Last night’s penultimate episode of A Million Little Things was a very emotional hour that pulled on all of the heart strings. It's hard to watch these characters go through something tough, but that's real life.
After Gary coughed up blood at Katherine and Greta’s wedding, at the hospital he learns that a tumor ruptured blood vessels in one of his lungs and the cancer has spread to the other. He tries a new treatment plan and the show starts fast forwarding a few months until we arrive at Javier’s first birthday party. Gary’s still fighting, but you can see the toll his cancer is having on his life. The makeup team did an incredible job of portraying how the cancer has progressed in Gary’s physical appearance.
Next up is Gary’s appointment with his oncologist and he does not receive the news that he was hoping for. His cancer is no longer responding to treatment and they should be concerned with his comfort and quality of life in whatever time he has left. While heartbreaking, Gary seems to accept the news and thanks his doctor by getting him this far. Maggie refuses to believe this is the end and she attempts to get Gary into a clinical trial in Mexico.
Maggie is successful in getting Gary a spot in the trial and while I don’t think he’s completely onboard, he agrees to go. He later confesses to Rome and Eddie that he’s only going for Maggie and making sure that she doesn’t spend the rest of her life regretting that she didn’t do everything she could to help prolong his life. *cue the tears*
The trial is to last 8 weeks, so the friend group prepares to say goodbye to Gary at the airport. As she’s pushing him in the wheelchair into the airport, Maggie freezes and ultimately comes to her senses and realizes that she can’t take him away to Mexico; Gary needs to be in Boston surrounded by the people who love him most for his final days.
After a visit from the hospice nurse, Maggie breaks down in the hallway and Delilah tries to comfort her. Stemming from their conversation, Maggie realizes what she has to do to make sure their final days aren’t just filled with sadness, but with happy moments too. I was really hoping that this meant Maggie wanted to marry Gary and I was right, but it happened in a more beautiful way than I could have imagined.
Maggie returns home after searching multiple pawn shops with her original engagement ring that Gary pawned to pay for Eddie’s rehab. She proposes to Gary and of course he says yes. They get married in their apartment, surrounded by all of their friends, in a beautiful, yet bittersweet ceremony.
- Katherine learns that Greta froze her eggs and that if Greta wants a kid, she should do it.
- Sophie being there for Maggie and Gary and helping to babysit, clean, and plan Javier’s birthday party warmed my heart. And then her volunteering to go to Mexico with them? She’s just repaying Gary back for everything that he did for her and Danny after Jon died.
- Eddie and Delilah are initially looking at a house over an hour away, but ultimately decide to get a condo in the same building as Gary and Maggie.
- Danny is applying to Harvard and lies about having an admission interview in order to get out of saying goodbye to Gary. Thank goodness, Gary stays in Boston and Danny has a chance to see and hang out with him in whatever time he has left. I absolutely adore their relationship and I’m so glad we got to hear Danny thank Gary for being there for him after his dad died and that Gary would be proud if his son turned out anything like Danny.
- Regina’s city council campaign is still going strong, but she learns that her fundraising totals aren’t what she hoped. She has to cancel an event in order to send Gary off at the airport and Rome seems to be more upset about missing the event than he is to say goodbye to his best friend and this really got on my nerves.
The preview for next week’s finale didn’t include any new scenes and that made me even more nervous than I already am. I think I know how it’s going to end; I just hope it’s done in a beautiful way to honor these characters we have all come to love so much.
Are you prepared for the series finale? I don’t think I am.
