So we have come to the end of season 1 of The Bridge, an ambitiously structured, wholly entertaining set of episodes. This finale doesn’t exactly feel like a finale, and that’s because it really isn’t; it’s more of a transition piece into season 2, setting up new roads for the characters rather than wrapping storylines up. There’s not much to wrap up, though, and I do have to commend the show for handling the season in an unconventional manner.
As for the episode itself, the storyline with the most heft once again belongs to Marco, sending him and Sonya to investigate Eva’s disappearance. Sonya’s determined to follow through on this case, and she’s able to get her way; in addition, Marco’s back as her partner. However, he’s a changed man, resorting to violence to satiate his thirst for revenge. Sonya notices, and she’s clearly disturbed. An essential part of Marco’s growth is the character of Sonya Cross, a woman who’s been a social outcast, but desperately wants to incorporate Marco into her life. Not only do we experience Marco’s grief through his eyes, but we also experience it through Sonya’s eyes, adding weight to the whole situation. She recognizes what he’s feeling, but she’s never viewed that feeling as able to manifest itself the way it does in Marco. This idea is the basis behind her connection to him and our connection to this relationship, and it remains a strong focal point for the episode and season to revolve around.
What is Marco feeling, though? He’s angry and depressed, sure, but the most prevalent feeling is one of isolation. As he remarks to Galvan in that final scene, he doesn’t care anymore about what happens to him; he’s set on one goal: killing David Tate. I’m not all that optimistic about where this storyline will end up, as I’m sure the writers can highlight the nuances of grief without emulating the David Tate storyline. Who knows? Surprise me, writers.
Elsewhere, Charlotte’s starting to come into her own as a character. For much of the season, I felt like her arc was superfluous (a title I’d now assign to Ray), and I’m happy that she’s become more than a person that slept with Marco. She’s just another piece to the puzzle. Of course, we also have Linder, who doesn’t seem to fit in anywhere. He’s great, and he essentially saves Eva, but that doesn’t change the fact that he seems like an outlier amidst all the proceedings.
The Bridge really does a nice job of introducing a new direction for the show to take, though. We’re essentially already at the beginning of next season’s arc, and it seems as if the show will now be able to touch on some of the sociopolitical aspects of the border. It’s what the show set out to do.
The show has touched on death, grief, greed, and revenge. It’s delivered thrills, hilarious Sonya moments, and genuine character relationships. It’s one of the better new shows of the year, and it will hopefully remain that way.
Grade: B
Season Grade: B
Other thoughts:
-I also really enjoy the Sonya-Hank relationship.
-One other storyline in this episode: Frye and Adriana searching for Millie Quintana. This is an intriguing storyline, and the Frye-Adriana dynamic is so good that I’d watch the two of them watching paint dry.
-Seeing the mom waiting by the bus is a pretty heartbreaking scene.
-Cesar’s cool.
-The cover of “Living On A Prayer”…I don’t know what to think of it.
-I’d say I enjoy this finale for not trying to do too much, but I’m also a bit underwhelmed.
-It’s been a pleasure recapping this show. See you all next year for Season 2.
Credit to The Bridge and FX for all pictures. I own nothing.
Polar Bears Watch TV 
Hey PB –
Thanks for your season long insights. I was, like you ,underwhelmed with the episode as a stand-alone, but like you, I do feel that it was an appropriate way to end. The multiple story lines all left dangling and open-ended are the entry points of what we will see in the second season.
I also felt that this was the best they could do, what with the Tate/Marco.Gus situation played out earlier. Or should I say far too early.
My own end of season comments are up on my site.
jmm
No problem, and thanks for commenting every week!
Great review. Not really sure how to feel about the episode. Bichir is really good though and I hope he reconsiders his plan to get revenge. Or at least I hope that doesn’t take too long to resolve. And yes, I’m much more interested in Charlotte now.
Hey, Polar Bear. You can just delete this comment after you read it. I was wondering if you’d be at all interested in doing a weekly TV podcast sometime in the future. It’s something I’ve wanted to do since getting into writing reviews, but no one I know watches enough TV to make it worthwhile. I don’t really have any experience recording Skype calls and/or uploading podcasts, but if it’s something you think you’d want to do, I’m sure we could get it done. Send me an e-mail at: seancolletti108@gmail.com.
Yeah, maybe! I’ll shoot you an e-mail over the weekend.