The Big Love series finale is now on the horizon. Big Love has been a very successful series for HBO, but season 5 will be its last on television. The fifth season premiere is scheduled for Jan. 16, 2011, and the show will then work its way toward the final episodes. Now that HBO knows the end is coming, expect there to be quite a bit of promotion to make sure viewers know that the end is near as well.
According to Michael Ausiello at Entertainment Weekly, the decision to end the show was a creative one. A statement that he has from creators Mark V. Olsen and Will Scheffer reads that, “While we were in the writers’ room this year shaping our fifth season, we discovered that we were approaching the culmination of that story.“ That makes it sound like they are heading toward closure of the main storylines in season five, and that fans probably won’t be left in the lurch.
It’s no surprise that Big Love has found a lot of controversy over the years because of its subject material, and that has made it an easy target for critics. At the center of the show is polygamy, and the relationships between the central character and his three wives. The show has also found some very strong fans, getting nominated for various Emmy Awards over the years.
In its first four seasons, the show received eight Emmy nominations, including a 2009 nomination for Outstanding Drama Series and three times receiving nominations for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series (Ellen Burstyn, Sissy Spacek, and Mary Kay Place).
The show might receive even more notice during its final season on HBO, and if the writing can get back to being as strong as it was in the first couple of seasons, that could be an easy sell to Emmy voters. Some of the stars have really become famous through this show, including Amanda Seyfried, Ginnifer Goodwin, and Chloe Sevigny. Stars Bill Paxton and Jeanne Tripplehorn will probably end up moving back into movies once their pivotal roles come to an end here.
For fans who have stuck through the ups-and-downs of Big Love, hopefully the writers have some great stories planned out for season five. Very little information has been released about how the character arcs will look, but knowing that the series finale is on the horizon, the writers have a lot of time to make sure that the show ends in a way that won’t frustrate its loyal following.
The season 5 premiere of Big Love will air on HBO on Sunday, Jan. 16, 2011.
Sources:
EW_Article_On_Big_Love_Finale
Big_Love_IMDB_Page
