My Thoughts on the H50 Finale
I recently watched the Hawaii Five-0 reboot for the first time and noticed all of controversy surrounding the finale, the last scene in particular. Many seem to feel that by bringing Catherine back at the eleventh hour, it was disrespectful to Steve and did the character dirty.
It is my understanding that Michelle Borth was bullied off the show. Not by the showrunner, not by the writers, not by her fellow cast members, but by fans. I hate to make assumptions as I wasn’t a part of the fandom at the time this was happening, but from past similar experiences in other fandoms, it’s hard not to point the finger. All I will say is that bullying anyone is not right. Ever. Michelle is an actress and lashing out at her for just doing what she was hired and paid to do is mean and cruel.
But because Michelle left, the writers had to come up with a way of writing her off the show. Now there’s only so many ways to write off a character, especially if one wants to keep the door open for the character’s possible return (which H50 clearly wanted as Catherine did return multiple times). So killing Catherine off was not an option. Not only would it have prevented them from bringing her back, but it also would have really hurt Steve. Like Catherine or hate her, you have to admit that Steve really loved her and he would have become an absolute mess if she had died. I don’t think anyone wanted that for him. Faking her death would have been just as painful for him too.
So the writers had to figure out a way of having Catherine leave the show in a that left it open for her to return, that made sense for the character, and that didn’t insult the audience’s intelligence. Putting her in a coma would have been cheesy, having a seasons long arc where she’d been kidnapped wouldn’t have worked cause we all know Steve wouldn’t stayed on Hawaii with 5-0, he would have gone looking for her, to rescue her. Her leaving him for someone else wouldn’t have made sense with her character because that’s just not who she is. Plus it would have caused tension between them if she did return and that’s not what the writers wanted. So really, Catherine leaving to join the CIA was the only realistic option the writers had open to them. I know people hate on Catherine for doing so and hurting Steve by leaving, but the writers didn’t have much of a choice here. Catherine and the writers aren’t to blame. The bullies are.
Before you ask why Catherine didn’t at least tell Steve the truth about why she was leaving, from what I’ve heard, the CIA are very strict about who their operatives can tell. In fact, I think the only person a CIA agent is allowed to tell is their spouse. Not even their parents, siblings, or children are allowed to know (which is also why Doris never told Steve when he was a kid either). Because Catherine and Steve were only dating when she was recruited, she was forbidden from telling him and if she had, she could have been severely punished. I believe Steve is aware of this, which is why he just seems to accept it when Catherine apologizes for not telling him, saying that he was the last person she wanted to lie to.
Now as to the finale, I bothers me more than a little that people will hold how Catherine left against her, when really the writers didn’t have a choice in that and the bullies just really brought it on themselves. Which is why I love that last scene. Because they didn’t give the bullies what they wanted. Bullying is never justified and it’s nice to see that in the end, they didn’t win. I do feel sorry for those who had nothing to do with Michelle Borth leaving and who didn’t ship McRollins, but they can never please everyone. Someone was always going to be unhappy with the ending and I think it was more important to show the bullies that bullying doesn’t pay than to try and appease them. The showrunner stuck to his guts, which is hard to do and I have to respect him for it.
As to the particulars of that scene, I’ve seen someone saying that Catherine “ambushed” him on the plane. While it is true that Catherine surprised him by showing up, they clearly missed the part where Catherine continues to stand for a while. Her showing up is her way of showing that she wants to give their relationship another shot, but she doesn’t just assume that is what Steve wants. She gives him the chance to turn her away by saying that the seat was taken, in answer to her question. It isn’t until he invited her to sit down that she finally does. Catherine gives Steve the opportunity to shut her down and send her on her way, but he doesn’t. And then she still asks him if he’s ready, trying to confirm that he does in fact want her there. He could have changed his mind and said no. But again, he didn’t. He said yes and he took her hand, not vice versa. Catherine wasn’t trying to force herself back into his life. She was letting him know she wanted to be and then gave him two opportunities to tell her to scram. Neither of which he took. Catherine may have surprised him, but ultimately the decision to give their relationship another shot lied with Steve and he decided to take it.
I think people are also forgetting that Steve wasn’t leaving Hawaii permanently. It wasn’t like he was abandoning Danny and the others and riding off into the sunset with Catherine. He plans to return. For now he just needs a break. To find peace away from all of the violence. To see what else the world has to offer. And he choose to do so with Catherine by his side.
Another detail that isn’t necessarily canon, but I think can be assumed is that Catherine left the CIA. She wasn’t on Hawaii when Lincoln called, which means she had to hop on a plane and get to Hawaii in order to meet Steve on his flight. She had just enough time to wrap up anything she was doing and resign. The CIA doesn’t seem like the type of organization that would just let one of their operatives go on a sudden vacation with only a week’s notice and in the middle of an op. I can only see Catherine getting way with joining Steve if she actually resigned. Plus, her staying with the CIA would, again, only get in the way of their relationship later. Giving it another shot, only works if she’s not CIA anymore. So until it’s confirmed that she still is CIA, I will believe she isn’t. That after sacrificing their relationship for the job, she is now sacrificing the job for their relationship. And just because we didn’t see Steve and Catherine have a heart- to-heart about their goals and such on screen, it doesn’t mean it didn’t happen.
So, no. I don’t think the finale did Steve dirty. It gave Steve a happy ending with the only woman he ever wanted to marry and denied bullies their victory at the same time. All in all, it’s a win for me.