How 'The End of the F***ing World' Ends

The End of the F***ing World was released on Netflix in the United States to widespread critical acclaim last weekend. The story, based on Charles Forsman's comics of the same (uncensored) name, makes for a perfect three-hour binge watch. It blends humor, violence, and a truly unique tone to form an immersive world that feels like our own, only with one foot out the door and into something far stranger.

While The End of the F***ing World is a complete comic, the conclusion of the Netflix series has left some fans scratching their heads. The final moments of the series could function as a fitting climax to a mini-series, but aren't as explicit as the source material. We're here to clear up the questions of the final cut to black for any viewers who have questions. What happens in the comic? What could this mean for the show? Will there be a second season? Read on to find out.

Spoilers for both the Netflix series and the comic follow.

In the show, Alyssa and James are found by the police and left with no options to flee. James runs away toward the ocean at low tide, but only after striking Alyssa so the police might believe she was a hostage instead of an accomplice. As he continues to run, the police start to fire upon him. The first shot misses, and the screen cuts to black when a second rings out.

This is very similar to the comic with a few minor changes. Alyssa and James are still found without any means of escape, James still frames himself for all of the crimes, and he is still fired upon by police when he refuses to surrender peacefully. The big difference is that the comic keeps going after the gunshots. James is killed, and Alyssa is returned to her family without being charged for any crimes. The comic ends with Alyssa in her room reflecting on her time with James, burning his name into her forearm.

Does this mean that James is doomed? Possibly. The decision to cut away at this fatal moment was almost certainly to leave open the door for a sophomore season of the series. If that is not the case, then the ending still works. Cutting to black as James finally realizes how human he feels and making the series end at the very moment of his death is a great finale. The editing of the final scene backs this up as well. There's no reason to believe anyone else might have been shot, and timing indicates that James didn't make it.

However, the moment is still not shown, and it is possible that James might only have been wounded. There are plenty of theories about Alyssa stealing a gun as well, but these are farfetched based on what is actually shown. There's nothing stopping a leg shot from slowing James down though. In the comic, he is shot because he is attacking someone else, whereas he is only fleeing in the series. The possibility of police aiming to wound seems much more likely due to that change. There has been no announcement regarding a second season yet, but the door certainly remains open.

While the series completes the original arc of The End of the F***ing World, there are still elements from the comic that were left unexplored. The two biggest points are the return of Alyssa to her family and the inclusion of a satanic cult. In the series, the serial killer is never shown to be part of a larger conspiracy, but his mother's odd behavior again leaves the opportunity for more stories to be told based on the source material. Even if the series were to leave the comic behind, there's a lot of potential to be explored still in how Alyssa and James return home and are treated by the justice system. If a second season does come, there are still stories to be told, with or without James.