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I really was concerned that Cinco Paul wasn’t going to stick the Season 2 landing for Schmigadoon! with all of the balls left up in the air at the end of the fifth and penultimate episode, but turns out I should have trusted the genius behind the show … especially since, unlike Season 1 which had an eight episode order cut to six which caused some scrambling to condense the story, Paul knew going in he had six episodes to tell this season’s story and, even with just about 30 minutes to wrap it all up, he did it masterfully and without any of it feeling rushed.
But is the finale’s title going to prove prophetic? Let’s hope not, especially with some hints of the next era or Broadway musicals seeping into this episode. Right from the start, the episode goes into the 1980s era with a goosebump-inducing, tear-jerking, Dreamgirls-inspired number from Ariana DeBose’s Emcee, who we’ve seen much too little of this season but girlfriend is an Oscar-winner in demand so we’re lucky we got this. And to kick of the episode with a showstopping number like ‘Over and Done’ took some balls. DeBose worked that song over, wrenching every bit of emotion out of it. I thought Cecily Strong’s big solo ‘Maybe It’s My Turn Now’ was going to be my favorite song of the season, but ‘Over and Done’ has bumped it down to second place. Brilliant writing by Cinco Paul and a bravura performance by DeBose, with the gorgeous production value and those ‘Dreamgirls’ singing back-up. Chills. But … what do the lyrics portend for the rest of the episode? Because it’s not a happy song. It is about things ending, badly, it’s about saying goodbye so does this mean Josh and Melissa are truly ‘over and done’, never getting their happy ending?
It seems that way as Kratt is basically holding both Melissa and Josh hostage, Melissa about to be his unwitting wife, and Josh tied up in the basement of Krett’s power plant held at gunpoint by Sgt. Rivera. Melissa is desperate to get out of this situation, but she isn’t helped by Bobbie who is busy following Kratt’s orders and making Melissa sign divorce papers and a prenup (telling her everything will be fine as long as she provides a male heir), and when Kratt is about to sing to her why they’re meant to be together, she snaps at him to not dare sing at her. Because she shut down a dream ballet and she will shut this down. And she does. But looking to Madame Frau for help, Frau just tells her to accept her fate and pretend to be happy.
Meanwhile Josh is trying to bargain with Rivera to let him go, but Rivera seems to have a lot of resentment about his position in Schmicago, telling Josh that he and his hippie friends have it easy while he has to do all the hard work. Josh asks him what’s stopping him from living the life he wants but before Rivera can answer, the phone rings and it’s Kratt telling him to kill Josh right after the wedding. He’d previously promised Melissa Josh would be safe as long as she did what he told her to do but everyone knows Kratt is not to be trusted. Rivera pulls out his gun and Josh tries to sway him with the ‘Parable of the Faithful Servant’ … which sounds a lot like the relationship between Kratt and Rivera, but it has no effect. Josh continues with more parables including one that is actually the plot to The Goonies. Even though Rivera seems to be struggling with his orders, he’s still not convinced that he should let Josh go.
But with Kratt having absconded with Melissa, Dooley’s ‘Cleaver of Justice’ needs to be satiated so he demands Miss Codwell give him an orphan to kill. Codwell actually seems to have developed a soft spot for the brats, and tries to sway Dooley with a kiss. It works and the two head up to her bedroom, causing such a ruckus that the orphans are now concerned for Miss Codwell’s safety. She assures them that she’s is just fine. But as the subject of Kratt, Josh and Melissa comes up, Dooley mentions he saw Rivera take Josh and they need to help him. He suspects, correctly, that Josh is in the power plant, the same place Rivera took him for questioning all those years ago.
Topher and Jenny are in the afterglow of their own lovemaking, with Topher wondering if there is more he can learn. Jenny tries to politely tell him there definitely is more that he can learn. Before they know it, the Tribe bursts in with news about Josh and they actually need Topher … who’s still a little hurt that they chose Josh over him but once they fill him and Jenny in on what’s happening, they all jump into action to save Josh. And they do, all of them bursting into the basement to confront Rivera, Jenny placing a daisy into his gun barrel. Dooley and Codwell follow, and Dooley is set to get his revenge now on Rivera for the death of his beloved Daisy. Jenny recognizes that as her mother’s name but still refuses to accept Dooley as her father, still believing it was he who murdered her mother. Rivera’s conscience gets the best of him and he admits he framed Daisy and Kratt killed her, resulting in Jenny and her father reconciling with a long, tearful hug. And with this, Rivera also sets Josh free and now they have to stop the wedding.
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With the Narrator presiding over the ceremony on stage at the Kratt Klub, Josh enters and tries to stop it but Kratt orders the police to detain him, again. Rivera tells them to stand down as he in in charge of the police, but Kratt corrects him on that matter — Kratt runs everything in Schmicago. They take Josh and the others away, with Josh and Melissa declaring their love for each other, but Dooley bursts in next seeking his vengeance once and for all. But, he trips and his cleaver goes flying, pinning Kratt’s tuxedo tail to the stage. With Dooley now in custody, Kratt orders the Narrator to finish the ceremony. Suddenly Josh cries out, ‘Look up!’, and they all see the chandelier falling. The Narrator and Melissa run off stage but the pinned Kratt is unable to move, crushed under the weight of the chandelier. Turns out it was Miss Codwell who cut the rope, finally getting the same satisfaction from one of Dooley’s cleavers. When everyone asks if Kratt is dead, Melissa takes a closer look and gives them all a reprise of ‘Kaput!’ Yes, Kratt is indeed kaput.
So does that mean that everyone gets a happy ending? The Narrator tells how things will change in Schmicago. Madame Frau will take over the Kratt Klub, now promoting new acts like a certain ‘sweet transvestite’ who is embodied by … Sgt. Rivera!?! The Tribe will actually go to work for Bobbie Flanagan, breaking up all of Kratt’s monopolies, Topher and Jenny will take over operations at the orphanage, and Dooley and Codwell will turn the butcher shop into a bakery. And Josh and Melissa got their happy ending … but why would they want to leave Schmicago now that everything is changing for the better? He tells them they thought they had found something better after leaving Schmigadoon, but they didn’t and still came back searching for happiness. Everyone breaks into song begging them to stay where all their dreams can come true — another tear-jerking moment — but Melissa and Josh decide, even though they really do love everyone, that they want and need something real. And with that decision, that pesky little leprechaun, Steven, appears and tells them they passed the test. Everyone is happy, and the Narrator admits he’s done with this gig (apparently he worked for Stephen), helping others figure out their lives. He wants to figure out his own life … with Rivera. And Rivera is down with that! And with that a new Narrator steps in and takes over.
Stephen tells Josh and Melissa that they are now free to go but in another flash Oscar, the Schmigadoon leprechaun (and brother to Stephen) appears, and together they sing that happy endings don’t exist. But every day can be happy beginning. The brothers vanish and the denizens of Schmicago pick up the song as Josh and Melissa cross the bridge and wave goodbye to their friends. The two return to a black and white New York City that slowly fades into vibrant color, a montage of their lives is laid out before us including that one thing that made the couple look for a return to Schmigadoon — they are going to have a baby. It’s a lovely ending to the season that gives us all the satisfaction that Josh and Melissa are going to be happy every day. ‘I’ll drink to that!’
So does this mean it’s the end of their story? Only time will tell, but if it is Cinco Paul, his brilliant cast and crew, and the folks at Apple TV Plus have given us two sublime seasons of one of the best shows on television.
What did you think of the season finale? Give us your thoughts in the comments section below.
All episodes of Schmigadoon! are streaming on Apple TV Plus. Subscribe through our affiliate link and enjoy.
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