Citadel: Diana season 1 finale recap and review: "Jupiter"

Things come to a head in the Citadel: Diana season 1 finale. We see Edo focus on total power, and Diana make a decision about her future.

Caution: This post contains SPOILERS from the Citadel: Diana season 1 finale.

The episode starts with a flashback of Diana sharing an update with Citadel after the attack on Citadel Italy HQ. We see the hopelessness for Diana as she realizes that there is nobody else out there. Gabriele sent her one of those “if you’re hearing this, I’m dead” messages, and nobody else responds to her message out. After being orphaned in the plane crash, she’s now orphaned from Citadel and in the belly of the beast that is Manticore.

The flashbacks do get a little annoying in this episode. We already know everything Diana is sharing with Citadel. Sure, it’s great to see that she has always remained loyal to Citadel, but we’ve been able to gather that all season.

Of course, this is the finale. That means things come to a head, decisions are made, and there’s a hint of a storyline to come if Citadel: Diana is renewed for season 2.

Picking up a month later in Citadel: Diana season 1, episode 6

When we head back to the present day, we actually pick up a month after the events in the previous episode. Diana has started her normal life with her sister, and she’s even shared some of her secrets. However, once you get a taste of action, it’s always difficult to just live a normal, quiet life.

It’s not the full truth, though. Diana has given the part of the story that Sara needed to hear. Diana managed to get justice for her parents. It’s enough to bring this chapter of the story to a close. Diana and Sara are able to move forward as Sara and her family get out of Italy for a new start in Iceland, which was something mentioned right at the start of the series.

Diana decides that she doesn’t want this quiet life she though, and she goes back to Edo. She wants to be with him. Naturally, Ettore isn’t convinced that Diana is back for Edo. He’s sure that Diana is up to something else. So, it’s not surprising that after Edo gives Ettore the code to Jupiter, after upgrading it, Ettore orders Matteo to kill Diana. Ettore’s defense is that this is the best thing for Edo. Edo’s vision is clouded by his interest in Diana.

Jupiter’s true purpose is revealed

Meanwhile, Manticore Italy starts to call more of the shots. Ettore and Edo have teamed up as the head of the family. They believe that Manticore Europe’s future is the weapon, which is called Jupiter.

Now we learn more about what this weapon is actually designed to do. It will place microscopic technology into citizens around the world. Manticore will be able to track everyone. They can guarantee peace and prosperity, but at what cost? What does this mean for free will and privacy?

More importantly, what about life? Ettore and Manticore as a whole would be able to choose life and death. This is the upgrade that Edo put into the weapon. Why would Edo do something like this? At one point Ettore tells Edo that Edo now has real power and needs to figure out what that means. Well, he has figured it out.

Edo takes steps that Citadel: Diana has teased from the start

When Edo learns that Matteo is sent to kill Diana, it’s too late for Edo to really stop that from happening. That leads to a final fight between Matteo and Diana. It’s a showdown that we’ve needed all season without fully realizing. We get a chance to see how the head of security and Diana match up in a fight.

Edo also reveals his secret. He managed to inject his own father with Jupiter. With the kill switch and all! Edo uses the kill switch, much to Ettore’s surprise. We see just how far Edo is willing to go to protect Diana. It cements the idea that Edo and Diana are in love with each other. They want to be together, but the world is stacked against them.

The big twist in Citadel: Diana’s finale

As we see Diana take out other Manticore agents, we learn that she isn’t alone. There’s always a big twist at the end of spy drama seasons, and Citadel: Diana brings one that is too cliché to really enjoy. Gabriele has been alive this whole time. He’s managed to track Diana down and save her from the Manticore agents.

After all this time, Diana learns that she is not the lone Citadel wolf acting alone. Her trainer is there, and now her loyalties will be divided once more. When Gabriele told Diana to “remember” that Citadel were the good guys, I knew that it would come up at some point. I thought maybe it would be something Diana would learn while working within Manticore just to bring us something different. Instead, it’s linked to her love story with Edo, which is a classic spy cliché.

Should Citadel: Diana get renewed for a second season, it’s clear that Diana’s divide between Citadel and Edo is going to be the driving force. This does lead to a few storylines left in the air from the first season to come up, such as getting the Citadel agent back from Manticore Italy’s prison cells and Diana’s secret that she killed Enrico coming out.

The Citadel: Diana season 1 finale did fall flat. After an action-packed season filled with twists and turns, everything about this finale was predictable and cliché. It could have been shortened and combined into the previous two episodes, which is disappointing considering how much I enjoyed this first season.

Citadel: Diana is available to stream on Prime Video.