Before DTF St Louis was released, the trailer made it clear that solving the death of Floyd Smernitch was the theme of the show. However, as the series continued, viewers learned that there was more to this than just a murder. The theme of the show has been "No one’s normal, it just looks that way from across the street." And, as things go on, you understand how true that is.
With all of that being said, you’re not reading this for the recap of what happened before the finale. You want to know who killed Floyd and why. Sadly, before I tell you who killed Floyd, some things need to be explained.
There are spoilers for the DTF St. Louis finale ahead!
Carol didn't kill Floyd
The series finale of DTF St. Louis begins with Jodie Plumb (Joy Sunday) and Donoghue Homer (Richard Jenkins) continuing their interrogation of Clark Forrest. This is when they learn that the person paid to be Tiger Tiger had a meet-up with none other than Floyd’s first date, Modern Love. While Donoghue interviews Modern Love (Peters Sarsgaard), Jodie talks to Carol Love-Smernitch (Linda Cardellini). Their individual conversations led them to Stephen Queece (Carol’s coworker as an umpire) and Kevin Van Der Lonse (the fake Tiger Tiger).
The important part of this is Queece saying that he saw Carol sleeping on the couch when Floyd died. That clears her of the murder, but that means the only other person who could have killed him is Clark. Not only does Clark have the three-wheeled bike, but he was at the pool, and he told Floyd to meet him there. But, as the flashback shows, Clark and Floyd had a great time and shared their feelings.
As this is going on, Richard Smernitch is at home and about to check off his daily routines. That's when he sees that Floyd has a DTF St. Louis profile. That leads him to go outside and break a window. Because of this outburst, he takes him to a hospital. Later, as Carol slept, Richard went to the pool on Floyd’s three-wheeled bike to confront his stepdad. That's where he sees Floyd and Clark dancing in their underwear (the plot thickens).
Who killed Floyd?
This isn’t the first time Richard has reacted violently to something Floyd did. When Floyd decides to sign professionally as a career, Carol is furious. Later that night, Richard goes into their room with a baseball bat and hits Floyd where it hurts because he hurt his mom.
This doesn’t just explain Floyd's Peyronie's disease. It also gives Detectives Jodie Plumb and Donoghue Homer a reason to look at Richard as the killer.
At the end of the episode, it’s revealed to the detectives and Carol that Richard rides away after saying horrible things to Floyd. As Richard leaves, he thinks Floyd gives him the American Sign that means "rock on." After that, Floyd drinks the can of Bloody Mary with the Amphezyne in it. So, Floyd wasn’t murdered. He killed himself.
The heartbreak doesn't stop there. After Richard shows the detectives and Carol the sign Floyd made, his mother tells him that it wasn’t “rock on,” it was, “I love you." You can see the hurt in Richard’s eyes as he seems to understand that, even after all of the awful things he said to him in that moment, Floyd’s last words were “I love you.”
Before the scene ends, Ricchard goes to the bench where Floyd does his stepfather's daily gymnastic routine. He even quotes Floyd saying, “If you start doing it every day, then you could do it every day.”
It seems that he understands that Floyd loved him and that he will continue to try and will try to be a better person. Even in death, Floyd showed that being a good person is contagious.
The entire season of HBO’s DTF St. Louis is now available on HBO and HBO Max. If you need explanations on the previous episodes, check out all seven recaps on Show Snob.