Editor’s Note: The following contains spoilers for Adults Season 1.
FX’sAdultswas released last week, and it quickly unraveled as a worthy addition tothe friend group comedy genre. Created byRebecca ShawandBen Kronengold, the show encapsulates an ever-evolving Gen Z friendship.Adultstells the story of Samir (Malik Elassal), Billie (Lucy Freyer), Issa (Amita Rao), and Anton (Owen Thiele) as they struggle to survive while trying to enjoy their grown-up life. By adding the hilariously charming Paul Baker (Jack Innanen), Issa’s boyfriend, into their dynamic, the show makes us feel like we’ve known these people all along, making us part of the approval request for him to join the house.
With the eight-episode first season released in its entirety on the same day,Adultsmakes for a great binge-watch. The comings and goings of these friends reveal agenuine struggle that Generation Z is now facing– being adults in a hostile world, where they are their only refuge. It all comes to a final blow of reality when one of them is faced with the prospect of deportation. The season finale shows how far they’ve come together, paving the way for what may come in the future.
The ‘Adults’ Season Finale Recaps Several Important Bits of Season 1
Being a young adult nowadays involves evading several (or most) responsibilities to avoid being eaten away by anxiety. One of these is referenced directly in the aptly titled season finale, “The Mail,” where the friend group has to deal with opening the letters that have been piling up in their mailbox. SinceAdultsfollows a season-long arc for each of the five, the letters serve as a clever recap of the season before the grand finale. Samir discovers his parents have been sending postcards from their trips, as a reminder that their absence allows all of them to live in their house without paying rent.
Anton’s hilariously terrifying storyline – in which he was hanging out with a serial killer – is revisited when he remembers he’s been exchanging letters with the Bayside Stabber. Billie opens a hospital bill that recaps how her medical exams, amounting to 15,000 dollars, were originally expected to leave her bankrupt. Reducing it to 2,200 dollars thanks toher ex-teacher/ex-boyfriend’s help, she’s now debt-free.But it’s the softest of softboys, Paul Baker, who receives dire news. With his visa expiring soon, he risks being deported back to Canada.
A Hidden Part of Issa’s Life is Let Out in the ‘Adults’ Season Finale
Since Episode 1, Issa had been insisting on having Paul Baker move in with the four of them. The topic was just another of the many adult decisions that the group postponed because of… well, reasons. Halfway through the season, he finally joins the house dynamic. Thus, after receiving the news of his possible deportation, Issa’s immediate reaction is to propose. It all seems to be solved, except for one tiny little detail that was kept from Paul Baker (and us) – Issa is already married.
A side plot of the episode involves Anton and Samir being tasked by Issa to get her husband,Julian Manjerico’s outrageous Zack-Carlos, to sign their divorce papers. After meeting Zack-Carlos for the first time, we don’t need an explanation as to why Issa can’t ask him for a divorce herself – he’s just a pain in the butt. A two-day negotiation takes place, since Zack-Carlos denies the signature in retaliation for their never accepting him into the house. Anton plays mind games with him by telling him it’s a shame he’ll never get to meet Paul Baker and his charm. Sincehe’s a victim of FOMO,Zack-Carlos agrees to sign in exchange for the possibility of a friendship with Paul Baker.
Things Get Spicy During the ‘Adults’ Season Finale
During Issa and Paul Baker’s bachelor and bachelorette parties, Anton is seen getting a free martini from a bartender, finally regaining his confidence after it’s implied that his last relationship devastated him. A tender exchange between him and Paul Baker hints at how their friendship has helped Anton achieve this. While it has also taken them to the point where they implicitly understand each other. Anton knows Paul Baker isn’t ready to get married, but he also doesn’t want to disappoint Issa and the rest of the gang.
The same night, a recently single Billie is seen warming up to a couple. Allison (D’Arcy Carden) and Brian (John Reynolds) are a married couple in crisis, in which the former wants to spice things up and the latter wants to settle down and have kids.Billie selfishly-but-deservedly sees for herselfand tells Brian to suck it up and make love to both of them. Resulting inher first threesomeand another UTI, Billie is apparently taking over Issa’s place as the sex-positive friend now that she’s getting married.
“There’s a Lot More to Mine”: ‘Adults’ Creators Want Season 2 of the Rotten Tomatoes Certified Fresh Comedy Series
Shaw and Kronengold tease more chaos, romance, and friendship drama as fans await news of Season 2.
The Season Finale Moves Issa and Paul Baker’s Relationship in Unexpected Ways
Issa is a free-spirited woman who thinks marriage is a construct, so she takes it lightly when proposing. She even tries lying her way – by saying they’ve consummated marriage in her mouth, rarely in her bottom – into having a priest marry them. Rejected by the priest, they’re set to be married legally only. But, after facing the possibility of a life together with Paul Baker, she gets cold feet. Since Samir, Billie, and Anton already feel a deep bond with him, they all offer to marry him instead. It’s not until the episode’s last minutes that the final reveal takes place – Anton is the one who ends up marrying Paul Baker.
For the whole season, all of them kept half-jokingly mentioning how Paul Baker was fluid, when in fact he identifies as cis and straight. But several of theprevious interactions between Anton and Paul Baker unraveled an off-the-charts and undeniable chemistry between the pair. That’s why, when they’re pushed to share a kiss, it feels anything but fake. Everyone awkwardly notices this, so Samir tries to divert their attention by getting them to watch a movie, reverting his initial role as a jobless mess to the stable presence of the group.Adults’ cliffhanger hints ata potential drama for the five friends. Whether this kiss will strengthen them or disband them remains to be seen in a yet-to-be-confirmed second season.
