General Zod

Just finished it. No way the trigger is pulled in the last scene with him still holding the container..

Good series but glad it's over. Long time to watch a train wreck. I thought the acting was superb.

johnnysd

Good final episodes but I likely would have gone a different direction. I do appreciate the circular nature of everything so the final scene made sense, but some of the "payoffs" were not really earned. Wendy has become one of the most loathsome characters in TV history, but I thought she was overacted by Linney especially this season. Last season Helen and the cartel were seriously scary, but this season lost a bit of that feeling of danger, maybe even most of it. The whole foundation bit has always been and remains ludicrous.

JZ1276

Gave the finale a re-watch and was pretty disappointed. I posted above how I didn't quite understand why after Omar told Camilla he wasn't the one responsible for her son's murder she still went ahead with the plan to have him killed...

Also, after the first hit on Omar was unsuccessful, Camilla wanted the Byrds to set up a meeting for her to see Omar to "reminisce and say goodbye" before carrying out the second hit, yet she didn't feel the need for this before attemping the first hit?

Lastly, during the last season, when the cartel was following Ruth, she was petrified of them and went into the hotel to avoid them. However, this time she pulls up home, the same SUV is parked and running in front of her place and instead of turning around and driving away, she gets out of her truck to walk around and investigate. Why?? It was the same SUV that she was afraid of and hiding from last season but this time she reacts totally different and gets out to look around?

Had to edit this post because I forgot to mention something else I found a little ridiculous. Mel returns to inform the Byrds of the proof he has of Ben's murder that he plans on bringing to the authorities INSTEAD of just going straight to the authorities. Of course this was done so Jonah could kill him & the Byrds get away but in reality this would never happen.

Other than those minor gripes the finale was just OK but could've been so much better IMO/.

beavis69

I would say to your first question, she was acting out of anger and with a sense or urgency the first time, while the second she had more time to think and it was personal, it was business. To the second question it seemed Ruth knew her time was up.

I was late on this series and actually didn’t start it till a month ago. I really didn’t expect the end we got, but I’m not necessarily disappointed. Really wish Wendy would have met a more appropriate ending. In a way the Byrds got what they deserved, the inability to ever get out of the game.

MLBFan24

Decent final second half season. I only didn’t like all the cameos shoehorned into the episodes. Could have saved 15 minutes per episode.

A character’s death has to have impact and meaning. Having the character show up again in flashbacks or memories takes away from the previous death scene.

Pointyskull

I have been a huge fan of this series, but I have to say I felt this last block of episodes felt overcrowded and rushed.
I appreciate an attempt at closure of sorts, but

just didn't feel right to me. I get the underlying message that the Byrdes are only looking out for themselves ultimately, but that action just seemed unnecessary - and I don't think it played out even remotely believable given what came before.

Ok, we're done with Ozark - and I enjoyed the journey. Just not the destination so much.

Coral

What the final season (and finale) confirmed for me (more than it already did) was how much better Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul is.
Ozark is a solid show, and even though it has it's similarities to BB/BCS - it didn't grab my attention nearly as much with it's storylines and characters.

I'll continue to recommend this series to people, but only after Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul and both of the Narcos series.

andicus

Two things, there... First, he knew it was her that tried to have him killed. Second, she wanted to be the leader. I suppose another possibility is that she anticipated her son becoming the leader, and once he was dead, she thought it fitting that it would be her, instead.

I was very bummed out that Ruth had to go. Not surprised, in the least, but was more hoping the Jonah moment would've taken place with Camila, rather than the PI. Not that it would've been Jonah, obviously, but someone (Rachel? Yeah, wouldn't make sense in the context, I know).

I'm surprised that anyone would think the PI was a wasted character. I thought he added a lot of drama and suspense to the series.

It was also disappointing that John Boy was setup with cash, in perpetuity.

Overall, I think it was pretty good.

johnnysd

I think a far better ending would have been for Marty to ultimately take out Wendy as she was completely devoid of reason or cognizant of the danger especially to her children. I am actually quite sure that was the original plan because there were so many plot elements conversations and other foreshadowing of where it would ultimately go.

asianxcore

Finally finished Season 4 last night.

Echoing much of what has been said here, I enjoyed the show's run immensely but the second half of Season 4 fell a bit flat for me.

Deftones

So Ruth pulls up to her house, sees a car there and just gets out? I mean come on. That was absurd.

Overall, was a disappointing back half of the last season. Too much going on.

csant

Ruth knew her time was up/near... I love that she went out like a boss.

But, I would've watch a spin off with Ruth in a heartbeat.

Pointyskull

I had really, really hoped that Wendy would get taken out. She was so fucking unlikable - and if you did a shot every time she said "We're sooo close" you would be drunk in no time.

Shannon Nutt

It's a pity this series didn't end with at least one of the adult Byrdes getting their just desserts. It's almost as if the writers couldn't figure out an ending, so they just ended the way things did.

Interesting tidbit: The song over the end credits of the last episode, Al Green's Love & Happiness was ALMOST the song playing in the last scene of The Sopranos. I'm sure someone over on Ozark knew that and figured it would be perfect for their ending.

MLBFan24

I do hate when shows end by blacking out the screen and you’re “wondering” what happened.

Hey writers, do your job and tell me what happened. It’s your damn story. I’m not going to waste my time coming up with scenarios. Just f’n tell me.

And I also wish Ruth had a different ending. She was the unexpected hero of the series.

BDB

Yeah. Disappointed with the ending here.

DWilson

They definitely went for a different ending than I expected. For some time I expected Marty to be left alive but in a hell of his own making. I thought there'd be one "tragic" killing of a more innocent character, and I figured it for the daughter. I assumed Ruth would probably escape with something of a victory, and Wendy would be dead or in some situation where she'd wish to be. I'm guessing the fact that most of the audience wanted Wendy dead provoked the creators to subvert expectations. I'm just not sure, -after all that went down, -that I buy the son saving the day for them (or so I assume). I was half expecting them to pull a deal where they called the number and got Camilla killed just as Omar was killed and it would all be dumped in their lap.

Xiroteus

Maybe not as much here yet there have been many times I've had that same thought. Your story, tell it! Even worse when they act like it's so smart to leave it up to the viewer for what happens. I'm just thinking, oh, so you didn't know how to end your own story? Or you ran into a wall and left it vague because you can't explain what happened?

jpcamb

OK, I finished this over the weekend and the second half of the season is just a letdown in overall quality for me. I honestly feel like they are leaving the show open for a new season or new show based in Chicago. It really sucks that of the true main characters only Ruth got taken out. I was really hoping to see Wendy go out in some terrible cartel hit as she was just an awful human being I love Laura Linney but this character is beyond the worst. If I am correct and there is a spin-off series I can't see myself watching it.

johnnysd

The ending left me that exact same impression. Would not be interested.

Wolf359

​​​​​​

Landing definitely not stuck. Hated it.

bralph

Yeah, I don't feel like it really applies here. You don't see it, but you do hear the gunshot at least. It seems clear that Jonah shot him, although I would have preferred that it actually been on-screen. I have no problem with the way things ended up, even though I was "rooting" for Ruth. Having her entire family (except Three, I guess) wiped out because of the Byrdes seems appropriate for the show. Also, as someone else mentioned, the cycle continues for the Byrdes after shooting the PI. They will never be "out", no matter what they do. A tragic ending for everyone.

d2cheer

I fucking hate that phrase...no idea why people use it. Say what you mean- it sucked.

B5Erik

I just finished the last episode, and I really liked it.

It didn't end the way I would have written it, but I get what they were going for. The Byrdes are the new Kennedy's, pre-JFK. They're power brokers with an empire built on dirty money. In politics you don't get to that level without something being dirty.

I wasn't thrilled with what happened to Ruth, however, it makes sense for the story. The Byrdes aren't intentionally bad, especially not Marty, but they do what they have to do to achieve their goals. If the survival of the family depends on you dying, well, they didn't want to kill you, but they did it because they felt that they had to. Ben? There was no other choice. It was him or them (and their kids). I genuinely believe that Wendy would have killed her dad if she felt that she had no other choice.

Ultimately, the show was all about Wendy. She seemed like an innocent victim pulled into an ugly world against her will. But as time went on, her ambition and greed and lust for power came more and more to the fore and she kept pushing Marty to do dangerous, often reckless things that put the entire family at risk. The kind of risk she'd have someone else killed for if her children were threatened. She ends up as a huge political power broker, and will seem to the world like a great philanthropist, but, in reality, she's a cold, calculating, ruthless woman with no value for the lives of anyone but her family.

And the ending? I thought it was perfect. There can be no question that...



It IS over. They ARE out. They're the new political royal family in the region, with national aspirations.

Like I said, not the ending I would have written, but it was perfect if you understand what it was really all about. The cartel stuff and casino stuff - that was just a means to an end. This was about Wendy and the rise of the Byrdes as political royalty and how they got there. I thought the political aspirations were just a pipe dream and they'd never see them fulfilled - but that was predicated on the story being about survival and getting away from the cartel. That's not what it was really all about. The entire premise as we saw it in the beginning was a massive swerve.

Brilliant.

New Lurker

Just a question regarding this interpretation. Now that Ruth is dead who is laundering for The Cartel? The entire FBI deal hinges on business continuing as usual. And if they don't have someone to launder the money, then all the wheeling and dealing is moot.

Logically they didn't get out. Because Ruth is dead, Marty is stuck doing the laundering now for the foreseeable future.

Or at least that's how I (and most other people that responded) interpreted that ending.