The first season of Amazon Prime Video‘s action-comedy series Mr. & Mrs. Smith starred Donald Glover and Maya Erskine as married couple John and Jane Smith, who are secretly highly-skilled assassins working for a mysterious agency.
Mr. & Mrs. Smith Season 1 on Amazon Prime Video left us with more questions than answers in the finale. Episode 8 tears apart the forced union of two spies after a somewhat convoluted, but humorous trip. Annoyed, Jane (Maya Erskine) and John (Donald Glover) Smith have decided to part ways. As the story unfolds, viewers begin to wonder what will happen to the main characters.
Also Read: Mr. & Mrs. Smith Season 1 Review
Do John and Jane Survive the Explosive Season 1 Finale?
The Mr. & Mrs. Smith season 1 finale titled “A Breakup” culminates with the Smiths’ marriage and lives falling apart in epic fashion. After a huge argument and attempted murder of each other, John and Jane call quits on their tumultuous relationship.
Just when it seems they have found closure, the sinister “Extremely High Risk” assassin couple Jasper and Emma (Wagner Moura and Parker Posey) arrive to “finalize” the Smiths on their boss HiHi’s orders. This leads to an intense shootout inside John and Jane’s brownstone home.
John takes a bullet while fleeing to their safe room. With only one bullet left and John bleeding out, Jane heads out to confront Posey’s Mrs. Smith waiting outside. The episode ends on a cliffhanger with the sound of gunshots, leaving the fate of both Smiths uncertain.
Showrunner Francesca Sloane intentionally left things open-ended to allow for a potential season 2 renewal. The ambiguous ending sparks debate about whether John and Jane survived against the rival assassins.
Optimists would hope Erskine’s Jane succeeded in killing Posey’s Mrs. Smith. However, the High-Risk Smiths were touted as the best assassins around. Taking them down likely wouldn’t be straightforward, even with Moura’s Mr. Smith partially blinded. The finale’s tense closing moments leave viewers questioning if the lead duo will live to spy another day.
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Why Did The Rival Assassin Couple Target The Smiths?
The Mr. and Mrs. Smith series operated independently from the 2005 movie, with the fresh take adding more killer couples working for the mysterious company known only as The Firm.
In episode 4, John and Jane befriend fellow assassins Jasper and Emma Smith, not realizing they are the ruthless “Extremely High Risk” agents called in to dispose of other Smiths gone rogue.
The High-Risk Smiths try tricking John and Jane into taking a dangerous mission for them as a test. When the lead Smiths survive, Jasper and Emma reappear in the finale as their new assignment – to “finalize” them on orders of the Firm’s enigmatic leader HiHi.
As top assassins, eliminating the Smiths was a challenging but extremely lucrative contract. Despite claiming to like John and Jane, Jasper and Emma put business before their budding friendship. The High-Risk Smiths first tried turning John and Jane against each other, before taking matters into their own hands.
The Revelation Behind Jane’s Murdered Cat Max
The season 1 finale kicks off with Jane believing John murdered her beloved pet cat Max as the ultimate act of spite. This malicious act cements Jane’s decision to terminate her husband once and for all.
However, the truth serum scene later reveals John’s innocence. The High-Risk Smiths likely killed Max as part of their ploy to pit John and Jane against each other. Of the pair, Parker Posey’s expert sniper Emma seems the likely culprit behind Max’s demise.
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The Truth Serum Scene Explains John and Jane’s Real Feelings
A highlight of the finale is John injecting himself and Jane with truth serum, finally allowing the sparring couple to speak openly. The serum strips away any façades, revealing their genuine undying love for each other beneath the mutual mistrust and miscommunications.
John confesses Jane is his soulmate, while Jane admits she lied about being pregnant to manipulate John, much to her shame. The raw honesty from the serum helps them reconcile and reaffirm their devotion before the High Risk Smiths attack.
Paul Dano’s Neighbor Harris Is Obsessed With Their Home
The finale also exposes the true motives of the Smiths’ creepy neighbour Harris, played by Paul Dano. Harris had appeared sporadically during season 1, arousing suspicions of John while flirting with Jane.
John discovers Harris’ home is filled with surveillance photos of him and Jane. He accuses Harris of being an undercover spy, but Harris reveals he is just a real estate analyst obsessed with how the Smiths afforded their expensive brownstone.
The mid-credits scene shows Harris excitedly telling an associate the Smiths may finally sell their “whale” of a house after witnessing the destruction from the shootout.
The Opening Scene Showed the High-Risk Smiths’ Handiwork
The episode 1 opening set the deadly tone by introducing Alexander Skarsgård and Eiza González as John and Jane Doe – a married spy couple on the run from the Firm. Their hidden cabin is invaded by assassins, with Skarsgård and González making a brave last stand before being sniped by a mystery man and woman.
The finale confirms it was Jasper and Emma carrying out the lethal mission, establishing the ruthless efficiency of the High Risk Smiths. Their lethal skills raise doubts about whether Glover and Erskine’s characters can take them down.
Will There Be a Season 2 of Mr. & Mrs. Smith?
The first season finale intentionally leaves plenty of loose ends to explore in a potential second season.
With John severely wounded, Jane’s fate unclear, and their employer’s identity still murky, the ambiguous ending is a blatant attempt to hook viewers. Several critics noted the finale’s cliffhanger seemed to deliberately set up continuation in a possible Season 2.
The show’s future likely hinges on Mr. & Mrs. Smith finding an audience over its first season. If successful, the groundwork has been laid for more spy games and marital dysfunction for the Smiths.
Summary of Mr. & Mrs. Smith’s Premise and Origins
For those unfamiliar, Mr. & Mrs. Smith revolves around a married couple John and Jane Smith, who each hide their identity as highly skilled assassins working for a mysterious contracting company. They try to maintain domestic suburban lives while carrying out secret missions.
The 2022 Prime Video series serves as a reboot of the 2005 action comedy film of the same name starring Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. However, the show does not directly continue the movie’s plot or share any characters.
Some key differences include John and Jane meeting when they are unknowingly assigned to marry each other, rather than already being a married couple as in the film. The show also adds more rival spy couples working for the same shadowy organization.
Critical Reception to Season 1
The first season of Mr. & Mrs. Smith received mixed reviews upon release. On review aggregate site Rotten Tomatoes, the show holds a 59% critics rating.
Positive reviews praised the charismatic lead performances from Glover and Erskine and the subversive elements deconstructing marriage and suburban life. Less enthusiastic critics felt the series failed to fully commit to either comedy or thriller, leaving an uneven genre hybrid.
Many noted the dynamic between Glover and Erskine as the show’s highlight, while the assortment of spy missions and broader mythology received more mixed appraisals.
Final Thoughts
Mr. & Mrs. Smith’s first season ends with an explosive cliffhanger leaving the survival of its central spy couple in question. This ambiguity invites debate among viewers and anticipation for the stories yet to be told in a possible second season.
The finale wraps up some ongoing threads while escalating the marital conflict between John and Jane to new heights. Their eventual reconciliation hints this unique spy partnership and romance still has plenty left to explore. Whether the series will return for more espionage-fuelled marital dysfunction remains to be seen.
