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Wh… How… I… Right, let me just gather myself together, because my thoughts are in as much of a mess as The Killing’s double-bill finale. I had already heard that the ending had proved controversial in the US, but I could never have imagined just how much overall dissatisfaction could be caused by, literally, the last minute of that two hour broadcast.
Up until this point, The Killing has proved to be a highly enjoyable series, even if I would only describe it as ‘good’, rather than ‘excellent’. Throughout the series there have been problems in sustaining the tension, due to a lack of shock twists, and there were never enough clues to encourage you to do more than just look at each character and say: ‘yeah, they could have done it.’ There has also been the odd misstep, such as the eleventh episode, in which Rosie Larsen was completely forgotten about, the focus being completely on Linden (Mireille Enos) and Holder (Joel Kinnaman). While it built their relationship nicely, it needed to be done earlier in the series and, preferably, alongside the hunt for the killer.
Still, that misstep was nothing compared to the series’ final minute. It had all been going so well; the tension, at last, was palpable and, in the nail-biting conclusion to episode 12, it seemed that Darren Richmond (Billy Campbell) was guilty. OK, he had been my chief suspect for most of the series because of those shifty shots of him at the beginning of the first episode, and the fact that there was very little else to link the politician’s sub-plot to the central storyline, but it was nicely revealed, and everything slotted neatly into place.
But then, as so often happens in American shows, the producers overthunk it. Just as Richmond had been arrested, and Linden was finally on that plane, it turned out that Holder had faked the damning security camera footage, and had been working for someone else, who was kept off camera! Furthermore, nut-job Belko (the elaborately named Brendan Sexton III) looked ready to shoot Richmond, when the credits came up and we were informed that Season 2 will be on next year. Are you kidding me? Was Richmond the killer? If not, then who was? Who was Holder working for? Did Belko shoot? Did Linden get off the plane? I’m sorry, but I thought this show merely featured a politician, not that it wanted to be one; Nick Clegg has given straighter answers.
I know that the show is called The Killing, but I never for one moment thought that subsequent seasons would focus on the same one. I can see it now, years into the future, the audience and original cast members long having deserted the show, when it is finally revealed, in Season 17, that Rosie was actually abducted by aliens when running through that forest. They then returned her to Earth, tied her up, put her in the car, and teleported it into the lake. And it wasn’t Richmond originally driving the car, but a dog, who hypnotised everyone into thinking it was Richmond. Ooh, and the man that Holder was working for was Cancer Man from X-Files. Well, I suppose that’s better than the non-ending that we got to this season, which has dampened my spirits more than that seemingly ceaseless Seattle rain ever could.
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