BWW Recap: Ryan is Under the Bridge on the Series Finale of THE FOLLOWING

As Ryan Hardy sings his swan song, we got a little glimpse as to where the show may have gone if there were to be a Season Four. Alas, it was not to be. Did he end up at a meditation retreat in Northern California for a new beginning or is he doomed to the Hardy curse he is convinced is upon him?

Mike is in critical condition after being brutally stabbed by Mark. Max is beside herself. Ryan has beefed up security around Mike, Max and Gwen now knowing that Theo has a target on his back, but it will probably land on someone he loves. And Theo has already picked that target: Agent Mendez.

In her safe house with her girlfriend and their two children, Agent Mendez is taken hostage by Theo, Daisy and two of Eliza's guards to help take down Ryan Hardy. As Ryan is checking out a lead at a hotel, he runs into a plain-clothed Eliza who plays the role of ordinary citizen. He receives a call from Mendez to come to her house, but Ryan is too smart. He knows something is up and decides to have Max and Lisa assemble a team around the perimeter of the safe house. Ryan goes in alone and gives the team ten minutes before they come in. He immediately is made by the guards and shoots them. Theo escapes into the woods as Daisy's only job is to kill Mendez and her girlfriend while their children hide safely in the panic room. They manage to escape her and arrive in the panic room with the children. As Ryan chases Theo through the woods, he gets distracted by a phone call from Gwen and Theo escapes again. (Why do people not put their phones on silent when they are tracking killers? Seriously!) Max tracks down Daisy and kills her. Theo reappears and shoots another Agent named Barton. He takes Ryan and a very wounded Agent Barton prisoner in an underground camp nearby. He informs Eliza that he has acquired Agent Hardy, but he'd like to keep him for himself.

Eliza makes contact with her source and it is LISA! Yes, she is working for Eliza and someone else and has been working from the inside.

Mike comes through surgery okay and Max is at his side. While checking on surveillance footage, she realizes where Theo might be. She calls Lisa to inform her and the two ladies head out to search.

Many scuffles occur inside the prison, Theo tortures Ryan, he kills Agent Barton, Eliza arrives after she had put a tracker on Ryan, Theo escapes, Ryan escapes, everyone threatens Ryan and his unborn child, Eliza and Lisa run in to each other in the woods and Max and Ryan reunite in the woods. It was all very coincidental and confusing. But let's go with it for now. Theo finally gets to Gwen and takes her hostage after shooting Lisa and the other two agents. Ryan chases Theo in a helicopter (we do not know how he acquired it or how he got in the air so fast, but he did) all leading up to one final showdown on a bridge. And it is here, where Ryan shoots Theo in the head and reunites with Gwen. However, a shot in the head barely even phases Theo as he tackles Ryan and they both tumble over the bridge into the water. No bodies are found and Gwen, Mike and Max mourn Ryan, while swearing to all be there for each other. A very much alive Ryan, shows up to the hospital to visit Lisa and tell her he knows what she did. He forces her to tell him everything. He needs to be "Dead" for his family to be safe while he goes deep rogue to find her "boss." He kills Lisa and gets one last glimpse of his family before heading out into the great unknown.

So, all in all, there was a LOT of preposterous things that happened in the finale almost to the point of FACE OFF level ridiculousness, but it was entertaining. Knowing that this was the last episode ever, it's not a great sendoff, but it will do. Would it have been interesting to see Ryan Hardy rogue while watching his family from afar? Maybe. Not quite sure if they would reunite at some point or if Max or Mike would even be part of it anymore, but we'll never know. As a series finale, I guess we can buy that he goes off into the world believing he does nothing but cause harm so the best course of action for him is to disappear and hope his family will be happier. The sad martyr goes off into the underworld for vigilante justice. I can accept that. However, I think back to Season One and all those glorious reveals of the cult followers as Joe Carroll's "Following" revealed itself and I'm sad that this show lost its way and just became a cop show. Not that it wasn't an entertaining cop show, but I think once Joe Carroll died, it was harder see the roots at all. Maybe this organization Lisa and Eliza were working for would lead us to an even bigger following than Joe Carroll could have ever dreamed of, but again, these are the cards we were dealt.

And with that, we close the book on Ryan Hardy. I will choose to believe that Mike and Max will work hard at their relationship and find a way to be together. And that Gwen will give birth to Ryan's child and be a good mother with Max and Mike at her side to help take care of it. And that maybe someday, down the line, Ryan will realize that he actually deserves those people and they need him and he will come back and find his happy ending. "You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one."

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Photo Credit: FOX