After years of keeping us glued to our screens, the international sensation Killing Eve finally ended last night… and it’s safe to say that its reviews were mixed.
Spoilers ahead
In the fourth season, Eve and Villanelle’s epic cross-country game of cat and mouse stepped up to the next level, with the pair fighting each other and the shadowy organisation known as The Twelve.
In the finale, Villanelle and Eve finally admitted their feelings for each other (as far as either of them were able) and killed what seems like every single member of The Twelve after infiltrating one of their meetings.
However, their celebrations were cut short when Villanelle herself was killed – all apparently at the command of Carolyn, the icy MI6 agent hoping to find favour with the organisation again.
Unfortunately, the show ended shortly after, giving fans no clue what Eve does after Villanelle’s death, what happens to MI6, or even what happens to Villanelle’s body.
As a result, fans were left fuming at how the show was handled.
“Killing Eve has overthrown game of thrones for having the worst ending of any show ever made in the history of television,” one viewer wrote.
Another pointed out the discrepancy between the bloody ending of the show and the one in the books, which ended with “them together, living their lives happily… Villanelle doesn’t die and gets a linguistics degree.”
Many of them also expressed their distaste for the queer-baiting elements present in the final season of the show.
“In the same show the useless ex-husband survived a literal pitchforking but they killed the lesbian. killing eve has truly embarrassed me,” a disappointed fan tweeted.
Reviews for the show have also been less than kind. “By ripping Villaneve apart like this, queer fans in particular are left with an ending that’s crushing and absurd in equal measure,” Digital Spy wrote in their review.
“‘Crushing’ because the fan-favourite ship had only just got together after all these years, and ‘absurd’ because how could anyone possibly think it’s okay to feed into such a harmful trope in the face of all the criticism – and in 2022 no less?”
Variety agreed. “The whole thing is so abrupt, so hackneyed, so amazingly unoriginal that for one hopeful minute, I was sure it had to be a trick. But no: ‘Killing Eve’ really ends with Villanelle drifting away into the Thames, Jack in ‘Titanic’ style, as Eve screams into the night. When the show’s signature block lettering slams “THE END” onto the screen, it’s so jarring that it feels like a slap in the face.”
The finale brings an end to one of the most successful TV shows of the past five years. Initially created by Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Killing Eve went onto enjoy critical acclaim from audiences and critics and made a star out of Villanelle actress Jodie Comer.
It also netted its stars Emmy, Golden Globe and BAFTA Awards for their work.
