The Killing: When Will They Learn?

This is a rant about the final episode of The Killing. It's pretty much word for word what I wrote in an email to my friend Jessica of the #TVTrustCircle earlier this week. It is riddled with spoilers, obviously, so it's behind the cut.

As ever, they dropped the ball in the end. The previous episode was SO good. The rest of the season was SO good. And then – splat. It was such a badly handled bait and switch – they deliberately set it up to make it look like it was Reddick, then it was WHAT A TWIST! IT’S A COP BUT NOT THAT COP! The relationship between Linden and Skinner was badly conveyed – they had a bit at the start about their previous relationship, then very little to imply that those feelings were still there, but all of a sudden in the last episode it was “Well, my wife’s left me and we’ve always loved each other so let’s get together and live happily ever after.” Where did that come from???? If they had built that up more I’d have been way more accepting of it.

Also, the explanation of how he became a serial killer – what the??? So one kid he put some effort into was an accidental murder and then he thought, well this is fun! I mean, why take the rings? Why butcher them like that? It made no sense.

In hindsight, I should have realised it was him – Elias Koteas is a pretty big name and he had virtually nothing to do the whole time. Of course it was going to be him – it’s Law and Order syndrome, the most famous guest star is the killer.

I feel conflicted and annoyed – I loved the season overall but I feel like the rug was pulled out from under me with that ending. Ugh. And the story with the guard just went nowhere. I get that they were setting him up deliberately to be shifty so you’d think he was a possible contender, and I also get that he had some kind of epiphany when he watched the execution of Peter Sarsgaard, but again it was really clunky. He was a guard on death row, he’d seen executions before, why would this particular one be the one that drives him out of the job? So unsatisfactory.

And Kallie… so….? Are we supposed to just assume that she’s dead and that’s it? He doesn’t remember her? HE’S BEEN WORKING THE CASE. HOW DOES HE NOT REMEMBER HER???? HE GAVE THE RING TO HIS KID! HOW DOES HE NOT REMEMBER HER??? And don’t even get me going on how dumb it is that he gave his kid a ring that was in a GIANT photo at the station. What if she had just rocked up to his work for some reason. So dumb. SO SO DUMB.

Oh, and one more rant – I hate when shows rely on someone doing something that no normal person would ever do, like that woman not letting a scared kid stay with her, or calling the police for him or whatever. Just driving him home to an empty house after he said someone was following him and being like, “Oh I thought he was just stressed because his dad got executed, soz not my fault.” Even if that were true, would you not have some sympathy and let the kid in when he CLEARLY did not want to be left alone and needed help of some kind???? GAH! 

Okay, I'm done. And I'll still be watching if it's back next year.