When I learned that the latest and third season of Apple+’s Dickinson was going to be its final season, I was devastated. Truly! This was a series I reluctantly clicked on back when it first aired, but was almost immediately sucked in. Creator Alena Smith managed to take the 1800s and make it both modern but extremely true to its roots. Plus, it was about the famed poet Emily Dickinson, so perhaps that’s why I got suckered into this enigmatic series.
In the third season we open to the Sue having her baby. Austin is a bit of an absent father at first, while Emily tries to be there for both Sue and her baby. Both women come to not quite understand each other for maybe the first time. Of course, that tension is short-lived, but still, it was awkward enough. It especially didn’t help matters when Austin decided to remove himself from the family entirely. He was upset with their father, while Emily was quick to defend him. Virtually all season! I was a little bit disappointed with Lavinia’s storyline this season, which was pretty much just mourning her dead ex-boyfriends.
I should probably mention that they were dead because of the Cold War. While Emily was trying to make peace most of the season, that strikingly contrasted with the threat of the war that loomed over everyone. Several of Emily’s friends were drafted and killed, while their former employee William set off to the Carolina’s to help form one of the first black Union armies. Austin himself was drafted, but ended up paying someone to take his place – woah. Emily’s father also had to take a step back and reassess his former political beliefs. One of the most striking call backs to the prior season was when Fraser wound up dead from the war, thus making Emily’s vision a reality. So sad.
All of the family’s tension came to a head when Emily was appointed by her father to be the executor of his will. It was here where she learned that her father would never change, because despite Austin’s shunning of their family, he was still made to be the inheritor of everything – including Emily and Lavinia! In the end though, the family was able to come together, and more specifically the siblings, which was such a heart-warming moment. Emily also finally accepted her happiness with Sue.
A standout episode was for sure when Emily and Lavinia got transported into the future. It was hysterical! Also, Death made a couple of appearances! And as far as guest stars go, I loved Billy Eichner as Walt Whitman. Of course, there was also a brilliantly modern soundtrack, so I know a couple of those songs will get added to a playlist. Overall, it ended up being a fitting ending to a revolutionary show. I’ll miss the Dickinson family, but it was nice while we had them.