It was an action-packed season finale of Walker, but the first half of the episode wasn’t entirely shocking.
After the realization that Stan was a bad man who was responsible for killing Emily (or, at the very least, his shady actions contributed to her death), the focus was all about proving that for which there was no evidence.
Well, that’s what Stan thought at least. He thought that it would be his word against Cordell’s. And since Cordell was an angry man that was still grieving the loss of his wife and obsessed with finding her killer, he assumed there wouldn’t be any way that karma would ever catch up with him.
In some moments, I thought that Stan might actually be telling the truth about not being involved in her death despite his dealings with the Northside Nation, however, when he sneakily reported that he was taken hostage, it was obvious he had something to hide. Also, it was very clear he was in way over his head since Cordell saw the murdered journalist who was onto something!
Stan essentially put out of a hit on himself by reporting the hostage situation as the goons rolled up to take him out, He knew too much, and, as Walker put it, he became expendable.
Stan definitely didn’t play his cards right.
There were two things Stan severely underestimated — the fact that there was no evidence and Cordell’s reaction.
Auggie stumbled upon the evidence — poker chips belonging to his mother — at exactly the right time.
This was the proof that allowed everyone in the family to immediately believe Cordell rather than question his sanity.
Cordell has also turned over a new leaf. He’s replaced his anger with accountability, and so despite wanting to put a bullet in Stan, he chose the right path and made him tell Emily’s family the truth about what happened that night before turning him in for his due process.
The old Cordell would’ve acted irrationally, but the new and improved Cordell wanted to be there for his family during these trying times; He wanted closure more than anything.
And since Captain James and Micki have had a front seat to Walker’s behavioral changes, they were also more inclined to believe that he was telling the truth about Stan.
I loved that Walker had the support of his loved ones in this. Usuaully, they’re trying to stop him from acting on emotions, but this time, they believed his emotions and validated them.
Micki and Trey went above and beyond to make sure Carlos Mendoza was safe enough to testify, and Captain James told everyone to back down so that Cordell had enough time to complete his plan.
I personally didn’t care if Stan lived or died, but I truly enjoyed watching him face the music by coming face-to-face with the family who was hurt most by his corruption.
The Walker’s have been gravely abused by those they’ve trusted before, but that was nothing compared to the abuse of trust by a man they allowed into their home and to sit at their dinner table was the man that put the bullet in their mother, wife, daughter-in-law, and sister-in-law.
It took incredible restraint not to punch Stan when he confessed to shooting Emily instead of rendering aid.
It was also frustrating to watch because Stan could’ve easily taken down Cali and rescued Emily. He always had the means to fix his messes, but instead, he dug himself a bigger hole.
Emily wasn’t just in the wrong place at the wrong time, she was killed by someone she loved.
It was fitting to wrap up the mystery of her death in the finale… and what a mystery it was, down to the very last moment.
The fact that Stan was shot while being transported for lockup wasn’t even that surprising as he knew too much and had to be taken care of.
At least, that’s what we thought
In an unexpected twist, James informed Micki that Walker was actually the hitman’s target and he was spared thanks to his bulletproof vest.
At this point, there’s a lot of possibilities as to who might have it out for Walker or who might be behind this new crime syndicate.
I always thought that Trevor’s storyline ended a bit too abruptly, and since he was inside the house, it would make sense that he’d be behind the A-inspired lair that was watching the Walker family at any given moment.
Is it not enough that we have Keegan Allen on the show? Now we have to go full Pretty Little Liars?
My other guess was that Bret, Liam’s former fiance, was behind the hood. After all, he has access to the Walker family, and he was all too eager to get back into Liam’s life.
Maybe he’s gotten in with the wrong crowd?
Walker — “Drive” — Image Number: WLK118a_0535r — Pictured (L-R): Alexander Landi as Bret, Keegan Allen as Liam Walker, Mitch Pileggi as Bonham Walker and Molly Hagan as Abeline Walker — Photo: Rebecca Brenneman/The CW — © 2021 The CW Network, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
It would be quite a shame though since I think they make a cute couple and found myself rooting for them to get back together.
With Stan down for the count in critical condition (he deserves it!), Liam is now taking over the DA position, and hopefully, that means less corruption all around.
The small town could use an honest man in office!
With Walker finally getting closure when it came to Emily, I expected some progression on the Cordell and Geri relationship front. I respect that the show didn’t go there just yet as Cordell needs time to heal, and the best way to do that is by being there for his kids, but the romantic in me really wanted a fairytale moment here.
Micki found herself at a crossroads between her personal and professional life.
It only makes sense as the series was painting an image of a woman who was considering starting a family.
We know that Micki is a career woman, and she’s made great strides in becoming the first Latina ranger, so giving that up doesn’t come easily to her. She’s still starting out and has so much potential, especially now that James has offered her an undercover gig to investigate the Del Rio syndicate and find out who may have been targeting Cordell.
Unfortunately, that means that she has to put her plans to have a family with Trey on hold.
Will this break them? Trey seems so supportive that I would hope he’d encourage her to embrace this opportunity.
Micki might also learn from Walker’s mistakes as she has a partner who quite literally put his career before his family multiple times and regretted it in the long run.
There’s no right or wrong answer here, but Micki does have to follow her gut in the same way Cordell has always followed his.
It’s a situation that’s all too common for ambitious and working women in society, so I’m glad a series is tackling it in a relational and honest way.
However, the decision is next season’s problem. For now, the mom brunch was exactly what she needed at the moment. Micki has come such a long way from the series premiere, and I know she’ll make the right decision. She always does.
It was a well-executed season finale that wrapped up one very personal mystery that gave us a glimpse into the very core of Cordell Walker’s being. And in those final moments, the seeds of curiosity were placed that will bring us into next season!
And if the Walker family didn’t endure enough emotional trauma, Bonham decided to tell the kids about his cancer.
They just can’t catch a break!
I started out rather iffy on the reboot, but as the series progressed, I found a spot for myself amidst Walker’s family.
As Geri put it — this family is hard to walk away from.
What did you think of the finale? What are your thoughts on the season?
Let us know in the comments below!