Into the Badlands - Hand of Five Poisons - Season Finale Review

The Into the Badlands finale was an explosive one, but surprisingly there was no resolution and no shocking deaths at all, surprising due to the number of characters filling up the cast. In essence, the finale acted as more of a setup for next season.

Two women in this cast who had been two of the weaker characters in this series saw their character arcs take an interesting turn. I expected Veil to be written off in this episode as all she had been doing this season was waiting around for Sunny. Instead we got some interesting development with her character. The Widow abducted Veil for help to heal the wounds she suffered at the hands of Sunny. Once in the abode of the enemy, the doctor showed some cunning skills to ensure her survival with the two poisons and one potion bit, as well as taking initiative to try to influence Tilda to poison her own mother. Sunny's lover is a lot stronger, smarter and brutal than she seems. Unfortunately, we will have to wait until next season to see which liquid Tilda chooses, she is certainly tempted to pick the poison.

We also saw Lydia get exiled due to being blamed by Jade who poisoned herself. With nowhere to go she ends up begging her father for help. Lydia now seems to be on a path of redemption after initiating herself with her father's group. The ritual by the way was kind of humorous with the disciples in the back doing stiff robotic dances. I don't know if that was intentional, but I got a good kick out of that ritual.

Another interesting setup for next season included the mysterious Abbots. We do not know who they are or what their intentions are, just that they are monks with the same darkness that M.K. has within them, albeit controlled and used at their will. The Widow also reveals she once had the same powers, a very intriguing revelation. How was she able to get rid of it?

The Abbots eventually duel Sunny, which made for a well choreographed and beautiful fight scene.

Coming out of this episode the one big question is whether Quinn is alive or not? It seems he survived the wound that Sunny inflicted - no body, no death. Quinn's character was a little over the top and his character got tiresome quickly. If he did survive hopefully there'll be some subtlety with his character.

Lastly, was Waldo. I was expecting the former clipper to become that old mentor who dies noble kind of character, but it was quite the twist to find out that he was working for the Widow. This did not even cross my mind. Waldo did mention in prior episodes about how it is all about survival for him and it makes sense he would switch sides as the Widow's power and influence is ever growing.

The finale ends with our two main protagonists in captivity - M.K. in the hands of the Abbots and Sunny kidnapped by The River King who was angry at the fact he was lied too.

Overall, this season felt way too short. I did not feel that invested in any of these characters until the last couple of episodes and now all of a sudden it is over. Into the Badlands has proven itself a legitimate martial arts show with dazzling fight sequences every episode. Next season they need to prove this show can be a great character drama as well. They had definitely shown flashes of that in these closing episodes.

What did you guys think? Impressed by the first season? Leave your thoughts below!

About the Author - Kollin Lore

Kollin is an entertainment writer and a film and television, in particular genre TV, freak having grown up during the 90s and early 2000s a dedicated fan of Buffy and Angel. Current shows like Person of Interest, Supernatural, Ripper Street, Penny Dreadful, Grimm, The Blacklist, Game of Thrones, and dozens of other shows are currently occupying Kollin’s nightly hours. His reviews for Into the Badlands and The Expanse will be coming this fall!

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