The Final Skate
The season 1 finale of Spinning Out begins with a flashback to the past as Kat and Serena sit together talking. They seem close too, and as they share a bed and sleep, we cut back to the present where Serena phones Kat and apologises for lying to her. It turns out Carol is nowhere to be found. Meanwhile Jenn seems to have forgiven Kat for everything that happened and ends up talking to her about skating. She tells Jenn she wants to skate but doesn’t see how she can given what’s happened in the past. Jenn holds her hands though and admits that she’s here for her. It’s quite the turn-around though to be honest, especially after the issues the two have had over the season.. At the hospital, complications arise around Mandy’s baby’s lungs, while Justin visits Kat and agrees that they should skate together. Things are still frosty between them but it’s a good start. At the Regionals, Gabe and Leah confront Justin, reminding him that they won’t just let him breeze in, while Kat watches one of the girls fall on the ice, bringing flashbacks back to her nasty fall. Dr Parker happens to be at the championships too, although he’s there for Serena but winds up finding Jenn instead, deciding to sit with her. Carol finally arrives at the Regional’s where she apologises to Mitch but tells her he loves her and wants to move in. As they hug, Carol is clearly overcome with guilt given she slept with a stranger the night before. At the hospital, the truth about Mandy’s previous child comes out in regards to her adoption. James ignores her though, unable to deal with the truth, and heads off to see Kate and Justin skate instead. However, a heart to heart with his son sends him right back to the hospital again where things appear to be okay between the pair. Kat and Justin take to the ice and skate a great performance. It puts them right into first place but with a long program ahead, Justin heads off and ignores Kat completely after they finish, while Jenn and Kat talk together. Outside, things get worse as Carol arrives and admits she loves Mitch and tells Kat about her mistake the night before. After they have a heart to heart, the Regional championships begin where Serena sees the doctor getting close to Jenn and takes him aside, asking if he’s dating her. Ethan admits that he is and eventually breaks up with Serena, convincing her not to say anything to anyone. Kat tells Justin he loves him and after some deliberation, they kiss and head back out to the ice with renewed vigor, determined to smash the competition. On their way out, Kat spies Serena sitting alone and sits next to her. She admits they shouldn’t be fighting and it’s here Serena admits that she’s just been dumped. Realizing it’s not actually Drew, she frantically searches for who it may be. After looking on her phone, Kat believes the culprit may well be Mitch so she heads off alone to speak to him. While Serena skates, Carol admits her mistake to Mitch, who breaks up with her before telling Kat he would never hurt Serena. Kat’s outburst causes more trouble to brew and Serena also falls at the last hurdle on the ice, stumbling and potentially blowing her chances. Kat confronts Dr Parker not long after who tells him that Serena’s lying and Jenn takes his side too, convinced this is just Kat trying to steal more happiness from her. With lots of unresolved drama, Carol convinces the girls not to quit, with Kat taking to the ice for her performance. As she makes her way onto the ice, some time in the future Carol assaults Dr Parker at his house with a baseball bat and phones the police, telling them about an assault. Just before Justin and Kat dance, the series ends. With a trademark Netflix cliffhanger ending and plenty of unresolved character tensions here, Spinning Out has been a bit of a tumultuous ride across its 10 episodes. At times I’ve loved this show, with some great ice skating and good awareness around mental health but at other times the melodramatic love triangles and various teen drama issues have overwhelmed the dark core that’s spurred this one on. It’s a shame too because the show starts incredibly brightly but then seems to sag somewhere around the middle. It’s certainly not a bad show and I’ve enjoyed my time with Spinning Out today but it’s also a drama I won’t return to watch in a hurry. Will Spinning Out be renewed for a second season? There’s plenty of scope for that to happen here but whether the viewing figures will justify this or not, remains to be seen.
