God Friended Me Series Finale Review: Jeremiah 29:11
Lizzy Buczak
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And that's the end.
The worst thing about a series getting canceled is that it doesn't get to end on its own terms.
While watching God Friended Me Season 2 Episode 22, I found myself impressed with how neatly everything was wrapping up. I wondered if maybe the showrunners were tipped off about a cancellation prior to the announcement because everything was so perfect.
The episode had all the makings of a series finale -- it even switched up formats by including a time jump and narration from Miles.
There are no coincidences with the God Account, so it was not a coincidence that the writers gave closure to most of the storylines while still leaving us on a thought-provoking cliffhanger that was slightly infuriating.
That's another thing that's so frustrating about a cancellation -- there are usually so many stories left to tell.
Even if you remove the mystery of the God Account, the series had a roadmap and plan for the future.
The cliffhanger proves that, before getting word of the cancellation, the series was simply wrapping things up in order to reinvent itself for the upcoming season.
If we were to get another season, we'd likely get to explore a potential pregnancy storyline for Ali, the blossoming relationships following the time jump, and Miles's new outlook on faith and the God Account.
The episode kicked off with Miles standing on top of the Annapurna Himalayan mountain. Coming off of God Friended Me Season 2 Episode 21, it wasn't immediately clear why or how.
And to be quite honest, even after the final moments, we still don't really know what he may have found. We likely never will.
It's painful to lose a TV show that has become part of your life.
And there's nothing like all of the burning questions going unanswered before the final bow.
Rakesh: Cara, you heard about the God Account and how it’s up and running again?
Cara: I did. And that’s great.
Rakesh: Don’t mean to brag, but that’s 100% me.
Despite Ali's surgery being a focal point, the episode was uplifting and inspirational as it revealed there was light at the end of the tunnel; the sun always comes out after a storm.
All Miles needed was a little bit of faith.
Faith played a huge role in not only the episode but the series, which isn't surprising since it's a show about God.
But the last few Friend Suggestions, specifically, have been trying to bring Miles back to his faith. To give him back what he lost when his mother died.
Its boldest attempt was when Ali's surgery hit a bit of rough patch due to an unexpected blood clot.
Miles felt helpless, and that helplessness made him find solace in a church.
Shortly after he turned to the church and prayer, Ali was on the road to recovery. Was it a miracle? An act of God? The blood thinners doing their job?
It's a situation that often plays out in real life, and in both instances, the root cause of the miracle remains a mystery.
The only explanation that matters is the one that you believe.
At the end of the day, that's what faith is. It's your belief in yourself, in science, in medicine, in something greater than yourself.
You cling to that belief because it gives you hope. It would be nice to think that faith looks the same for everyone, but it doesn't.
Miles may not have fully returned to being a believer like his father or Ali, but he does believe in people and being a good person.
Through the God Account, he sees miracles happen when people come together, when they lean on each other, and when they help each other.
That's the reason why this show struck a chord with so many of us. Like Miles, we've all been trying to make the world a better place and do right by each other.
And while the religious aspect may have been a huge draw for some people, most of us stuck around because it was the light that assured us everything would be okay.
I think Miles summed it best in one of his final podcast quotes that voiced over a montage of Friend Suggestions dating back to the very first one. Cue the nostalgia.
He said: "It doesn’t matter what we believe or where we come from. That we are all in this together, that we can all be there for one another. Because when we are, amazing things can happen."
The journey of helping my Friend Suggestions helped so many lives, it taught me to have hope and faith in humanity, to believe in others, but more importantly, it changed me. And helped me rediscover something I lost when my mother died. And it made me realize it doesn’t matter what we believe, or where we come from. that we are all in this together, that we can all be there for one another. Because when we are, amazing things can happen.
Miles
That, right there, is what the show has always been about -- bringing people together and celebrating their differences.
It's why the series never leaned too far one way or the other. It never established the God Account as spiritual or physical -- It teetered right in the middle till the very end so that it never alienated anyone.
If you think of it that way, maybe it was never in the books to reveal who is behind the God Account because as we've all pointed out one time or another, it would ruin the magic.
Still, the ending, for many folks like myself who wanted concrete answers and a tangible explanation, was frustrating.
Miles walked up the mountain (I'm suspending disbelief since it's one of the hardest mountains to climb and he had no gear with him) in search of answers. He was led there by the God Account.
Once on top, a young monk approached him and told Miles to follow him because "she's been waiting."
Miles: What can I possible do to help her?
Arthur: The same thing I’m going to do. Pray.
Miles: Dad…
Arthur: I know how you feel, but prayer is action. And prayer is what your sister needs right now.
It would have been a great cliffhanger for Season 3, but since this is a series finale, it was left up to one's own interpretation.
Did Miles know who the God Account was? One could argue that because he didn't seem surprised by the young monk or the revelation that it's a woman, he had an indication of who he was meeting.
The way the scene was filmed and showed the glowing sun enveloping Miles as he embarked on his adventures could have been proof that it was God's doing all along. Or maybe it was a dream?
You could also assume that since Rakesh singlehandedly saved the God Account by repairing the code, Miles was now behind the God Account.
Honestly, I’ve stopped looking. It’s kind of like CJ and his angel. As long as I’m doing good, does it really matter who is whispering in my ear?
Miles
He was being guided by an algorithm, but he was always in charge of his own fate. When the God Account glitched because of the virus, he didn't wait around for someone to tell him that he needed to help those in need. He stepped in to help Corey, CJ, and Alphonse on his own.
Similarly, when the subway experienced a mechanical issue, Miles didn't need a Friend Suggestion to tell him to jump in and help others who were on board. He knew what he had to do. Being the God Account's prophet has made him the man behind the God Account.
It's even possible that the "she" has nothing to do with the God Account, and Miles is embracing other religions to possibly get a deeper understanding of his beliefs.
For me, none of that was good enough because I wanted answers. When I didn't get them, I began to brainstorm on my own.
When I finished the episode, I almost tweeted creators Steven Lilien and Bryan Wybrandt demanding to find out what the intended ending was (that is unless Netflix is truly considering to save the series).
For some reason, I couldn't shake that Ali played a bigger role in the God Account than she ever let on.
There are no coincidences with the God Account, and it's not a coincidence she was the last Friend Suggestion we ever saw.
We've always wondered "why Miles?" What makes him so special?
Hopefully, the life I chose, the life I gave him up for might at least be able to help him now.
Alphonse
The answer has always been there. Since day one, Ali has wanted to help Miles find his way back to his faith. It started out by having him help people, and it evolved into Friend Suggestions who ended up reclaiming their own faith as a way to inspire him.
In the final episode, Ali left Miles a note in case she didn't survive the surgery.
After the surgery, she told Miles "I hoped it helped," seemingly alluding to Miles turning to the church for guidance.
In the letter, she also mentioned never losing his sense of wonder, which clearly, he hadn't as he stood on top of the mountain.
When the child said "she's been waiting," indicating that the God Account could be a woman, I thought that there was a chance he'd learn his sister was somehow behind it.
Who knows? Maybe Arthur has been helping her the whole time!
But the truth is, much like God, the God Account will remain one of the mysteries of the universe.
Maybe the writers intended to give us a concrete answer sometime in the future. Maybe they didn't.
Maybe they, themselves, never had an answer because it's greater than all of us.
I'd love to hear your theories about the ending. What did you think it meant? Were you happy with it? Did you expect more?
Much of the episode focused on saving Ali, and there were times where the outcome wasn't clear, but once she made it through the surgery, it was all about the happy endings.
Ali found her calling by becoming a preacher and following in her father's footsteps, Rakesh and Jaya got engaged, and Cara and Miles fell back in love. Some people just belong together.
I wish we would have gotten some more time with all the characters when things finally started to fall into place, but again, this was probably being saved for the upcoming season.
I’m sorry, but the God Account is going to be destroyed and there’s nothing you or your friends can do to stop it.
Corey
There were also happy endings on God Friended Me Season 2 Episode 21, as Corey Smith and Alphonse patched up their fractured relationship and began making up for lost time.
Corey was the creator of the God Account's original code, but when he realized firsthand how much good it was doing for the world, he couldn't risk destroying it.
The only thing I can't seem to figure out is why Alphonse's insurance company played such a big role in the God Account's Friend Suggestions.
It would only make sense if Alphonse stole the code from Corey (and since he's CIA, it would have been easy for him), but it didn't seem like that was the case, especially since Corey didn't care to find out or pursue the matter any further.
The truth is, unless we can convince Corey to stop this, this might be our last Friend Suggestion.
Rakesh
It felt like a dropped storyline, but who knows? Maybe those answers, TOO, were being saved for Season 3.
Regardless of who is running the show, the God Account was a blessing for Miles. It gave him, Cara, and Rakesh a sense of purpose and responsibility.
Miles believed that if the God Account sent him Friend Suggestions, it meant that he could help, but really, it just meant that anyone could be helped if helping others became a priority.
Miles always did, and he inspired many others to be equally as selfless.
Other Thoughts
- As someone who rides the CTA all the time, the first thing I noticed was how Miles wasn't holding on while the train was in motion. When he fell, I was like, "yup, that's what happens!" And when he fell unconscious, I was terrified we were entering an amnesia storyline. What a relief.
- Ali giving medical power of attorney to Trish was wise. She's always remained level-headed when it came to Ali's health issues unlike Arthur and Miles. They care too deeply about her.
- I would have loved to see Ali's relationship with Emily progress.
- Finding out that Rakesh's soulmate app was based on the God Account's code made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
- We got a conclusion to Cara's stepfather's storyline even if it was addressed off-screen.
I'll leave with you with this parting thought: faith will always be there if you ever need it. A wise woman named Ali once said that.
Faith will be there in any form that you need it even as a TV show.
Shows like God Friended Me are a rarity on TV these days, so thank you to the creators, writers, showrunners, and cast for allowing us to come on this uplifting adventure. It has forced me to look inward and always lend a helping hand even when I'm not sure how I can be of assistance.
Thanks for always reading, TV Fanatics.
Just know that you're always able to re-watch God Friended Me online if you ever need something to lift your spirits.
And with that, goodbye God Squad -- I'm logging out.
Lizzy Buczak was a staff writer for TV Fanatic. She retired in June 2021..
