That should have been a season finale, one that would put pressure on CBS to renew The Code.

But no. Instead cliffhangers abounded on the penultimate episode, The Code Season 1 Episode 11.

Most of the characters were staring at life-changing events.

Except for Rami, who was thankfully back after spending half of the season in administrative limbo for daring to speak up against an unfair Marine Corps policy.

Nor Harper, who was still recovering from breaking up with fey fiance Bard to pursue instead her military career on The Code Season 1 Episode 10.

Yeah, she dodged a bullet there, so to speak.

So, OK. everyone else found themselves up in the air at episode's end.

There was even a topical, intricate case of the week woven in there as well.

Related: The Code Season 1 Episode 10 Review: Secret Squirrel

You can't go wrong with Oxycontin abuse at the center of a drama these days.

That's what seemed to be happening when the episode opened with Maya defending a Marine caught with a big-ass bottle of Oxy in his pocket, apparently planning to sell it.

But that wasn't really what the case was about. Instead, Oxy was just the weapon used to kill a philandering husband disguised as a Marine.

That was an intriguing twist right off the bat.

Not addressed (that I remember) was the interesting question of how enough Oxy was forced into the victim for an overdose.

But then I'm a writer, not a pharmacist. Maybe it didn't take many at such a big dose.

That's a secondary point anyway.

The more we learned about Jack Stanhope, the less his death seemed like a loss.

The man-whore was messing around on wife Nina, a fellow Marine, less than two weeks after they got married.

That made Nina the natural suspect until she explained that she and Jack had a contract marriage, a marriage on paper only which gained them additional benefits from the Marines.

This didn't make Jack into an upstanding citizen, but it did clear Nina, at least for a time.

It turns out these contract marriages were big in the office where Jack and Nina both worked, and the marriage broker gave Harper and Abe a solid suspect in turn for leniency.

Unfortunately, Kimber the pharmacist didn't have access to the big-dose Oxy that killed Jack, which was no longer manufactured.

Kimber didn't have a reason to kill Jack, since he had promised to go straight, divorce Nina, and marry her.

Then Abe and Harper caught a break when the dumb-ass drug dealer, selling a prescription he stole from his grandmother, picked Nina out of a photo lineup.

Wouldn't those pills have lost a good deal of their potency? Then again, not a pharmacist.

With Nina caught multicolor-handed (her incriminating fingernails, get it?), why did the case even finish up in court?

Still, that was the only storyline that did get wrapped up.

It was good to have Rami back. I loved the recurring "Up Where We Belong" joke by Abe.

Rami just made everything run so smoothly. He's the best but least utilized character on the show.

My only question is why did they place Rami in institutional limbo for so long? What a waste!

After her big dramatic moment last episode, Harper sadly went back to largely being Abe's sidekick.

It's too bad she was feeling guilty about her choice. A clean break was better than resenting Bard for stifling her ambitions.

Harper accidentally became the only staffer to know that Abe and Alex taking time out was a ruse.

Related: Characters That Served in the Military

After spending much of the season surviving on good luck, charm, and chutzpah, Abe has finally stepped in it.

He should have listened when a general he hasn't seen for a quarter-century shows up at his office to warn him not to testify in Alex's suit against the Marines.

By the time he and Alex both agreed she should drop the suit, the wheels were already in motion, which led to his arrest.

Abe should have realized that every Marine has something in his past that would violate some esoteric part of the Code of Military Justice, so a charge could be trumped up to keep him from testifying.

Trey also ended up facing potential troubling news.

After the ultrasound on his wife Nona, Trey found out they were having twins. But then she was suddenly in labor. That happening so soon promises a tragic outcome.

Both Maya and Glenn had bad news-good news situations.

Glenn's son Adam hasn't been adjusting well to his new situation. A fall and resultant gash in his arm sent him back to the hospital and set his recuperation back months.

Then, after Glenn broke down, Adam admitted to the depths of his despair and told her that his plan is to medically separate from the Marines, to her dismay.

After she went back to the office, Rami urges her to call because she may have been promoted to general.

Maya got a similar surprise.

At a dinner with party organizers planning a fundraiser for Matt, his condition manifested itself.

Tiffany had a relative with a similar condition and told Maya that Matt needed to drop out.

Then later she proposed that Maya take his place and that they could find a way so that she could run.

I think she loves Matt and her work with the Marines too much to do that, but it had to be flattering to be asked.

Related: Get CBS All Access via Prime Video Channels for Hit Shows, Exclusive Originals & Live TV!

Next episode marks the season finale for The Code. So tune in, because I'm afraid it will be the series finale as well.

As long as rumors of a JAG reboot persist, The Code will probably be a victim of circumstance.

CBS probably only has room for one military legal drama, and it's more likely the choice will be the show that was already on the air for a decade.

To catch up before the finale, watch The Code online.

In how much trouble is Abe?

What will Maya do?

Will Glenn make general?

Comment below.

Dale McGarrigle is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow him on X.