# Season Finale — Series Format

> The last episode of a season. Major arc resolution. Often cliffhanger for next season.

## Format basics

- Length: matches series (often longer)
- Season's main arc resolves (mostly)
- New question for next season
- Cliffhanger possible
- Audience contract: come back next season

## Structure

```
COLD OPEN (0-5 min)
- Hook for finale
- Stakes immediate

ACT 1 (5-15 min)
- All threads converge
- Final preparation
- Last chance for character moments

ACT 2 (15-40 min)
- Climactic confrontation
- Season's big questions answered
- Major emotional/plot beats
- Reversal possible

ACT 3 (40-55 min)
- Resolution of season arc
- Aftermath
- Character status changed

TAG (55-60 min)
- Final image of season
- Often quiet character moment
- Hook for next season (subtle to overt)
```

## Sample season finale

```
TITLE: "Karavan" Episode 13 (season 1 finale)

LOGLINE: As the siblings finally confront the truth about their
father's death, they must decide what kind of family they want to be
— and what kind of business they will run.

COLD OPEN (0-5 min):
- Eldar leaving custody
- Ramin recovering in hospital
- Nigar still missing (4 days now)

ACT 1 (5-15 min):
- They get a ransom demand
- Pay the money OR Nigar dies
- Eldar wants to pay
- Ramin says no — they'll never see Nigar alive
- They argue
- Decision: trace the kidnapper instead

ACT 2 (15-40 min):
- Investigation across Baku and beyond
- Use of every connection from season
- Police, family lawyer, even old enemies
- Find location: industrial port
- Confrontation
- Garib's son with three men
- Nigar alive but injured
- Standoff
- Police arrive
- Kidnapper killed in shootout
- Nigar saved
- All seems resolved

ACT 3 (40-55 min):
- Aftermath
- Hospital scenes — Nigar and Ramin together
- Eldar at the warehouse, looking around
- Family lawyer brings news: father had insurance policy
- It includes a clause: if all three children remain in business
together for one year, they receive controlling interest in a
massive trust fund
- They can sell the business now, walk away rich
- Or stay together, do something with their lives

TAG (55-60 min):
- Three siblings at father's grave
- They make their decision
- One year, together
- They walk back to the car
- As they drive away, on the road behind them:
- A SECOND CAR appears — same suspicious style
- They don't notice
- The driver of the second car: a face we've seen before, in the
background of episode 2 (a setup for season 2)
- The driver smiles slightly. Pulls back to follow.

CUT TO BLACK.
"END SEASON 1"

(Hook for season 2: who is following them, and what's the trust
fund for?)
```

## Key principles

### Pay off season's main question
Audience invested 8-13 hours. Pay them.

### Don't end everything
Open question for next season (if renewed).

### Character status changed
By season's end, characters different than at start.

### Emotional climax
Often quieter than action climax.

### Setup season 2 (or series end)
If series continues: hook for new question.
If series ends: full closure.

## Renewed vs ended consideration

### If renewed (hopeful)
- New question opens
- Character status changes invite next chapter
- Subtle teases of next season's antagonist or plot

### If ending (uncertain or final season)
- More resolution
- Character arcs more complete
- Less new hooks
- Audience contract honored

When uncertain (network hasn't renewed yet), find balance:
- Satisfying enough to end on
- Open enough to continue

## Common season finale mistakes

- Ending too neat (no return hook)
- Ending too open (frustrating)
- Forgetting subplots
- Out-of-character climax
- Cliffhanger that's too dependent on uncertain renewal
- Disrespecting season's emotional buildup

## When to write season finale

- Production schedule end of season
- Major arc reaches climax
- Character development reaches turning point
- Renewal status known (or not — adapt)
