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[digitalrelic]

I agree that the Kevin/Nora relationship never felt that strong. In fact it always felt more out of convenience or temporary necessity than love, which is why 20 years of searching for her fell kinda flat for me too. I never saw that grade of love for her coming from Kevin. I still felt the ending, but not as strongly.

Also, I really need help understanding the purpose of the afterlife. The assassin/president dynamic. The fact that people who were thought to be departed (like that woman's 5 kids) were actually there (thus dead, yes?). What does him killing his ability to go to the afterlife accomplishes? Why was his reflection significant? Why do some posters think the machine let Nora experience Kevin's afterlife? What happened to "the afterlife" for everyone else after Kevin nuked it? I had a hard time following any insight would be appreciated.

Grace's children were never thought to be departed. They died on the day of the departure looking for their mother.

 

[Budi]

Amazing show. My girlfriend and I only started watching back in April. By May we had blasted through S2 and we were able to watch our first (and last) live episode last night after just getting caught up in time. The Leftovers probably cracks my Top 5 all-time. Season 2 in particular is one of the finest pieces of television I've ever had the pleasure to witness. Just flawless. Justin Thereoux and Carrie Coon deserve all the awards, recognition, and future success in the world. I can't recall the last show that could thrill me, make me cry, make me howl with laughter, and destroy me on an emotional level so consistently.

Yes they do! I didn't have very positive impression of Theroux from most of the stuff I've seen him, which wasn't much. But god damn was he excellent in this. I want him to score more great roles. Can't take my eyes of him when he is on the screen. Carrie seems to be already getting the work, deservedly so.

 

[Fluffhead14]

Also, I really need help understanding the purpose of the afterlife. The assassin/president dynamic. The fact that people who were thought to be departed (like that woman's 5 kids) were actually there (thus dead, yes?). What does him killing his ability to go to the afterlife accomplishes? Why was his reflection significant? Why do some posters think the machine let Nora experience Kevin's afterlife? What happened to "the afterlife" for everyone else after Kevin nuked it? I had a hard time following any insight would be appreciated.

The kids died; they didn't depart.

He was going there because he was afraid of truly opening himself up; his first instinct was always to run from his life (and Nora). He kept telling himself he was going there to get rid of Patti, save the world, talk to Evie, find Grace's children, etc., but he was just lying to himself. Him nuking it forces him to confront his life on Earth.

I don't know why anyone would think the LADR machine let Nora go to Kevin's afterlife, as there is no evidence of that in her story or the entire hour preceding it.

My view of the "afterlife" was that it was personalized to Kevin and that everyone would sort of "have their own afterlife" which made sense to them (the people you see would be how you remember them, not necessarily how they looked when they died, for example).

 

[BenjaminBirdie]

Because a fantastical backdrop allows for more of an examination into what grief, loss...etc. can mean to different people. Put people in extreme situations get extreme results kind of thing.

"You expect me to believe a Frog ACTUALLY gave a Scorpion a ride and they BOTH COULD TALK?"

 

[hank_tree]

Why was his reflection significant?

Have you ever looked at your own reflection in a dream?

 

[streetsahead123]

If you believe Nora didn't go through with the machine, there's some nice thematic symmetry with all three main characters (Nora, Kevin, and Laurie) all being offered a way out, getting right up to the edge, and then deciding not to take it

 

[BenjaminBirdie]

If you believe Nora didn't go through with the machine, there's some nice thematic symmetry with all three main characters (Nora, Kevin, and Laurie) all being offered a way out, getting right up to the edge, and then deciding not to take it

ffffuuuuuucccckkkkkkk

 

[Dreams-Visions]

Have you ever looked at your own reflection in a dream?

I can't say I recall.

The kids died; they didn't depart.

He was going there because he was afraid of truly opening himself up; his first instinct was always to run from his life (and Nora). He kept telling himself he was going there to get rid of Patti, save the world, talk to Evie, find Grace's children, etc., but he was just lying to himself. Him nuking it forces him to confront his life on Earth.

I don't know why anyone would think the LADR machine let Nora go to Kevin's afterlife, as there is no evidence of that in her story or the entire hour preceding it.

My view of the "afterlife" was that it was personalized to Kevin and that everyone would sort of "have their own afterlife" which made sense to them (the people you see would be how you remember them, not necessarily how they looked when they died, for example).

Ah okay.

So no explanation for his immortality? It was just a thing he could do which he later used as an escape mechanism? Should I think of it more as a really fancy dream state for him? Was he really talking to dead people or were they just part of his dream state/fantasy? Also why was he able to speak to his father on the hotel TV the first time he went to kill Patti? Pops definitely wasn't dead.

 

[Lumpy Onion]

Great finale to one of my favorite shows. I started to cry when Kevin told her what was up near the end. I was so imagining they were in some kind of limbo or crossover world. And oh man, can't believe we actually got told where the people went. It didn't feel hokey either. Loved how it's up to the viewer to determine if that story is one to actually believe (I do).

Final shot with the pigeons and the orange sherbet colored sky was beautiful.

I know I'll be missing these characters. Thankfully the show is so dense in meaningful content that it will be a joy to rewatch.

 

[Reedirect]

I wasn't buying the finale up until the last like 15 minutes. Incredibly powerful stuff in the end, though. I didn't necessarily like the decision of having a series finale be a character episode, rather than an ensemble episode, but it worked well enough here. Not my favorite episode by any means, but a fitting end to an overall spectacular show.

 

[Erigu]

Because a fantastical backdrop allows for more of an examination into what grief, loss...etc. can mean to different people. Put people in extreme situations get extreme results kind of thing.

As I've already said, I don't think the show did a good job in that area in the first place, and I really don't think it's made any point that genuinely required the introduction of all that other (as in non-Departure) supernatural stuff.
I think those clearly were mere hooks. With no pay-off, because why bother, "let the mystery be!", "isn't this intriguing?", etc.

Him nuking it forces him to confront his life on Earth.

Because, obviously, this would result in that, in that weird world with no clear rules ("nope, no hotel like those two other times, why do you ask?").
Remember, kids: when in doubt, detonate a nuke.

 

[TheNatureBoy]

Although a big talking point of the finale was the uncertainty of Nora's story, one thing I am certain is that Carrie Coon better get that Emmy nomination/win this year. Her goodbye with Matt, arguing with Laurie on the phone, dancing with Old Kevin at the wedding, and the way her eyes light up and she says "You do?" after Kevin believed her story were all great.

Would love to see Justin Theroux and the show get a nomination as well. Not only because it would be the last chance, but because I don't know if I will watch anything better on TV this year.

 

[Ogni-XR21]

I watched this show because it made me feel. Because it made me think. And great emotional moments (with phenomenal acting) these characters have.

I'm still in awe of the concept that for the 'departed' 98% of the population disappeared, and it's something I've been thinking about all day today. It doesn't really matter to me if the story is true, it's still a very interesting thought to me. Same goes for the woman (sorry don't remember her name) who lost her children but not to the departure but because they died in the wild because she never went looking for them. This is also something that I had on my mind for days.

It triggers my emotions and stimulates my mind, and leaves me with a very satisfied feeling in the end.

 

[Fluffhead14]

I can't say I recall.


Ah okay.

So no explanation for his immortality? It was just a thing he could do which he later used as an escape mechanism? Should I think of it more as a really fancy dream state for him? Was he really talking to dead people or were they just part of his dream state/fantasy? Also why was he able to speak to his father on the hotel TV the first time he went to kill Patti? Pops definitely wasn't dead.

How does Kevin Garvey Junior know that his father is in a hotel in Perth tripping on something called God’s Tongue if he’s not in the afterlife?

Here’s how I will answer that question, hopefully in an unambiguous and satisfying way, and let’s just take the question of supernaturality off the table. Then we’ll put it back on. Going into season three, Reza Aslan came in and talked to us about aboriginal religious beliefs and creation theory so that we would understand what Senior was up to. We read a book called The Songlines, we watched several documentaries about the indigenous peoples of Australia. The thing that keeps coming up over and over and over again — particularly in this movie The Last Wave, which was a big inspiration for and potentially an actual prequel of season three of The Leftovers, who is to say, because there is a character named Chris played by the same exact actor — is the word “dreamtime.” We never use the word in The Leftovers, but it is the core fundamental spiritual belief of the indigenous peoples of Australia. For them, the dreamtime is not a supernatural space. They understand that it is accessed by shamanic peoples, not to mention occasionally people who are just having dreams, but they don’t believe it to be a space that is psychological. They believe it to be a space that is real and exists as a tangible place — it’s like the Matrix almost, minus the computers — where they can communicate with other people who are simultaneously in the dreamtime, or even past ancestors, etc. There are no fundamental rules that govern it.

I think that Senior is in the dreamtime when he’s under the influence of God’s Tongue, and whether Kevin is there simultaneously as he’s undergoing the events of the initial International Assassin, or that hotel just has a hell of an antenna on it, he is receiving transmissions from the dreamtime. I’m not saying that he’s in the dreamtime. Senior is.

There’s basically two ways to look at “International Assassin.” One is, it’s part of the psychotic break that Laurie insists he’s having.

Boring!

The other is, Virgil’s plan has worked and he has somehow gone to this other place to resolve his issues.

Too weird.

You don’t like either explanation.

The answer lies somewhere between boring and too weird.

more here: http://uproxx.com/sepinwall/the-leftovers-finale-damon-lindelof-recap-review/6/

 

[Dreams-Visions]

more here: http://uproxx.com/sepinwall/the-leftovers-finale-damon-lindelof-recap-review/6/

Huh. I guess I wasn't the only one wondering. tyvm

 

[Raven117]

"You expect me to believe a Frog ACTUALLY gave a Scorpion a ride and they BOTH COULD TALK?"

LOL! Fan-freakin--tastic reference

As I've already said, I don't think the show did a good job in that area in the first place, and I really don't think it's made any point that genuinely required the introduction of all that other (as in non-Departure) supernatural stuff.
I think those clearly were mere hooks. With no pay-off, because why bother, "let the mystery be!", "isn't this intriguing?", etc.

I can certainly see how some could come to this conclusion...but the "mysteries" as you say were never the hook for me and (maybe) for many others who enjoyed the show. It always came down to the examination of the central themes of the show (grief, loss, coping, purpose..etc)...

The mysteries were metaphors man, but hey..if you didn't like...ya didn't like it. Its okay to have this opinion. I don't like Game of Thrones very much, so I understand having a different opinion.

 

[firehawk12]

No, I can't, because I have to go down the ”assuming this is true" pathway and then you can later Saul Goodman me, or Jimmy McGill me at least.

Heh.

But with your, I'll say borderline obsession/fascination/fandom for TGIF in general but very specifically Perfect Strangers changed that. I know that if you didn't like the show, you would say so, but the fact that you were the first and only person to embrace the show not for what it was but what you believed it was capable of or what it was going for, I was like, ”Sepinwall deserves all the Mark Linn-Baker that I can muster."

Let me just say this: If The Leftovers becomes a global sensation now — in other words, it doubles its ratings from 11 people watching it to 22 people watching it —and there's a massive demand suddenly for Leftovers conventions and it just becomes like what Star Trek did after it was canceled, and people are just like, ”There has to be more Leftovers, I will make one season of Nora and Mark Linn-Baker's adventures through on the other side.

Haha, at least Lindelof can still troll.

 

[Erigu]

There’s basically two ways to look at “International Assassin.” One is, it’s part of the psychotic break that Laurie insists he’s having.

Boring!

The other is, Virgil’s plan has worked and he has somehow gone to this other place to resolve his issues.

Too weird.

You don’t like either explanation.

The answer lies somewhere between boring and too weird.

Sure. Since, as you pointed out, it would have to be one or the other, and both possibilities suck, let's just pretend there's a mystical "in-between" that works. Of course.
That fucking guy...

 

[Fluffhead14]

Because, obviously, this would result in that, in that weird world with no clear rules ("nope, no hotel like those two other times, why do you ask?").
Remember, kids: when in doubt, detonate a nuke.

It resulted in it because Patti said it would. Surely the metaphor of nuking this place wasn't lost on you.

It's like getting aggravated that he had to sing "Homeward Bound". It's just something to overcome in this "place" that, as you say, has no clear rules.

likely because it's not a "real" place with regard to what we consider "real".

i get that you don't think the fantastical elements were worth it or earned, but complaining about the lack of logic in an element of the show that... lacks logic.. seems kinda stupid.

WHY DOES HE HAVE TO PUT HIS PENIS THERE? THAT WOULDN'T REALLY HAPPEN!

 

[Human Trashcan]

I mean, I loved the finale but to pretend that there were no answers left unresolved is just silly.

What caused the departure?
What caused Kevin to become immortal?
Was the afterlife Kevin was accessing real?
Why did 0 of the 9,261 people in Jarden disappear?
How & why did Mary miraculously wake up in Miracle?
etc.. etc..

Again, I loved the show, and I personally didn't desire any of those answers (other than Kevin's immortality), but I can certainly understand how this style of writing wouldn't work for some people.

I just think all this shit is trivia, and besides the point. The show was never about any of those things, y'know? Who cares what caused the departure? The whole show was about learning to live in the wake of that. Why did Kevin go to the hotel/bunker? Because it was a really cool way to explore his inner conflicts that made for great television! Like, the show never ever fronted like it was going to be about the reasons for these things, it was about how people reacted to them.

Side note: the actual answer to "where did the departed go" being "they're in a mirror world where it seems like the other 98% disappeared" is such a ridiculously simple-yet-elegant explanation, I smacked my forehead that it never even occurred to me. But again, that's because I never really thought about it - to our characters, and the show, they were simply gone. Where didn't matter so much.

 

[Raven117]

I just think all this shit is trivia, and besides the point. The show was never about any of those things, y'know? Who cares what caused the departure? The whole show was about learning to live in the wake of that. Why did Kevin go to the hotel/bunker? Because it was a really cool way to explore his inner conflicts that made for great television! Like, the show never ever fronted like it was going to be about the reasons for these things, it was about how people reacted to them.

Exactly..yeesh. As I said on the last page....its an "Art-house post-modernism / impressionist view of grief, sorrow, joy, purpose...etc....

It was never sold as a "sci-fi mystery to unfold." Hell the writers from the beginning said as much.

If ya didn't like it...or couldn't buy into that premise...(a completely valid opinion to have)...show falls flat. It took me most of season one to get on board with that fact...and I enjoyed the show much more....Half the time I was cracking up at how darkly absurd and humorus it could be at times. But also reflective....

Good stuff.

 

[Kadayi]

Good finale. Props to Carrie Coon for the whole deal. I can't imagine the sphere stuff was all that pleasant to film, least of all be naked to boot, stood on some windy outcrop in Aus.

Albeit there's some ambivalence as to whether Nora followed through, my inclination is to believe she did, if nothing more than for the fact that if she hadn't then I dare say Matt would have told Kevin.

Also the notion that effectively the 2% ended up in a parallel dimension ties in with something I proposed way back when. It doesn't address the mystery of why, but it at least clarifies events to some extent.

 

[Theorry]

Cheering when in intro started
50 min of being confused
20 min of being glued to the screen with tears in my eyes. (not sure i believe it what she says. But i want to. And thats enough and perfect in line with the show)

Thank you Leftovers for 3 great seasons and being one of the best shows in the last 10 years.

 

[Solo]

Yup. I was just saying to my wife as well that it is my top 5.

My man! I will try to fix you Schuey, even though you're not broken! *plays Coldplay*

 

[Conkersbadfurday]

I wasn't buying the finale up until the last like 15 minutes. Incredibly powerful stuff in the end, though. I didn't necessarily like the decision of having a series finale be a character episode, rather than an ensemble episode, but it worked well enough here. Not my favorite episode by any means, but a fitting end to an overall spectacular show.

Similar to how I watched it. First ten were great, middle forty or so were almost too strange in a way. It teased the mystery so hard that I was kind of out of the experience wondering when I'd get my answers and looking for clues. Then that last fifteen hit and I was fucking enthralled.

As an episode, I think it'll hold up better under future viewings now that I know how it ends and can appreciate the character work that was done. In the moment though, I found it a bit disappointing and not as good as the other two season finales.

 

[SCHUEY F1]

My man! I will try to fix you Schuey, even though you're not broken! *plays Coldplay*

Lol, I'm still annoyed they changed that for the playoffs.

 

[Floor]

Similar to how I watched it. First ten were great, middle forty or so were almost too strange in a way. It teased the mystery so hard that I was kind of out of the experience wondering when I'd get my answers and looking for clues. Then that last fifteen hit and I was fucking enthralled.

As an episode, I think it'll hold up better under future viewings now that I know how it ends and can appreciate the character work that was done. In the moment though, I found it a bit disappointing and not as good as the other two season finales.

I really love the beginning and ending but didn't like not having any idea what was going on for big part of the finale episode. I don't think I like that Kevin pretended that they one met once before to break the ice again and I was super relieved when he finally told the truth. I also didn't like that Nora angry said to the nun that she shouldn't waste her breath. I understand she was very emotional but I would have liked for Nora to have some character growth in that area and to be nice to someone else for a change.

 

[Black_Stride]

Whats the song during the goat scene when Nora gets the beads from it.

On Topic
I really liked the finale it was fucking fantastic.

 

[Erigu]

It resulted in it because Patti said it would.

Yes, so surely that should stick just as much as throwing Patti down that well did. Oh, wait.

Surely the metaphor of nuking this place wasn't lost on you.

Well, it wasn't exactly subtle.
It's just weird to suggest Kevin would just suddenly know that would work. That was one of the reasons that particular episode made it seem like this was "all in his head": it's going to work because he believes it's going to work, and that's it? Er. Yeah, but what about those previous hotel segments that made it look like it wasn't just in his head? What about his resurrections? Does he really have a handle on all this? He just seemed very, very confused overall, up to that point! No, there's no doubt it's just going to work? This is all over and it's time to move on? Okay.

And of course, that was all so Kevin would come to the realization that it might have been kinda shitty of him to tell Nora to just go and die in a fire. Apparently, that was the entire point of this thing, and the real reason Kevin went along with his dad's plan. Right after he fucked up with Nora.
That reminds me of that part in Lost where Locke fucks up and makes the Hatch explode/implode/whatever, and the show decides to dedicate an episode to his brilliant idea of building a sweat lodge so he could have visions telling him what to do next. Yep. The answer being a hilarious "hey, maybe check on those other people who were there when the thing exploded/imploded/whatever?". D'oh! Well, I guess we really needed some supernatural help there!

I'd argue that all that supernatural stuff actually distracts from the core of the story... but in the case of this show, that seems to be the entire point, really. The supposed "core" just isn't particularly good or interesting in the first place.

i get that you don't think the fantastical elements were worth it or earned, but complaining about the lack of logic in an element of the show that... lacks logic.. seems kinda stupid.

It's kinda better when you can actually follow the character's motivations. Here, it's just "well, the rules of that world are completely elusive, but according to the music and considering this is the second-to-last episode, I guess this is a meaningful moment and it's going to work/stick".

 

[DarkLordMalik]

Great fucking season. Emotional finale.

The Leftovers will easily take a spot in my Top 10 TV Shows. What a journey it has been and atleast most of the questions were answered for me.

 

[Floor]

Whats the song during the goat scene when Nora gets the beads from it.

Max Richter - November

 

[FantasticMrFoxdie]

Beads?

 

[Byakuya769]

I think the season could have used a couple more episodes. Without the space between, the reunion, though sweet, felt kind of contrived.

"I fucked up with Nora." (Is back with Nora in the next episode)

As much as people say they prefer the ambiguity of Nora's journey, I think her trip to the other side and return would have made an excellent episode and created more heft for their reunion.

Homeward Bound is still the winner for getting me in my feelings, this finale didn't hit as hard as it should've.

 

[BlueTsunami]

That final Nora monologue was beautiful. She was a ghost in both realities and she could finally be honest about her feelings on her place in the world to Kevin. Or maybe she never went, but as the show has made apparent that doesnt matter in the grand scheme.

I've come out the back end of this series satisfied. Where Lost kept you asking about the minutiae, The Leftovers used these unsolved mysteries to elevate these characters in a peculiar way unique to this show.

Oh and when Otis started playing during the wedding. Onions all up in ma shit.

 

[TechnicPuppet]

Well that was absolutely perfect. I'll miss it.

 

[TheExhaustedWalrus]

I thought the episode was pretty perfect. I love the characters of Kevin and Nora so this was a great way to end it for me.

Oh, and Nora is definitely lying about the machine. At least that's what I choose to believe.

 

[FantasticMrFoxdie]

so has anyone read the book?

worthy read?

 

[Arkeband]

I don't believe Nora was lying. She literally said in the episode "I don't lie."

And the explanation made sense.

But ultimately it doesn't even matter if it was real or not, because she still learned the intended lesson.

I'm considering everything in Kevin's head him battling his own demons, it doesn't even need to be supernatural or real.

 

[D1renegade]

Meh.. I'm not really crazy about this season.
I don't like how they appeared to embrace the supernatural stuff in S2 just to pull it back and go all vague/ "it's all in your head" this season.

I'm kinda soured on the whole series now. Oh well.

 

[Servbot #42]

The finale was beautiful and pretty close to perfect. Damn, there's a lot to unpack in that episode, was nora's story real? Perhaps it doesn't even matter.

 

[bodyofanamerican]

I'd just like to say that I don't think Nora's story is real. I was talking about it with my mother of all people today, and she said that she'd like to believe Nora's story was true. That's exactly where Kevin ended up. It didn't matter if it was true, it was the bridge that let them be together again.

I forget if I saw this here or on the Leftovers subreddit, but I love the idea of Nora being Kevin's personal departure. He couldn't/wouldn't give up the idea that she was still alive, and got to be the only person who got a departure back.

Couple other things I loved about Kevin being a crotchety old man:
- "everyone! So fucking sorry!"
- (when she didn't come to Matt's funeral) "well THAT should have convinced me!"

Loved it.

 

[Erigu]

It didn't matter if it was true, it was the bridge that let them be together again.

Doesn't it, though? Doesn't it matter if Nora lied? If she actually chose to stay away from Kevin for 10+ years? To the point of missing her brother's funerals? Just to hook up with him anyway later on? By making up some outrageous lie?
Is that still the emotional ending the music was trying to sell?

 

[Jocund]

Doesn't it, though? Doesn't it matter if Nora lied? If she actually chose to stay away from Kevin for 10+ years? To the point of missing her brother's funerals? Just to hook up with him anyway later on? By making up some outrageous lie?
Is that still the emotional ending the music was trying to sell?

No, because it doesn't change either Nora's or Kevin's experience of the past 10 or whatever years away from each other. It doesn't change that Nora wanted to be with Kevin, but couldn't, and that Kevin spent every vacation he had searching for her. The story is a bridge. The truth of it doesn't matter, what does matter is Kevin's willingness to accept her.

She stayed away from him for years, regardless, even after she "returned". She says as much. Her story has no bearing on that.

The conclusion isn't predicated on the question of whether Nora's story is true, so yes, it does still work.

And even if the story wasn't true. If Nora's experience is considered to be like Kevin's, i.e., that all of the "crossing over" and hotel bullshit was only a device through which either Kevin or Nora could arrive at a better, healthier place, then that's just as good. The import of Nora's concern is the same: even after coming to terms with her grief, either by supernatural displacement or by fucking total isolation, she was afraid that Kevin wouldn't allow her back. That's the fear, and it's vanquished by Kevin's appearance.

 

[bodyofanamerican]

No, because it doesn't change either Nora's or Kevin's experience of the past 10 or whatever years away from each other. It doesn't change that Nora wanted to be with Kevin, but couldn't, and that Kevin spent every vacation he had searching for her. The story is a bridge. The truth of it doesn't matter, what does matter is Kevin's willingness to accept her.

She stayed away from him for years, regardless, even after she "returned". She says as much. Her story has no bearing on that.

The conclusion isn't predicated on the question of whether Nora's story is true, so yes, it does still work.

Yep!

 

[Sectorseven]

Did they not have a budget to film that final scene rather than talk about it?

 

[Erigu]

No, because it doesn't change either Nora's or Kevin's experience of the past 10 or whatever years away from each other. It doesn't change that Nora wanted to be with Kevin, but couldn't

She said she couldn't because 1) she was in another world for years, and then 2) she thought Kevin wouldn't believe her story (because he's obviously extremely rational, didn't you know).
If her story was a complete fabrication, it's not that she couldn't. That would have been her choice. Unless we consider "she couldn't because of the plot" is valid, I guess.

And even if the story wasn't true. If Nora's experience is considered to be like Kevin's, i.e., that all of the "crossing over" and hotel bullshit was only a device through which either Kevin or Nora could arrive at a better, healthier place, then that's just as good.

That sounds like two completely different things to me. "Nora's experience"? The idea isn't that Nora had been hallucinating about another world. She would have been lying about it, nothing more.

 

[Jocund]

Did they not have a budget to film that final scene rather than talk about it?

Creative choice. There's myriad stories in the series that characters deliver by speech.

She said she couldn't because 1) she was in another world for years, and then 2) she thought Kevin wouldn't believe her story (because he's obviously extremely rational, didn't you know).
If her story was a complete fabrication, it's not that she couldn't. That would have been her choice. Unless we consider "she couldn't because of the plot" is valid, I guess.


That sounds like two completely different things to me. "Nora's experience"? The idea isn't that Nora had been hallucinating about another world. She would have been lying about it, nothing more.

She said that she couldn't because it had been to long once she'd made it through whatever she went through. Regardless of the truth of the story, Nora experienced something. And by time it was over, she thought it had been too long a time. It doesn't matter whether she went someplace else or not, she experienced a change, and that affected her ability, willingness, whatever, to return to Kevin. All of the "thinking about Kevin, wanting to be with Kevin," shit occurs after her return, not during. Whether she made the choice not to make contact because she literally couldn't or didn't want to doesn't matter. Nora was going through shit she needed to go through.

And I'm not suggesting that Nora hallucinated anything. I'm saying that Nora's story serves the same function as Kevin's bullshit. They both arrived at a new understanding of themselves via intense self-reflection. People argue all the time whether Kevin's hallucinations are real or not, dreams or not, when it doesn't matter. Every time he arrived at something new. It served Kevin. Nora's journey served her. Nora making up a story about crossing over doesn't mean she sat on her ass for 10 fucking years. She experienced transformation and dressed it up in whatever narrative treated it best.

For both Kevin and Nora: Hallucination/Inter-dimensional travel or no, they experienced shit that affected them as people. The ends are the same.

 

[GavinUK86]

so has anyone read the book?

worthy read?

it's alright. covers the first season only. worth reading if there's nothing else on your radar atm.

 

[BlueTsunami]

Did they not have a budget to film that final scene rather than talk about it?

I'd say its more effective for the viewer to hear about it as Kevin does instead of devoting an episode to Nora going to the other side just to find out her family moved on. Plus there's the ambiguity as to whether she actually did it or not.

 

[Einchy]

Plus there's the ambiguity as to whether she actually did it or not.

Did we really need more ambiguity? It would've been more interesting if they, for once, weren't ambiguous.

Even Game of Thrones lets the good guys win now and then.