointed. As one journalist wrote on Indiewire: “One of the obvious reasons why so many finales disappoint the loyal fan base is that they feel artificial to the format... a TV show is kind of defined by having to carry on.”

It is this bug, this blip in the storyline, that The Final Episode looks to explore.