SPOILER ALERT: How Did The Story End in the Series Finale of "One Tree Hill"

It feels like months that I’ve been dreading the series finale of a show that I’ve become far too emotionally invested in over the course of nine tumultuous seasons. One Tree Hill was one of those shows that I had to see each week and never minded watching reruns. I’ve probably seen each episode more than a handful of times and they still never fail to get to me. There’s a point that you start to feel like you know all the characters involved.

For this reason, I’m not ashamed to admit that if they are usually laughing on screen I’m probably laughing on my couch and if they’re crying, well, chances are there’s an empty tissue box nearby. I was scared for the way that creator Mark Schwahn would leave things, but after watching the finale I don’t think he could have done a better job bringing everything full circle.

The 2-hour finale appropriately started with an hour of behind-the-scenes footage of the filming process, interviews with the characters and explanations for certain epic twists in the plot over the last nine years. They took us back to where it all began, to the school shooting, to Nathan and Haley’s vow renewal, Sawyer’s birth and all of the other pieces of Tree Hill history that shocked us, melted our hearts or both! We got to see each character wrap their final scenes and hear Sophia Bush, who played Brooke Davis, tearfully say her goodbyes. It was after the crew said goodbye that we got to hear how the story ends.

Throughout the whole episode scenes flashed to Tric’s 10th anniversary bash which appropriately featured performances by Chris Keller, Haley James Scott and Gavin DeGraw. Gavin sang some new stuff, but appropriately closed things out with “I Don’t Want To Be.” The camera panned around the venue showing all our favorite cast members singing along. There were definitely tears in the finale and I’m sure many in homes around the country!

Though Clay and Quinn have only been involved in the plot for a few seasons, it would be impossible to say we cared less about how their story ends. The couple had been through a lot. In just this season alone Clay developed a crazy sleepwalking disorder and had to check himself in for therapy. Come to find out, he wasn’t a psycho or a drug addict; he was a father who had just fought to repress his own son’s memory after his wife’s death. Ending the season with Quinn and Clay getting married in the courthouse with little Logan by their side and then signing adoption papers was the perfect ending. Hearing him call them mom and dad and watching them transform from a really complicated situation into a perfect little family left everyone with piece of mind and probably a lot of tears (happy ones of course!).

Nothing crazy or outlandish happened to Nathan and Haley, but that worked well. We saw them essentially pass the torch of their past on to Jamie, which was better than any alternative. Haley showed him where the hopes and dreams box she kept with Lucas was and Nathan told him he could be anything he wanted to be; that he didn’t need to be an athlete. Fortunately for him and everyone else, Jamie wanted to be just like his dad. Showing Jamie writing the dream of beating his dad’s records and then flashing to the future to show Midnight Madness and Jamie’s jersey mounted on the wall for accomplishing his goal was perfect. We also saw a married and pregnant Millie with Mouth, Skills and Bevin back together, Brooke and Julian happy still with Baker Man up and running and Karen’s Café still in operation! The flash forward was a fantastic way to bring things full circle.

One of the best little tidbits was when Mouth received a check from Dan Scott with a note that said “What you do matters.” Even in his death Dan still had some surprises up his sleeve! With that money, Mouth started the Edwards/Scott Memorial Scholarship Program in memory of Keith and Jimmy and he announced it on his Sports show, leaving Millie to host the morning show with Skills. The three of them make a pretty good team!

Not only does Julian recreate the gang’s history in a TV series, but he also buys Brooke her high school home. She had always said that house deserved a good family and she finally had that. Julian may be a bit of a girly-man, but he’s thoughtful and his gestures, sometimes a little bizarre, are always cute and meaningful. He adds a nice balance to the shows super athletic males.

In the end, the group stayed in Tree Hill and became more than friends. They were each other’s family. There weren’t any big questions left unanswered or any mysterious conclusions that deny you full closure. This was a clean break for all of us who have grown up watching the show. What did you think?

 

Photo Source: CWTV

Source: http://blog.starcam.com/post/Spoiler-Alert-Series-Finale-One-Tree-Hill.aspx

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