Midnight Gospel, Netflix’s latest animated series, isn’t the typical cartoon show but it sure has caught the attention of viewers. The last episode in particular is an unforgettable talk between mother and son about death.
For those who are unaware, Midnight Gospel is a Netflix series adapted from actor-comedian Duncan Trussell’s podcast The Duncan Trussell Family Hour.
It’s a show that follows the adventure of an alien character named Clancy (played by Trussell) who travels through space from one planet to another to interview other beings.
The interviews, which Clancy makes for his “spacecast,” are made within the twisted and hallucinatory visuals by Pendleton Ward who is also the creative mind behind Adventure Time.
The interview topics range from drugs and death to life philosophies and meditation practices.
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Trussell’s mother in the finale
Trussell plays his character in all of the episodes except for the season finale. The last one, called “Mouse of Silver,” turns Clancy into Duncan as a little boy.
Instead of completely merging with his simulator, Clancy hears a knocking on the door leading him to tell the computer to hold on for a second.
He then opens a door and finds himself turned into a baby. The first thing he sees is his mother. Not Clancy’s mother though. It’s Trussell’s mother Deneen Fendig. And the confirmation is when she called him Duncan.
According to Polygon, Fendig recorded the audio for his son’s podcast back in 2013. It was three weeks before she died. The episode is more than 36 minutes long and it’s a conversation between mother and son about birth, life, and death.
It’s also the only episode wherein Trussell went extremely personal as he discussed the deep sorrow he felt after losing his mother to cancer. He asks the question of how to get over the loss of a loved one to which his mother gave a simple answer.
“You cry,” she says. It hurts, there is no doubt about that, but it doesn’t always hurt and eventually, the hurt also dissipates.”
Is a season 2 coming?
The last episode was a beautiful but heartbreaking ending. And now the fans are wondering if there’s going to be a Midnight Gospel season 2.
Episode 8 ended with a big explosion and a Clancy alive with his dog Charlotte. But is he really alive? Did he die in the explosion?
Several unanswered questions that appears to be only addressed in a season 2. The cartoon show was just dropped very recently so it may be too early to tell whether Netflix will renew Trussell’s series.
For now, fans will have to stay tuned for more details on a Midnight Gospel season 2.
Featured image courtesy of Netflix