Dead To Me's Final Season Has Some Major Questions To Answer
Big spoilers ahead for "Dead to Me" Seasons 1 and 2.
The second season of Netflix's "Dead to Me" ends with a dramatic crescendo into a literal car crash. Now it's been over two years since that season aired, and "Dead to Me" Season 3 is right around the corner at last. The season will be the final installment in the dark comedy series following the unlikely friendship of Jen Harding (Christina Applegate) and Judy Hale (Linda Cardellini).
The odd couple — who both supposedly have dead husbands — meet at a support group. The friendship that begins in "Dead to Me" Season 1 is complicated by the fact that Judy is lying both about her ex, Steve (James Marsden), who actually just left her, and a key truth — she's the one who accidentally killed Jen's husband. At the end of Season 1, Jen winds up killing Steve in her pool, and Jen and Judy spend the next 10 episodes covering their tracks and trying to make their lives normal again.
"Dead to Me" Season 2 brings James Marsden back into the fold as Steve's twin brother Ben. He winds up being a love interest for Jen who is, of course, not telling him exactly what happened to Steve. When the season's events come to a head, Ben learns of his brother's death and drunkenly crashes his car into Jen and Judy. The shocking finale of "Dead to Me" Season 2 leaves not only the fate of our main characters, but many other burning questions up in the air.
Will Jen and Judy find out Ben caused the car crash?
In the Season 3 teaser trailer, we see that Judy and Jen survive the crash, although the latter is in rough shape. Both are still cracking jokes, so at least they clearly aren't dying. The fallout from the crash, however, will do a lot more damage than just Jen's presumable broken bones. The largest lingering question from the hit-and-run is whether the two will find out that Ben is responsible for their near-death experience.
Whether it's because Ben confesses or Jen and Judy discover the truth by digging, it seems getting to the bottom of the hit-and-run will be a lynchpin of the third season. Surely, this new mystery to dig into will tap into the compulsive duo's need to get themselves into deeper trouble.
A police investigation into the crash will also be stressful for Jen and Judy, as the immediate presence of law enforcement officers will make it more difficult for them to keep the murder they recently committed under wraps. Overall, all signs are pointing to a bunch of attention on the two protagonists, which could very well lead them to crack under pressure.
How does the discovery of Steve's body change everything?
The other major gamechanger in the Season 2 finale is the discovery of Steve's body. The police have spent the entire season searching, and had given up before a hiker and their dog stumbled upon the corpse of Judy's ex-fiancé. Ben receives a phone call with this news, setting off the chain of events that lead to the disastrous crash. Already, this discovery has sent shocking reverberations through "Dead to Me." What else will it shake up?
In short, the discovery of Steve's body changes everything. It puts additional pressure on Jen and Judy to confess, especially since Jen's confession is out there in the wild. With so many loose ends still dangling, Steve's corpse throws a wrench in Jen's plan to start life anew. But of course, these characters cannot fully escape the consequences of their actions. With everything seemingly coming back to bite both Jen and Judy in Season 3, it's safe to say this discovery is anything but good news.
How much does Ben know?
Coming off his bender in the finale, it's unclear exactly how much a sober Ben will be able to piece together. The show doesn't give much insight into his thinking after the phone call confirming Steve's body was found. From here, we just see that he relapses and starts drinking again, leading to the accident. However, viewers are left wondering whether it's an accident or if Ben knows what he's doing.
It's easy to assume that Ben only knows what he was told and the accident was purely a stroke of angry fate. But "Dead to Me" isn't always what it seems, so it's totally plausible that Ben could have figured everything out and was trying to crash his car intentionally, which opens up a whole other can of worms. Regardless of the answer, we are dying to know exactly how much Ben has figured out about what is going on behind his back.
What will Charlie do with the letters?
On top of the car crash, there's another element in the Season 2 finale that shakes up Jen's life, but she doesn't exactly know about it yet.
In "Dead to Me" Season 2, Jen's son Charlie (Sam McCarthy) is often busy being a rebellious teenager — dating girls, wrecking cars, the usual teenager stuff. As the season progresses, he gets increasingly suspicious of his mother's actions to the point where he begins going through her stuff. In the finale, Charlie discovers the letters Jen wrote to Judy and himself confessing to Steve's murder. She also lets it slip here that Judy was responsible for Charlie's dad's death.
What exactly he will do with this evidence is yet to be seen. Charlie is certain to be conflicted over whether or not to turn his mom in to the police and who to tell about the truth. But this revelation will also change his already shaky relationship with Judy. When asked about the scene by Hollywood Life, McCarthy said, "From Charlie's perspective, she already kind of came in and disturbed the peace, for lack of a better word, in that family. So honestly, I don't know if he'll be able to forgive Judy."
Will Detective Perez turn Jen in?
In a big moment in the "Dead to Me" Season 2 finale, Jen realizes the guilt is eating away at her, so she goes to confess her crime to Detective Perez (Diana Maria Riva). She visits the agent's home and admits to killing Steve. While Perez doesn't believe it at first, Jen forces her to drive to the site where she buried Steve in order to prove it. Lo and behold, when they arrive his body is not there. During this trip, the two finally connect and — seeing no evidence that can tie her to the crime — Perez lets Jen go. Once she learns the body was found, however, things are going to become a lot more complicated.
Perez has the most information of anyone outside of Jen and Judy, thanks to Jen's confession. Once she learns about Steve's body, she should be able to put the picture together and know for certain that Jen was telling her the truth. After that, the question becomes what does Perez do with this information? Does she break her promise or break the law?
Will Judy's mother be released from prison?
The subplot with Judy's mother Eleanor (Katey Sagal) is introduced at the tail-end of Season 2, meaning it could be important to the final season. And the only way that can really happen is if Judy's mother winds up released from prison.
In the ninth episode of Season 2, entitled "It's Not You, It's Me", Judy visits her mother in prison and confronts her about her absence and emotional abuse. Eleanor asks her to help her get released, but Judy wants no part of it. Still, the character's presence in these last episodes makes us wonder if Judy will be given reason to change her mind. Or perhaps Eleanor will be released by some other means and come to ruin Judy's life just when she feels like things have finally started to settle down. She may be one of multiple new "Dead to Me" characters that shake up the final season.
What will Judy and Jen do with the money from the paintings?
Jen and Judy are driving Charlie's new Kia home when they crash at the same intersection where Jen's husband Ted was killed. But the only reason they're there in the first place — and are driving the brand-new car — is because of Judy's secret money. We found out why Judy is so insistent about finally getting possession of her paintings back throughout the season. She had stacks of $100 bills hidden in the paintings and in the last episode of Season 2, uses them to pull Jen out of her tough situation and help her rebuild. Out of guilt, Judy feels like she owes it to her.
So after they buy out Jen's mortgage and pick up a new car for Charlie, it can be assumed that there is still some money left. Maybe that will go to paying for Jen's hospital bills and we will be immediately sent back to square one. It would be more interesting if Judy saved this money for an opportune time. Perhaps to make a big escape or pay someone off? Regardless, we have a feeling this extra cash will come in handy for Judy sometime in the upcoming final season.
Will Ben find out who killed his brother?
This question is maybe the biggest black cloud over Jen's illusion of happiness in all of "Dead to Me." It will likely not be answered until the final episodes. Ben and Jen's relationship is built on a lie and while it's already rocky, it could come tumbling to a potentially violent head in Season 3. Will Ben figure out the culprit's identity before he too becomes a victim of the dangerous game Jen and Judy are playing? Finding out the truth or dying trying seems like the only two options in front of him.
Whether or not he finds the answer, this question will drive Ben's motivations and Jen's paranoia for the rest of the series. It may even lead Jen and Judy to have to kill Ben or take actions that lead to his death in some other way. If Ben finds out that Jen killed Steve, it's game over for the future Judy is trying to help build for Jen and her son. We've already seen what these characters are capable of when backed into a corner.
Will we ever see Michelle again?
One of the great episode-ending cliffhangers of "Dead to Me" Season 2 comes at the end of Episode 6, "You Don't Have To," when it's revealed that Judy is dating Detective Perez's roommate and ex-girlfriend. Judy meets Michelle Gutierrez (Natalie Morales) at her job in the episode prior. The two hit it off, but soon Judy realizes pursuing the relationship will jeopardize her safety, as well as Jen's. Ultimately, though, Michelle is the one to break it off in the eighth episode of the season. After this, Morales' character disappears from the show, and we are left wondering if we will ever see her again.
Since Perez is going to be a player in however the end of the show goes down, it's quite possible the break-up isn't the last we will see of Michelle. The ends are too loose, and the relationships are too messy for her to become a total non-factor. Plus, Morales is a big enough name at this point, even compared to two years ago, that it would be smart for Netflix to bring the actress back if they can.