HBO’s second season finale “Winning Time” will serve as the series finale as the show will not return for a third season.
If you thought Sunday’s season two finale of “Winning Time” had an ominous tone in the closing scenes, you were wrong. And it’s the finale that foreshadowed the future of the series.
On Sunday, HBO confirmed in a statement that the season two finale of “Winning Time” will serve as the series finale, with the show not being renewed for a third season.
The future of the series has been questioned with Jeff Pearlman, who wrote the book “Showtime” on which the series is based, be the loudest voice preaching about how important it is for fans to tune in each week for the future of the show, which is otherwise in doubt.
Unfortunately, these warnings were ultimately in vain.
A very strong, if short, second season of the show focused on watching the Showtime Lakers of the 1980s – led by Dr. Jerry Buss, Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – despite their rivalry with Boston Celtics led by Red Auerbach and Larry Bird, and Sunday’s finale came to an ominous conclusion.
Spoiler alert: For those who may still want to see the series or the final episode, there are spoilers below about how the second season and the series ends.
After the Lakers’ loss in Game 7 against the Celtics in the 1984 Finals, a dejected Lakers and Magic locker room retreats in a scene with Dr. Buss and his daughter Jeanie in front of a photo montage that shows how the 80s and the following decade as a whole played out for all the highlights of the show.
It was the type of cut that definitely didn’t indicate that there would be future seasons of “Winning Time” and that the creators were aware that this was the end. Adding to that impression is the fact that when I watched the finals a couple of weeks ago, Magic was in the shower. An entire scene has now been added that foreshadows Jeanie Buss’s eventual succession to her father, Dr. Jerry Buss, as well as the aforementioned montage where they all ended up.
It’s still a shame because it ultimately means that Showtime’s Lakers show will end with the Lakers losing to the Celtics in the 1984 NBA Finals.
The good news is that the Lakers got plenty of revenge in real life and had the last laugh. But it’s a sad ending for a show that seemed to really find its groove in its second season.
You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude.
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