Netflix’s chart-topping Outer Banks ends after 6 years with one of its best seasons

One month into 2020’s first lockdown, Netflix gave us a much-needed escape in the form of Outer Banks, a show that whisked us away into a world of treasure-hunting and endless ocean sunsets. 

The series struck a chord as we watched John B. (Chase Stokes) and the other Pogues long for an escape of their own too, searching for a life where they no longer had to struggle for money or happiness.

But struggle they did. Even as season one soared to the top of the Netflix charts, the Pogues themselves fought tooth and nail for success in their own lives. This fight, a unique mix of The Goonies and The OC with a little Point Break thrown in too, continued to pull viewers in for a second equally successful season. But then the clouds began to roll in when a third outing became bogged down by this constant need to one-up what came before.

Season four picked things up in the right direction again, ramping up the stakes while also hitting fans in the feels with the surprise death of a core member. In the aftermath, our faves were left more broken than ever, pushing us into a fifth, final season where the Pogues are now ready to pick up the pieces.

And boy are there a lot of pieces to pick up. Season five of Outer Banks doesn’t just juggle the renewed hunt for revenge and the Blue Crown that JJ’s (Rudy Pankow) father stole. It also needs to wrap up every arc for each individual cast member, giving them a happy ending that will satisfy fans of what surprisingly became one of Netflix’s longest-standing shows to date.

Hurtling towards the end like this can lead to rushed storytelling or the unfortunate sidelining of key moments, but Outer Banks actually benefits a great deal from this pressure. In these final 10 episodes, the writers find a much-needed balance between big stakes and intimate character moments, ending up with a fulfilling climax to pretty much every key storyline. 

Much of this comes down to the ramifications of what happened to JJ and how his death hit Kie (Madison Bailey) in particular. A lesser show might have been tempted to gloss over that loss in favour of wrapping things up, but grief is central to Outer Banks in this final season. As such, it reflects to some degree the sadness that longtime fans might also be feeling when the show comes to an end.

As Kie says goodbye to JJ, so too must we say goodbye to these characters. Thankfully, such melancholy becomes fuel for revenge, adding a personal twist to the usual hunt for gold. 

The Lupine Corsairs still pose a threat in their own hunt for the Blue Crown, but it’s Groff’s (J. Anthony Crane) involvement that gets your heart racing. Because who would ever kill their own son just for riches? It’s easy to hate Groff because of this, making him the perfect villain to cap the show off with.

This ongoing quest, which spans multiple locations worldwide beyond the Outer Banks, also brings with it an intriguing question of its own, one that’s been threaded throughout the show but never explored fully until now. Namely, is there a supernatural element to the power that some of these treasures and artefacts supposedly hold?

The Blue Crown is said to ‘open a portal to the underworld’, bringing the dead back to life, which is why everyone involved in this hunt is so desperate to find it. Without spoiling anything, the potential power this crown contains adds a new element to the show, which is heartening to see so late in the game. 

Rather than rest on their laurels, the writers continue to expand the potential of what Outer Banks can be, which is no small feat given just how many influences the show already draws on.  

That’s not to say the final season is perfect. Characters like Pope (Jonathan Daviss) and, to some degree, even John B, could have used a little more focus. The element of fun that first drew fans to this locale isn’t quite as strong as it used to be either. Yet season five remains the best season in quite some time, perhaps bettered only by that first run in 2020 which got us to fall for Outer Banks in the first place.

Beyond Kie’s journey with grief and the show’s handling of Groff, series standout Madelyn Cline shines as Sarah revisits surprising chapters from her past while Drew Starkey reminds us why he became the breakout star playing her brother, Rafe.

The way his story, and every story for that matter, comes to an end is handled with genuine care. There’s a sense that something special has been made here, something worthy of an ending that befits each character and the fans alike. To extend it for a sixth season would have been one step too far, reminding us that saying goodbye is never easy, even if it is the right decision. 

And with that, it’s time to watch The Pogues sail off into the sunset one last time. By the stars and the skies and the sea, this is the ending that Outer Banks deserves.

All five seasons of Outer Banks are available to stream on Netflix.