Ghost Whisperer – S2E22 – The Gathering
This was another great season finale when it comes to suspense. The only thing I did not like is that it still feels like there was not really a full resolution. I mean, yes, we’ve got more seasons to cover the story in, but the fact that the meat of the story always seems to be reserved for the finales, with little to no address in the middle of the season, makes it frustrating to watch. It’s apparently a test of patience. How long are you willing to wait for the conclusion?
Anyway, we finally learn what all of the signs and hints that Melinda keeps receiving are supposed to mean. All three of the kids from the last episode were the sole survivors of the tragic events Melinda learned about from the red hooded spirit. All of them have also died for a long enough period of time to have seen Melinda, and the light, before coming back to life. The children are all pieces of a puzzle that tells Melinda what she has to do to stop Gabriel. Unfortunately they are missing a piece of that puzzle. A fourth child. Who is she? None other than the girl from the plane crash. WHAT? Mind blown. Okay, maybe not, but still. I do love that they pulled that back in though. This finale has a lot of call back to the season 1 finale, mostly because it is directly linked to it. The show is pretty good at bringing back past characters and events in a way that is fun for loyal viewers who can easily draw connections that they likely did not anticipate. Speaking of call backs, it is occurring to me now that when Ned heard the record player saying “You’re gonna lose her” in the last episode, it was not referring to his mother, it was referring to Melinda. Also, I liked that the red hooded ghost ended up being Ethan’s wife.
Going back to the story, I did find it strange, and annoying, that Ethan just lets Gabriel take the children at the end of the episode. Seriously? You barely know the guy, and you are just going to take him at his word and give him four innocent children without question? Not a smart move man. I noticed that Melinda refers to the kids as sensitives. The last time we heard this term was when Andrea’s love interest, Ashton, who appeared near the end of season 1 to unknowingly warn Melinda about the plane crash and Romano. It was a cool idea to twist the ending so that the kids are supposed to protect Melinda, rather than her protecting them. However, did anyone else notice though that, once again, the way Melinda dies is by falling down and hitting her head on a rock? Really? Again? I thought it was lame the first time, and it really didn’t do that much for me this time either. There is also the added factor of knowing that Melinda’s character is never going to actually stay dead so long as there actually exists a show. She and her gift are the core of the show, so without that, it would be the end. That being said, I did actually like the episode, despite its quirks.
The final scene brings up a whole new set of cliff hangers that I assume they plan to address in the next season. So, Melinda dies, momentarily, and when she gets to the light, someone is blocking it. In the last minute, Melinda says that she saw her father, and that she thinks she has a brother. Who is this brother? None other than Gabriel. So, two conclusions can be drawn from this. Melinda’s father, whom she has been estranged from for a long time, is presumably dead. Also, seeing as the gift seems to come from her maternal line, if Gabriel is her brother, either he is a half brother on her mom’s side that she never knew about, or he is a full sibling that was for whatever reason sent away. Unless he is a “spiritual” brother or something to that effect.
Overall, I actually did like this finale. Like I said though, it needed more of a conclusion. You can only leave so many cliffhangers in an episode before it just feels like not enough was actually presented in the episode. When is Romano’s story going to get some sort of conclusion? I’m actually kind of bored with the story. The show is really clever about drawing connections between episodes, and has done some really cool things with the five signs and the twist endings. They just have a tendency to draw out this Romano arc to the point where it just becomes annoying. You’re constantly expecting, but never getting any resolution. There has to be some payoff at some point. Anyway, despite this, I do look forward to season 3. I’m guessing it’s not an understatement to expect more Romano.
Best Moment:
-Melinda sees her father.
Best Quote:
Jim: Who told you you have a brother?
Mel: My father.
This was another great season finale when it comes to suspense. The only thing I did not like is that it still feels like there was not really a full resolution. I mean, yes, we’ve got more seasons to cover the story in, but the fact that the meat of the story always seems to be reserved for the finales, with little to no address in the middle of the season, makes it frustrating to watch. It’s apparently a test of patience. How long are you willing to wait for the conclusion?
Anyway, we finally learn what all of the signs and hints that Melinda keeps receiving are supposed to mean. All three of the kids from the last episode were the sole survivors of the tragic events Melinda learned about from the red hooded spirit. All of them have also died for a long enough period of time to have seen Melinda, and the light, before coming back to life. The children are all pieces of a puzzle that tells Melinda what she has to do to stop Gabriel. Unfortunately they are missing a piece of that puzzle. A fourth child. Who is she? None other than the girl from the plane crash. WHAT? Mind blown. Okay, maybe not, but still. I do love that they pulled that back in though. This finale has a lot of call back to the season 1 finale, mostly because it is directly linked to it. The show is pretty good at bringing back past characters and events in a way that is fun for loyal viewers who can easily draw connections that they likely did not anticipate. Speaking of call backs, it is occurring to me now that when Ned heard the record player saying “You’re gonna lose her” in the last episode, it was not referring to his mother, it was referring to Melinda. Also, I liked that the red hooded ghost ended up being Ethan’s wife.
Going back to the story, I did find it strange, and annoying, that Ethan just lets Gabriel take the children at the end of the episode. Seriously? You barely know the guy, and you are just going to take him at his word and give him four innocent children without question? Not a smart move man. I noticed that Melinda refers to the kids as sensitives. The last time we heard this term was when Andrea’s love interest, Ashton, who appeared near the end of season 1 to unknowingly warn Melinda about the plane crash and Romano. It was a cool idea to twist the ending so that the kids are supposed to protect Melinda, rather than her protecting them. However, did anyone else notice though that, once again, the way Melinda dies is by falling down and hitting her head on a rock? Really? Again? I thought it was lame the first time, and it really didn’t do that much for me this time either. There is also the added factor of knowing that Melinda’s character is never going to actually stay dead so long as there actually exists a show. She and her gift are the core of the show, so without that, it would be the end. That being said, I did actually like the episode, despite its quirks.
The final scene brings up a whole new set of cliff hangers that I assume they plan to address in the next season. So, Melinda dies, momentarily, and when she gets to the light, someone is blocking it. In the last minute, Melinda says that she saw her father, and that she thinks she has a brother. Who is this brother? None other than Gabriel. So, two conclusions can be drawn from this. Melinda’s father, whom she has been estranged from for a long time, is presumably dead. Also, seeing as the gift seems to come from her maternal line, if Gabriel is her brother, either he is a half brother on her mom’s side that she never knew about, or he is a full sibling that was for whatever reason sent away. Unless he is a “spiritual” brother or something to that effect.
Overall, I actually did like this finale. Like I said though, it needed more of a conclusion. You can only leave so many cliffhangers in an episode before it just feels like not enough was actually presented in the episode. When is Romano’s story going to get some sort of conclusion? I’m actually kind of bored with the story. The show is really clever about drawing connections between episodes, and has done some really cool things with the five signs and the twist endings. They just have a tendency to draw out this Romano arc to the point where it just becomes annoying. You’re constantly expecting, but never getting any resolution. There has to be some payoff at some point. Anyway, despite this, I do look forward to season 3. I’m guessing it’s not an understatement to expect more Romano.
Best Moment:
-Melinda sees her father.
Best Quote:
Jim: Who told you you have a brother?
Mel: My father.