The penultimate episode's history! Nice watching it knowing 12 Monkeys was renewed.

I thought I had 12 Monkeys Season 2 Episode 12 all figured out. Charlie just had to be our guy. It was so damn obvious, wasn't it? Yeah, not so much.

I love so many things about this series, but the way the writers subvert our expectations has to be one of my favorite things about 12 Monkeys.

Our heroes failed to stop the paradox, yet time did not collapse. Any theories?

Things kicked off in January 1957, with Cole and Cassie preparing for the paradox in November. It's so odd to think the world was collapsing in 2044, but they would spend nearly a year together in the past.

Would this long stretch of time bring them closer than ever before? Were we about to witness those 2 missing years Cassie mentioned on her deathbed at the CDC?

Well, that was my hope anyway because its been pretty much 2 seasons of foreplay. I don't mean to complain, the tension has made for some great drama but I wanted to see those lovebirds happy... for a change.

I understand there's no time to waste, but in less than 2 minutes of screen time 11 months had slipped away.

Sure it must have been tough investigating 200 people for hints that they were primary, but they had 2 days left and time had run out. No hint Cole and Cassie had hooked up either. Talk about keeping us at the edge of our seats. Terry Matalas and the writers room were not messing around.

Clearly the show was renewed, so they would stop the paradox... right? Nope. Ah those 12 Monkeys twists!

While Cole thought he had Primary behavior figured out, I loved that Cassie questioned his assumptions.

Look out for the strange ones. Being Primary is like being schizophrenic. Look for people who twitch, talk to themselves, don't fit in with others. People who stand out.

Cole

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It was obvious the creepers weren't our guys. By the way, wasn't Cole's comment about the pages being stuck together hilarious?

The Primary had to be someone inconspicuous, who did not attract attention. Possibly someone one of our heroes had befriended and were overlooking. The minute Cole met Charlie at the bar, I figured he was our guy. Besides, the character shared the story of his sick wife and how he wished he had more time with her.

Speaking of which, even Charlie picked up on the sexual tension between Cole and Cassie. Why the hell does he keep telling people "it's not like that"? Was he being gentlemanly or just not sure Cassie felt the same way? I mean, he did sleep on the couch for close to a year. What?!?

Either way, the two have wasted a shitload of time. Here's hoping they make up for it in Season 3.

The day laborers was a fun twist, but it was obviously a red herring. I will admit the dude Cole shifted his focus to, Reginald Dupuy, was totally suspicious.

Then he gave Charlie some story about doing time with Dupuy, which only reinforced my belief Cole's new buddy was the Primary. He had to be, right?

I thought Cole came on pretty strong with Dupuy, didn't he?

Spend any time in the hospital? Draw things you see in your head? Monkeys? Hear voices, talking about things that haven't happened yet? Red forest? Green to red?

Cole

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I'll admit, Cassie spotting that monkey drawing on Dupuy's application threw me for a minute. Still, you got the sense there had to be something more to it because everything was coming together almost too perfectly.

I had not forgotten that Charlie was aware of Cole's suspicions. He had to be involved somehow. I was certain of it.

Poor Reggie must have been shitting his shorts when Cole took him in the back to shoot him. I would have confessed to just about anything, but it made sense Charlie had paid him off.

What I wasn't expecting was that Charlie's wife would appear carrying a gun and a box. Okay, that was a nice little surprise I didn't see coming. What was in the box? Was Charlie the Primary or was it his wife?

Things were getting interesting now. Holy shit, it was a bone knife!

Yup, the writing team did it again. They completely mislead us. Ha! Charlie was a Messenger! Nope, didn't see that one coming and I loved the twist.

Cassie: You're one of the twelve. You're a Messenger.
Charlie: I was, but I won't be. Not to her. I can't hurt her.
Cassie: I don't want to hurt her either.
Melinda: Charlie, today is the day I die.
Cassie: She's Primary, if you paradox her you'll destroy everyone. Everything.

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How did he go from "I can't hurt her" to paradoxing his wife? Holy frakkin' crap! There goes the world and everyone with it, right? Nope, in the future the others saw Titan city in the distance. What's going on Terry Matalas, explain yourself please.

Back in 2044, the other team struggled to locate Titan and were caught in a shootout. The main takeaway was that Jennifer's "Daughters" were losing faith in her, which made sense since her wisdom was coming from fortune cookies. How great was that little reveal?

Though I was curious about Titan, it was a little frustrating they took so long to arrive there. To make matters worse, Hannah returned explaining there was nothing at Titan's coordinates. After the paradox, the massive city just appeared. Interesting.

Cassie was in a coma, but time had not collapsed with the paradox. Though I'm still not exactly sure why that was, it was more surprising Cole walked away than Cassie eventually waking up.

Still, the payoff of Cassie making her way to "Morris Morrison's" house in Binghamton, NY was fantastic. I honest to goodness got goosebumps. Was Cole The Witness all along? There's no doubt that was the cedar and pine house from the red forest visions. Cassie knew exactly where she was.

I will say, though Cassie and Cole FINALLY kissed and made love, there was something off about juxtaposing that with all the death at Titan.

I'm sure I'm not the only fan slightly disappointed that we waited so long for Cole and Cassie to get together, only to have their romantic moment cut back and forth with Ramse, Deacon, Whitley, and Hannah getting their throats slit in the future. To say it ruined the moment is an understatement.

Where the hell do we go from here, guys? Well, I've screened the 12 Monkeys Season 2 Finale and it's one of the best hours of television I've watched this year. The writing team delivers on all its promises and the cliffhanger will blow your mind. Had Syfy not renewed 12 Monkeys, I might have stopped watching TV altogether. Thank you for the renewal, Syfy. Genre fans are forever in your debt.

What did you think of "Blood Washed Away"? Did the paradox twist surprise you? How did you feel about Cole and Cassie finally getting together? Is Cole The Witness? You're up ladies and germs, hit the comments below and share your thoughts with everyone.

Need to catch up before the finale? Remember you can watch 12 Monkeys online via TV Fanatic!

NOTE: 12 Monkeys Season 2 Episode 13 is titled "Memory of Tomorrow" and airs on July 18.