‘Servant’ Recap: ‘Fallen’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for the Series Finale of ‘Servant’. To revisit the show’s penultimate episode, click here. This article also contains discussions revolving around self-harm and suicide. Which may be triggering to some individuals.
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Four years ago… we were introduced to quite the set of mysteries and quite the philosophical topic, courtesy of the Apple TV+ series, Servant. For this is a show that immediately informed us that it would examine the journey that revolves around the trauma of losing a loved one and it if course left us wondering… what Leanne Grayson was all about. Was she a healer of sorts? Or some kind of being from beyond? Not to mention… was she a savior? Or a fallen angel? One that could doom all of humanity. And of course… we were also left wondering, how this fascinating story was going to end, since Leanne’s power only grew, as did the resistance to her agenda and charm.
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Well, it just so happens that those questions were finally answered via the show’s series finale, and ‘Fallen’ wasted little time in first… bringing Dorothy’s painful journey to an end. For she finally took a moment to decide if she wanted to hide within Leanne’s traumatic lie or seize the day, and her life and her future, and cope with the awful mistake she made on that fateful day. And wouldn’t you know it? After four years of suffering and lying to herself, Dorothy decided to embrace tomorrow and heal and see what the future would bring and well, without the power of Jericho hanging over the family anymore, Leanne was distraught and broken. For she truly had nothing left to live for or accomplish in her mind, and that put her in a very dark place. 

One that more or less spoke to the reality that yes, she came back from the dead, and yes… she harbored a great power to resurrect and heal and use that per the will of the ‘Lord’ that saw fit to bestow her this gift. But by using it for selfish reasons, such as to have the family she was denied in life, she was in fact… that fallen angel. One broken by all of the seven deadly sins since she indulged in them with impunity while living with the Turner family and that put her at a crossroads. In that, she could come with the Turner family and let her sins persist or face them at last and pay penance to the honcho above. A decision that would require an ultimate sacrifice, one that would in fact… save all of humanity since she was able to offer penance for that which makes humanity falter and, in the end, Leanne chose to find purpose and accomplishment through salvation.

Which motivated her to follow the Church’s creed and bathe herself in fire and use the knife as outlined by the Church. That brought forth… a harrowing and horrifying sequence, one that saw Leanne perish badly and painfully as the house burned down around her, but in doing so… the storms raging over Philadelphia lifted and the danger indeed passed. Giving rise to a fresh start for the Turner family. One that Sean and Dorothy were eager to embrace since they had finally dealt with their pain, and a new start was also in front of Julian. Since he learned, that rescue from death by a member of the Church… came with quite the price. One that involved servitude to the Lord above and initiated him into a unique club of others that have walked in the space between spaces, and his fate… was perhaps far more unsettling. 

But that is… where this story ends, and it is… a brilliant ending to this tale. Since it keeps the possibility open to revisit this universe through those that have come back from the dead. But more importantly, it was… a wonderful way to close out this four-year journey. Since it did indeed offer genuine and healthy growth for the Turner family, something they’ve been struggling to find since this series started, and we did get our answers about Leanne. Whether they will please everyone has yet to be seen, but they are the answers none the less and well… that’s everything there is to say about this fascinating and eerie saga. One that had a lot of commentary to offer regarding religion and life, and the complexities of trauma and well, all we can do in the end is thank M. Night Shyamalan and the production team of this show, and its talented cast… for taking us on one hell of a spooky and eerie… and thoughtful ride.  

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