I rate this finale
out of
.
"START" ranks among some of the finest series finales, including but certainly not limited to "Goodbye, Farewell and Amen," "-30-," "Sleeping in Light," "All Good Things," "Felina," "Meanwhile," and for me personally but I know not everyone will agree, "The End."
I knew this before the episode was even over. What sold it for me was the heartbreaking and riveting conversation in the garage between Stan and Philip. We've been bracing for this conversation since the very first episode and it exceeded well beyond my expectations. The anger, the hurt, the confusion, the disgust Stan felt cut so deeply and I could tell just how much all of that pained Philip because he genuinely considered Stan his one and only friend. I honestly wasn't sure if Stan would let them go or if he would arrest them or even shoot Philip, right up to the moment they finally drove away. I swear if Noah Emmerich and Matthew Rhys don't get Emmys for that scene alone, something is seriously screwed up. The one and only oddity about the scene for me was how Stan didn't bring up Amador because he knew Elizabeth was there that day, but I guess Sofia and Gennadi were fresher on his mind.
I was already tearing up during that scene, but as soon as I heard the first chords of "Brothers in Arms," I lost it. That song already has so much meaning for me because of how it's used in my favorite episode of
The West Wing and it's just as powerful here. That same power and resonance is true, perhaps even more so, for "With or Without You," especially the moments with Stan sitting by Renee's bedside. Philip left that horrible thought in Stan's mind and he'll probably never truly shake it off. I'm grateful the show left her status ambiguous but that look on her face after comforting Stan outside their house felt telling to me.
However, the biggest heartbreak for me was when Paige decided to stay behind. For the briefest of moments, I was convinced one of the three would be picked up by the sheriffs and I became even more certain it was going to be Paige. Then we saw her standing alone on the platform and my heart leaped out of me just as it did for both Elizabeth and Philip, and I completely lost it. I like how the show doesn't answer what happens to her next, how she's able to continue to live and how the FBI will come down on her considering her absence for around 24 hours. I wondered if Stan would buckle under pressure and guilt and tell Dennis that he let them go, which make things all the more awkward for Paige, but I think he ate that bullet because he had no choice. But what will he say to Paige? Oh, so many questions.
I was somewhat hoping Martha would show up during the "Brothers in Arms" montage, but it's probably for the best that she didn't. She had her proper farewell with her conversation with Gabriel last season. Besides, she's not the only character who was already gone who wouldn't appear, including Nina, Gaad, Gabriel, Claudia, Mischa, and Tatiana. That said, I didn't expect to see Gregory to pop up in Elizabeth's dream and I wasn't even sure it was him until I saw Derek Luke's name in the closing credits (and I promptly looked him up) because I couldn't even remember what the character looked like (although I'm pretty sure he had a lot more hair).
The only real complaint I have with the episode is tied with how I wanted a scene showing Henry processing the truth. I'm fine with Stan's conversation with him taking place during the montage because it would've been too long and complicated to fit in, but it would've been nice to see a conversation between the two of them set later on with him trying to understand what happened. Who was his parents? Who is he? What does he do now? His and Paige's fates were better left ambiguous but I wanted to see that conversation.
Like I said, so many questions. That's what made this finale truly great. It left me wanting more and allows me to fill in some of the blanks on my own.
I don't know if we'll ever have show like
The Americans again. I will sorely miss it, but at least I have a marathon of the whole series to look forward because I've only ever watched any of the episodes once. I can't wait to see what else I'll learn about the show that I missed the first time around.
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