Outer Banks season 4 finale delivers OBX’s most gut-wrenching moment ever

Over the course of its four seasons, Outer Banks has taken viewers on quite a ride filled with many ups and downs. Along the way, we’ve seen epic highs such as when the Pogues discovered the lost city of El Dorado and we were able to rebuild Poguelandia. We’ve also seen more than our fair share of crushing lows, in fact, that list is probably far too long to actually list as life has not been easy for the Pogues. 

There have been moments that made us laugh, moments that left us speechless, and moments that made us cry both tears of sorrow and joy. However, nothing, and I mean nothing, could have ever prepared us for the gut-wrenching moment the writers would throw our way in the show’s season 4 finale. 

Warning: Spoilers ahead from Outer Banks season 4, episode 10. 

Heading into the second part of the season, we already were coming into the final five episodes of season 4 with a heavy heart. This is because just days before Part 2 landed on Nov. 7, Netflix announced its decision to bring the show back for a fifth and final season. 

“With a little sadness, but also excitement, we’re putting Season Four behind us, and are turning to Season Five, in which we hope to bring our beloved Pogues home in the way we imagined and planned years ago. Season Five will be our last season, and we think it will be our best yet,” co-creators and executive producers Jonas Pate, Josh Pate, and Shannon Burke revealed in a joint statement first released to Deadline breaking the news of the decision to end the show. 

Knowing Outer Banks was heading into its final season made going into the second part of season 4 bittersweet as we knew it marked the beginning of the end for the Pogues’ time on Netflix. We went into the episodes prepared for the writers to use the second half of the season to lay the foundation for what would become the show’s final season. 

Our expectation was that the second part of the season would perhaps see the Pogues come close to finding the Blue Crown and that the season might end with a twist that would set the way for their final adventure. What we did not expect was that the season 4 finale would quite literally tear our heart out and then stomp on it courtesy of a twist so heartbreaking, that we’re still processing it. 

Outer Banks season 4 finale kills off a Pogue and we’re not okay 

In the season 4 finale, the Pogues (plus Rafe) begin their journey to finding the Blue Crown, and most of the finale is spent with the Pogues having tracked down the location of the crown and battling off Dalia and her mercenaries as they attempt to find the treasure. 

Throughout the finale, there are moments that leave audiences on the edge of their seats with several near-death moments for the Pogues what with Cleo being shot and John B nearly being strangled to death, and yet who’d have guessed the biggest threat to the Pogues would end up being Chandler Groff. 

Early in the episode, it seems like Groff’s arc ends with him finally getting his comeuppance for all the terrible things he’s done in his life – a laundry list that includes killing his wife and abandoning JJ. After betraying his son in the previous episode, the tables have turned on Groff as Dalia no longer sees him as an ally but as a means to an end. 

Lightner is basically given the green light to kill Groff once he’s secured the scroll, but Rafe shows up and saves the day. Groff then tries to betray Rafe, which is a big mistake as Rafe turns the tables on him and pushes him into a well before leaving him for dead in the middle of the desert. All hope seems lost for Groff until the Pogues stumble upon the well and Groff attempts to try to persuade JJ into helping him out. 

Unlike before, JJ sees through Groff’s empty promises and leaves his father behind to fend for himself… and that’s exactly what Groff does. Like the cockroach he is, Groff managed to escape the well and made his way to Agapenta where he took Kiara at knifepoint. 

He then used her as leverage to get JJ to hand over the Blue Crown which he had just secured moments before. To JJ, Kiara is worth more than any piece of treasure and he hands over the crown and Groff frees Kiara. 

You’d think having gotten the crown would be enough for Groff, but no. He attacks JJ, stabbing him in the stomach as he tells his son he should have helped him out of the well and takes revenge against his son. The wound proves fatal as JJ dies in Kiara’s arms moments after in a gut-wrenching scene that leaves fans in tears both of sadness and rage. 

Despite all his flaws, all JJ wanted was a family who loved him and he found that in the Pogues. More importantly, he found his person in Kiara and the fact that he died at the hands of his biological father and in Kiara’s arms after telling her he loved her one final time was honestly the most tragic way the show could have ever ended JJ’s arc on the show. 

It was honestly a moment that we never saw coming as the Pogues have cheated death on countless occasions and we never imagined the show would kill one of the core characters off ahead of the final season. However, that’s exactly what the creative team opted for and it’s clear the decision was made as part of the plan for what will be the final chapter in the show’s run. 

Season 5 will find the Pogues seeking revenge for their fallen friend, and there is no telling what lengths they’ll go to in order to avenge JJ. We’re more than ready for the Pogues to get their revenge and bring Groff to justice, but also heartbroken that the final season will be without JJ, who has long been the heart of the group. Despite his flaws, JJ was unwaveringly loyal and stopped at nothing to protect his found family. 

Now, we’ll get to see the Pogues return that loyalty as they seek out Groff and get justice for JJ. How that justice will come to fruition remains to be seen, but we have faith the writers are crafting an unforgettable final chapter in the story – one that just sadly will be without our favorite chaotically charming Pogue.

Outer Banks season 4 is streaming now on Netflix.