I Was Satisfied By Melissa’s Emotional Journey, But The Final Twists Were Too Rushed To Set Up Season 2

Warning! Spoilers ahead for Happy Face episode 8, “The Star!”

The final episode of Happy Face, “The Star,” answers many questions and even poses some new ones, but the final twist doesn’t have the shock factor necessary to drive home the point of the show​​​​​​. “The Star” is emblematic of the pacing problems that have plagued Happy Face since its first episode. A lot happens throughout the episode’s runtime, but it all happens too quickly and too easily, lessening the impact when Melissa gets her win and solves Heather’s murder. There are moments of tension, but even these are rushed through so Happy Face can finish telling the whole story.

Happy Face episode 7 was arguably the emotional climax of the season, as this was when Melissa let go of her delusions about who Keith was and opened her eyes to the fact that he was never Heather’s killer. This allows “The Star” to focus almost entirely on revealing who murdered Heather and how the events of that night played out. However, the episode proved to me that Heather’s story was compelling because we cared about what happened to Elijah. We never got to know Heather enough to make these last-minute revelations hit home.

The Happy Face Finale Speeds Through The Action & Answers It’s Been Teasing Since The Beginning

With So Much Ground To Cover, Happy Face Can’t Take Its Time In “The Star”

We get no glimpses of Elijah or his sister, Joyce, which makes sense since their part of the story was finished. However, the fact that we already got the win of Elijah’s release in the previous episodes ultimately lessened the impact of “The Star.” There have already been too many climaxes and twists to make the moment when Heather’s killer confesses mean much. It’s interesting and satisfying to know what really happened finally, but the turn came out of left field. Happy Face didn’t set up the reveal properly, so it felt random rather than intriguing.

However, Melissa proves her strength as an investigator and person during the scene when the killer confesses. The episode is largely about Melissa, and compared to where we started at the beginning of the season, a lot has changed. However, Happy Face is quick to draw extra attention to the lines of dialogue where the point of the show and the underlying themes are made explicit. It doesn’t trust the audience to understand the journey, so the series points out the deeper messages with a heavy hand, disregarding the nuance.

There’s a moment like this between Melissa and Hazel toward the end of the episode, as it seems all is forgiven, even though Hazel has been harboring the scary drawings that weren’t mentioned again. However, the heart-to-heart between Melissa and Hazel was a high note for Happy Face episode 8, as it’s a touching moment between mother and daughter. It would have been more dramatically interesting if Happy Face had pushed Hazel further and made her cross a line, but I’ll settle for a family reunion, as the characters deserve a break at this point.

The timing of Keith’s heart attack and his neat explanations about why he fabricated evidence and tortured his daughter for so long weren’t overly satisfying. His final interaction with Melissa wasn’t that different from all the other meetings they’ve had throughout the season, though Melissa seems serious about leaving him behind for good. However, Happy Face contradicts itself in “The Star,” as it sets Melissa up to never think about Keith again, while giving him a foothold to worm his way back in.

Happy Face Leaves Breadcrumbs For An Uncertain Season 2

There Are Opportunities For Additional Plots, But Emotionally, Happy Face Has Reached Its Peak

As soon as Melissa leaves Keith’s hospital room, the relief radiates off her, and there’s no question that she’s completely done with her father and their relationship. This is where the show needed to end for Melissa, but Happy Face can’t help paving the way for a potential second season. Somehow, Keith pieces together that it was Ben who attempted to put an ill-advised hit on him, and we’re supposed to understand that this, coupled with Melissa’s new job as a full-time producer, will propel Happy Face season 2 if the series is renewed.

However, there’s nowhere else for Melissa to go emotionally. If Happy Face plans to focus on Ben in season 2, it hasn’t crafted a sympathetic character, as I’m more frustrated by his actions than I am understanding of his reasons. While the series would’ve been better off just leaving this plot point out, it didn’t detract too heavily from the season’s denouement and Melissa’s teased career as a true crime journalist. Though Happy Face hinted that it would deconstruct the true crime genre, the final episode proves that it’s simply adhered to it.