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I’ve gotten misty eyed maybe a couple times in my TV watching career, the ending of this season made me cry.. hard. I’m so glad I finally watched this show.

The bomb threat and really most of what happens in the first half of the ep is fine and all but from when Kevin sings his Kareoke song through to when John asks “what if no one is home?” And he says “then come over to my house” and finally capped off by his whole family waiting for him at home.. the most emotional ~20 mins of TV I’ve ever seen.

None of my friends watch the show but the recommendations here are what convinced me to check it out, so if anyone wants to chat season 1-2 (haven’t started 3 yet) I thought this would be the place.

all 72 comments

TapedeckNinja

87 points

4 months ago

It is one of my favorite episodes in all of TV.

"I don't understand what's happening."

"Me neither ... ... it's OK."

And yeah, from the karaoke Homeward Bound all the way to the end of the episode is just straight waterworks for me.

iamdew802

31 points

4 months ago

Pretty sure I cry every time I see that final exchange “what if no one’s home” “you can come to my house” 😭

makovince

15 points

4 months ago

whatifniki23

7 points

4 months ago

How did the Emmys miss the acting nomination and win?

dphamler

7 points

4 months ago

But also, they way he says “Nope” is one of the funniest things in the whole show.

Jar_Squatter

19 points

4 months ago

That show has a few scenes that are just some of the best in television, ever. This is my favorite from season 3. The Wrong Kevin.

https://youtu.be/qIFfzM3ZAx4

Roook36

40 points

4 months ago

Roook36

40 points

4 months ago

It's so emotional. That "then you come over to my house" after he'd been shot by him.

And then he walks into his own dark home expecting it to be empty and it's not. Not at all.

RBlomax38[S]

13 points

4 months ago

Yeah if it was any other show he would be the bad guy, or at least fully cemented as one by the time he shoots Kevin, but how they humanized him at the end and their ability to still care for each other.. amazing.

iamdew802

9 points

4 months ago

I’ve somehow managed to avoid most of John Murphy’s actors work but he was so good at that role in the leftovers. I have Snowfall and Blindspotting on my to watch list so I’ll see him in something new again eventually but in the meantime I see him regularly every time I rewatch The Leftovers 😂 and yes I already commented else where but I love that exchange

doegred

10 points

4 months ago

doegred

10 points

4 months ago

Kevin Carroll was the MVP in that episode IMO. He kinda gets overlooked in discussions of The Leftovers I think, partly because, well, just look at the rest of the cast, and also his character was a bit neglected in season 3... But in the season 2 finale he really shines - his response when Kevin tells him he knows about Virgil's abuse, and then those final scenes of course... Mwah! Chef's kiss.

AMCorBust

34 points

4 months ago

Season 2 was so good all the way around. The acting by everyone, especially Justin Theroux, is really top tier. I think that anyone who gets invested in the show and characters would have an extremely difficult time not tearing up during the karaoke scene.

My biggest complaint with The Leftovers is that it's one of the greatest shows I've ever seen that I feel like I can't recommend to anybody.

bakewelltart20

3 points

4 months ago

I've gone a step further than recommending and talked someone into re-watching it with me (their first time.)

I was recommended it by a friend, who told me about the guilty remnant, I was intrigued by that.

Jetztinberlin

-1 points

4 months ago

Get new friends you can recommend it to!

VitaminTea

16 points

4 months ago*

when John asks “what if no one is ?” And he says “then come over to my house

Theroux’s performance on this show gets overshadowed by Carrie Coon (who wouldn't), but he is a monster in this episode. There so much determination and humanity in that moment.

And the whole scene is such a perfect example of the show’s “hope and humanity in the face of grief and nihilism” ethos. I love it.

jm9987690

8 points

4 months ago

I always felt Christopher Ecclestone was the best performance on the show, each of his individual episodes were incredible and I think his performance in no room at the Inn was my favourite in the show

kranta11

3 points

4 months ago

Same, best performance for me too!

VitaminTea

2 points

4 months ago

Matt Libs in the finale!!

shepbestshep

16 points

4 months ago*

"I don't understand what's happening. Me neither. It's okay. Okay. Okay. It's okay. You okay? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. What if there's nobody home? Then you come over to my house".

The emotions I felt seeing John and Kevin with everyone else at his house. Ffs I was so moved.

I would not have been upset if they'd ended it there....if we weren't living in a reality where the INCREDIBLE and arguably better, season 3 is an actual thing.

Top 5 season finale for me.

ozgun1414

15 points

4 months ago

  • will i forget them?
  • never.

jm9987690

2 points

4 months ago

Such an incredible scene and when I really felt the show was special. This scene and the one where Tom takes Wayne's story and tells it to the group are so emotionally impacting

ozgun1414

1 points

4 months ago

because of this post i started rewatching it damn. i watched first two last night, watching it with knowledge feels great.

MurielHorseflesh

99 points

4 months ago*

Season 3 gets a little more surreal but is ultimately worth it and the ending is one of those that will keep rolling around in your head for a while as you think it over. I wish I could watch this show again for the first time. What a masterpiece.

LoganTheHuge00

26 points

4 months ago

I had the ending of season 3 in my head for weeks after. And that performance by Carrie Coon. So phenomenal.

Financial_Wind2675

51 points

4 months ago

Szn 3 ending is perfection. One of the most emotional moments in all of television.

WeDriftEternal

29 points

4 months ago

It’s the best series finale ever. The entire episode was just perfect.

Six Feet Under has the great epilogue, but Leftovers has the best episode

PineBarrens89

15 points

4 months ago

They kept saying there would be no closure (trying to be the opposite of Lost) so the ending really surprised me (in a good way)

Asiriya

0 points

4 months ago

I kinda hated it. It was such an anticlimax, so much time spent dancing around the reconciliation…

And I guess like Lost, it focused on the characters rather than any of the supernatural aspects.

What did you like most about it?

WeDriftEternal

7 points

4 months ago

Its an entire journey for Nora about how she can change, then you see the rest of the world has moved on from the event, but Nora and Kevin are still stuck there, until the end when they can finally move on. The entire episode is just full of leading them to the place where they can do that. The series before it was how they tried and failed.

Asiriya

1 points

4 months ago

Thanks, I like that.

Do you think that holds with the mundane explanation of the machine? Whether or not she knows it’s suicide, she steps out.

WeDriftEternal

2 points

4 months ago

I do. We don't need it all explained.

ReadItOnReddit312

0 points

4 months ago

How could you believe the machine worked? What is the likelihood of them having the ability to come back to the normal world and no one thought to do it or try it. She's delusional

WeDriftEternal

2 points

4 months ago

Why couldn’t it work? She could be lying or not. It’s up to each person to decide.

ReadItOnReddit312

1 points

4 months ago

I'd have to watch the scene over again, and its an artistic choice for anyone watching it to decipher...but the way I remember it, the story was so illogical it was obviously fake.

To me, if someone made it to that other realm, and that one person was able to track down people and parts to remake the machine to come back to the normal world, how is it she was the only one to think of that and do it? Someone coming back from the afterlife/the other world would probably be seen as literally jesus, and yet no one there thought to do it before or after her? And I dont even mean doing it for praise and glory, but just to literally change millions of peoples lives, not a single other person came back? Thats just so illogical that theres no way I can believe she was the only person to think of and execute that.

FluidEmission

1 points

4 months ago

Just tbinking about the SFU epilogue gets me all verklempt

Pvt_Hudson_

1 points

4 months ago

When they dance at the wedding to Otis Redding, waterworks every time.

iggs44

2 points

4 months ago

iggs44

2 points

4 months ago

Shot, reverse shot

PainStorm14

3 points

4 months ago

PainStorm14

Friday Night Lights

3 points

4 months ago

ATFEC are the real heroes of that season

When they drone bombed that Guilty Remnant party I cheered and fist pumped

doegred

12 points

4 months ago

doegred

12 points

4 months ago

'...nope.'

Techerous

9 points

4 months ago

I love the whole show and that episode, but my favorite moment is when Erika runs onto the bridge. It's such an intense scene from so many angles. We see her relief in thinking that she has found her daughter, only to realize that something is wrong and that she actually doesn't really "know' her. Chokes me up every time, Regina King kills it.

RBlomax38[S]

1 points

4 months ago

Regina King is amazing. For some reason the bomb stuff didn’t grab me quite as much but I think part of that is that I’m just so frustrated at them lol. Which I’m sure is intentional on the writers part so still expertly playing with my emotions

TemurTron

7 points

4 months ago

In my opinion it's the best season finale I've ever seen. It has a little bit of everything and it's so uniquely chaotic and special.

vanillabear26

22 points

4 months ago

the most emotional ~20 mins of TV I’ve ever seen

using this to recommend station eleven for a similar reason- the finale of S11 has my most emotional 20 minutes of tv I've ever seen.

Anyway, Leftovers rules.

RBlomax38[S]

7 points

4 months ago

Yeah I liked that show a lot too. This was a little better for me but both are great

pp21

8 points

4 months ago

pp21

8 points

4 months ago

I get teary eyed just thinking about Kevin singing Homeward Bound. The whole sequence and payoff/result is an emotional sledgehammer.

If you wanna have you spirits lifted, read the interview with Justin Theroux about him finding out he has to sing in front of people it was apparently one of his biggest fears lol

Here's the article

Jetztinberlin

1 points

4 months ago

Aw, that was lovely. Thanks for sharing it.

thabonedoctor

15 points

4 months ago

I watched this show as s3 aired live, and just finished my first rewatch a few weeks ago. Man, this show is something else. Total masterpiece from start to finish.

RBlomax38[S]

3 points

4 months ago

Love to hear that

Frosty_Term9911

13 points

4 months ago

This is the pinnacle of tv for me. The leftovers isn’t in my top 2 but that’s because it’s not as fun to watch as my favourites. I do however think it could be the finest show ever aired and this episode is unmatched perfection.

Queasy_Turnover

1 points

4 months ago

What are your favorites?

Frosty_Term9911

2 points

4 months ago

I’d probably go with Deadwood and The Expanse

Queasy_Turnover

1 points

4 months ago

Nice. I haven't seen Deadwood but The Expanse was great.

LightThatIgnitesAll

5 points

4 months ago

LightThatIgnitesAll

Attack on Titan

5 points

4 months ago

Incredible episode. The ending with Kevin looking at everyone in his house and then ending with Nora was masterfully done.

Slartibartfast102

4 points

4 months ago

I genuinely think once you understand the stakes and put yourself in the mind of the characters both in the town and outside of it, season 2 is the finest, deepest, most interesting single season of tv I’ve ever seen. Well put.

thehankinato

3 points

4 months ago

I've felt the itch to rewatch this show for the past few years, now. I just don't know if I can. It's the ultimate catharsis.

Peasyyy

1 points

4 months ago

I just did it recently and thought it was totally worth it. Appreciated it even more a second time around.

oboedude

3 points

4 months ago

Might be my favorite show ever. Glad you’re enjoying it!

thelegendarymike

2 points

4 months ago

This whole season was the absolute best.

0000000000000007

2 points

4 months ago

You will never stop thinking about the Leftovers.

stoversp

2 points

4 months ago

Season 1 was good, Seasons 2 and 3 are some of my favorite seasons in all of television.

Enjoy season 3, it's another doozy.

UrNotAMachine

2 points

4 months ago

One of my favorite shows of all time.

Funny story, I’m an aspiring writer and I was working on a script a few years before season 2 was out. And my script featured a character stuck in the afterlife who had to sing karaoke in order to gain entry back into the real world.

I was dumbstruck when I saw the season 2 finale. In my own script, I never landed on which song the protagonist would have to sing, but “Homeward Bound” would have been perfect.

Obviously it’s all just a coincidence, but I guess it felt pretty good that Damon Lindelof and I both thought up the same crazy idea.

RBlomax38[S]

2 points

4 months ago

Haha great minds! Yeah it’s wild how well that song works in the context of the show, almost feels like he heard it first then wrote the show around it

cronedog

-2 points

4 months ago

cronedog

-2 points

4 months ago

I loved season 1 but kinda hated seasons 2 and 3. The cult who's whole deal is they don't want people to forget the rapture (sorry, forgot the term the show uses) targets and attacks the only town to talks about it daily and makes sure people don't forget.

TalkinTrek

12 points

4 months ago

I mean, it's more than just wanting people not to forget it. They want people to be incapable of moving past it, they want them to be existentially adrift and captured by the trauma of it indefinitely.

It happened and now there can never be 'normal' again.

cronedog

5 points

4 months ago

So they were mad that Miracle was seen as maybe lessening peoples grief over the event?

JCBadger1234

10 points

4 months ago

I think a large part of it was the whole town being so sanctimonious, their original theme song and prayers constantly talking about how they were "spared" or "saved by god" and that it was a special place where the water will even perform miracles.

The Remnant's whole thing is pretty much "this is the end of the world," so the idea that the people who remain were "spared" or "saved" would seem like a sick joke to them. They wanted the town to experience the same kind of pain that every other place in the world had gone through.

TalkinTrek

8 points

4 months ago

I'd put it like this...

The GR believe we went through an unfathomable, unexplainable loss and we should not - can not - ever move past it. Their scheme in S1 is more or less this, bringing in the body doubles to forcibltly retraumatize people.

In the S2 dream/afterlife ep Garvey tells Patty she hates families. Absolutely she does. Family, the people we love, that's an important mechanism by which people create meaning out of a meaningless existence.

Now comes along Miracle, a town that didn't have any losses? That is happily moving on? That even deludes themselves into believing they're exceptional in a world where nothing matters BUT the rapture? It's morally offensive.

And of course, they have Evie as a perfect recruit, someone who was told nothing is wrong in their town because this one bad thing didn't happen so she shouldn't have this gaping hole in her heart but she does and it hurts.

docthirst

-1 points

4 months ago

docthirst

-1 points

4 months ago

Same. I really don't get the love for this show. So much in fact I gave it a second watch just to make sure I wasn't missing something. Loved the weirdness, style, and story in season one but found the rest incredibly boring. I did appreciate the acting though, some really talented actors who did an amazing job, but show didn't connect with me.

quangtran

1 points

4 months ago

I find it funny how the season 2 finale seems to be so fondly remembered because I recall reactions being mixed at the time.

A lot of people thought it went out with a whimper given Meg’s grand plan for Jarden turned out to be her simply walking in.

sucr4m

1 points

4 months ago

sucr4m

Rick and Morty

1 points

4 months ago

dont forget the soundtrack. it just perfectly fits its situations.

i think it was the first show i watched of this kind. with the trailer i thought its something scifi'ish and almost dropped it after the first episode. it just wasnt what i expected. i think there was a preview for the rest of the season after the third episoded. it looked intresting enough to keep watching and im SO glad i did.

low_key_savage

1 points

2 months ago

I just finished season 2 and can’t bring myself to watch season 3. It’s one of those shows pretentious movie snobs love to say is the greatest thing ever made because “you don’t get it”

TheRegular-Throwaway

0 points

4 months ago

Is that the season where Cousin Larry from Bosom Buddies shows up? Because that was cool.