Contributors: Kenedi, Brianna, Megan, Jules
Prodigies, the time is drawing near. On Tuesday, Prodigal Son will air the final episode of season 2, and with the cliffhanger that the penultimate episode left us on, nobody is quite sure just what is going to happen.
All season, we’ve been coming at you with theories (in article form and on our podcast) as to what would transpire at multiple points throughout the season. We’re back again to theorize on what crazy events could occur next. Without further ado, here are five theories for what will transpire in the season 2 finale of Prodigal Son.
The Family That Slays Together Stays Together… Or Not
The promos for the finale have been… interesting to say the least. From the looks of it, two big fights will be going down: Martin versus Malcolm and Jessica versus Vivian. We already know that Martin and Malcolm’s little adventure won’t last long. In the promo, it seems as if Martin tells Malcolm he has to kill him while they are outside in some kind of secluded clearing. It would make sense that Malcolm would finally have to face his father and make a tough decision to prioritize his life over Martin’s in that moment, killing Martin in self-defense. The same thing could happen to Jessica. We already know for a fact Vivian ends up in the Whitly mansion for some reason or another, and she and Jessica are shown throwing each other around in a vicious fight. Jessica could also be put in that same boat, with Capshaw forcing her to kill her in self-defense. Could the Whitly family come out of this season with every member having killed someone? We’ll have to tune in to find out.
Malcolm and Martin Go To Jail
Let’s be real. Major crimes has displayed a startling lack of faith in their team member Malcolm Bright in the last few episodes. It’s totally plausible that Dani thinks Malcolm ran off in cahoots with his father — did you see how her face dropped at the end of the last episode? Also, Capshaw is the only one spinning the narrative of what happened to her right now. She could easily tell everyone that Malcolm helped his father hurt her; after all, there’s no one else around at the moment to disprove her accounts. Her lies could poison major crimes’ outlook on the case, especially since they already think that Malcolm’s gone off the rails. If the team finally catches up to the Whitly men after Capshaw has spun her web of lies and they are in a compromising position because of Martin, the team could end up arresting both father and son and throwing them in jail — because let’s be real, there’s no way Martin’s going back to Claremont at this point.
A Cliffhanger Is Coming
We know Prodigal Son loves a good cliffhanger and we feel certain season 2 is going to be even bigger than season 1. Given the promos we’ve had thus far, I believe Martin is going to attempt to force Malcolm to kill him. The idea of going back to Claremont can’t be too appealing for the serial killer. We know he gives Malcolm a knife, so my theory is that Malcolm will refuse while Martin is still holding the knife. This will be when the NYPD and US Marshals find them in the woods, and they’ll move to shoot Martin — he’s armed after all. Malcolm will see it coming and jump in front of the bullet. The promo wants us to believe Martin might not make it out alive, but I think it’ll be Malcolm we’ll be left to wonder about.
The Prodigal Daughter Comes Through Again
Last season’s shocking cliffhanger revealed that Ainsley is more like her father than suspected. And her behavior this season has been more than questionable. Although the promos for the finale show Jessica and Capshaw getting at it, I think that Ainsley might have something to do with that fight. We saw how she acted when she and Dani found Capshaw and how upset she was, wondering where her family was. Hearing that her father and brother are missing could set her over the edge. Though it’s hard to tell how Jessica and Capshaw will be confronting each other, and it’s entirely possible that Jessica is the one that kills her, my theory is that Ainsley comes home to find her mother and Capshaw fighting and her instincts instantly take over. Knowingly, to defend Jessica, Ainsley winds up killing Capshaw, perhaps repeating last year’s cliffhanger, only slightly different.
A Series of Unfortunate Events
The NYPD team arrive to save Malcolm and take down Martin, but Martin has one more escape attempt up his sleeve and manages to get away as the team focuses on saving Malcolm, who is still sick from the embolism. Back in New York, Jessica caves and tells the team about the phone call when she learns that Capshaw was found, and Ainsley corroborates the story with the recording. But before they can arrest Capshaw, she shows up at Jessica’s house. Needing to defend herself, and angry at how Capshaw manipulated her, she kills Capshaw in self defense much like Ainsley in season 1. Meanwhile, the team is with Malcolm, who is still upset that they didn’t believe him and even more upset that his father escaped. When they learn about what happened with Jessica, he explodes, believing all of this is his fault. Dani tries to comfort him, but he goes home alone due to his anger. He finds Martin waiting for him. On a hunch, Dani follows him back and confronts Martin. When Martin lunges for her, she shoots and kills him. We end on a devastated Malcolm and a shocked Dani as Gil and the rest of the team arrives.
While we can theorize ’til the cows come home, all we truly know is that Prodigal Son‘s season 2 finale is sure to be a wild ride. Make sure to tune in for the conclusion of this chapter of the Whitlys’ story at 9p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT on FOX, and live tweet using #ProdgialSon and #SaveProdigalSon. Check out all of our content regarding the show here, including the efforts to save Prodigal Son in wake of the cancellation news.
