Awesome. It really is one of the best TV shows ever.

I bought all five seasons on Ebay last week for $80 bucks and it should be arriving soon.

$80? For all five? Holy crap.

I should look into that or something.

I believe that ending must be the most fitting of any series I've seen so far... Just brilliant.

Yup. I was shocked when I saw it. It was an easy win too, I didn't have to fight for it.

I just watched the series finale today and it was absolute perfection. Seriously, if this was a film, it would have instantly become one of my favorites of all-time. The end had me literally sobbing. It was such a powerful and moving episode, with a brilliant ending that gave closure to each and every character. All of the characters on this show are people that you come to know and love, and that emotional connection makes everything in this episode so powerful. The final scene of Claire driving as we are taken to the future and see everyone's fates was completely fitting and made this episode so excellent. Shame on the Emmys for not nominating this for more awards! They are obviously crazy, because this is easily one of the best dramas to ever air on television. Lauren Ambrose, Frances Conroy, Michael C. Hall, Freddy Rodriguez, Peter Krause and Rachel Griffiths all deserve so much attention for these roles.

Anyways, anyone who hasn't seen Season 5 yet, it's completely worth the wait. It is the best season of the show and the finale is sure to stay with you long after you watch it.

The finale haunts my dreams.

I think it's one of the best hours of television, ever.

I want to join this thread so bad but I haven't even got to season 3 yet and am afraid of being spoiled

I will probably get to finish the last season mid to end of September. I'm 2 episodes away from finishing Season 2. I had to stop for 2 weeks because the first week I was gone to Oahu and this past week my brother was gone to camp (we watch it together so neither one of us can watch it while the other is gone )

Here's the thread you were looking for, Raffiki.

I know you're coming up on the series finale. I have a feeling it'll slaughter you.

It's finished

The DVDs are cheap for the first two or three seasons. I'm anxious to buy them, when I get a job. I'd get the big box set of all five seasons, but we don't get those big DVD sets around here (Hicksville, Nova Scotia).

Official thoughts on the finale?

I can't wait to own that box set!! This has become my favorite show of all time.


And now, about those last episodes... (SPOILERS GALORE)





I think the one problem I had with season 5 all throughout was how they kept having so much time go by in between episodes. It felt as if they had so much to wrap up and so they sped it up to get it all in, but it wasn't a major deal.

I really don't know if watching all the seasons straight like I did made me more emotionally caught up as opposed to having watched it over a 4-5 year period but I think my way made it quite powerful.

I knew Nate was gonna die since a couple months ago because of stuid Entertainemnt Weekly. I saw Peter Krause in that section with all the new movie/tv developments and wanted to see what he was doing next and the first thing it said was.. "Peter Krause, the late Nate Fischer, is...." and I just took a minute and was like "fuck!" lol But, it was alright. I don't think it took away from the emotional factor, maybe just the surprise factor.

The 9th episode, with him in the hispital, was really great. It all felt so genuine. And I really think the direction Brenda/Nate took could not have been better. I loved how their story fleshed out and it really broke my heart for Brenda.

The next one, the funeral, was way too much for me. At the risk of sounding like a total girl or something of the like, I'll admit that with one exception, I don't remember ever crying so much in all my adolescent and adult life. And I really don't know why... I just sincerely felt like I was there. Tears were streaming down my cheecks and I was like sobbing all throughout - begining to end. Even when they weren't displaying any dramatic grief... sometimes just their faces and silence made me break down. I mean, you REALLY felt the loss. I kept thinking about the characters as if they were real people, trying to put myself in their place... how on earth I'd deal with it. And everything just felt so completely empty without him.

The 11th episode was great as well. Just a bunch of clean-up and prep for the finale I guess. There was that Brenda/Billy part which was, indeed, a bit disturbing... and I bought it. I had no idea it was another dream/imagining. Brenda's character really made a complete 180 degree turn from the first couple of seasons. What a sad story, really.

The finale was pure awesomeness. I don't know if I'd label it as the best episode of the series. I don't know which episode I'd give that title to, but it was very good and very fitting. I kind of thought the David thing was a bit too cliche though... maybe they could have handled that a bit better, but I liked it because it didn't feel like some huge the-show-is-ending kind of thing. It just showed the natural progression of how things would be without Nate. And the last sequence, which I'm sure is what everyone talks about when mentioning the finale, was really the absolute best way to end the show.

Love it love love it!!!!!

And you know what?

This show progressed SO damn much from beginning to end. I mean, I see some scenes from the first season and it was like a completely different show.

Seriously, each character has so much they have gone through.

Hmmmm... just read through most of this thread.

Dk, I had no idea (or maybe I forgot) that you also watched most of it in a very short time. Hell, you finished it in a shorter time than I did!!! I don't know why but I thought you were a fan all along.

I don't think I necessarily felt like horrible that Nate died... and ya, I don't even think we were supposed to feel alot at the end of that episode, but I was surprised at our differences in the follow-up episode. I read where you said you didn't feel like you were grieving with them which I completely did. I don't know why but I couldn't stop crying during that episode. I don't even think I'd cry that much if somebody I knew died (well, maybe exempting really close people you know)... but still, I'm NOTa cryer at all. I've cried at maybe one or two movies, once for Once and Again (but I was really depressed that day). The most I've ever cried over is Six Feet Under.

I think the last 2 episodes of season 2 were quite amazing.
The season 3 finale was very well done.
The season 4 premiere was just unbelievably moving... especially the last part with burying Lisa
The Rainbow of Her Reasons was great (last season)
All Alone is probably the best episode for me just because of the effect it had on me.
And of course, the finale was top notch.

I forgot most of season 1 and 2 already. They're like a blur. Can't wait to buy it and feed it to my best friend who I've convinced to watch it (but despite my urgings, she watched a couple episodes on TV since it started giving on Bravo now... and I told her she shouldn't dare watch it censored).

I think seasons 1 and 2 were pretty darn consistent. Season 3, I know so many loved, but was for me maybe the most unnerving because I hated the Lisa-Nate storyline. It was so obvious where it would go and they just dragged it all season. Season 3 was really the transition into everyone's life being utterly fucked up.

I liked Season 4... I think I agree with Dk in that there might not have been a strong standout episode aside from the premiere but I enjoyed it.

Season 5 was a roller-coaster. Come to think of it... I don't know what to think of Season 5. Everything was so changed when it started. It felt so utterly grown up from before... then they started fast-forwarding the time-frame and I think that kinda brought it down but the quality of those few episode just made it soar.

I can't believe it's over.

Those last few minutes of the finale, paired with Sia's "Breathe Me", is perfect.

Just watched the last sequence again.

I had chills all over all throughout.

(Spoilers)

Yeah, I zipped through the first four seasons last summer and then actually got to follow along with the fifth season on HBO, but I can see watching them in the time span that you did having even more of an impact.

The Nate death thing actually didn't do much for me at first, yeah. Although I'd heard it was going to happen, it felt too sudden for me; I didn't have time to really react to anything. But it eventually did hit me, especially in the finale's montage: him standing in Ruth's room right before her death, and then him fading away in Claire's rearview mirror as she drives away.

Seaon 5 did feel "grown-up" to me in a sense, as well: not necessarily in the writing, but definitely the characters, and even in the aesthetics of the show, which felt a lot more cinematic to me than previous seasons.

And just curious, Raffiki: You said the Nate death was spoiled for you, but were you also aware that the show's final montage was going to show what it did?

With the way people were talking about the finale... "the most amazing" "the most fitting" "people cried" I didn't know what to expect and was seriously half expecting them all to die... I knew it was completely rediculous but I don't, I thought it might flash forwarc a little more and maybe a couple of them would commit suicide or something.

But, no... I had no idea they were going to do a montage like that. And I agree with everyone in that it was pretty fucking awesome. It really does take its toll on you. And really summed up the show like nothing else could have.

Oh and you can call me Raffi (mmy actual name) if you'd like. I don't mind either one.
Just wasn't aware if you knew that was my name.

I love that song and listened to it a lot after the episode aired, but every time I listen to it now it just... depresses me.

I just skimmed through the last episode and watched the entire ending montage again. And I teared up again.

I don't know how to describe the last few episodes. There is so much intensely built emotional attachment to these characters (at least from me) that I turn into silly puddy watching them grieve. I actually think I liked the finale more now rather than when I initially watched it. Even though I hadn't before, I'd now rate it as a whole (and not just for the montage) as one of my probably 6 or 7 favorite/best episodes of the series.

I miss this show I don't think I've ever gone through a series faster. I was completely addicted to this show over the summer. And while many think it went downhill in the later seasons, I never felt that way. I loved Season 4 (what many consider to be the weakest season) and Season 5 was on par with Season 1 for me.

Watched the 5 seasons recently. Definitely a classic. The high point of the series is Season 3 to me. The Claire and Lisa storylines that year are brilliant.

Agreed Season 4 is WAY below the rest. I think they particularly botched the Brenda Joe thing, just never bought it or him (always came off as creepy) and it was too obvious they were just biding time to start Nate Brenda again. And yeah the Keith Celeste storyline is particularly useless. I did like the George bits in that season.

I liked Season 5 but after hearing so much about it being the powerhouse season, I was *slightly* let down. I think my problem with S5 is it misses a bit of the humor and sharp charm that made say Season 3 so brilliant and it just becomes an emotional beatdown after Nate's death, whenever Maya was on screen I thought she was about to die with all the brutality they get. I agree Nate's death was weirdly unaffecting when it happened. Probably because I guessed right away in the hospital episode that he wasn't going to make it out of there. I think I would've been more effected if he never made it off Maggie's floor (Buffy's mom style). The burial episode was great though. I also think S5 loses something when the Rico Vanessa storyline wraps up, even though Rico's kind of a twat I think they did a good job making him interesting the last 3 seasons, I do think he deserved to be left out on the curb forever by Vanessa and it would've given his death more poignancy

The pilot aired 13 years ago today.

Such an amazing, complete, poignant series. It and The Tudors are my favorite television series ever.

This has one of the best series finales of all time.

It's the only show I've seen front to back twice (saw it with my parents last year). Easily one of the best shows of all time. One can have an entirely different reading of it by taking the "six feet under emotionally" perspective and judging the pressure, guilt, etc. the characters are feeling, but reacting against by saying or doing the opposite