'Preacher' Recap: 'The End of the Road'

Written by John Edward Betancourt

THIS IS THE EMERGENCY SPOILER ALERT SYSTEM...YOU ARE ADVISED TO READ AT YOUR OWN RISK...

You know, it's rare that a television show drops something so surprising in my lap that I sit at my laptop with my hands hovering over the keyboard as my mind struggles to put into words what I've just seen, but the season two finale of Preacher has managed to do just that. Because 'The End of the Road' was well, an episode that completely and utterly reflected its title since, this story saw the end of a great many things, including the more joyous and wild moments we've enjoyed this season since this tale went to some supremely dark territory. 

In fact, it is the ominous clouds that hung over this episode that truly gave me pause since holy cow, it would seem the absence of God is truly starting to be felt all over this fictional world because it would seem all things good are fading quickly from this story and the most blatant example of this came by way of Eugene's story. After all, the Superintendent was more than happy to point out that without the Lord in charge she could do whatever she wants, including dragging a good soul back to Hell simply because she felt like it and her desire for more power led to utter chaos because Hitler was able to return to Earth with Eugene and unfortunately...while it seemed at first that Adolf had redeemed himself, his decision to run off and do who knows what demonstrates the power that darkness is starting to gain without God sitting atop his throne.

But the ugliness of this episode didn't end there. Cassidy found himself at a crossroads in this tale, and in subtle fashion we learned a lot more about the man. We came to discover that he has in essence turned his back on his own kind in order to be a functional member of modern society. But the power of vampirism is still present in his soul since for a short while there it seemed as though he was quite tempted to give in to his more primal nature and he is so focused on being good and not a monster that he was willing to murder his own son to maintain that purity and well...it was simply stunning to see Cassidy toss his son out of the window and into the daylight to save his son's soul, and his own for that matter, all while atoning for the mistake of turning his boy into a vampire.

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However, the centerpiece story of the night belonged to Jesse and Tulip, since the fate of these two are always intertwined. While Jesse was off learning how to be a Messiah under the tutelage of Herr Starr, Tulip made the discovery that the Grail has been watching everything going on​ and have in essence, played everyone from day one. At first it seems she's willing to let the matter go, but eventually, her anger gets the better of her and she confronts Lara and unfortunately, is mortally wounded in the process. To make matters worse, Jesse is there to see her off in her final moments, but not all hope is lost, since the episode ends with Jesse and Cassidy on their way to Angelville, where it seems Jesse will be able to work a little voodoo magic and save the love of his life...

So, yeah, that's where it ends, on the most dismal and hopeless note possible and what gave me pause was not just the shock of seeing everything fall to pieces in this story; it was taking a moment to ponder on the greater meaning of these events, and I am convinced there is more to all this than at first glance. If anything, I think we've been privy to a cliffhanger of sorts. After all, God is still out there, as evidenced by the scene in the hotel, and Starr and the Grail as a whole have all spoken to the fact that the end is near, and considering that Hitler is loose upon the world again, it would seem that Jesse Custer is indeed going to be brought to his knees to perhaps serve a higher purpose after all when all of this comes together.

But for now, we are left with a bleak story that saw close friendships completely and utterly shatter and allowed for evil to continue to win and there are definitely plenty of questions on my mind after this one. For example, what will become of Tulip after Jesse more than likely resurrects her with Voodoo? What is Hitler's plan now that he's back on Earth and most importantly, will Jesse Custer ever find God and redemption for that matter? Sadly we will have to wait until season three to have those questions answered and to see if our characters and the world will ever find hope again. So in the meantime, I'll likely just watch this season over again to catch anything that I've missed and to get my Preacher fix until the next season arrives. Until next year. 

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