With the apparent assassination of the US President, the malevolent Camarilla have secretly usurped the government; the former vice president is secretly in league with this fascistic anti-witch organisation.
Witches in the military find themselves placed under the control of non-witch commanders, who are entirely ready to expend the lives of their forces in wasteful fashion. Those witches not in the military are forced to wear magic-nullifying collars while out in public
Raelle, Abigail, Tally & Scylla continue their struggle to expose the Camarilla and restore peaceful co-existence between witches and humanity. A struggle much complicated when Raella's connection to the Mother Mycelium leaves her in a coma, and the group is forced to seek shelter in the Chippewa Cession: native land with limited autonomy from the federal government.
I was also a bit disappointed by the sudden disappearance of new villain Kara Brandt. She was thoroughly despicable and really needed suitable on-screen comeuppance. Perhaps actor Emilie Ullerup was unavailable for the final episode? Or perhaps they wanted to keep their options open for a sequel.
Overall though, despite the occasional weaknesses likely caused by real world problems, this is a satisfying conclusion to the program. I particularly liked that the writers recognised that the fact that the show is ending does not not magically mean that all the world's problems will be fixed. They make it quite clear that there is still a huge amount of work left for these characters to do, and that they intend to do it; even if it will not be work we get to see. That's a more nuanced and thoughtful resolution than I expected, back when first watching season one.
Raelle, Abigail, Tally & Scylla continue their struggle to expose the Camarilla and restore peaceful co-existence between witches and humanity. A struggle much complicated when Raella's connection to the Mother Mycelium leaves her in a coma, and the group is forced to seek shelter in the Chippewa Cession: native land with limited autonomy from the federal government.
The Camarilla, of course, are not the sort to let ancient treaties stand in the way of their persecution of witches, and they have many new weapons ready to use in their war of extermination. Can our heroes and their dwindling array of allies find a way to head off a devastating war between humanity and witch-kind?
This final season of Motherland: Fort Salem is an enjoyable and entertaining ride, though the pacing does feel a little wonky. I suspect this may be a result of a real life injury to Taylor Hickson, who plays Raelle. Hickson was hurt in a car accident shorting after filming of this season began, and was unable to work for several weeks. That forced a number of re-writes, of which Raelle's coma is surely the most obvious.
The show definitely misses Hickson/Raelle. The rest of the cast are strong and enjoyable performers. Minute to minute they fill the gap quite nicely, but the story's overall structure definitely seems to have suffered a bit because of Hickson's injury. Certain events are drawn out more than they probably need, and others - particularly toward the end - seem very rushed. Also, however good the other actors are, Raelle has always felt "first among equals" in the ensemble of characters. Her absence is a big void to fill.
I was also a bit disappointed by the sudden disappearance of new villain Kara Brandt. She was thoroughly despicable and really needed suitable on-screen comeuppance. Perhaps actor Emilie Ullerup was unavailable for the final episode? Or perhaps they wanted to keep their options open for a sequel.
Overall though, despite the occasional weaknesses likely caused by real world problems, this is a satisfying conclusion to the program. I particularly liked that the writers recognised that the fact that the show is ending does not not magically mean that all the world's problems will be fixed. They make it quite clear that there is still a huge amount of work left for these characters to do, and that they intend to do it; even if it will not be work we get to see. That's a more nuanced and thoughtful resolution than I expected, back when first watching season one.
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