It almost feels surreal to think that Disenchantment is coming to a close. Debuting in 2018, Disenchantment was, at one point, an exciting Netflix original powered by the likes of Matt Groening and former Simpsons showrunners Josh Weinstein and Bill Oakley. But as the years have gone by, this fantastical animated series has seemingly come and went with every new season, maintaining a small, if not devoted, fan base. While this would normally be a death sentence for a Netflix show, especially after the premature cancelation of Inside Job, September 1 will see the story of Bean, Elfo, and Luci finally come to a definitive end instead of being shoveled off into oblivion.
But on the opposite side, Disenchantment’s final season has some lofty shoes to fill. Being a serialized story, Disenchantment‘s pacing has left much to be desired, frequently introducing new concepts and ideas but never capitalizing on them. With only a few episodes left, we need something that wraps up just about everything the series has established so far while acting as a gracious send-off for our favorite characters. These are just some of the most important things Disenchantment‘s final season has to address to some capacity.
What Will Happen to Bean?
If we’re being blunt, Bean has been through a lot. In the span of forty episodes, she’s trekked through Hell and back, loved and lost and loved again, got a handle on steampunk technology, and fallen off of multiple cliffs across several cliffhanger endings. Bean even became the Queen of Dreamland, albeit under some tense circumstances. We’re far removed from the rebellious, carefree Bean established in Disenchantment‘s first season, forcing us to wonder how she’ll fare when the fate of the world rests in her hands.
The biggest question surrounding Bean, however, is introduced via the final season’s plot synopsis. Aside from addressing the obvious – building up a final climactic battle, saving Dreamland from the villainous Queen Dagmar, and so on – one thing is made especially clear. Bean is cursed, suffering from a prophecy that may force her to “kill someone she loves.” Who that person may be, however, is left up to interpretation. It could be either Luci or Elfo, it could be Bean’s love interest, Mora, or it could even be either King Zøg or Queen Dagmar.
What Will Happen to Queen Dagmar?
It wouldn’t be revealed until a good while into the series that Bean’s biological mother, Queen Dagmar, is a malicious puppet master. After being revived and inadvertently ousting Queen Oona from the royal family, Dagmar would transition into a full-on antagonist. She would later be tricked into marrying Satan by Bean, ominously concluding season four with both Satan and the head of “Bad Bean” – an evil version of Bean who tormented our protagonist’s nightmares – at her side.
If we’re being frank, though, we need Dagmar to have some kind of payoff. Forty episodes without an ounce of her motivations, or some kind of external cause for her actions, is just way too long. Considering there’s nowhere else to go once season five is over, let’s hope the finale finally gives us the answers we’ve been looking for in Disenchantment’s main villain.
What Will Happen to Everyone Else?
Of course, we also need a definitive conclusion to the plethora of side characters in Disenchantment‘s cast. It’ll certainly be a tall order for just ten episodes, as there are miles of ground to cover.
Take Elfo, for instance. Arguably receiving almost as much development and focus as Bean, Elfo originally abandoned a life of serene safety to venture out into the world, only to have his optimism gradually worn down by how protective his old life was. Not only that, it’s revealed to him that he is not actually a full-blooded Elf: in fact, he’s actually half-Elf and half-Ogre, being a possible heir to the Ogre kingdom.
Luci, being the other significant member of our leading trio, also has some interesting developments. Aside from losing his immortality, the topic of “Guci” – a less-evil reflection of himself similar to that of Bad Bean – has also been abruptly introduced during season four. It’s more than likely that this will be addressed further in season five, as Luci’s death and subsequent arrival in Heaven instead of Hell earlier in the series raised even more questions about his character.
If Disenchantment has been critiqued for anything, it’s for its errant pacing. While the adventurous nature of the series has been its selling point, as well as the most significant deviation from Matt Groening’s previous works, the events that drive these adventures could use some finality to them. Thankfully, now that the series is confirmed to be ending, we can expect the fates and secrets of those in Disenchantment to finally be revealed, bringing one of Netflix’s longest-running animated shows to a definitive end.
This story originally appeared on Movieweb
