We’ve reached the end of our time in Barry’s Bay for now, with one final episode of Every Year After season 1. As we venture into this conclusion, my heart is heavy for our characters. I’ve come to love them, and now I’m preparing to say goodbye. From learning about Barry’s Bay and all its drama to accepting that time does change everything, we’ve seen Percy, Sam, and Charlie grow.
The big question is, can Sam find a way to forgive Charlie and Percy? For ten years, they kept this big secret from him and punished themselves. Today, Sam is seeing the two people he cares about most in a different light. After every heartbreak and struggle, is there a path forward, or are they done for good?
The three main ones aren’t the only ones with their hearts on the line. Delilah is struggling with the end of her marriage, while Chantal doesn’t know if she wants to marry Drew. Despite everything, Jordie has been there for both of them. Picking up the pieces of Deliah and Chantal’s struggles, while also trying to keep Sam from falling apart. Jordie is truly the MVP of Barry’s Bay.
Before the memorial
As the town sets up Sue’s memorial with special care, Percy imagines Sue sitting next to her in their chairs by the lake. Meanwhile, Charlie strips to his boxers and jumps into the lake after failing to get Sam’s attention. He’s sitting on the dock in the lake, ignoring his brother. Sam mouths off to Charlie about not doing anything he tells him to do, even though they really need to go pick up their mom’s family from the airport. Without trying to reveal how he feels, Sam’s anger shows how hurt he is by yesterday. Nothing happened between Percy and Charlie, but Sam doesn’t believe him. He wishes his brother a good drive to the airport after shoving him into the lake.
Percy tries to comfort Deliah, who doesn’t even want to set up the Tavern for Sue’s memorial. She’s tired of caring while others don’t. Percy does apologize for ghosting Deliah years ago, and Deliah understands. They reminisce about how cool Sue was while Percy decides to set up the Tavern without the guys seeing her. Despite everything, she needs to give Sue the send-off she deserves.
Percy finds a blast from the past and puts it on as she’s setting up the Tavern. Sam comes in looking for Deliah and finds Percy standing in the back with a tiara and pink tutu on. Turns out, it was something Sue wore to show her ridiculous side. It was also the moment Sue admitted she had hated Pieorigies since she was seven. She wanted to make breakfast foods in Sue’s outfit because she wanted to make what Sue would have wanted. Sam convinces Percy to stay because Sue would have wanted her to be at the memorial. She even hangs the disco balls to honor her memories.
Chantal’s worries
Chantal confronts Jordie about the “extra” charges on the motel bill. It clearly turns into her telling him how guilty she feels. Even though they didn’t hook up or kiss, she feels like she cheated on Drew. He assures her she didn’t and that she is not a bad person. But she doesn’t believe him because of how charming he is. He’s easily charming, so it makes it worse. She ends the conversation, requesting a discount on the parking charge.
She runs into Sam on her way back to her motel room. He makes it known that he wasn’t looking to see Percy. Chantal brings her up anyway, telling him a story Percy told her about Sue and their family. It makes Sam smile. She says her condolences and wishes that she could have known Sue.
If I thought Chantal and Sam’s conversation was surprising, his and Jordie’s tops it. Jordie raves about Chantal’s many layers but is down about her being engaged. His crush on Deliah died hard, so there’s no going there anymore. Sam notes that no one in this town makes it to the finish line, and when Deliah did, she ended up alone. After all of this, Sam can’t even see the good in people anymore. In one week, everything he knew went up in smoke.
Percy’s memories of Sue
Sue is shocked that Percy is quitting his job at the Tavern in the summer of 2016. She’s confused about what’s going on with her and Charlie. He just packed up and left early, and now Percy is acting strange. Percy finally tells Sue that Sam broke up with her. Sue convinces her to stay because they run this town now, the boys. Plus, it’s better than being alone in Seattle waiting for Deliah to get back.
As Percy is floating around the Tavern in the present, memories of her and Sue hit her. After she failed to quit her job, she spent the rest of that summer with Sue. They were like two peas in a pod. Cooking in the kitchen, playing pool, and cleaning glasses. Finally, they reach Percy’s last week as Sue is hanging a disco ball from the ceiling with Percy holding the ladder.
Percy learns more about Sue in the quiet moments. Sue tells her she wasn’t always strong or good at being alone. When she first lost her husband, Chris, she fell apart. It hurt the boys in ways that explain why Charlie doesn’t trust easily, and Sam works so hard. Sue encourages Percy to find her way to the surface without Sam by her side because Sue believes in her. Instead of drowning in pain, they dance like no one is watching.
Sue’s memorial
Sue’s memorial is packed to the brim with people and love. Sam opens the ceremony with a heartbreaking speech about Sue not liking pierogies, how she loved a party, and most importantly, how she held tightly to the love of her life. All those wonderful things don’t stop the breakdown. Charlie and Jordie go up to the stage. Charlie hugs Sam and passes him to Jordie. Charlie picks up Sam’s speech on how deeply Sue loved everyone and everything. Charlie: “She was a fighter from the moment she walked down the aisle to our dad to the moment she left this Earth to be with him.”
Sam thanks Charlie for stepping up for him today. Charlie admits he almost texted their mom today to ask how to fix this situation, to fix them. It breaks my heart that Sam admits he sends their mom a text every day wishing she weren't gone forever. Now he’s realizing that she’ll miss out on so much and that their dad missed out on so much, too. Sam leaves their heart-to-heart with them, not having Charlie either.
Percy turns on the disco balls and pulls Chantal onto the dance floor in Sue’s honor. Delilah checks in on Charlie and reminds him he isn’t alone. Jordie joins the girls on the dance floor, and Chantal asks him to dance with her. They are so cute. Percy dances like she used to dance with Sue as she stares at the disco balls spinning above her, lost in memories of better times. Sam stares at Percy longingly like he did on New Year’s Eve 2014. Their eyes meet, and they share a knowing smile.
After that sweet moment, Percy finds Sam outside by his truck. He wasted no time asking why she came back. It mirrors when he came back all those years ago, still thinking about her. She still loves him and always will. Back then, she said goodbye to him when all he wanted was a future with him. She notes that now they have a history of messy goodbyes and thinking they are owed a proper one, so he closes the distance between them.
After all these years, they cross the line like two lovestruck teenagers. They feel so much love for each other, but the pain is too much. Sam can’t forgive her for how much she broke his heart. Although there could be something still between them, it’s too hard to explore past goodbye sex.
Leaving and returning
Chantal and Percy leave Barry’s Bay, and a new story begins in Percy’s head. For the first time in forever, she’s writing as fast as she did as a teenager. As if the story can’t wait to get out. Later on, Percy, Chantal, and Deliah go to a party together because some friendships can be reborn out of ashes. Delilah even kisses someone new while Chantal and Percy cheer her happiness from the other side of the room. Sam makes his rounds at the hospital while Charlie sinks into an ice bath.
Months later, Percy looks happy as she walks back to her apartment. We find out the story she’s reading was published online, and Sam is reading it while at work. After all these years, she still mentions that boy from the past and owes so much to him and their past. But now, she’s grown on her own away from who she once was, and it is beautiful.
Sam sends her a package with the note: “This is as it should be, Persephone - Goddess of this world.” He mailed her the Tavern keys after all this time; memories of the past flash back, lit in a happy glow instead of pain. She’s able to see the joy of Barry’s Bay again.
Percy and Deliah return to the Tavern at the start of another summer. They are getting ready to reopen the Tavern where Percy owns and brought Deliah’s vision to life. Percy has even made peace with not speaking to the guys again, but at least Jordie told them about the reopening. On the writing front, the only thing looming for her new book is her deadline. At least she finally has a publisher! I’m so excited for a fictional character.
I love that they talk about what their crumbled love lives gave them instead of what it took from them. It gave them a foundation to build a better life and learn what they deserve. They don’t need a love interest to make their lives matter.
Jordie comes in to offer his services, and Chantal realizes she left her purse in his car. She came up a day early to hang out with him, leading Percy to reveal that Chantal has hooked up a few times with Jordie. Now, their situation seems like more than hookups. She’s exploring what could be. Barry’s Bay affected them all for the better.
Meanwhile, Charlie came to work on a Saturday and ended up in a meaningful conversation with his coworker. He steps into the office and notices a photo on the wall. It turns out it's from summer 2016 when he, Sam, and Percy took his dad’s boat on the lake. His coworker’s wife bought it at a gallery years ago as a reminder of why they work so hard. They want to strive for happy moments like that day on the lake.
The Tavern’s reopening is packed to the brim. Percy, Delilah, Chantal, and Jordie cheer for the girls for making all of this happen. But most importantly, to Sue, who made it all possible. Delilah goes to take care of a teaching moment while Percy sets up a tab for their friends before she goes to mingle. Jordie tells Chantal he wants more; he wants to go beyond just chilling. She agrees to be more with him, sealing it with a kiss.
After closing, Sam finally emerges as Percy is washing dishes. Very on brand for them, I might add. The smile they share is filled with so much joy. He returned home and came to see her. Things don’t end as happily for Charlie. While staring at the photo again, he starts having a panic attack and falls to the floor. We’re left wondering if he’s okay and if someone gets to him in time.
Stream all episodes of Every Year After on Prime Video now.
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