In the wake of Succession, Barry‘s final thirty minutes were somewhat muted. There wasn’t exactly a ‘surprise’, but, as always, an original narrative. Barry’s fate was determined long ago and there would be no “escape”. The series criticizes Hollywood for its narcissism which is even more violent than the deaths that multiply and ends exactly as cinema does: it rewrites people’s lives in the best way it finds to sell them.

Barry Berkman was a soldier who becomes a contract killer because his only “talent” in life is killing. Tortuously, it is through theater that he finds an alternative to deal with his guilt and impulses. Stopping being who you are to play someone else. And so we follow the journeys of several people who wanted to be something different, but worse, who never recognized themselves for what they really were.

Barry wanted to be a good person and start his life over with a snap of his fingers, without dealing with the violent path he’s taken. Fuches wanted to be a feared criminal, but he only knew how to manipulate people. Noho Hank wanted to be the biggest drug lord in the Chechen mafia, but he never wanted to get his hands dirty personally. Sally wanted to be a star but always distorts the narrative because she is ashamed of the truth, which reaches her anyway. Gene Cousineau wanted to be recognized as the greatest actor of his generation and he feels wronged, but he has always been unbearable. In the chess game they crossed in Los Angeles, they created a story that Hollywood can’t resist because of the drama and the (lack) of redemption.

Fuches, paradoxically, has the epitaph. As he explains to Noho Hank, when he survived the violence behind bars he finally understood that he was pathetic before and that his heart had no redemption. He wants to confront Barry once more for his denial and destroy him, as Barry is somehow the memory of this “Fuches”. It may be uncertain as Fuches had every chance to change but always chose to destroy Barry.

Noho Hank, who intricately survived his near death in Bolivia, got what he wanted at first but lost what he wanted after he met Cristobal. To maintain the illusion that he had changed, he did change, becoming a criminal, but somehow still a coward. He is the one who kidnaps Sally and John, to bring Barry out of hiding. For a second he admits the truth to Fuches, but he returns to the trap that is his end.

Sally got what she wanted as an actress, but her violent nature leads to her being canceled. Staying behind the scenes isn’t enough for her, so she runs away with Barry and lives unhappily for eight years. When she is confronted with the reality of criminal life, she finally connects with her son, admitting the whole truth: Barry and she are murderers on the run, they are not innocents escaping from bad people.

Unfortunately for Barry, none of this helps him. He doesn’t want to deal with the consequences of his action, he thinks he’s already taken a shortcut provided by religion and just wants to be with his family. Fuches and Noho Hank face each other, thus eliminating the danger for the former soldier. Fuches, who upon seeing John believes that Barry really deserves a chance to get out of that life, releases him and frees himself. The silent farewell between the two is emotional. However, Cousineau is seen as he is not (a dangerous and cold killer) and does not have the strength to rewrite the narrative. He relies on Barry’s confession, who isn’t into it, but is forced by Sally. Unfortunately for everyone, when Cousineau realizes that his own son believes the lie, he “dies” inside. Instead of killing himself, he kills Barry in a rush, turning the lie Hollywood bought into.

With the passage of time, we see that Sally and John are fine and that the film Barry Berkman Story is like several successful productions that place “anti-heroes” as protagonists, inverting values ​​and rewriting tortuous stories into tales of heroism. Cousineau “gave” that to Barry, serving time – literally – for him.

It’s a perfect ending to a series that’s smart, deviously fun, and completely innovative. Barry is a creative gem that must rank as one of the best pieces of content in recent years.

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