AND SO IT COMES TO PASS.

We have reached The Exorcist S1 Finale and The Surgeons ask ourselves ‘Was the journey worth the wait?”

We’ve given 10 hours of our time to reach the conclusion to the tales of Father Marcus, Father Tomas and The Rance’s”

But was it worth it? Did the Season satisfy our bloody curiosity?

Let’s take a look and dissect Chapter 10 “Three Rooms”.
Warning, there are spoilers ahead.

1. “How far are you willing to take this?“
   The words uttered by Pazuzu to Father Tomas as he challenges him hangs on the lips of every viewer that has stuck it out thus far.
   How far are the writers willing to push the Angela / Regan storyline? And how deep are they willing to go for this final conflict?
   But… first things first? 

2. “I’m dying for Him”
   When the Friars of Ascension challenge Father Marcus devotion to the church by slitting his wrists, they receiving a damning response as he declares his undying passion for the Lord.
   One that cannot be questioned or taken from him, so devoted to the Lord, he is willing to die for Him.
   Oh and did we mention that Father Bennett is still alive? (Although barely)
   And we are gifted with something of a buddy priest moment as our two victims meet again whilst tied up to chairs and bleeding to death.

3. Family meetings can be torture
   Especially if Pazuzu is the one holding the talking stick.
   With arms potentially being pulled from their sockets, kneecaps smashed, and lives threatened, one is reminded of family gatherings at Christmas dinner.
   But one thing that proves trying for our demon on a mission is how blood is thicker than water, no matter how much of it he tries to spill.
   Despite their fractured lives they are willing to stand together until the bitter end. 

4. Father Marcus’ mission
   Freeing himself from the shackles of imprisonment and near death, Father Marcus then ventures off to save the Pope.
   Yes that’s right the Pope.
   But not without first pushing Maria Walters to give herself to the demons.
   Free to then prevent an assassination on the Pope b y preventing Father Simon, who by this point has curiously turned into a warped version of Father Jack from Father Ted, if such a thing were at all possible.
   Once Marcus thwarts the plan by killing Father Simon, all is right in the world, which once again feels a bit of a week effort on the part of the Friars of Ascension.
   They’ve been hatching this plan for a while, only to leave all hope of success in the hands of one priest.
   You’d think they’d go all Agent Smith and duplicate themselves to a frenzy in order to act out there task.
   And what happened to all the possessed homeless folk?

5. “You want me, come and get me”
   On the other side of Chicago, the Rance’s have a battle of their own going on.
   It’s revealed that part of Angela/Regan’s psyche still resides inside her mind as she gains in confidence and with the power and belief in the lord behind her, finally faces up to Pazuzu.
   Meanwhile in the outside world, Father Tomas comes too and in a moment that was somewhat reminiscent of Luke Skywalker’s confrontation before The Emperor where he tells his foe that he is a Jedi.
   Except in this case, Father Tomas declares that he is an Exorcist, before acting out God’s will and using the words of the bible to take on the demon aided by the Rance family who provide a chorus behind him.

EPILOGUE. Three Priests walk into a bar
So Pazuzu is defeated, left as a bloody pulp in the recesses of Angela/Regan’s mind.
Father Tomas, Father Bennett, and Father Marcus collect their thoughts and once again act chummy over a nice cup of char.
If The Exorcist were to have any life beyond Season 1, this relationship is the one to explore.
Hardened Priests forced together to defeat a common enemy in a life that no one else can or will ever understand.
The Rance family meanwhile take up residence in a remote setting to start life afresh, presumably in a house conveniently left by the now deceased grandmother, Chris McNeil.
And we’re left wondering if Angela/Regan really is free of her Demons and as safe as she proclaims.
My final verdict is that it felt a little too easy by the end of it.

So much promise for a final conflict but it was resolved with the bonding of a family and the words of the Lord.

And I guess that therein lies the issue when you have to have a complete narrative to tell within 10 episodes and not knowing if that story could extend further into a second season, plus you are limited by the direction taken within the Exorcist franchise parameter.

This leaves you confined within the parameters and if Season 2 arise, the series needs to be free to break down these walls and get a whole lot darker.

Only then will it be able to soar above and become an entity of its own.

Without that freedom, its wings will be clipped and it will never fly onwards.
– Paul Farrell