Atlanta dances through Darius’ dreams in a stellar series finale
The show ends with a wonderfully balanced mind-melt of an episode
TV Reviews Atlanta
With this brilliant episode, Atlanta is over. I tried to go into this series finale with zero expectations, but of course I had some. I expected it to be non-traditional in that Atlanta way, which for me defaulted to chill. Even the trailer looked fairly calm, although it would obviously be a Darius adventure. And still, with my expectations to not expect anything, I nevertheless wan’t prepared for the absolute perfect mind-fuck of this quintessentially Atlanta episode, directed by Murai and written by Glover. Bravo, y’all.
The episode started in the chill mode that I initially thought, with Darius zoning out to Judge Judy as Earn and Al prepared to go out. Everything about this scene is so intentional yet subtle; it isn’t apparent until the second watch that the opening shot of Darius is framed to look like a tank, with that groovy soundtrack, Judge Judy, and the Popeyes commercial serving so much importance later. The conversation with our main trio of men is so natural, as Darius sets off on his own before they all go meet up with Van (though I wish they axed the Johnny Depp joke). Also, I appreciated that there were nods to the characters’ arcs in the prior few episodes, with Earn sharing Van’s wants and the “Old MacDonald” song about Al’s Safe Farm.
When Cree Summer (!!!!) popped up, I was hoping that Darius had found his perfect transcendental soulmate and they would finish the episode together, but I also appreciated the conversation as a lovely bit of exposition, since I didn’t know about sensory deprivation besides the Simpsons episode. Part of the brilliance of this episode is that Atlanta has two modes: the heightened reality and the grounded surrealism. When he runs into London, his wild former friend who can pass a sobriety test while cross-faded, it’s a segment that feels very much like the reality of Atlanta. She seems like a character who could’ve popped up in something like season one’s “The Club,” even up to stealing the cop’s gun. After she runs over the kid, and Darius drops the stolen gun, that wake-up moment as the gun fires and he awakes is a complete surprise, because everything was so thoroughly set up…except how it actually feels to be lost to the senses. So from here on out, I’m questioning everything that happens with him.
The “tea in the tea room” moment and the excessive laughter: Is Darius still in the tank, or are the excessively-laughing women? It really seems like it could be both, but then Darius gets kicked out. We then get this lovely, simple scene of Darius visiting his brother, the only time we’ve interacted with his personal history besides the Nigerian restaurant in “White Fashion.” It all feels so real, until he sees thick Judge Judy. Then there’s the moment of him awaking and waking up, and that final shot of him screaming in the tank with the door closed. Did he ever get out? Has he ever gotten out?
Meanwhile, Earn, Al, and Van are in a completely different storyline where it’s heavily hinted that Darius is gonna show up late after the story’s over. Van’s friend (Candice?) has invested in Atlanta’s first Black-owned sushi restaurant, run by a chef who studied under sushi masters in Japan. It’s Black-sushi fusion, in a spot that used to be a Blockbuster and still has the candy on the racks. The towels aren’t all white, but a random assortment. The apparent sous chef calls out “Sup” instead of “Yes, chef.” Al (and I) are immediately skeptical, and he’s staring at a Popeyes right across the street. (Van is less antagonistic, but quickly decides the meal ain’t it.)
When the main meal comes out, the infamous potentially-poisonous blowfish (another bit of Simpsons knowledge), Al’s done, Van’s done, I’m done…and Earn still wants to support the culture. Then master chef DeMarcus shows up and serves a truth-telling monologue similar to Kirkwood Chocolate’s. (Based on a quick Google, sushi is traditionally served at room temperature to get the best flavor experience, and chefs do make the meal bare-handed.) The man has a point that the phrase “Black-owned sushi” shouldn’t automatically bring pause (though the Blockbuster of it all probably doesn’t help). It’s a very honest, hilarious speech that raises intra-cultural questions. But then Darius storms in and punches the mad chef in the face before he can force them to eat the blowfish. They all speed off in a stolen pink Maserati.
The final scene is some Inception-type shit in the best way, not a corny reproduction but a clever instance in which Glover takes the belief that the audience has suspended ever since the invisible car and shoves it back onto us all for a brief moment. Have the past four seasons of the show just been Darius’ tank dreams? The Teddy Perkinses, Thomas Washingtons, and the white Earnest Marks would have you believe so. But in the end, the episode leaves it up to the audience. We don’t see whether or not Judge Judy is thick. The contingent who think that “It Was All A Dream” is a brilliant subversion of the trope, and the others who will be mad that the trope was even a possibility can fight it out on Reddit. But you can’t deny that it’s such a great Atlanta ending.
I’m really glad that this is how the show left us. I assume there will be naysayers about the ending, because you can find a naysayer about literally anything. I’m focusing on the craft of storytelling, the way the episode tricked us along with Darius multiple times, fit another social-commentary monologue into the B-plot, and did it all pretty much flawlessly. Tomorrow I’ll be sad that such a show has ended, but tonight I’m leaning back with a smile on my face, happy that Glover and the Atlanta team got to make their weird, indescribable, creative, excellent show.
Stray observations
- I’m writing this in a bit of a rush, but I’m super excited to find the two bookend tracks for this episode later.
- Seriously, I will be making derivatives of the “Old MacDonald” song to roast my friends for the next few months.
- I think this episode has the most hidden Atlanta logo yet, and I’m very happy about it. It’s like they’re going, “Bruh, you know what you’re watching. You know our style. We don’t have to say it.”
- I’m kind of surprised there hasn’t been Popeyes discourse on Atlanta yet. It’s a topic that would’ve felt extremely dated if they didn’t find a unique angle. (Glad they did.)
- Sooooo many good jokes in this episode. Like Al about the Popeyes: “Smell like the manager mean as hell.”
- I really do think that London would be just as wild if it wasn’t a tank dream. Maybe not steal a cop’s gun, but probably the weed, vodka, and beer bottle.
- That shot of Darius looking at Al, Van, and Earn through the window was sweet. I’m gonna miss the four of them.
- It was a pleasure to recap this for you all.
57 Comments
Goodbye Atlanta. Your beauty is unmatched and your soul is beatific. I’ll miss you.
Ending is definitely up to interpretation, though I wouldn’t have been mad had the final scene been the 4 of them driving off into the sunset eating Popeye’s. But my take on it was Darius was in the real world. The episode actually gives you a lot of backstory about Darius that we haven’t gotten before. The girl London says he use to be wild. That’s him from an earlier part of his life. He use to run around with her and at some point he mellowed out. Then we see his brother, but then we find out that not only is he dead (sadly from some illness), but also his parents are as well. So Darius is actually alone. He says at that beginning of the episode that he goes to the tank to cleanse his soul and you get a sense why. He’s had a lot of trauma in his life, losing all his family and at one point, living a wild lifestyle doing who knows what.
Now, he’s in a good place. He has 3 friends that he really cares about and all care about him. Or does he. Maybe he’s still in the tank and he’s just manifested it. So he hangs back and watches Judge Judy to make sure. We don’t see if she’s thicc, but we see a tearful smile from Darius. It’s real.This show has been excellent. I want more but at the same time, I’m happy they went out on top. You’d be hard pressed to find a show that has a final season where every episode is this strong.
I’m with you. doesn’t matter whether the reality of the series was a dream or not (I mean we had fucking time travel last season so it was already pretty questionable), but the characters being at peace or something close to it is what’s really important. that shot of Earn, Van and Al through the window and Darius’ smile at the end will stay with me for a long long time
This a great interpretation. Realizing the brother was dead hit me harder than I expected. LaKeith Stanfield played that whole thing so beautifully. His eyes and expression in the last shot was amazing. He managed to convey so much.
My first impression was that the smile was hopeful and the series ends right before the moment he sees Judge Judy from the back to confirm what state he’s in. Considering how much “waking dream” is thematic in Atlanta (particularly in Season 3) and the very premise AND title of the series finale, I felt like they were poking fun at the St. Elsewhere style trope while actually making it really heartfelt.Darius is my favorite character on Atlanta since the first episode ever since Earn asked him to explain his existence and replies with “…I’m Darius, man. We met earlier? I offered you a cookie?” He just shows up with stoned galaxy brain Zen, like at the Target to return an air fryer. Why was he at the party in Champagne Papi all of a sudden? Why indeed, that’s Darius. But we don’t really learn anything significant about who he is until the very last episode. I could tell when his brother disappeared in the kitchen out of frame and Darius was largely answering his own questions about his family I could tell where he was and definitely the emotional high point.I wouldn’t claim Darius is the secret main character a la St. Elsewhere, and his weekly adventures in Atlanta are a surrogate family he dreams up in his float seshes because that’s sad and overcomplicated the more you think about it. But I’m glad they saved his arc completion for last as it really tied the whole “waking dream” theme together. Makes you wonder how long he’s been doing it, though. Also makes you wonder the great spirit he was really talking to in the pharmacy while waiting to pick up meds for his dead brother was, real or dream.
I felt it was much more melancholic than that. He’s seemingly never opened up with his friends about his parents or his brother. The sensory deprivation tank can also be seen as an isolation tank. He has this free-spirited nature that is actually quite closed off. Hopefully with Earn and Al finding some way to be more open with others and themselves, he will find a way to do the same. Where we don’t see peace and serenity all the time, but the wounds from the past that need air to heal.
I felt similarly sad when Alfred didn’t tell Earn what was going on last episode! Glad he eventually did.
We don’t see if she’s thicc, but we see a tearful smile from Darius. It’s real.I think it’s entirely up to interpretation; and that’s what makes it so good of an ending. (again the phrase I’m quoting is incredibly hilarious out of context).
I watched the episode three times and never once thought about any of this. Thanks.
LOVED this ending, When this series started I didn’t think it was something I would enjoy, just gave it a chance for a few episodes and very quickly realized this was a cut above with loads of clever insight. The stand-alone segments were my favorite but even the ensemble storylines were imaginative and surprising, always with a splash of uncomfortable moments (EAT MY POISON FISH BROTHER) and funny interludes thrown in.
He was trying so hard to imprint upon them how his sushi venture should be treated with respect, then immediately snaps them right out of it lmao
And Al making such a big deal about leaving, then backtracking and lying when called on the carpet for the Popeye’s exodus. I loved all the stacked WAKE UP FROM THE DREAM moments too. A fun episode, gonna miss it.
yeah besides you don’t serve “poison fish” to people whatever the context; at least not without their consent.
also laughed hard at the “here’s warm white Henessey” line
“I think this episode has the most hidden Atlanta logo yet…”Certainly hidden in plain sight as the cover nameplate of a magazine purportedly for the city itself, the Atlanta graphic has been so subtly incorporated as a witty easter egg in almost every episode that even another FX show as personal as Better Things actually lifted the effect for its final season. At least one online compilation of the first two seasons of Atlanta title cards readily demonstrates visual decisions as deliberate as every other detail throughout the series, many setting a definite tone more than others: https://www.indiewire.com/gallery/atlanta-title-cards-episode-credits-frame/atlanta-title-pilot-the-big-bang.
Since the reviewer has made note of this particular graphic, it seems to me that such namesake city magazines as familiar as New York, Boston, Los Angeles, and yes, Atlanta, are all targeted at mostly affluent upscale readers. That alone would be fitting for Al’s success and new digs where just the corner of the cover sufficiently peeks out amidst the coffee table clutter. Yet while my tendency as a graphic designer myself to read into things a bit too much may well be something of an occupational hazard, the magazine placement seems to me to suggest Al’s greater exposure to and interest in the world as Season 3’s European tour illustrated. Then again, “reading into” a magazine metaphor may be getting even more out of hand…
But I also think this choice of a parting shot may represent the bigger picture of Atlanta the series serving up all sorts of slices of life through the lives of the four main characters we’ve enjoyed watching as we might also discover leafing through their version of a magazine rather than a tv show: Atlanta at once both a real place in time as well as a state of mind. All the more vividly brought home, so to speak, through one final definitively Darius mind-bender, of course. And the dictionary definition of mind bender? “A person or thing that radically and suddenly affects one’s thinking, perceptions, psyche, etc.”
Reading into it too much? Man you know Donald Glover is encouraging that; he devoted an entire episode to a dead rapper’s easter egg hunt lol
Huh, tv series a magazine. I really grok that. I think of Wes Andersom’s The French Dispatch and its approach to be a magazine and how it was ultimately a failure in that respect.
Great episode, a classic Atlanta thinker & laugher.I was convinced for probably the first 1/3 to 1/2 of the episode that Darius was going to die. It just felt like the beautiful conversation with Cree Summer (seconding the !!!!) and the sort of flashback to the wild life with London were of a getting your affairs in order flavor. Never crossed my mind that he was already in the tank (or was he?), so well done with the writing there, Mr. Glover.By the end, my thought was that Darius was kind of the avatar for the audience all along. We don’t know what’s real or not, but we let it all take us on the ride, very chill, and just experience it all as it happens. And honestly, I wish I was more of a Darius in real life. Open to adventure, thoughtful & deliberate, able to roll with whatever comes along.Gonna miss this show more than I miss a lot of other things that have come & gone.
Happy this crap is now over
I was really enjoying reading this interview until I read “I wish they dropped the Johnny Depp joke” at which point you lost all credibility to me as a writer.
Grow a skin, snowflake. Maybe it won’t hurt as much then..
Awwww, you tried, muffins.
Learning about sensory deprivation tanks from The Simpson’s. I didn’t see that but I would recommend viewing Altered States.Good review. There is a discussion about the episode (and series) with director Hiro Murai in this month’s Vanity Fair. For those interested in exploring this series further, I’d say that it’s necessary reading.
I think the Simpsons ref was to the poisonous fish. Homer ate one in one of the early, classic seasons.
THANK YOU!!! I think about rewatching Altered States as an adult every once-in-a-while, but never could remember the name of it! I think I watched it when I was young, as a double-feature on TV with The Young Poisoner’s Handbook. It was a seemingly cromulent pair of features for Young Me.
Finally, a series conclusion without tortured departures – new jobs, new cities, new friends, big things on the horizon… If Atlanta is a contemporary ‘slice of life’ in a world of infinite narrative possibilities, I’m glad they chose this kind of conclusion. The greatest moments in our lives may look like graduations, weddings and career break-throughs on facebook, but aren’t we just as influenced by what seems like trivial moments and events? When you’re in the middle of living, focused on the present, it’s impossible to step back and integrate all of the random, unexpected occurrences into some kind of ‘meaning’. It doesn’t happen for any of us. It’s the illusion that a story offers. Atlanta doesn’t take the easy way out with feel-good, hopeful hints at brilliant futures for the Atlanta crew. The Wheel of Fortune never stops turning. One minute you’re up, the next you’re not. That’s realism, imo and I love seeing Atlanta keeping it real – if, after watching this series, you can believe that anything is actually ‘real’. Who is The Author? Who decides? Illusions are every bit as real as the real-real. How else did Trump get into office?
Couldnt agree more… especially about that last point! lolOne of my favorite shows ever, no doubt. It doesn’t matter much to me whether some of it, or all of it, or none of it was a “dream”… it was all brilliant!
though I wish they axed the Johnny Depp joke Why?
This show was truly legendary there’s been nothing quite like it before, and I can’t imagine anyone trying to copy it. It was so good at making you feel unsettled and peaceful at the same time, and managed to be funny too. I still think of the invisible car sometimes and smile. One of the best setup to pay-offs I’ve ever seen.
Everything about the sushi restaurant was great.“How are you enjoying your chicken skin salad?”“It’s salty, man. But not salty enough…” *wistfully looks at Popeye’s*
I liked that none of the food they described sounded straight up gross, it was more just in the “why???” category. Why put corn in the rice?
Mexican rice sometimes has corn In it 😂🇲🇽
I mean, won’t lie, I’d eat some Mexican/Sushi fusion for sure.
Eh, a couple of my local mom’n’pop’s Asian joints put corn in the rice. My favorite Chinese place just recently closed-up shop; I hate corn with a passion (I always throw it up if I eat it by itself), but damn if they didn’t serve it alongside peas and carrots in their hibachi and teriyaki dishes.
I laughed a *lot* at the Old MacDonald’s rap.And it was nice seeing Al and Earn be so comfortable together doing it. Al really is uneasy around people (which is why he took to farm life so well) and he’s probably only comfortable around Earn about 50 of the time, so it was good seeing them as real friends in the final episode.
the Old McAlfred rap really drove home to me how much I’m gonna miss Glover and Henry playing these characters. their comic chemistry was amazing
Talking about the logo at the beginning, you will notice that the list of rappers on the magazine cover didn’t include Paperboy. 🤔
If you scroll through the other comments you’ll see that BedandBreakfastMan raised that same point about the list which I thought was really intended to be a genuine appreciation of rap culture and especially Atlanta’s actual scene.
Will miss this show.Sidenote: I couldn’t escape the feeling that the sushi owner was an impression of some famous villain character but I couldn’t place it
Between the signature bow tie and suit look, precise diction, and aggressively assertive world view, Demarcus the Sushi chef owner was most certainly modeled after Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, regarded at times as both infamous and a villain.
Reminded me slightly of the uncanny Black Muslim dude from The Wire. OH MY GOD I JUST NOW REALIZED THAT IT’S A THROWBACK TO EPISODE 1 WHERE THE SAME /SIMILAR(?) GUY ON THE BUS IMPLORES EARN TO EAT HIS SANDWICH.
Good memory! Wasn’t he also related to the first “BAN” episode somehow?
I always felt that Darius would be our chosen spirit guide
for the final episode of Atlanta. I’ve been reading the reviews of the finale
online today and I’m really surprised that no one seems to make the connection
to the opening scene in the first episode, “The Big Bang”, and the surreal
never-really-resolved encounter in the club parking lot where there’s a overhead
shot of what looks like Paper Boi shooting the man who dissed him and messed up
his car sideview mirror. Darius is there, stoned, and his first line is: “Hold
on, hold on, man. I’m getting crazy déja vu right now.” and proceeds to talk
about seeing a dog as a sign, and he sees the dog “again”. The situation
escalates. Darius says, “This is so weird, man.” And then the overhead shot of
the shooting. So wouldn’t Darius be the one who survives the shooting, (the
other man has said he’s got his people nearby which doesn’t bode well for a
follow up if he gets shot) and that Darius survival in the dep tank frames the
series, with the dep tank sessions as his means of dealing with It All.
In Earn’s next scene he has a dream of swimming in an ocean, and that a woman
tells him that hands can pull you down and drown you, etc. All the many
episodes with water in the series, including the lake over the displaced town
where you can get pulled under in the rowboat episode legend opener last
season, etc. And we end with Darius trying to manage the Afro-surrealism of
life while Black in America by floating but it’s almost like he’s drowning at
the same time. He’s the character that has always seemed to float through the
chaos and surreality. and he’s the immigrant/refugee who sees it all with the
extra-sharp perspective of the outsider/insider.
There’s a famous poem by
Stevie Smith: “Not Waving but Drowning”Nobody heard him, the dead man,
But still he lay moaning:
I was much further out than you
thought
And not waving but drowning.Poor chap, he always loved larking
And now he’s dead
It must have been too cold for him
his heart gave way,
They said.Oh, no no no, it was too cold
always
(Still the dead one lay moaning)
I was much too far out all my life
And not waving but drowning.This show has offered us so much richness and creativity.
Thank you is all I have to say to the whole Atlanta team. Thank you so much,
y’all.
perfect ending to a perfect show.But in the end, the episode leaves it up to the audience. We don’t see whether or not Judge Judy is thick.
this line out of context is hilarious
Bravo! what an ending. Laughed really hard at the cop asking the drunk lady how many seasons of Homeboy in outer space there are (as part of the sober test), Darius screaming wake up in the woman’s face, and thick judge judy! super-lol.this show has been a classic since episode 1. never knew what i would get with each episode, and was always dazzled by the narratives explored in this show. it was unique.
Didn’t need to know what Tony Soprano saw when he looked up from the jukebox and definitely don’t need to know if Darius saw thick Judge Judy. A+ finale. Most laugh-out-loud episode of this season. What a pleasure.
I think D saw thick Judge Judy. I think Earn and Van moved to L.A. and Paper Boi moved to the country or died from the boar attack.
that was Darius’ mom in the pharmacy, correct?