This seemed like the fastest hour of television that led...well, nowhere, really. 

The weeks leading up to Zoo Season 1 Episode 13 have been filled with the best ingredients for a summer television show; action, suspense, mystery, and even some romance. With those elements in place, I had high expectations for Zoo's finale. 

They still haven't come up with an adequate name for it, have they? Maybe you should come up with one... that'd put you on the journalistic map, wouldn't it? How about 'The Beast Rebellion'? That's pretty good, no?

Mitch

• Permalink: They still haven't come up with an adequate name for it, have they? Maybe you should come up...

Many questions have been raised throughout the season; questions about Robert Oz's research, who Evan Lee Hartley was, what Reiden Global was really doing all this time, what side Delavenne was truly on, and more.

Unfortunately for viewers who spent weeks investing in the rich mysteries of Zoo, none of those questions would be answered by this finale. In fact, if Zoo does not get picked up for a second season, it's very possible that those questions will never be answered. 

Following the plane crash in Zoo Season 1 Episode 12, we find out that three months have passed. The Zoo Crew has disbanded, and the animals have completely taken over the world. 

What can the animals do to me that they humans haven't done already?

Mitch

• Permalink: What can the animals do to me that they humans haven't done already?

Jamie is believed to be dead, which seems to have caused Mitch to binge drink and lament about lost love. Abraham is working as transporter who looks far more like a leather-clad biker. Jackson has been let go from the government's animal project in favor of a real scientist, and Chloe continues her work with Amelia to find a cure.

Let's first talk about Jackson. I really loved that he is now making his own crazy manifesto tapes, desperate to rack his brain for the stray thoughts that might lead to a breakthrough. It seems that he fully understands Robert now, and the battle that occurred inside of his mind, leading to his death. 

I was glad to see that in the three months since the crash, Jackson and Chloe have remained in constant contact, though I felt cheated out of seeing their reunion after the plane crash. (Are they still together? I wasn't clear on that.)

So that's it. We're out of options. It's all over.

Chloe

• Permalink: So that's it. We're out of options. It's all over.

Abraham abandoned the Zoo Crew post plane crash. He says it was because it hurt too much to be reminded of losing Jamie, but that seems a bit out of character for Abe, especially in terms of Jackson, who he has said was his brother, and the other members of the Crew of whom he's referred to as family. I don't entirely buy his ditching them for a new biker family.

The most heartbreaking story told in Zoo's finale was Mitch and Jamie's. Mitch believes Jamie is dead, and we learned just how deep his feelings were for her. Jamie is trapped by the man who rescued her from the crash, and has no way to contact Mitch to tell him that she's alive.

As much as I enjoyed this story, I had two issues with it. First, Mitch and Jamie's friendship has been a constant throughout the season. I definitely saw their attraction to one another, but it was placed on a back burner in favor of keeping the animals the focus. So when Mitch and Jamie kissed, I was happy, but I certainly didn't see this union has an epic love story. 

Mitch's complete downward spiral over losing the love of his life seemed a bit extreme. 

My second issue was with Jamie not having phone access. If that man has had a phone for the last three months, why didn't he call an actual doctor to come get her? Anyone, really, could have come to get her. It's just strange that he kept a woman, basically in a coma, for months, and raised a baby leopard that he found in a box. I need to know more about that guy. 

The Zoo Crew had a perfect plan to administer the cure to all of the animals, using mosquitos. On paper, and in practice, the plan should be perfect. I was all set to see a wave of mosquitos fluttering through the skies just ahead of that "ZOO" logo that signals the end of the hour. 

But this is Zoo, and if I've learned anything this summer, it's that Zoo never does what I expect. 

With the Zoo Crew (sans Jamie) reunited and headed for the docks to take a boat ride to get the beloved reporter, a pack of animals appeared out of nowhere to block their path. With no plan in place to escape them, the animals stampeded towards the car, and that "ZOO" logo appeared. 

These are not the days to retreat from those you care about, in fact, these are the days to do the very opposite.

Abraham

• Permalink: These are not the days to retreat from those you care about, in fact, these are the days to...

So what was it all for, these weeks we've invested in these characters trying to unravel the mysteries of Zoo? We never found out how Evan Lee Hartley knew Robert. There'd be no further look into Clementine's dog Henry, and why he seemed to remain immune to the animal epidemic. How could Reiden turn over the Mother Cell when it melted under the sprinklers in Africa? 

It's maddening to invest so much in the details and get no clear answers. Fans of Lost are still lamenting the end of the hit show that played mind games with its viewers week after week. 

Zoo has always asked viewers to suspend belief, from a bear with a taste for fine French wine to wolves who can break into prisons. We spent a lot of time getting to know characters who, in the broad spectrum of things, served no purpose to the greater story.

Before all of this began, people who loved cats should have kept themselves hidden.

Abraham

• Permalink: Before all of this began, people who loved cats should have kept themselves hidden.

Zoo focused on being an action-packed show about animals, which made its ending somewhat fitting. It reminded me a great deal of the series finale of Angel, with a cast of characters in an impossible to survive scenario. The writers leave it to the viewers to imagine how it ends. 

Should Zoo get a renewal for a second season, we'll find out exactly what happens next, but if it doesn't, I almost enjoy that this is one time I don't have to suspend my belief. The answer to what happens next is obvious.

I think the survival of the Zoo Crew for a second season would make me have to suspend my belief all over again. I mean, there were elephants, lions, leopards, dogs, and birds hell bent on stopping the Crew from getting that cure...yet I find myself hoping that we'll get to suspend our belief together again next summer. 

You know animals love me, right?

Jackson

• Permalink: You know animals love me, right?

Stray Thoughts: 

• So... did Clem get better? I mean, she was taking those drugs for months. 
• Who knew that Abraham would be so affected by a 4 Non Blondes song? Also, who else sang along? Just me? 
• I sing a lot while writing reviews for Zoo. 
• I want Baboon Beer to be a real thing. Some brewery out there has to make it.
• That Reiden Global "Project Noah" video was such cheesy corporate garbage. I'm sure we've all been subject to one of those videos on the job at some point. 
• Abraham isn't a cat person. Not too surprising. 
• Jackson's neighbor lost his leg in a bad dog bite. Mitch noticed Jackson's arm, bitten by a dog. Does that mean Jackson is in danger of losing his arm? 

That's it everyone... we made it all the way to the end of Zoo Season 1! Were you satisfied with how it all played out? Are you keeping your fingers crossed for a renewal? Not quite ready to say goodbye to the Zoo Crew?

You can watch Zoo online from the beginning, right here at TV Fanatic, and re-watch all of the action from this summer!