Double Turn
Episode 8 of Heels begins the season 1 finale in the past, with Jack taught some lessons by his dad, encouraged to lock up and wrestle. While Ace watches on, Jack’s dad implores him to quit. However, we don’t see a resolution to this though, instead cutting forward to the moments we left off last episode. ..
What happens with Crystal and the FWD?
Jack and Ace were fighting in the ring when a bottle was thrown. Jack narrowly missed Ace’s face, and they quickly ran into the car.
On the way to the fair, Jack reveals that he has plans to turn Bill into a heel while Ace is going to shift across to turn face and win the belt. Will it pay off? We’ll see. One spanner in the works though comes from Gully, who’s encouraged by Rooster to go and mess up Jack at the fair as revenge. ..
Crystal quits the DWL and is disappointed that she won’t be in the main event. However, Bill offers her a chance to get back on the ladder, so to speak, serving as his valet. Given Bill’s valets have a pretty illustrious history, Crystal isn’t so sure she wants to go down this route and become just another Bunny B. Eventually though, she swallows her pride and decides to embrace this, with both Ace and Jack accepting this new character switch.
Does Staci forgive Jack?
Jack returns home and finds that his past has caught up with him. After buying Kleenex and manipulating Ace’s story, Staci calls her husband out and cuts through his fluffy excuses to question his motive and desire. According to Jack, he’s done all of this to prepare Ace for the real world. Given his family has a history of mean streaks, it seems like Jack is adopting some tough love for his brother. In Jack’s own words, he’s “trying to be his brother’s keeper.” Staci has obviously kept Jack grounded this whole time but Ace doesn’t have anyone.
Staci gives Jack an ultimatum: either tell the truth to Ace or potentially lose both Staci and Thomas. Once he’s sorted out things with Ace, the pair can discuss their future and how that looks next to the DWL situation. For now, Staci prepares for her rodeo where she’s due to sing the national anthem. Jack wishes her well and is certainly regretful that he can’t attend. ..
What happens at the state fair?
On the first day of the state fair, Jack gave a speech about family and putting on the best show of their lives. This was it. The future of the DWL was now at stake. ..
Wild Bill, who had been popping pills earlier in the night, begins to stumble and lose focus while standing next to Ace. Ace and Jack are left alone backstage as Bill’s music hits. Ace has been struggling to tell his brother the truth about the Kleenex situation, but now is not the time. The attention turns back to Wild Bill as he takes the microphone and calls out both Ace and Jack. ..
The fight between Jack and Ace begins with both men landing punches on each other. However, it is Bill who ends up taking the majority of the damage. As a result, Ace is able to get close to Jack and starts beating him down. This prompts Bill to run into the ring and help his friend. However, this decision ends up costing him as he soils himself in the process. This forces Jack to take Ace’s side on the ladder in order to win the match. ..
Jack and Ace were in the crowd and started a “Jack” chant. With Kleenex in hand, they begin pelting the pair with it. The trouble is, this encourages Jack to admit the truth atop the ladder. Jack throws a stiff right hand, knocking Ace down to the floor below. Instead of grabbing the title, Ace slips down, throws the ladder outside and beats Jack down in the ring – for real.
Who wins the ladder match?
Crystal steps into the ring and distracts Ace’s rampage. After using her hurricanrana on him, she next suplexes Jack before being encouraged to grab the ladder and the belt for herself. ..
It’s a great twist to the match but one that sees the future of the DWL hanging in the balance. Bill, having soiled himself of course, swallows his pride when he sees Gully charging for the ring. He runs full-steam at the slimy owner and knocks him clean-out, allowing Crystal to grab the belt for herself.
With Crystal celebrating her big win, Jack and Ace both exchange glances before Ace skips out of the ring and leaves, with the final shot on Crystal celebrating her big win. ..
Why is Crystal chosen to win the belt?
But as the years went on, Heels started to focus on a much more personal rivalry between the Spade brothers and their father. The feud began with a physical altercation between the two men, but quickly escalated into a full-blown war. The two men fought each other until one was finally disqualified from the ring. It was an intense battle that saw both men take many hits, but it was ultimately the Spade father who emerged victorious.
Jack’s obsession with the DWL and ensuring it stays afloat has caused a rift in his home life. He’s been neglecting Thomas and Staci, which eventually culminates in him making a big choice during the final match.
Crystal is the clear favorite to win the Miss USA pageant, and many people are wondering why her brothers are even in the running. He recognizes that there’s more to this story than the brothers, and given how beloved Crystal is, it makes sense for her to win. ..
Crystal has been a focal point for much of the drama this season. She’s proven herself to be more than capable on the mic and in the ring, which Jack has been reluctant to accept until the final moments of this episode. ..
Jack has accepted that Crystal is ready to take over as the new belt holder and he will allow someone outside the family to do so. This could have been Rooster, but his bad attitude and haste cost him that chance. Crystal’s win may not make sense from a kayfabe perspective (she’s not even technically in the match!) but it is a nice way to usher in a new era at the DWL.
Do Ace and Jack patch up their differences?
This question is a little harder to answer. The knowing glance from the pair seems to hint that Ace and Jack’s rivalry is far from over outside the ring. Inside though, Jack has accepted that he can’t always be there to fight Ace’s battles – which is some of the reasoning over him getting involved in the FWD. Now, Ace and Jack are both fine with Crystal winning the belt, especially if Ace’s satisfied smile is anything to go by.
As he turns to look at his brother, Ace’s smile turns into a thinly veiled snarl. The way his upper-lip quivers as he looks at Jack only reinforces that the bad blood between the brothers is not over.
Jack seems to know this too, especially when Ace leaves the ring. His smile also disappears, replaced with regret over orchestrating the Kleenex situation all those episodes ago. For now, we’re left with big question marks over the future of Heels, and with no word on a second season (at least at the time of writing) the brothers’ feud is left unresolved.
The Episode Review
In the finale of Heels, the showrunners wrapped up all the big plot points in a satisfying way, but left many questions about the future of Duffy residents unresolved. The finale left many fans on the edge of their seats, wondering what would happen next.
Ace and Jack’s relationship is still a bit tense, as is the future of Jack’s relationship with Staci. She was the one who encouraged Jack to tell the truth to his brother, and he eventually does just that - in the middle of the ring at the most crucial point of the match no less. The trouble is, this seems to have destroyed what good will had been built up for the brothers until that point.
The other characters in this story do get a conclusive arc, including Crystal who has been fighting to be recognized as a decent in-ring performer since the opening few episodes. It’s a nice nod to bring the story back around to her and the win does help to do just that. Bill too gets a redemptive arc, finally swallowing his pride and doing right by the DWL by knocking out Gully. Even if it does mean he’s embarrassed after soiling himself, he too recognizes that the DWL is bigger than him.
Heels absolutely deserves a rematch!
