For a series that hit a slump in its sophomore season, Revenge sure knew how to finish strong. I mean, THAT is how to do a season finale, right? The past several episodes had picked up momentum that didn't stop tonight, culminating in what was perhaps the best episode of Revenge season 2.

In the wake of the Initiative's attack, secrets were revealed and lies began to unravel, leaving basically everyone scrambling for some sort of "Truth."

This is a difficult review to write because there's almost too much to say. This might be out of order and pieced together with information from the two-hour finale, but here goes nothing.

"Truth" picked up immediately where "Engagement" ended. The lights are out and everyone is stuck. While the lights are off, Emily and Nolan urge Aiden to go on the run. Emily cannot and will not let him become the next David Clarke. 

Victoria and Jack seem to have a deal regarding Conrad and they look for the laptop that was stolen from Jack's apartment during Fauxmanda's funeral. When it isn't in the safe in Conrad's office, Victoria gives Jack a file on Amanda Clarke and sends him on his way. 

After five hours, just long enough for people to begin to panic, the lights are back on and so is Conrad's quest for the Governor's mansion.

Emily and Nolan plan to visit Takeda to ask his advice and instead find his body and his infinity box. In it they find a picture of Takeda's late fiancee' and the photo of an unnamed man Emily believes to have killed Takeda. 

Emily finds Aiden at his house preparing to leave and learns that he killed Takeda, but not before he asks her to run away with him and give up her revengenda. 

It doesn't seem logical that Emily would have such a hard time believing that Takeda would have an ulterior motive in training the two of them and setting them on their own paths for revenge. I get that Aiden lied by omission when he didn't tell her what he knew about Takeda's fiancee' as soon as he learned it, but she lied about Jack.

All's fair in love and revengendas?

But still, it's quite the quandary. I understand that Takeda was her mentor and taught her the ways of revenge, but why was it so hard for her to accept that Takeda's fiancee' was on Flight 197? She's a smart woman. She should've been able to piece these things together quickly enough to know that Aiden was telling the truth. 

Conrad's warning to Daniel to stay away from work that day should have been enough of a red flag to signal that something else was in the works, but it wasn't until the man from the picture in Takeda's box showed up to work on the Grayson servers that things started to fall into place. And even then, they were falling from way, way up in the sky and settling very slowly. 

There was so much misdirect before the reveal that Grayson had not only been working for the Initiative this whole time, but he was actually a part of it. An active member making plans and profiting from the fear of others. His slow reveal to Daniel followed by his complete confession to Victoria regarding his complicity and help in planning was just diabolical. He became more evil than even Victoria seems to have been able to imagine. 

Conrad's membership in this elite group of profiteers nearly proved fatal for Jack.

Had it not been for Nolan's voice mail, Jack would've been in the building and on the same floor as the bomb. It was great to see Nolan think on his feet about how this all must have been triggered when he started looking into Victoria's first son Patrick, and while I can't blame Jack for not wanting to trust Emily, Nolan admonishing Jack to trust her again was great. Much has been misunderstood between Jack and Emily all this season, so hearing Nolan finally speak up for her was nice. 

Charlotte lied and said she was with Daniel instead of telling him the truth about being with Regina and that lie cost him his life and her baby a father. When he told Charlotte that he was expected to make a full recovery, I knew right then that he wouldn't survive.

RIP Declan Porter.

His death was the catalyst for Jack to step up his revenge game with a gun he stole from the Graysons and Ashley's help. With a press pass, he was waiting in the wings for Conrad's acceptance speech, prepared to shoot the man who cost him everything. Or he was preparing to shoot Daniel. (And since Daniel might have killed Aiden after they fought over Emily, maybe he deserves it just as much as Conrad does.) Jack seemed to re-aim the gun just before Emily made it up the stairs to stop him. And stop him she did. With the biggest reveal in two seasons.

Emily told Jack the truth about her identity. Or, rather, she let him figure it out for himself by telling him that he's always known the truth if he really looks inside himself. Jack knows that Emily is really Amanda Clarke and part of him always has.

While Emanda dropped her bombshell on Jack, and Patrick showed up on Mommy Dearest's doorstep, in a twist I did not at all see coming - and which will prove interesting when Revenge season 3 airs this fall - Nolan got arrested for cyber-terrorism based on his many visits with David Clarke and a video confession from Padma Lahari. 

Was the message recorded before Trask killed her? Or is she even dead at all? I suppose we'll have to wait a few months to find out.

What did you think of "Truth?" Do you think Aiden is dead? Was the Revenge season finale everything you hoped it would be and more? Be on the lookout for the latest Round Table and, in the meantime, check out the Revenge quotes page where you can rate your favorites and add your own!

Miranda Wicker was a Staff Writer for TV Fanatic. She retired in 2017. Follow her on Twitter.