The Bold Type season 4 finale review: It’s too complicated

After COVID-19 forced The Bold Type to shut down, season four’s makeshift finale left a lot of things up in the air, and a few things shattered to pieces.

It’s been just about four months since the coronavirus brought Hollywood to a screeching halt, and in that time, we’ve seen a lot of unplanned finales.

Some shows were lucky, having enough of their season filmed to create a different, but still coherent ending. Some were really lucky, having a story that could be cut off cleanly, and still make for a good cliffhanger.

Sadly, The Bold Type had none of that luck. Heading into the season 4 finale, we knew things weren’t going to be wrapped up as neatly as we’d have liked. What we couldn’t have known was just how out of place it would really feel.

Because, by the end of the night, just about everyone on The Bold Type was acting out of character.

To be fair, we can roll with some of it when it comes to Sutton. Richard just left her; we can’t expect her to simply carry on, especially since he apparently left her in limbo. Sutton has no idea whether she’s separated, getting divorced, or what.

The single bright spot of her world being in shambles is that it brought us another musical moment, with Kat and Jane busting out “Thank You For Being A Friend.”

Even so, something about Sutton’s current state just feels…off. Of course she’s devastated, but to hear her say she doesn’t know who she is without him is disheartening. Sutton has spent four seasons building herself up – including when she and Richard were broken up. She’s always been more than just half of Suttard.

Losing her entire identity because of losing a man is a concept that seems to go against everything The Bold Type has instilled in us since the beginning. (Of course, that’s not an isolated occurrence lately. More on that in a minute).

Sadly, a visit back home only made things worse for Sutton. In her pain she slept with her ex – predictable, but Billy Magnussen is always a joy to see – and learned that her mother has relapsed in her drinking.

The episode is titled “Not Far From The Tree” and by the end of the night, that’s exactly how Sutton feels. But once again, it doesn’t quite fit. At no point have we ever worried about Sutton having a drinking problem, nor have we ever seen her totally shut out Kat and Jane. This isn’t the Sutton we know and love.

That said, season four Kat also hasn’t been the Kat we know and love. Nor has she been the Kat that Aisha Dee has come to know and love. In a statement posted to her Instagram prior to the finale broadcast, Dee spoke up about the lack of diversity plaguing The Bold Type, as well as her issues with Kat’s romantic storyline in the back half of this season.

While I have a soft spot in my heart for the enemies-to-lovers trope, and initially praised the use of it this season, it’s clear how detrimental it actually came to be.

The finale only served to prove this further, as it continued to push the idea of redemption for Eva, having Kat consistently try to explain away and defend Eva’s words. But when push came to shove, Kat left Eva in bed without a word, texting her later that things are just too complicated.

So not only is Kat working under some serious cognitive dissonance, but she’s also back to just ghosting people? Things have gotten real messy.

For Jacqueline, things are only getting messier. Once again, a wrench has been thrown into her reconciliation with Ian. And that wrench is Ian himself.

Evidently, he also had a relationship while he and Jacqueline were separated, with a woman who is being accused of covering up a male coworker’s gross misconduct (and I do mean gross).

Not only does Ian not believe that this woman is guilty, but he’s also asked Jacqueline to kill the story. The kicker is, he wants the story killed for Jacqueline’s sake. Ian believes the optics will come through as Jacqueline targeting the woman her husband had relations with.

He’s not necessarily wrong, but it just feels so slimy and of the “I’m just looking out for you” toxicity brand that it’s hard to take his side.

Jacqueline scolded Jane when Jane changed up her piece on weddings for Jacqueline’s sake once, why should this time be any different?

Beyond this, things seem to be going swimmingly for Jane. She hasn’t addressed her conversation with Scott, so that’s a mess for another day. She spends most of the night chasing this story, making Jane the only one who really stayed in character this week.

Well, her and Alex. But Alex has really been given the short straw this season, and was once again more of a background story this week.

At this point, we still have no confirmation of a season five pickup for The Bold Type. Let’s just hope this isn’t where we have to leave everyone permanently.

Do you have thoughts on The Bold Type season 4? Let us know in the comments.