Claws 4×10 Review: “Mercy”

Claws season 4 episode 10, titled ‘Mercy’, served me an enjoyable series finale. While I’m disappointed the series has come to an end, I’m glad about how the character arcs were handled.

Personally, I would have preferred Claws to continue for at least six seasons. But it is what it is. At least the writing team decided to give fans an enjoyable series finale. Desna and her crew got a good ending, especially after how I was worried about the final season possibly killing a couple of the main characters for shock value.

‘Mercy’ had Polly and Dean perform certain tasks for Desna. While the writers explained that Desna was out taking care of something important elsewhere, it was kind of weird to see her interact with her crew over video calls for a majority of the episode. Her interactions made me wonder if Niecy Nash had scheduling conflicts or if something else happened for her to not be on set in person when those particular scenes were filmed. Or were the video calls a deliberate creative choice? Hmmm.

Polly’s all about following Desna’s plan to get the crew out of the city. However, Desna’s plan hit a couple of roadblocks. It made sense for Jenn to not run away and leave her two daughters behind. Even though she knew the cops would be coming after her, she couldn’t help but stay due to the type of mother she was. Jenn was even ready to go to prison. She just wanted to be near her daughters.

I wanted the crew to kidnap the girls and take them with them. And, thankfully, that’s exactly (kind of) what Polly and Virginia helped do once Polly got access to the money that Axel left her. With Jenn getting her daughters back, she was now ready to go with Desna and the rest. However, the plan faced another problem.

I wasn’t expecting the finale to focus on Virginia’s arc involving Georgia’s murder. But I’m glad that it did. Virginia’s been carrying a lot of guilt after murdering Georgia and ‘Mercy’ provided Virginia the opportunity to take some of the weight off her shoulders.

I get that some fans might not have liked seeing her crack under pressure, but as far as my opinion goes, Virginia needed to confess to the cops during the interrogation session. She had to take responsibility for her actions and face the consequences. Even though her crew was able to get her out later, I think Virginia did what was needed to give herself some peace.

One of the biggest plot points in Claws season 4 was the rivalry between Desna and Ann. The two had been doing a lot to ruin each other’s lives. ‘Mercy’ finally gave an answer to what become of Desna and Ann’s relationship.

Remember Desna and Ann’s showdown that was featured in the season 4 premiere? ‘Mercy’ fleshed out that scene to share exactly what happened after Desna shot a pregnant Ann. I knew that something wasn’t right when Ann told DEA agent Lori that Desna was ready to escape the country on a boat. I was also very suspicious of Ann’s motives when she used her phone to share her conversation with Desna with Lori.

It was revealed that the final battle between Ann and Desna was all part of Desna’s plan to distract the DEA agents and make a run for it. I appreciated the writers showing what went into making such an elaborate strategy successful instead of simply having Desna narrate the events to Dean near the end of the episode. I also liked that Desna apologized to Ann for everything she had put her through. The crew’s very important to Desna, and taking her friends for granted had led to a lot of trouble for everyone.

With Desna, Polly, Ann, Virginia, Jenn and Bryce (and their daughters) now living in Cuba, I’m just happy that everyone was able to make it out alive. In a sense, their story isn’t done. I’m already thinking of ways Desna and her crew can get into trouble with shady people in Cuba. But, as always, as long as they all stuck together, there’s nothing they can’t face.

Some other thoughts and questions:

• Polly gifting Ken his own medical clinic was a very nice gesture. They still love each other, but being together wasn’t an option for them.
• Both scenes between Dean and Desna were emotionally charged and well-acted.
• Was it just me, or were you also expecting Roller to make a cameo appearance in the finale? At least, we got a one-sided phone conversation between him and Desna. Sigh!
• Yes, to Ann finally giving birth.

What did you think of ‘Mercy’? Were you satisfied by the Claws series finale?

Let us know.

Author: Farid-ul-Haq

Farid has a Double Masters in Psychology and Biotechnology as well as an M.Phil in Molecular Genetics. He is the author of numerous books including Missing in Somerville, and The Game Master of Somerville. He gives us insight into comics, books, TV shows, anime/manga, video games, and movies.

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