We thought we were getting an epic State Championships battle in the season finale, but the struggle was entirely different.
We were all worried about what Mo (Erica Peeples) had planned for Coop (Bre-Z), but I don’t think anyone expected her to shoot her in cold blood. That was, of course, after her original plan failed because Coop was too smart for that.
Coop didn’t kill her brother. She just called him out on his criminal ways. He didn’t deserve to die for what he did, but he definitely deserved to go to prison.
I’m glad that Coop was smart enough to take the drugs out of the bus before leaving. She’s right. Andre (Akono Dixon) doesn’t have a poker face. I knew something was up when he wouldn’t open the boxes or ride on the bus. I guess at least Mo hired someone not capable of pulling it off.
But why did Coop have to confront Mo alone?! Her words were good, but Mo can’t see past her revenge, and her revenge is in the wrong place.
I thought Coop had convinced her for a brief moment, but then Mo lifted the gun once more. Preach (Kareem J. Grimes) came out of nowhere and got Mo, but it was too late to save Coop from getting shot.
She will be okay, right? No articles saying Bre-Z is leaving, so hopefully, she’s okay.
And can we take a moment to ask, is Mo’s kid, Preach’s? And is that even Mo’s daughter? At this point, I wouldn’t put anything past her.
This storyline has been infuriating since it started. I like when writers can make me feel something, even if it’s anger, but I think this storyline was annoying because it was an underlying one. Occasionally we got bits of it, but it wasn’t a main storyline for the season. This story concludes in quite a shocking way. We are left with a massive cliffhanger wondering if Coop will be okay.
We’re also left worrying about Layla (Greta Onieogou). Carrie (Anna Lore) left a suicide note saying she will kill herself and bring Layla with her. I called it. It’s Beverly Hills 90210 all over again.
Dear All American writers, this is not what I meant when I said give Layla her own storyline. You’re going to have us so worried over the break. Layla has such a big heart. She’s always there for her friends. How will this affect her character moving forward?
Meanwhile, the football teams had their own drama, but much less stressful drama.
It all started with Jordan (Michael Evans Behling) telling Asher (Cody Christian) about Spencer (Daniel Ezra) helping him get ready for the game. It seems excellent brotherly help until you realize Spencer was helping with the plays as well.
How did Spencer think his team would react when they found out he was helping Jordan getting ready? And how did Jordan think his team would respond when Spencer helped him with his plays? This was always going to go down badly.
For one thing, this is teens being teens — no one thought this all through. Second, Jordan was desperate to get back on the field, and Spencer wouldn’t let his brother hurt himself.
This game should be interesting when neither team likes each other at the moment. But that is something we’ll have to wait for season four.
Maybe by then, Billy (Taye Diggs) will have learned to chill. He always explodes without hearing all of the details. It was either Spence helping Jordan to keep an eye on him or Jordan possibly hurting himself further. Spencer did the right thing.
And if Billy wasn’t exploding, he might have seen when his daughter was trying to tell him some critical information.
One good thing that happened from this drama was Asher telling coach Montes (Alexandra Barreto) and leading to Ashe creating plays for Jordan and him getting to play in his last State Championships. Ashe had his team and Jordan’s back. He has grown so much.
It breaks my heart that he can never play football again, right after getting his dream. He got into Coastal Califonia. Everything was finally happening for him. I’m nervous about how this will set back his growth next season.
The season finale wasn’t all heartbreak. Both Spencer and Jordan became All Americans! I love that the show title isn’t just reflecting Spence, that his chosen brother also got the same honor.
We also got some Splevia moments to hold on to. Hopefully, we can keep those close to our hearts while we worry about Coop and Layla.
What part of “Surviving the Times” shook you the most? Tweet me @MandyTTCarr or comment below.