Lately, it feels like every show has us thinking, “What the fuck did I just watch?” In this series, we will break down exactly what happened in all those wild, mind-bendy, and just plain strange shows...in a way that’s much easier to understand than the actual episodes.

THERE ARE SPOILERS FOR THE SECOND SEASON OF THE END OF THE F***ING WORLD AHEAD.

Not to be dramatic or anything, but the final moments of The End of the F***ing World season 1 were absolutely devastating. The finale concluded with James running from the police, Alyssa being held back from chasing him, a gunshot noise, and a dramatic cut-to-black. As the audience, we were intentionally left to wonder whether James lived or died. It was brutal!

When Netflix announced the show was getting a second season, I was skeptical. The first was so perfect, I was worried the second would inevitably ruin it. But the new episodes, which hit the streaming service today, pack just as much punch as the first eight and give the show a really nice feeling of closure. But this finale isn’t nearly as crazy as the ending to S1. We’re here to talk about that. Like...did it work? Do we hate it? Let’s chat.

The season follows Alyssa and James in the aftermath of that scene on the beach. Alyssa and her mom are living with family, and James was recently released from the hospital after recovering from his gunshot wound. They reunite, though, when Alyssa skips out on her wedding, and they go on a journey together that follows the same Bonnie and Clyde theme. The difference is the addition of Bonnie, who generally makes their life a living hell because she was in love with the professor dude they murdered in the first season.

The final episode starts with James and Alyssa giving their statements to the police after Bonnie’s arrest, and then Alyssa leaves. She gives her aunt a letter, which James interprets as a suicide note. That brings us to...

The moment in the house

Netflix

Alyssa returns to the professor’s house in what seems like an attempt to get some closure on what happened to her. “It’s like a haunted house, only I’m the ghost,” she says as she sits in the room where she was attacked. James gets to the house, assuming the worst, and finds Alyssa totally unharmed. He starts to cry when he realizes she’s okay, and she finally recognizes how much he cares. “I thought you were going to do something bad,” he says. “I wasn’t going to do that, James. I wasn’t. I’m sorry I scared you,” she replies. It’s like she’s finally saying, “I’m not going anywhere,” which is a big deal for someone who tends to run from her problems.

The scene on the hill

Netflix

After the two of them not-so-successfully dump James’s dad’s ashes, they grab some food on the top of a hill. Alyssa tells James that she loves him too, which he admitted earlier in the season, but she says she needs some time. And also maybe some psychological help. He respects that. Growth!

So...how do we feel?

For a show that ended S1 with a teenager being shot, this did feel a little bit anticlimactic. Like...they just end up together? After all that? As a human person with emotions, I’m happy for them, but as a viewer, I’m a little unsatisfied that it’s been tied up in such a nice little bow. This show thrives on the complicated nature of every relationship in it. So while, yes, I technically did want them to end up together, I don’t think they actually *should* have. They’ve got way too much of their own shit going on to be happy as a couple. It’s confusing, okay!!

Some people think the second season shouldn’t have even been made. I’m not gonna go that far, because I did truly like this season. However, unless Netflix can come up with a REALLY killer plot for the next season, this should probably be the end of it.

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