Star: Season 3, Episode 18 “When The Levee Breaks” [Season Finale] – Recap, Review (with Spoilers)

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What is a Star season finale without wiping out characters whose storyline weren’t going anywhere and cliffhangers for the main cast?

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Network
Fox
Director(s)	Bille Woodruff
Writer(s)	Karen Gist, Kimberly Ann Harrison
Air Date	5/8/2019

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A Custody Battle: Dianne, Noah, Carlotta, Simone, Star

Star isn’t one to be all talk and not about that action. Case in point, despite all Simone and Carlotta say, she begins the process to put Davis into the system. Mind you, a system which didn’t do her any good, but I guess she thinks Davis’ luck will be better than hers and Simone’s. Because that makes sense.

Yet, despite the possibility of him growing up in an abusive home, she strips Noah of his rights and notes in court she isn’t financially able to be Davis’ parent. However, despite all Star does, what she doesn’t physically do is hand Davis off to a social worker or anyone who could find him a forever family. So there might be hope yet. Which, depending on how you interpret the ending of the episode, Dianne might have stepped in to make sure that doesn’t happen.

ASA Controversy: Jackson, Star, Lil’ Dini, Amber

The ASAs, after being built up to for a long time, well they come and go. Lil’ Dini makes it seem Take 3 won, but then we’re told Amber did. However, Jackson shows up and tells Star that Amber cut a deal with the judges for royalty money, since that makes sense, and Take 3 won – and for some reason they allowed him to bring the statue to her.

Yeah, none of it makes sense, but this gesture sets up Jackson getting to watch Davis as Star rushes to Alex’s wedding.

A Red Wedding: Noah, Star, Angel, Mateo, Carlotta, Derek, Miss Ruby, Cassie, Simone, Alex, Rashad

Fans of Star know that it is rare for characters just to leave as Ayanna and Nina did. Most of the time, they get killed off. Such is the case for Miss Ruby, who is killed by the gang Cassie used to work with. Also, during Derek and Alex’s reception, Cassie gets shot, as well as Angel and Mateo, and we’re left, like last season, wondering who is coming back for the next one?

In the case of Angel and Simone, Angel walked in during Simone’s reception speech which made it seem she would try harder to understand and listen to his fears. Cassie getting shot comes after her trying to make it so Rashad and Carlotta, be it as cousins or a mom and son, had some kind of relationship. Mateo, noting Carlotta maybe getting her new boo thing to invest in Gravity Media, he was about to hand over the company to her. Then with Miss Ruby, after her disappearing for a while, her getting shot up, in the most graphic way I’ve ever seen on network TV, not only seemed like overkill but unnecessary.

And to put some icing on things, with a brush with death, and Noah saving her life, this leads Star to rethink giving Davis up but with Jackson knocked out and the baby gone, who knows where Davis is now.

Question(s) Left Unanswered

1. Who was the person Star wanted to watch Davis while she was at the wedding? Everyone who she’d usually get was going to the event.
2. Who runs the salon considering Miss Bruce works for Gravity Media and Carlotta manages the place? Also, with Cotton working at Cassie’s, is some random person just in Carlotta’s house all day?
3. How Olivia get out of the hospital so fast? She tried to kidnap someone, shouldn’t she have been away for much longer?
4. Considering how country Derek’s family is supposed to be, you telling me not one of them stayed at the house to save money on a hotel? One didn’t stay behind to make sure Aunt, Grandma, etc Ruby got to the wedding or reception? Much less, no one hanged out with Derek through the night so Olivia couldn’t rape him? My “country” cousins are in the Carolinas so, do they do things differently in Georgia?
5. Why does Carlotta not believe in paying security? After everything that has happened in the second half, you’d think that would be the one expense she would not let go.
6. If Mateo was so willing to let Gravity Media go if Carlotta got an investor, why not tell her that weeks, if not months ago? Especially after his wife left.
7. Did Jackson break up with Amber? That is the only reason why, in my mind, he’d personally deliver Star the ASA and not have those who handle the event do it.

Other Noteworthy Facts & Moments

• According to Alex and Carlotta, it has been, in the show’s world, three years since everyone moved to Atlanta.
• Bobby has cancer.

Highlights

It Really Was A Beautiful Wedding

Just for the sake of saying something nice, Alex really did look good in her wedding dress. The rest of the wedding made no sense, like prepping for Derek’s country cousins yet we didn’t hear the name of one of them but let’s not pretend Derek isn’t just eye candy at this point.

Low Point

Death Threats Are So Routine Now They Don’t Feel “Special”

Star is a drama. One which consistently relies on an almost Game of Thrones type of method to keeping things interesting. For nearly every season, Alex’s life has been threatened one way or another. Simone’s was last year when we didn’t know which plane she was on. Somebody is always getting shot because of some gang mess. And what makes that so weird is because we’re pushed to believe Take 3 and Carlotta are becoming more successful, getting bags, yet still are incredibly vulnerable.

Not just because of family either, but take note of Charlene being able to walk up on Star in the hospital, Alex’s wedding, even if her family isn’t financing it, really having it where a bunch of random ass thugs can shoot it up. At this point, it is hard to not become numb to death on this show since it isn’t even used to flesh out how things are in Atlanta. After all, unlike shows like Queen Sugar or The Chi, Atlanta’s culture and it being the show’s location isn’t fleshed out. So we’re just left to feel like killing people off is the easiest way for writers to both eliminate a character and create shock value.

The Death of Miss Ruby

As noted below, I appreciate the show routinely cutting the fat when it comes to the cast. Particularly because a lot of characters don’t really add much to the show’s core cast members’ development. Yet, when it comes to Miss Ruby, the way she was written off was hateful. Not only was she raped earlier this season, but she got executed in the finale in such a way I’m surprised it was on network TV. The amount of bullets which hit her, how they had the actress play that out, it made for an epic end to her but also an unnecessary one. The kind which makes you question who hated this minor character so much she had to be disposed of like that? Especially as she was just coming to a good place in her life?

Though, let’s face it, anytime a character’s life is getting on track, that’s usually when they get killed off.

Amber Drake

When it seemed like Amber’s management were evil but she was nice, I felt like you could get into the character. However, between the shoulder bump and her somehow rigging the ASAs in her favor, I need her to become forgotten like Derek’s documentary friend from season 2. Like, just throw the whole character away.

Olivia’s Return

From likely raping Derek to popping up at Alex’s wedding, all I can ask is: why?

On The Fence

As Usual, The Show Cleaned Up Shop

One of the things I’ve always liked about Star is that it isn’t above writing off characters when the writers are no longer invested. Unfortunately, particularly for Simone, this has meant anyone who has come into her life only lasts for a reason or season, but they do trigger her to grow so them coming and going is a divisive thing. I mean, walking down memory lane, Karen introduced Simone to the idea of romance which wasn’t sexual and violent towards her. Ayanna was a maternal figure who, like Mary, was messed up, but at least Simone could say she had memories of her. Nina, as short-lived as that was, reminded Simone that she is either bi or pan-sexual and there is a certain comfort with women she may never have with men.

Then there is Angel. It isn’t clear if he is dead or not but, like Derek, all that he was before getting involved with his wife, got erased. It isn’t until this episode we see Angel work on music and considering the situation with Jahil, his mom, being undocumented, Carlotta owning a music company, and his and Simone’s duets being cute, there were so many reasons he should have released more music. Heck, considering Jahil stole from him a few times, the fact neither Star nor Alex looked to him to produce something seems weird. Never mind, considering Simone surely isn’t making the most money, and Angel didn’t seem like he wanted to be a deadbeat, you have to be surprised he wasn’t trying to make some money. Be it before his deportation or after being given sanctuary.

But allow me to digress, his death has been overdue so that Simone can reach a new level and hopefully find a nice woman to settle down with. Since, again, let’s be real, Simone’s relationships with women may not have been as long as what she had with Angel, but they were cuter.

As for the rest of the deaths? Miss Ruby dying made sense since, with Carlotta stepping up in Alex’s life, what place did Miss Ruby had? All that bonding which came after Alex’s plane crash, Miss Ruby’s assault, that went to the wayside. Also, Miss Bruce took on the role as the primary, if not sole, comic relief on the show since Cotton got downgraded again and Star’s coma created a bit of a vacuum. Plus, while I don’t fully understand the concept of “fridging” a character, I do think Miss Ruby’s death will be used to boost Derek back into a position where he isn’t just Alex’s husband. Which is a damn shame it’ll take that, but considering how his character just became eye candy after a while, I’m sure his actor will be happy.

Moving to Cassie, I mean, after a certain point, a character who comes in to stir the pot, create drama, eventually has to be written off. She killed Jahil, ran off Andy, coerced Carlotta to learn about Rashad, killed Calvin, played a part in Cotton’s son being kidnapped, and so much more. All of which took away from the core of what this show is about: Three girls trying to make it in the music industry and their mentor trying to live vicariously and step in for a friend who she wasn’t there for when she needed her the most.

Which is the best thing about how Star handles disposing characters. Usually, death and dismissal is all about bringing things back to the core. For this show loves the drama but usually, by the mid-season and season finale, it sobers up and tries to redirect this sometimes runaway train.

Rashad

Likely Rashad is going to continue in season 4, and I must admit I’m kind of iffy about that. On the one hand, I like when this show does gospel music, and with him being a gospel artist, that means we’ll get a bit more church in the show. Which also could mean Carlotta, maybe even Simone, heading back to church and that facet of their lives regaining prominence – since you know both could use some Jesus.

However, it consistently is a mistake to think of the best scenario when it comes to Star for while it can surprise you in moments, in storylines it often doesn’t.

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