The problem that I have is with the characters and their lack of resemblance to actual human beings. If any person could actually float in the air, trying to figure out why it's happening would be their main concern. If my kid (or grandkid) made a complete recovery from having a broken spinal cord and being braindead, it would probably be a topic of conversation beyond bitching about the reporters in front of the house. The only person that has had a genuine reaction to the events that have occurred is Dr. Smith, who literally gave up his entire life's work after witnessing a miracle that he's still struggling to rationalize.

But I think to say that it needs to come back in order to have closure is a somewhat misleading reason. On watching the last episode of the third season, I was struck by the completeness, the finality of the thematic threads. I thought, “My God, if this is truly the last we will ever see of Deadwood, it has ended so pitch perfectly, in such a depressingly appropriate note, it’s as though this was how it was intended to go out.”

Ellsworth is dead. He knew going up against Hearst might have that consequence. Alma’s gold mine is in the hands of her enemy. The way of the pen has conquered the way of the gun. As it does in our age, as it has in all modern ages, really. Alma gets to stay in Deadwood, but for an incredible price. A price many pay for the safety of their lives and the lives of those they love.

Trixie, having shot and injured Hearst (but not killed, because how can you kill the inexorable march of economic progress?) is being spirited away by Sol, the moral center of the show.

Bullock says in the end that he didn’t feel like he had done any good. And that’s what his attitude about being a lawman was at the beginning of the series. It’s part of the reason he wanted to simply be a merchant rather than a sheriff.

Throughout the show, the theme of might makes right, of the inevitable victory of duplicity and clandestine actions, have been in the forefront. And what is victory? And what is defeat? Does a life saved (Alma’s) balance a life taken (Ellsworth)?

The idea of who is just and unjust is also constant theme, a theme which is perfectly realized in the last episode. Swearengen cannot bring himself to give Trixie to Hearst. He loves her and recognizes that she has a better future with Sol than she could anywhere else. So he butchers an innocent to keep her safe. Meanwhile Bullock, for all his righteous posturing, allows the innocent’s murder to go unanswered so that Sol and Trixie can have that life together. A perfect illustration of the moral ambiguity of human nature.

And is there a better comment on how human interaction seems to dominate the history of man than that the rich and powerful get what they want and those who stand in their way are either brushed aside or committed to the earth in a pine box? Not everyone dies, not everyone’s lives are destroyed. But some die, and some lives are destroyed.

If there is never going to be another episode of Deadwood, I mourn its passing. I miss these people and want to see them again. But I’m not one who needs perfect closure for all character arcs. As a person who can be satisfied—deeply satisfied—by thematic closure, I am very pleased, if also saddened, by the way the series ended.

In life, we don’t always know what happens to our next-door neighbors, or co-workers who leave the company, or even our best childhood friends. The nature of life is that we don’t know how things turn out. And so it is in Deadwood. As Al says in the final moments of the last episode when Johnny wants to be assured that the girl sacrificed to save Trixie’s life didn’t suffer: “He wants me to tell him something pretty.” Well, at the risk of being extremely unpopular on this thread, I don’t want to be told something pretty, especially about Deadwood. Because Deadwood isn’t pretty. It’s as ugly as death.

Believe me, what I really wish is that there was an entire fourth season. After all, in the fourth year of its existence, the real town of Deadwood was almost entirely destroyed by a massive fire. Consumed in a hellish conflagration. I mean holy shit, what a perfect way—narratively, thematically—that would have been to end the series.

So yes, I want to see Deadwood come back to life. But not because I feel I’m left dangling, but more because there’s just not enough good TV on the airwaves (I have not seen John From Cincinnati), and Deadwood was the show proved that fact wrong.

No doubt I’ll have all detractors and no supporters in my suppositions and opinions. But in the end, I’m just glad Deadwood happened at all. And that’s really the most I can hope for.

It’s cool to hear that you basically agree with my take on things. It’s not like I think my opinion is the end of the discussion, it’s just that it’s how I felt as the last images of the final episode played out.

Pagliacci:

You know, it’s all well and good that people may have differing opinions on this, but why do they feel they’re entitled to be a fuckin’ asshole when they rebut something they disagree with?

Do you really think a theme has to be consciously injected into a story for there to be one? Theme can be revealed by character and action regardless of author intent.

Do you really think that to find a theme or multiple themes in a story, whether put there on purpose by the writers or not, is a result of a defect in my analysis? I didn’t put anything in my post that isn’t a great big burning billboard on the side of the road leading out of Deadwood. Just because you don’t see them doesn’t mean they aren’t there.

And what if they’re not? Is my analysis any less relevant to my experience of the final episode? I’ll stand by my post, thank you.

You say, “Give me a fucking break”? How about this: You post a response rebutting what I’ve said in a way that doesn’t make you look like a total douche bag. We’ll proceed from there.

Nevermind my undying loyalty to the Camp, or the mercy I expressed upon that poor Reverend, my moves against that cocksucker Hearst, or half a dozen other fucking impossibles forced upon my shoulders.

I would prefer it if those cocksuckers on-high would let me know full well ahead of time when I'm going to get assfucked. At least then I can appropriate a proper fucking posture. It'll help me during my convalescence as I do plan on getting mine served cold.

...has picked up quite a bit in its second season. It's not as good as the shows they cancel, but I don't find it boring by any means. I love Margene and they're doing a good job at making Bill look like this good guy, while still allowing him to be dangerously flawed. That last ep seemed to set the groundwork for Boss Lady, his co-worker and his brother to all abandon him at some point. Never thought I'd find that show so entertaining.

JFC needs a little work. Why hasn't anyone slapped Rebacca DeMornay's character yet? What a psycho bitch! But everyone else seems to love and respect her for some unknown reason. I do like the gimmick of John saying only the things he's heard before. That's probably the only thing on the show that works for me. Nothing to write home about though. I doubt it'll see a second season and I doubt that I'll care.

Flight of the Concords wouldn't have made it if it were a comedy central show. I like offbeat and all, but it just comes across as some boring comedy central show that gets canceled before you've even heard about it. Only watched one ep though. But it should make me laugh at least once. A lot of people slammed Lucky Louie, but it did make me laugh several times an episode.

It's all Showtime right now. Dexter, Tudors, Weeds, Bullshit are all really good shows. They seem to have their house in order for the time being.

See what I mean?

On the other hand, DEADWOOD absolutely will go down as a classic, the deepest, most engrossing and brilliantly acted show in years. Just see how Ian McShane and Timothy Olyphant are getting big roles in films strictly because of that show. A show that truly had no boundaries, didn't compromise on story, themes or character. A show that demanded the viewer to pay attention, think, interpret subtexts and plots and indeed rewatch past episodes to understand foreshadowing.

Just the dialogue, Shakespearean Iambic-penatmeter is music to my ears. Give the people what they want. Give the fans a proper ending. Make the right move. Don't let it rot for ten years and try to have some shitty reunion special. Do it right, while the time is ripe. SWIJJEN!

I'm buying the three seasons on DVD to keep in my personal collection.

The ending, though not perfect, works much better than the endings of Carnivale, Sopranos or Six Feet Under (all of which I loved, none of which I'm buying on DVD due to unsatisfying conclusions.)

That being said, I'm pissed that the series ended early. I'm so tired of committing emotionally to these series only to have HBO finally decide that each episode is too expensive. God damn.

Make the movies, show us how Deadwood burned.