Gracepoint Season 1 Episode 10 Review: “Episode 10”

Well, now that Gracepoint has wrapped up, I’m not sure how to feel. On the one hand, I am glad that it wrapped up, that there was some sense of closure. On the other hand, I felt like they ripped it away from us at the very last second, only to (probably) never see it through. Where shall I begin?

First of all, as a whole, Gracepoint is a well-written drama about the death of a young boy in a small town. The actors and actresses are believable, smart, and the dramatic moments are incredibly well crafted.There was no bad casting choice throughout the show. David Tennant brought a special type of gravitas to the American version of his British role. Carver was a complicated man, but I liked him more and more as his character was revealed to me throughout the 10 episodes. Anna Gunn was an excellent choice as well. This was an interesting choice for her post-Breaking Bad effort, but for the most part, completely different. Dark, drama, sounds the same on the surface, but I can assure you the two don’t share much similarity.

The supporting casts had to be one of the better ones on television. Michael Pena, Kevin Rankin, and Nick Nolte lead a REALLY strong supporting cast full of people who were broken and damaged enough to be suspects, but likable enough for you to root for them in the outcome. Nick Nolte gave a brilliant performance as Jack Reinhold. Although he didn’t quite make it to the end of the series (RIP, Jack), you really feel all sorts of different emotions for the character, which I think is the goal. Kevin Rankin proved he could certainly be creepy if he wanted, but in the end Paul reconciled with his only “enemy”, Mark Solano, which sort of erased the suspicion and creepiness. Michael Pena, of whom I’ve always been a big fan, did a really excellent job through the whole series. A man struggling with the ires of his daily life, all of a sudden stricken with the loss of his son. All of his emotions were conveyed well, and he added wonderful layers to an already layered story. I could go on and on about the entire supporting cast, but these three were the main standouts.

I had mixed feelings about the ending. I only suspected Joe Miller briefly, and that was just in one episode in which he played his character differently all of a sudden. It’s like the show was dropping a hint, and I did pick up on it. I’m certain there were other clues that I missed, but that strange characterization stuck out in my mind. It does prove to me, however, that the show sticks to its guns when it comes to strong characterization and plot points. It was the twist to Joe being “the guy” that really got me. So Tom accidentally killed him? And Joe just covered for Tom. I’m not sure I buy that. I mean sure, Tom was obviously hiding something that whole time, but that he was the one who killed Danny? I’m not sure its entirely believable. The way they played it out, I GUESS I can, but honestly, it feels like a cheap twist to make it “different”.

This is where the episode lost me. I believed that Joe did it, and may be Tom had found out. But when Tom did it, Ellie finds out and decides to cover it up. That doesn’t make sense either. I can see how maybe she didn’t want to tear her family apart, but I really think she could’ve told Carver or the chief the truth. No, instead Carver figures it out re-watching that video, and storms off to correct his mistake right as the episode ends. I mean, I know this is FOX and they’re a little desperate for some more good drama, but come on. Did you have to leave the door ajar like that?

All in all, this was a well done episode. The cinematography was great throughout, and all the actors gave strong performances. Really my only complaint is the direction that they took with the story. They could’ve figured out a better way to give the season (series, probably) an ending than they did. But all in all, Gracepoint put together a strong campaign.

What did you guys think? Did you love or hate the ending? Too similar to Broadchurch? Let us know!

Photo via FOX