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iZombie Season 4, Episode 13 (Season Finale) Review: Liv Long and Prosper

https://youtu.be/FcwUth1bMtA

iZombie s04e13 'And He Shall Be a Good Man': Clive (Malcolm Goodwin), Ravi (Rahul Kohli), Peyton (Aly Michalka) and Major (Robert Buckley) work together to help Liv (Rose McIver).

The season finale rocked. That's probably the best way for me to phrase it.

I've been pleased and disappointed throughout the entire fourth season of The CW's iZombie — but mostly disappointed. The season finale turned out to be the epitome of perfection and embodied everything I've loved about series. They seemed to have wrapped up all dangling cliffhangers in a pretty package with a big bow. For me, it was an early Christmas. Last episode ended on a very dramatic note when Liv and boo Levon (Daniel Bonjour) surrendered to Fillmore-Graves and were scheduled to be executed via guillotine in a few days. This episode opening was just as intense and set quite a tone, with both of our heroes being brutally tortured for information: specifically, the identity of Renegade's other team members.

Payton returns from Washington with some not-so-good news: appears Washington has officially put a ban on brains being imported into Seattle. That's not good. Seems like Blaine's (David Anders) plan to spread the zombie virus outside Seattle's walls is looking more and more like a pretty good idea. What's Washington going to do? Nuke the whole world?

One of the best scenes in the episode came when Liv is given 60 seconds to say her goodbyes to Clive, Payton, and Ravi — it reminded me of the feelings I had in the first season, where friendship and interpersonal relationships were at the core of the show. During her warm embraces, Liv urges Ravi to release the documentary Levon filmed showing Renegade for the true hero she really is: helping the terminally ill, giving them their lives and family back — a very Hallmark moment. The release of the video is what essentially put an expiration date on Graves (Jason Dohring).

The video hits 200,000 views and showed no sense of slowing down, so now Liv's execution will be a mob scene with tons of support showing up on her behalf. Realizing he's outnumbered, Graves moves the execution to the morning and to a private warehouse ceremony for Fillmore-Graves soldiers' eyes only. Liv's supporters had been planning her escape for the original time, and get the news about Graves's plans too late. An hour before the scheduled morning execution, Payton storms Jack Frost's live broadcast and announces Grave's plan to the world, inspiring an angry mob to quickly rally to stop Liv's death.

Before his execution, Levon makes a grand statement to Graves — hoping to reach some humanity in the man. Unfortunately for Levon, Fillmore-Graves's dictator doesn't really care much about anything other than his own ass; so with that said, Levon's head is quickly cut off. An interesting moment because it adds to the series-long common thread that being Liv's love interest essentially means a premature death.

Liv is up next, as Major leads the team trying desperately to save her life. Thankfully, a stampede of zombies and humans storm the warehouse just in time. Major and Graves get in to a huge brawl as Liv calmly stands by waiting for her opportunity to swoop in. Graves lands on the guillotine and Liv quickly releases the latch on him… goodbye Commander Graves, hello Commander Lilywhite!!!! The crowd cheers — but Liv is left numb, wanting nothing more than to stop all of the violence and her accountability in it while pining for the days when she had a pulse.

On the other side of town, mayhem ensues. While most of the attention has been on Renegade's execution, Angus's (Robert Krepper) followers took it as an opportunity to try and escape Seattle. Blaine — who's apparently grown a heart towards his father (did not see that coming) — urges Angus to stay back and let his flock fend for themselves; but Angus declares that a leader does not hide and storms to fight the battle with them, leaving Blaine abandoned in the wings. Unfortunately, about a thousand of Angus's followers die and their leader gets a well-deserving bullet to the head. Guess he should've listened to Blaine.

Devastated at the loss of his father (but more so realizing that his plan failed), Blaine is mourning the incredible debt he's now in. Lucky for him, Fillmore-Graves's new commander Major is there to offer him a deal: debt forgiveness in exchange for Blaine expanding his brain smuggling business to feed the entire Seattle zombie population.

"I think Liv just gave away her cure." – Ravi

Liv tells Ravi she wants to be human again, so Ravi offers her Isobel's brain — which is the cure. The transformation party is cut short when Liv is invited to be maid of honor at Clive and Dale's wedding. While witnessing the two exchange wedding vows and realizing that they can never have a family, in true Liv fashion she gives the cure to Dale. Fertility: the best wedding gift a girl could get. That said, I still don't buy into their relationship, and hoped she would've wound up somehow caught in the zombie slaughter crossfire. I'm a big fan of Clive and a big fan of him being happy, but I never felt they had good chemistry together and her character never grew on me.

Just as Liv is about to give up on life, love, and friendship, those she knows and doesn't know come out to show their support for her heroism. Major tells her that he won't stand in the way of "Renegade" and she can smuggle all the humans she wants into Seattle: Liv now has a friend at Fillmore-Graves. A bit poetic and a little over the top, but I felt the ending of the episode was very fitting. After the turbulence of this season, for a moment it was nice to indulge in some unicorns.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TBMpgySDeME

So where does this leave us for iZombie's fifth and final season?

• How will Commander Major lead his army? Will he corrupt under both the power and struggle to feed his people?

• What do Liv — and "Renegade" — have planned to help the population next?

• Will Ravi develop a permanent cure, or will the zombie virus spread beyond Seattle's walls?

• Will Liv and Major reunite? He is the only love interest who hasn't ended up ten-feet under.

• Looks like  "Zombie Clive" is out of the picture.

Once again, it's that time when I pay homage to Liv's episodic personality inducing brain feasts! Unfortunately (and ironically), the cupboard is bare for the season finale as Liv was deprived a last brain meal.

Margo Staten is a Ukrainian born, raised in Brooklyn organically driven, coffee loving, twice divorced mother of one baby Einstein. Has a passion for books, yoga in the park and all things 80's and New Orleans.

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