I May Destroy You recap: Michaela Coel just explained that unforgettable finale
Michaela Coel just discussed the writing process behind her hit show I May Destroy You, and revealed the inspiration behind that ending. Warning: this article contains detailed spoilers and discusses rape.
Since it landed on BBC iPlayer last month, every episode of I May Destroy You has sparked discussions over issues we really should be openly talking about more in 2020.
Michaela Coel’s nuanced exploration of consent, race, sexuality, social media, gender, dating and millennial life in the digital age has led to viewers asking questions from all angles. Situations aren’t always black and white, even when they should be; Coel unflinchingly explores these blurred lines through flawed characters.
Speaking on the Obsessed With… I May Destroy You podcast this week, Coel expanded on this, saying: “Nobody is right and nobody is wrong – I wasn’t interested in answering those questions… There aren’t any good or bad characters in this series.”
This unique and powerful writing is what’s kept so many fans gripped. But the finale, Ego Death, is perhaps the episode that will stick with us the most.
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Recap of I May Destroy You final episode
Episode 12 takes the focus back to the main storyline of the series: Arabella’s rape.
It starts with Bella appearing to recognise her attacker, David, at the same bar where she was drink-spiked and assaulted. What happens next is played out through four different scenarios.
In the first, Bella, Terry and Theo conspire to give the rapist a taste of his own medicine by drugging him, brutally beating him up and strangling him with Bella’s underwear. She then takes an unconscious David back to her flat and rolls him under her bed.
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In the second scenario, Terry orchestrates a plan for Bella to take lots of cocaine and trick David while waiting for the police to turn up just before he assaults her again.
However, David breaks down on Bella, apologises and appears to reveal he was also once abused. She takes him back to her flat, where he also confesses to previously spending time in prison for rape.
The police arrive and he begs Bella, who is crying, not to leave him while they take him away.
Credit: BBC
In scenario three, the bar they are in is silent and drenched in sunlight. Bella offers to buy David a drink and he cannot believe she is interested in him.
They make out in the toilet cubicle, then Bella takes him back to her flat for consensual sex. In the morning, he watches her. “I’m not gonna go unless you tell me to,” he says. “Go,” she replies – and he leaves, followed by the bleeding version of David, who crawls out from under the bed.
In the fourth and final scenario, Bella doesn’t go out and confront David. Instead, she stays in with her flatmate to watch TV shows. It then flashes forward to the launch of her second book.
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What does the I May Destroy You ending mean?
In fitting with the rest of the series, this brilliant yet slightly confusing finale lets the viewer make their own judgments. But using four alternative endings perhaps suggests there is no “solution” or “satisfactory ending” after rape.
Would beating David to a pulp really bring Bella justice? Could she actually forgive him if she learned he was also a victim? Would a reverse in roles make her feel more empowered? Is letting him go actually the only real ending she can give herself?
Coel has also gone into more detail on the inspiration behind the ending on the Obsessed With… I May Destroy You podcast, saying: “I think I was watching Russian Doll when writing the ending.
“There was an end where we cut to people in a white box who were basically giving their opinion on the ending to the show… like a real Twitter, sharing what they thought!”
She also gave fans another reason to watch the series all over again, revealing: “There are Easter eggs littered all over that show and I think you have to rewatch and rewatch and rewatch to really begin enjoying it.”
One thing’s for sure: people will be talking about this finale for quite a while. You just have to look take a look at Twitter to see why.
“I cannot get over the extreme strangeness and brilliance of the I May Destroy You finale,” tweeted one viewer. “I don’t think I will ever fully understand it, but I mean that in the best way. I just want to talk and talk about it.”
“If anything the season finale of I May Destroy You highlighted how messy dealing with trauma can be,” another fan added.
And this Twitter user said: “In all honesty the I May Destroy You finale was the most beautiful and relevant and innovative and… ugh I can’t come up with the right adjectives to describe.
“It was just amazing. The most amazing amazing writing and execution I ever did see. This has changed the game.”
You can catch up with I May Destroy You on BBC iPlayer.
If you, or anyone you know, needs help and support, you can call the Rape Crisis national helpline on 0808 802 9999 (open 12pm – 2.30pm and 7pm – 9.30pm daily). You can also find your nearest centre here or visit the website for more information here.
Violent bully viciously attacked girlfriend – but was then beaten up by others
He was also abusive to a neighbour, who tried to help, and had the knife in his hand, Hull Crown Court heard
Ryan Parker admitted assaulting the woman causing actual bodily harm, possessing a knife and using threatening words or behaviour(Image: Humberside Police)
A violent bully who repeatedly punched his terrified girlfriend got a nasty taste of his own medicine just minutes later when he was badly beaten up and knocked unconscious by others on the scene.
Heavy-drinking Ryan Parker was left with a black eye, a fractured eye socket and a broken cheekbone during the incident, Hull Crown Court heard.
Parker, 32, of Portobello Street, off Holderness Road, east Hull, admitted assaulting the woman causing actual bodily harm, possessing a knife and using threatening words or behaviour on July 28.
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Oliver Shipley, prosecuting, said that Parker and the woman had been in a relationship for about 14 years at the time but it was turbulent and got worse over time. He arrived at her home angry and aggressive after playing darts at a pub.
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Parker hurled insults, including telling her that she deserved to die and was a waste of space. He viciously attacked her and slapped her to her face with such force that she fell to the floor.
Parker continued to punch and kick her to her face, head and body, causing swelling and bruising. The door to the house was open and Parker threatened anybody who tried to go in.
“The defendant was threatening anybody who tried to help,” said Mr Shipley. “She eventually managed to get out of the property through the door and out into the street, where she screamed for help. The defendant continued his behaviour on the street while in possession of a knife.”
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Parker was abusive to a neighbour, who tried to help, and he had the knife in his hand. Parker went back to the house and he was arrested by armed response officers.
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During police interview, he made no comment to all questions. He had no previous convictions.
The woman later said that she was scared for her life and worried for those of her children. “I do not want Parker anywhere near my property or my children,” she said. “I am truly broken and shocked about the whole situation.”
Ben Hammersley, mitigating, said that Parker suffered injuries in the incident after he was set on by others. “He suffered a fractured eye socket and a fractured cheekbone,” said Mr Hammersley.
Parker was treated by paramedics at the scene and he was taken to hospital. He had been left with a scar near his eye. “When he came to, having been knocked unconscious, he was fearful that he was still being assaulted,” said Mr Hammersley.
It was a one-off assault by Parker on the woman and he acted out of character, it was claimed. “This was an isolated incident,” said Mr Hammersley. “He has no desire to contact her whatsoever.”
Parker had been in custody for just over a month but he had previously been working full-time.
Deputy circuit judge Timothy Clayson told Parker: “You became abusive to her before becoming violent. She described you slapping her, pushing her around and trying to force her out of the door, in the course of which she was caused to fall to the floor.
Thug beat up terrified girlfriend before receiving a taste of his own medicine
Ryan Parker left his victim scared for her life
Ryan Parker admitted assaulting the woman causing actual bodily harm, possessing a knife and using threatening words or behaviour(Image: Humberside Police)
A violent thug who repeatedly assaulted his terrified girlfriend was given a taste of his own medicine when he was severely beaten and knocked unconscious by others present at the scene just minutes later.
Ryan Parker, a heavy drinker, was left with a black eye, a fractured eye socket and a broken cheekbone during the incident, as heard in Hull Crown Court.
Parker, 32, from Portobello Street, off Holderness Road, east Hull, pleaded guilty to assaulting the woman causing actual bodily harm, possessing a knife and using threatening words or behaviour on July 28, reports Hull Live.
Oliver Shipley, prosecuting, stated that Parker and the woman had been in a relationship for about 14 years at the time but it was turbulent and deteriorated over time. He arrived at her home angry and aggressive after playing darts at a pub.
Parker hurled insults, including telling her that she deserved to die and was a waste of space, Mr Shipley continued, adding that Parker brutally attacked her and slapped her face with such force that she fell to the floor.
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Parker continued to punch and kick her in the face, head and body, causing swelling and bruising. The house door was open and Parker threatened anyone who tried to enter.
“The defendant was threatening anybody who tried to help,” said Mr Shipley. “She eventually managed to get out of the property through the door and out into the street, where she screamed for help. The defendant continued his behaviour on the street while in possession of a knife.”
Ryan Parker admitted assaulting the woman causing actual bodily harm, possessing a knife and using threatening words or behaviour(Image: Humberside Police)
Parker allegedly hurled abuse at a neighbour who attempted to intervene, brandishing a knife in the process. Following his return to the house, he was detained by armed response officers.
Throughout his police interview, Parker remained silent to all questions. He holds no prior convictions on his record.
The victim later spoke of her terror for her own life and that of her children. She said: “I do not want Parker anywhere near my property or my children. I am truly broken and shocked about the whole situation.”
In mitigation, Ben Hammersley said Parker was injured during the incident, claiming he was attacked by others. Mr Hammersley said: “He suffered a fractured eye socket and a fractured cheekbone,”.
Following the altercation, Parker received medical attention from paramedics on-site before being transported to the hospital. The encounter has left him with a scar near his eye. “When he came to, having been knocked unconscious, he was fearful that he was still being assaulted,” said Mr Hammersley.
Mr Hammersley called Parker’s attack on the woman ‘an isolated incident’, adding: “He has no desire to contact her whatsoever.”
Parker, who had been working full-time before spending just over a month in custody, was told by Deputy circuit judge Timothy Clayson: “You became abusive to her before becoming violent. She described you slapping her, pushing her around and trying to force her out of the door, in the course of which she was caused to fall to the floor.
“She described violence to the face with numerous punches to the face. All of this was fuelled plainly by excessive drink. It was a sustained assault. This is a very serious matter.
“The overall offences here are so serious that only immediate custody is appropriate. There was a serious risk of disorder by your production of this knife.”
Following the ruling, Parker was sentenced to 20 months in jail and received a six-year restraining order.
