SERIES FINALE: Revenge 4.23 “Two Graves”

Revenge is universal … as primal as the need for love, sex, or feeding. It crosses time and culture. 

Mike Kelley, Series Creator

Perhaps what makes this show so enjoyable is its universal representation of revenge. Based in contemporary Hamptons, New York the story follows, The Count of Monte Cristo, which was written in 19th century France. The ability to “cross time and culture” allows Revenge to tap into that primal need for revenge that Alexandre Dumas touched upon over 170 years ago. What’s even more fascinating is that the role of The Count in Revenge, is played by a woman.

Instead of a swashbuckling man, Amanda Clarke (Emily VanCamp) is the independently wealthy exactor of revenge. But unlike The Count, Amanda shows real human compassion. Some of the lives she has ruined have led to casualties, but Amanda could never end a life directly. This makes the finale quite interesting since Amanda kinda needs to ensure Victoria’s death. Again.

That’s right, Queen Victoria (Madeleine Stowe) faked her death and is hiding out with Margaux  (Karine Vanasse). With few allies, Victoria doesn’t stand a chance against lifelong adversary. Unlike Victoria, Amanda has quite the team: hacker Nolan, ex-cop Jack and assassin/father David. It’s awesome to watch team Revenge make every move in the playbook to bring down the Queen. She is alive but for how long?

It’s hard to believe Revenge is over, but this episode does the series justice, which is what revenge is all about. Justice, sex, and witty repartee–this episode has it all. And it’s cool to see what they did with The Count plot points in the story’s resolution. In the end, this was a great episode and brought closure to a lot of #revengers out there. But I wasn’t always the biggest fan of Revenge.

I originally dismissed Revenge as another piece of ABC fluff like Mistresses or Betrayal. But I was way off in my assessment. I’ll admit that it’s a trashy show and has ads that boast, “The revengiest show on television.” First off, that’s actually true and alongside that trash is literary allusion, badass fighting and hilarious dialogue.

A few shows in, I learned it was loosely based on The Count and was created by a writer from One Tree Hill and The O.C. This means two things: brutal fight scenes and very pretty people. And that’s exactly what we get with “Two Graves,” the Revenge finale.

The end of the Revenge starts like tale of The Count, with a prison break. The Count broke out of a clandestine French prison in the 1800’s–pretty badass. However, it’s 2015 and Amanda Clark can’t get out of her holding cell, so what to do? She decides to admit to homicide, get placed in a maximum security prison and have Nolan (Gabriel Mann) hack a way out. As crazy as that sounds, it actually works.

What’s the first thing Amanda does after her prison break? Okay, technically she says thanks to Nolan and Jack (Nick Wechsler) for busting her out. But the next thing is make out with Jack. I know what you’re thinking, why is this important? Remember that Amanda has used sociopathic strategies to inflict her revenge–so showing real, human emotion is a big deal for her.

Like The Count, Amanda has reprogrammed her mind, stripping it of all emotion, including love. Those primal urges work best if there are fewer–cut out love and you’re left with increased hunger for revenge. Yet with Victoria still alive, Amanda struggles to get her humanity back.

And that is no easy feat. Amanda underwent Batman-style training (like Liam Neeson on a mountain shit) to turn into a heartless assassin. One of the problems with completely rerouting your brain is that it can be difficult to reverse. And that’s when David Clarke (James Tupper), finally finds a purpose.

I’ve never liked David Clarke from his stupid hair to his whole absent father thing. Yes, he was wrongfully imprisoned, but he never explained why he still “couldn’t be a father” after that. And I’m not saying I like him now. He’s only attempting to reconnect with Amanda because he’s dying. Like literally–he takes the entire show to die. At least for once, David has a purpose and is able to flood Amanda with enough childhood emotions to restore her humanity.

And with her newfound humanity, she is finally able to truly, profess her love to Jack. They’ve kissed before, but this is the first sex and love combo we’ve seen from them. It’s incredibly sweet, especially considering Jack’s entire family has been killed off and Amanda is all he has.

Just as Jack turns Amanda’s humanity back on, he gets savagely stabbed by Courtney Love-played assassin, White Gold. But don’t cry just yet, with the help of Amanda’s love (and doctors) Jack survives in time to ask Amanda’s father for her hand in marriage.

But first, someone seriously needs to kill Victoria. Amanda has finally reached the courage to point a gun at Victoria’s face when suddenly … BAM! A shot rings out and Victoria falls to the ground, lifeless and bleeding. With Jack in the hospital and both her exes dead, who could’ve saved Amanda?

David Clarke appears, holding the smoking gun. And again, David Clarke finds purpose in life. Should he have killed Victoria years ago? Yes–hell yes. Yet as the saying goes with absent fathers, better late than never. David knows that killing Victoria is the only way to ensure Amanda’s sanity. If Amanda were to take a life, it might shatter what’s left of her humanity.

So you might cry when David Clarke dies of cancer or when you’re reminded of all the pretty people we’ve lost over the years. Yet the writers know how to lift our spirits. They give Amanda and Jack a beautiful wedding with a damn golden retriever puppy. Seriously. And since we’re following The Count, Amanda and Jack sail off into the sunset to begin their new life together. We assume the puppy is below deck.

So if you’re a fellow #revenger, don’t cry. There will never be another Revenge, but I’m sure ABC will come up with something. And if you’ve never seen it, Revenge is extremely binge-worthy. At a mere four seasons, you won’t even feel guilty watching the entire thing. And oh yeah, everyone’s hot. Like really hot.

“Revenge brings only darkness” – Amanda Clarke