REVIEW: ‘Broad City,’ Episode 10 – Series Finale

After five hilarious seasons of watching, Abbi and Ilana’s friendship grow and evolve through their bizarre yet relatable adulting adventures in New York, Broad City aired its series finale. With only one day left before Abbi moves to Colorado her artist residency, she and Ilana try to accomplish everything on her New York bucket list which eventually leads them on one last “Classic Abbi and Ilana Journey” before they share a tearful goodbye.

In this episode, we open with a montage Abbi and Ilana crossing off activities from Abbi’s New York bucket list. Which eventually leads them on a mission to have one last bacon, egg, and cheese, a staple breakfast sandwich in New York, on her last day before moving to Colorado. Unfortunately, they’ve overslept and most if not all of the bodegas and deli’s the visit have already stopped serving breakfasts.

Seemingly defeated, Ilana laments about failing Abbi on her last day. Abbi tries to comfort her and says that she can just learn how to make it herself when she moves to Boulder, Colorado. This leads to sending Ilana into yet another frustrated rant about Colorado, that’s quickly interrupted when they come across a new tiny mission in the form of her dream toilet that they find on the street.

One thing I liked about the Broad City series finale was that even on Abbi’s last day, Ilana is still struggling to process with her move and scared of what the distance will do to their relationship. I found that to be a very raw and relatable response to this situation. Unlike most sitcoms, I’ve seen where a character gets bad or life-altering news, and their process for accepting a situation is either done quickly, they get over it before the end of the episode, or it’s just never mentioned again, and the audience is to assume that things are resolved. I liked that we see even on Abbi’s last day in town Ilana is struggling between putting on a brave supporting face for her friend and also processing her complicated feelings about her leaving.

Another thing I liked in this episode was that it wrapped up a few loose ends and allowed the audience to say goodbye to the other memorable characters in the series. That previous two episodes were (rightfully) heavily focused on Abbi and Ilana. Because of this, I like that the writers used a going away party as a way to bring up old characters like Ilana’s ex-boyfriend Winston, their longtime friend Jaime, and Abbi’s on-again-off-again Trey. Giving us a small update on what direction each of these characters was going while also closing the loop on them for the main characters.

In the last minute of the series finale, we get a one-month fast forward of how Abbi and Ilana are doing since their separation from one another. We see Ilana reading a book on a park bench when she suddenly gets a FaceTime call from Abbi. Without missing a beat, they jump into one of their classic conversations just like they’ve done so many times before.

I like that we see the distance hasn’t caused any awkwardness and that the dynamic of their friendship remains intact. I also feel that this scene leaves the audience with the comfort that Abbi and Ilana’s friendship will go on even now that the series has ended. It’s not that their friendship is ending or drastically changing, but instead, it’s just adapting to life’s changes. Something I feel we can all relate to, learn from, and apply to our own lives too.