Summary
Sweet Magnolias is obviously counting on a third season, delivering a finale that provides very few satisfying resolutions and instead only adds more fuel to the fire.
This recap of Sweet Magnolias season 2, episode 10, “If Thou Wilt, Remember”, contains spoilers, including for the Sweet Magnolias Season 2 ending.
Okay, so, we’ve reached the end of the second season of Sweet Magnolias, folks. But before the credits roll, we really have some things to address, including Dana Sue and Ronnie’s marriage, Helen’s relationship with Erik and desire for a baby, Isaac’s parentage, the love triangle (or is it square?) among the kids, and who’s going to be Serenity’s next mayor. So, let’s try and get through all that.
Sweet Magnolias season 2, episode 10 recap
A curveball is thrown into proceedings immediately by Ryan, who decides that now is just the right time to tell Helen that he wants children. This is countered, though, by Dana Sue deciding she wants to welcome Ronnie back into the marital bed. They tell Annie and she gets a little upset, but surely this is the best decision for everyone involved?
Things are not going well for Maddie and Cal, though. Bill visits the former and tells her about Isaac, and she goes absolutely ballistic (I mean, he didn’t know, did he? Can’t help but feel this is a bit harsh, but whatever.) To make matters worse, Mary Vaughn threatened her in the previous episode about exposing something in Cal’s past, and she makes good on that threat. He assumed it was going to be something to do with his anger management rehabilitation in the wake of his accident, but as it turns out she’s referring to a specific incident of assault and battery which she shouldn’t even know about. Nevertheless, she smugly calls for a vote on his position, and the majority decides to terminate his contract.
The title of this finale, “If Thou Wilt, Remember”, is taken from the poem When I Am Dead, My Dearest, by Christina Rosetti. It was apparently Miss Frances’s favorite, so Ryan reads it at the funeral celebrations, which is the big event that brings everyone together in this episode, some of them against their will. Mary Vaughn forbids both Jackson and Nellie to fraternize with Ty, Kyle, or Annie, and they both ignore the instruction. Nellie kisses Kyle — though admittedly implies that she’s going to abide by her mother’s wishes — and Jackson assures Annie that he’s going to completely ignore everyone who tries to control his life and keep him away from her.
Sweet Magnolias Season 2 ending
The second season of Sweet Magnolias ends with a flurry of scenes. At Sullivan’s, there’s a lot of fuss among the community about Cal’s firing, but while everyone is trying to work out how best to respond, the excitable fan of Cal’s from the fundraiser arrives. He’s on a mission to get Cal reinstated, but he plans to do it by fighting whoever opposes Cal, and he won’t listen to reason when everyone tells him to calm down. Eventually, he lunges at Maddie, and in full view of the restaurant’s clientele, Cal is forced to sock him in the mouth. This, needless to say, is not going to do much for his local hothead reputation.
And then there’s Ryan. At the end of “If Thou Wilt, Remember”, he proposes to Helen.
