Well, that certainly could have been a more upbeat season finale.

But as shown on Lovecraft Country Season 1 Episode 10, a happy ending would have been out of character for Lovecraft Country.

After all, Tic and company have been playing catch-up all season long. Why should this episode be any different?

They had to learn the hard way about magic, monsters, spirits, and time/dimensional travel. And any progress they've made in those areas came only after they were willing to believe.

Basically, everyone got trapped in this magical mess because of Braithwhite subterfuge. 

Montrose was the bait which got Tic, Leti, and sadly George involved. Then Hippolyta, Ruby, Ji-Ah, and Diana got dragged in as well.

On the other side was Christina, who has been planning her ascension seemingly since birth and was still trying to prove herself to her dead father.

Christina was playing chess while Tic and his circle were playing defense, all the way through.

So was it any wonder that, even with the help of ancestors Hanna, Hattie, and Dora, they suffered more casualties in the end?

If only this magic business wasn't so damn nebulous.

They went through the horrors of the Tulsa massacre to retrieve the Book of Names on Lovecraft Country Season 1 Episode 9.

But possessing the Book wasn't enough. They had to know how to utilize the information within it, and they were still faking their way along, with power they were ill equipped to handle.

Tic and his unborn son had Braithwhite blood in their veins, but that didn't impart the necessary magical knowledge to them.

Tic and Leti got as far as they had through smarts and luck, and it was enjoyable to watch them succeed for a time in an uphill battle.

But the wheels were going to inevitably fall off because Christina was several steps ahead of them all the way through.

Should Tic have just given the Book to Christina, to get her out of his life?

No, because his family had been protecting the Book as far back as Hanna, with the idea of keeping it out of the hands of the racist Braithwhites.

You just knew things were going to end badly for Ruby. She thought that Christina was going to hand over her hard-won mystical knowledge to Ruby, who could use it to overcome society's racist obstacles.

Did she and Christina have real feelings for each other? That's a complicated question.

Ruby was in love with the idea of the power that Christina offered. Christina was only concerned with her master plan, and Ruby could serve as a window into Tic's world.

It was always going to come down to whose side Ruby was going to take: her wayward sister or her aloof lover.

In her end, Ruby made the right choice in siding with Leti, but she just didn't have the finesse to pull off what she needed to do.

As a result, Tic's plan was doomed, as he carried his enemy directly to where she needed to be.

Tic did have one trick up his sleeve, bringing along Ji-Ah, the only mystical creature he knew. Still, he couldn't have foreseen the role she would ultimately play during the showdown in Ardham.

Or could he? After all, only he, and later Diana, had read "Lovecraft Country," written by Tic's unborn son, George, in the future.

His fate had to have been spelled out in its pages. And Tic accepted that, all the while feeding Montrose the line about it being only one, possible future.

And frankly, if the show was going to lose another character in addition to the inevitable Ruby, Tic was an acceptable choice. He got to go out a hero, making up for his war crimes.

At least, everyone else survived, leaving a strong core of characters for a second season if Lovecraft Country gets picked up.

It's a shame that Hippolyta, who represented the power of science, couldn't have played more of a role in the finale.

Yes, it's thanks to her that they retrieved the Book. And it was heartening to see that she had survived powering the dimensional machine on Lovecraft Country Season 1 Episode 9.

The series had an annoying habit of leaving a character or two in peril at the end of each episode.

This time out, both Hippolyta and Diana were left hanging. And even after a spell was performed from the Book, Dee was still burdened with a demon arm. That should have been a head's-up that the coming battle wasn't going to go well.

And who could fault Diana for being pissed off at Hippolyta for disappearing for weeks during a stressful period for Dee?

Fortunately, the gift of a bionic arm helped to smooth things over between them.

Who thought it was a good idea to leave Diana alone in Woody in the middle of the Ardham woods? And how did they smuggle Tic's guard-dog monster back to Ardham?

The new and improved Dee, who put Christina out of our misery, promises to be a character to watch in the future.

If there is a future.

How do you have a magic-based series after killing off the only magical character? Or is Leti magical now that she's carrying a Braithwhite descendent? 

For that matter, is Tic really dead? Leti came back to life for a second time after being tossed from the tower, so you can't assume anything.

To revisit the whole season, watch Lovecraft Country online.

Where you surprised Tic was killed? Or is he dead?

How did you enjoy the first season?

Do you want more?

Comment below.

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