'Suburgatory' Creator on Writing a Finale That Guaranteed a Series Renewal

4:30 PM PDT 5/16/2012 by Jethro Nededog

0
0
0
0
0
Email
Print
Comments

"I really wanted to create a lot of little loose threads so that there was no way they couldn't pick us up,” Emily Kapnek says.

ABC

Going into Wednesday’s Suburgatory finale, series creator Emily Kapnek wanted to make it very hard for ABC to deny the show a second season by creating a “far out” episode that would “stir the pot.”

'Suburgatory' Boss Calls Alicia Silverstone's Storyline 'Fun,' Yet 'Heartbreaking' (Exclusive Video)

Upfronts 2012: ABC Chief Opens Up About Marvel Hopes, Broad Comedy and His Own Status

Jeremy Sisto 'Suburgatory'

'Suburgatory' Creator Provides a Timeline for George and Dallas' Romance

“I really wanted to create a lot of little loose threads so that there was no way they couldn’t pick us up,” Kapnek tells reporters after a screening of the episode. “So that meant laying in these early storylines and bringing them far enough but not fully paying them off.”

EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: 'Suburgatory' Boss Calls Alicia Silverstone's Storyline 'Fun,' Yet 'Heartbreaking'

The ploy might have worked. ABC renewed the series last week. Appropriately titled “The Motherload,” the season finale episode revolves around Mother’s Day, and Chatswin does it really big. “We get a glimpse into sort of the town craziness and how various people celebrate Mother’s Day,” she says.

At the same time, Eden (Alicia Silverstone) wonders how healthy an environment the town is for the baby she’s carrying for Noah (Alan Tudyk) and she wonders if the holiday is bringing up some nostalgia for Tessa (Jane Levy).

“Maybe George discovers that there’s some truth to some of what Eden’s been concerned about with Tessa, although you don’t really see that until this episode,” Kapnek says. “But, we sort of get a deeper glimpse of Tessa’s feelings about Mother’s Day, and what it means to her.”

VIDEO: 'Suburgatory': Alicia Silverstone's Arrival 'Upsets a Few People,' Says Jeremy Sisto

Yet whatever yearning Tessa may have for her mother, Lisa (Allie Grant) would be on the opposite side of the spectrum. She continues her plan to prove once and for all she’s adopted.

“We did a lot of talking. It made sense to us that Lisa would in her heart believe she was adopted,” the showrunner explains. “She feels so different from her family."

"[There’s] a lot of intriguing turns from the Shay family,” she also teases.

Suburgatory's first season finale airs Wednesday at 8:30 p.m. on ABC.

Email: Jethro.Nededog@thr.com; Twitter: @TheRealJethro