Can you keep a secret? The group of friends in this story might be a little too good at it.
Tell Me Lies premiered on Hulu in September 2022, and since then, it’s become a popular drama series that everyone has been obsessed with. During my winter break home from college, I binge-watched the entire first season with my sister in one day. That’s how addicting it is.
The show tells the story of Lucy Albright, a freshman at Baird College, who falls into a deeply toxic romantic relationship with senior Stephen DeMarco. The pair’s relationship gets messy as the dynamics of their friend group change around them over eight years.
I enjoy this series much more than other dramas because it keeps consistent storylines and plot points, unlike shows like Gossip Girl, where they abandon details and expect viewers to ignore them.
If you haven’t watched the two prior seasons, you’ll want to get caught up before reading the rest.
In my opinion, the ending was incredibly well-written. Fans probably weren’t expecting such a shell-shockingly absurd conclusion to this friend group’s journey, but I think it was for the best. Some people weren’t happy that Stephen didn’t receive much punishment for his actions, but finding out that he was rescinded by Yale Law (all thanks to Wrigley) was enough for me.
Seeing Diana pursue her dreams made me so happy because over the seasons, she’s become a character I love more and more. She proved herself through her counseling of Lucy, and the way she outsmarted Stephen by convincing him she was dumb in order to finally be freed of his toxicity.
Evan completely dropped down on my list of favorite characters. What he did to Bree was unredeemable (getting her mother drunk and sabotaging her art show), not to mention he cheated on her with her best friend! There was no way he was ever going to be able to come back from that. I didn’t feel bad for him in the end. He had it coming, and he should’ve had more decency than to treat his future wife like that.
Bree and Wrigley, two of the only characters that might be somewhat redeemable (and I’m still questioning that after some of Bree’s actions in the final episode), got their happy ending. The two are shown grinning at each other at the end of the wedding scene, grateful to finally be together after yearning for each other for years. They deserve a chance at happiness, especially with everything they’ve both been through.
Then there’s Pippa and Diana, who leave the final scene in a way that feels permanent, like they have no intention of ever being around this group again. I think that’s for the best; to be honest, they’re a little irrelevant in my book. Whoever thought that having everyone reunite at this wedding was truly off their rocker…
Lastly, that leaves Lucy and Stephen. The complexity of their relationship left fans with skewed opinions on how to interpret their final scene, in which Lucy chooses to get in the car with him and drive off. Bree, stunned, can’t believe Lucy would consider going back to Stephen after he ruined her life.
As the twisted pair drives away, they stop at a gas station where Stephen abandons Lucy, leaving her on her own in the middle of nowhere. Lucy finds herself laughing hysterically, which is where the series ends.
My sister, who is also a lover of the show, interprets Lucy’s ending as solidifying that she’s always going to go back to Stephen and that she’ll never learn. Personally, I viewed this as Lucy getting the last laugh, finally freeing herself from his hold and learning he’ll never be able to give her what she needs.
But if you ask me, those two deserve each other. Stephen might’ve manipulated Lucy, but he brought out the crazy in her. She always had those tendencies locked up inside of her. No matter how hard she tried to be good, she always went back to him because she had no backbone. The ending satisfied me because it felt like she might finally be okay being free from him.
Needless to say, this show was an emotional roller coaster. While there were a few minor details I would’ve liked to see included in the series finale, it also masterfully displayed a toxic relationship and the dangerous outcome of friends continuously lying to each other, thinking there will be no consequences. The ending, where everyone seems to go crazy, is what was needed to happen. We needed to see these characters realize how toxic they were to each other. And for me, that was a satisfying end to the drama.
What did you think of the Tell Me Lies finale?
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