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Under the Dome Review: The Monarch is Crowned

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What an utter disappointment! The season finale of Under the Dome was just so anti-climatic.

I wish I was allowed to write the string of expletives that demonstrate how I really feel about "Curtains." At the end of the episode, I rewound the live broadcast to make sure that I didn't miss something. That was the end? Really?!?

Norrie & Joe

After last Monday's excellent "Exigent Circumstances," I expected a mind-blowing reveal about the mini-dome, the monarch to be crowned, and an enticing cliffhanger that would bring me back next season. The show failed in two of the three.

After some cat and mouse maneuvering between the protectors of the mini-dome and Big Jim's contingent, the truth was revealed about the butterfly, the egg, and the mini-dome. When the mini-dome disintegrated, there was a moment when I thought the Dome would come down too. That would have made a second season a bit difficult though and the darkened Dome didn't descend.

Instead, the butterfly was released and the protector of the egg was revealed. Julia was a good choice to be the monarch. She's a loving and generous person. She's proved that she's dependable and can keep her head in tough situations. That ended up being pivotal when she was given a difficult choice to make between saving the egg, which also meant the town, or Barbie.

Julia's role throughout the episode was a highlight. She risked her life to protect Barbie and get him out of his cell, but when the difficult choice had to be made she went with the greater good. She was willing to sacrifice her loved one in order to save the town on the word of a mysterious alien force.

The truth behind the Dome's origin and the way it was revealed was anti-climatic. An alien force is protecting the town from some unidentified outside threat. The lack of any specifics was frustrating. Do the writers even know what this "threat" is at this point? It better be really bad, because the only threat to the town I see is the one inside the town in Big Jim Rennie. What could be worse than him?

Why doesn't anyone see through Big Jim's facade? Junior's constant yo-yo action between belonging and trusting the four hands and his father is troublesome. There's not much that makes sense about anything that Junior does. Perhaps that's on purpose, but it's annoying to follow. He has no conviction and continually makes the wrong choices with no good reason.

Then, there's Linda. She's turned from a capable law enforcement officer and investigator into an incompetent follower of Big Jim Rennie. Her inability to listen to the teens and Caroline about the mini-Dome was frustrating. They had been with it for long enough that she should have questioned them and followed their lead. Instead, she again blindly followed what Big Jim wanted.

I lost what little respect I had left for her when she didn't voice any complaint or question Big Jim's authority to execute Barbie without a trial. Barbie was accused, pled not guilty, and hours later he's being killed? Where's the justice in that? How is the Dome protecting the town when Big Jim is killing off a person or more a day?

Perhaps, Julia's decision to protect the egg will shift the power structure in Chester's Mill. I'm not counting on it, but it's possible. The pink streaks that came up out of the water were beautiful. Will that moment and the memory of Junior's mother bring out the good in him? Will he decide to stop Barbie's execution? Or, will someone else step up to save the innocent man?

If Under the Dome wanted to be bold by killing off Barbie, they should have done it in the finale. Instead, the cliffhanger felt false without purpose. Most likely, he'll be saved. And, if he's killed in the season 2 premiere, there's too many threads of the story that would have been for nothing. 

Overall, the finale was a disappointing conclusion, especially after the thrilling penultimate episode. I'm not sure whether I'll be back for season 2, will you?

What did you think of the finale? Are you satisfied with the origin of the Dome? Were you stunned by the cliffhanger? Or more by the sudden appearance of a commercial break and final credit?


Editor Rating: 3.5 / 5.0
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User Rating:

Rating: 2.2 / 5.0 (253 Votes)


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    You guys have left me hanging..did the dome open,did barby die,did junior and his father hang barby...


    UTD needs to set a path.. some kind of aim or goal it wishes to reach


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    If barbie dies o wont be watching it, they should let people know the truth.


    I too understood this to be a limited miniseries, and that it would end with this last episode (#13). But hit ratings must have made the CBS execs greedy, and they are extending this onward. I say let this show crash and burn, like that airplane that crashed inside the Dome. The viewers who rightfully expected this to be ending and the writers to tie up everything, should join the rest of us who will not reward executive greed with any further support for â€œDomeâ€. Iâ€™m done.


    I agree the ending was unsatisfying, but I thought about 1/4 way through the season it was a lot of fun to watch. Julia is very easy to look at. Big Jim is becoming a player that I love to hate, and I like a lot of the other characters. I'll have to catch it next summer.


    how it should have ended


    How can any show make so little sense ?!?
    What are the writers trying to do/say/mean ?
    Why doesn't it all make any sense what they do ?
    Is this a new genre of entertainment ? Are we supposed to be left wondering what the hell just happened and why without giving us any clues ? Why why why ?!?


    man I was so pissed off on that last episode and the way it ended.
    There is no way I am going to wait till next year to see the rest of it,

    there might be a episode 3 , I am not risking watching to be pissed at some thing like this again
    what a waste of time.
    I am better to wait for a couple of years and download it off a torrent site where I will get the full series at one hit.

    to leave people up in the air like that, you deserve to lose this to a torrents.


    The ending was so stupid and such a dissappointment....what an incrediable waste of my time! You may get me once, but not twice...I will not be watching it again. It had the potential to be a great series, but fell short at the end. You can't just end a series without a cliff-hanger for the next season...which cost them a lot of their viewers.
