Not only do all the fans hate this episode, they tend to pretend it doesn't exist.
And, honestly, there's not much to say about it. Natalie's friend commits suicide and Nat is very sad about it. Naturally. Her response is asking Nick to make her a vampire. During stressful situations we sometimes do rash things. Sadly, Nick never asks Natalie to see a therapist about what she's going through.
The scene that will get your attention is the shootout in the police station, because Tracy is shot. She manages to learn that Nick is a vampire just before passing out, saying words that will haunt him. "You could have trusted me."
I suppose with EVERYONE DYING the producers wanted this season to be a tragedy, but it doesn't work out like Hamlet or Death of a Salesman. It's just a downer.
The episode is mostly just slow conversations. The Nightcrawler's lengthy monologue is played twice in its entirety. And we get a few "flashbacks" that are just scenes from previous episodes, so the final episode is actually a clip show.
For all its faults, season three has been leading up to the moment when Nick is supposed to take a little bit of blood from Natalie (in an effort to recreate Janette's method of crossing over) but instead kills her. We've been seeing that Nick can't bring people across very well. He gets too excited and goes too far, and this problem screwed up his big chance with Natalie.
Drowning in failure, he asks La Croix to kill him. I'm not sure why La Croix goes through with it. Seems out of character.
I don't really have much to say about this episode because it's mostly empty. La Croix is the only survivor, and his last line echoes how a lot of fans feel. "Damn you, Nicholas."
Adam D. Jones is a writer, musician, and medievalist who feels a kinship for vampires because his sensitive eyes that make it difficult to go outside during the day.
Adam, congratulations on completing your Forever Knight reviews.
ReplyDeleteI'm so sorry the finale was such a disappointment. That happened to one of my favorites, too, La Femme Nikita. The intended finale was so incredibly, unbelievably bad that the fans went nuts, and started a campaign to bring the show back -- and that happened, there was a short fifth season that almost fixed that blunder.
Clearly, Forever Knight should have gotten something like that, and didn't. It's too bad.
I enjoyed writing these. Thanks for the chance.
DeleteThe biggest problem was how it kept grinding to a halt with the clip show stuff. Momentum keeps being lost... and honestly the whole conceit of Natalie being brought to the edge just didn't really make sense for me. There's no way to take her suicide/"ascension" ideation seriously when it comes on the heels of another friend's suicide. I wish she just came up with it on her own. Considering how abruptly everything else falls to pieces I think Natalie just admitting she wants to roll the die because she can't handle the un-knowing anymore and arbitrarily decides today is the day would've totally worked for me. Instead, Natalie going on with her metaphysical spiel went into one ear and out the other... it was surprisingly boring. I couldn't focus and still don't really know what the fuck she was going on about. I think that other woman, the one who was obsessed with only living in the name of producing something of worth, had the best possible motivation for that kind of dangerous thinking. Well, at least the most understandable. So Nat disappointed me there, being the last woman.
ReplyDeleteSo wait... Nick didn't botch it, right? He actually decided to refrain from turning her? For a second when he says he took too much again it seems like he missed his mark, but then LaCroix asks him if they should add her to their entourage and he says he won't bring her into the darkness. Am I right? That's how I understood it, but you're making it sound like he messed up again. Oh wait is it because he only decided after he bit her that he couldn't go through with it? Yeah that's a screw-up.
All of which to say it did move me... but only after the fact, reflecting on it. Watching it unfold was surprisingly un-engaging. I did like, though am perplexed by, LaCroix outliving everyone. I feel so bad for him... why not let him die with Divia? Make it a clean rout, lol... But it doesn't feel OOC for me like it does for you. I don't really get why myself, but that much of it made an emotional kind of sense. LaCroix as the consummate survivor, finally ready to let go of Nick and move on. It clicked for me that he just gave up on him finally, without condoning or condemning. I like the assisted suicide aspect of it, with a parent towards a lagging faltering child. It's really very sad and poignant in a primal kind of way, and I wish they made it feel less out of nowhere and succeeded in making it the gut-punch it should've been. But there's such a foregone conclusion to it despite the suddenness that even at my most sensitive I could only go "Oh, that's too bad."
But I respect how unnecessarily conclusive it was. Felt like there was vindictive passion behind it even if the result comes across as sleepy. And there is a sense of disturbance in how unceremoniously everyone loses their plot armor which I appreciate on some level. I've never experienced this from any other show, except for the Bolivian Army trope and criminals getting got sequentially. I wish Tracy died the previous episode so I can feel comfortable skipping this one, but I feel like I need to see her die even if that means I can't end it on LaCroix suggesting he'll pray over Divia, which would be the best note to end it on in the case of a fan-edit. But then maybe they could make the finale watchable too lol, all it takes is excision decisionz.
The end of the watch hasn't really registered for me. It's just too fast... I'll remember/realize with a whooping sensation in my stomach sometime tomorrow that it's really over. Anyway... thanks for covering it. Loved your insights and personal interjections.
Similar to "The Human Factor," the ending is a little unclear, and people often ask what on earth even happened. Along with the incredibly dull dialog and clip show format, this is a clunker.
DeleteIt's wise to end with the previous episode. La Croix is changing for the better and growing closer to Nick after the most dangerous encounter of their lives. Good ending. I'll keep pretending this one never happened.
Thanks Adam for reviewing Forever Knight. Really enjoyed your wide ranging thoughts on everything from use (or misuse) of characters to the technical details of how the runtime varies between USA and Europe.
ReplyDeleteThanks. I enjoyed diving into the technical details, and I'm glad someone else liked it!
DeleteI remembered that this episode killed off the main characters, but I'd forgotten how slow it was. Awful for Tracy in particular, who gets shot because she's ... standing nearby. She could have been trying to save Nick, which would have given her a heroic end and Nick even more reason to angst out .
ReplyDeleteRight. They could have done cool stuff with Tracy. It just sort of...ended.
DeleteI watched this show very irregularly when it was on, which is why I didn't comment before now. It was a good show, and came out when we were playing some of the Vampire: The Masquerade TTRPG, so was very appropriate in many ways.
ReplyDeleteI do recall this one since it stuck in my mind how much I disliked this one. Watching characters I genuinely liked fall one after the other was as you say, a big downer, and I feel it was depressing and such a terrible way to end the show. I get that the show is covering some darker subject matter, but I have to agree with the more regular fans of the show and find this ending unsatisfactory.
I have a hard time figured out who was supposed to like this. It strikes me as something that was supposed to be heavy and serious, but at no point is it compelling.
DeleteI love the show. Currently during a re-watch myself for the first time since my mom bought me the DVD series 6 years ago.
ReplyDeleteHere’s my 2 complaints about the show.
1. Natalie I love but pushed too much for nick to be human. He wanted to be human so badly but some things just are. It was too dangerous with the “Enforcers,” who if Natalie did find a cure that was scientific she would out the entire Vampire community at risk of being discovered which was something Lacroix especially didn’t want. I would have loved to have seen Natalie accept Nick who he was and look at all the good he has done to help others. It’s not what you are. It’s what you do. Nick could have also drank blood from the hospital instead of animal blood and maybe learned a little more on how to control his urges.
2. Season 3 lacked stability. The series finale was just awful IMO. Great episodes but I did come to love Schanke but he was killed off. Jeanette as well who made a guest appearance in the show and became human. Nicks new female partner Tracy I liked but she didn’t find out Nick was a vampire until the finale. Then she dies. The finale was open ended. Here are my thoughts on what I think happened. For those who are depressed on how the show wrapped up. This might make you feel better. We don’t actually see Lacroix stake Nick. We “assume,” he did but don’t have any physical proof. I don’t believe Natalie was completely dead. Teetering in between the veil of life and death. But not completely gone. Lacroix in his own way loved Nick like a son. Despite their differences Nick was the only person he loved. I don’t believe he killed Nick. Instead I think he made Natalie immortal. Lacroix knew Natalie loved Nick and Nick loved her. He never did anything Nick wanted and I don’t think Lacroix could live without Nick. That’s why he never left him alone for 800 years. It is my personal belief Natalie became a vampire and don’t die. Neither did Nick.
I have heard from many in this fandom that the finale doesn’t exist and that it was basically showing clips from previous episodes. I won’t be watching the finale. Almost done with season 1.
So what are your thoughts? Agree?
No it’s pretty clear that Natalie is dead.
ReplyDeleteAlso clear that Nick asked Lacroix to end his life. The final episode was disappointing but mostly because it’s out of character for Natalie to be so reckless, she’s usually the voice of reason and Nick’s more melodramatic.
Like many fans of the show I was devastated by the entire last season when it started with Skanke’s death and Jeanette’s departure but it was still okay because Nick and Nat were still in the picture. The only redeeming quality of the two of them dying was how Nick didn’t want to go on without Natalie.
It was out of character for Lacroix to grant Nick’s wish but it just that’s what gave it substance. The look he gave Lacroix… he knew he was broken and would be no use to him anymore. So he acquiesced. Throughout the series Nick has tried a few times to bring people over and most times failed which kinda made it easier to accept the ending..sort of but it was too abrupt which is why it SEEMS open ended.