
There’s something extra moving about watching The Leftovers in 2017. When the show premiered in the bright summer days of 2014, the main criticism was how achingly bleak it was. A sad, dark show about how people deal with profound grief, was to some, too hopeless.
And although the brilliant season two introduced more levity by embracing the humor and absurdity that comes with life’s unanswered questions, this first episode of season three, “The Book of Kevin,†makes it clear that this is still the most poignant, raw, and emotionally exhausting show television. And I mean that in a completely complimentary way.
In 2017, a time where many are still reeling from a political shift that feels borderline apocalyptic, where people who grew up under the shadow of war are realizing that we won’t be seeing the sun for many years yet, it’s strangely cathartic to watch something as unashamedly serious as The Leftovers. And for how serious it is, it never panders, it never tugs at your heartstrings, it never manipulates you. But it crushes you.

“The Book of Kevin†mimics the season two premiere by opening with a flashback, this time to 1800s America. The scene is referring to “The Great Disappointment,†an actual event that occurred in 1844 where a protestant religious group who we now call Millerites were told by a preacher, William Miller, that Jesus would come back to Earth on April 18, 1844. It didn’t happen.
Clothed in white, a believer stands on top of her house in the pouring rain all night, with the hope that something would happen. In the morning, she climbs down, the townsfolk, including her once believing husband and son, looking on at her in contempt, not unlike how those of the Guilty Remnant are treated by their families.
But from there, things move quickly. Evie and Meg were killed just following the events of season two by a bomb, allegedly launched by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (I think Liv Tyler was doing best-of-career work and made Meg more terrifying than I ever expected. Here’s to hoping for flashbacks.)

The current episode takes place three years later, where Kevin is the police chief, Tommy is a deputy, Nora is an Agent of Department of Departure, John and Laurie are together and running a palm reading scam, and baby Lily is goddamn gone and no one will talk about what happened to her.

And that’s the thing: although there are significant changes that have happened the past three years, and though we do spend much of “The Book of Kevin†flitting around from character to character to get up to speed, we get little to no explanation of why or how those changes happened. This episode actually works better the less exposition there is.
When we say The Leftovers is about grief, it’s important to note how huge of a role denial plays in the mourning process. The lack of exposition, the plastered on smiles during Tommy’s surprise party, John thinking Evie was going to come back, Tommy pretending he’s fine after killing Dean, it’s all bolstering the theme of denial. Even the too-on-the-nose discussion Kevin and Jill have about Nora and Lily played an important part of underlining how in denial Kevin is about Nora coping with losing another child. We already know Nora isn’t dealing with whatever happened, but Kevin’s insistence that she’s doing great shows that he’s fine pretending everything is OK too.
More broadly, “The Book of Kevin†lands emotional gut punch after gut punch, in exactly the fashion we expect. Kevin’s morning ritual of nearly suffocating himself was one of the more disturbing things I’ve seen in the series, and it was an excellent call back to when Nora would get people to shoot her while she wore a bulletproof vest.
What we don’t know is if Kevin is really doing this as a coping mechanism, like Nora did, or if it’s more closely tied to his experiences of dying and coming back to life. Hell, is he actually dying and coming back? When I watched season two, I was sure Kevin’s hotel hijinks were real, or as real as something happening in the afterlife could be. I was even debating if the show’s shift into admitting something supernatural was happening was a jump-the-shark moment. But now, I suppose we don’t technically know he actually died and visited the “otherside†and came back, or if they were hallucinations.
But Matt is sure. So sure that he’s writing a gospel about Kevin. How convenient that this episode aired on Easter. Over and over again, The Leftovers insists it’s not about answers. The season two theme song is practically a personal message from Lindelof, telling us to “Let the mystery be.†And this whole time we’ve thought the mystery was just what happened to the departed, when it looks like Kevin is the real mystery, even if he’s in denial about his role in all of this.
Finally, “The Book of Kevin†closed by turning things completely upside down. To see an aged Nora denying ever knowing someone named Kevin was chilling. There was some foreshadowing with Nora’s bike ride earlier in the episode, but truthfully, although the figure obviously looks like a woman, I really expected that long grey braid to belong to Kevin Garvey Sr. I only expect misdirects! That said, something about the the purposeful face-hiding, the strangeness of tending to carrier pigeons, and the wide open shots of cycling around rural Australia felt very alien and undeniable unsettling.

A time jump in general, although not necessarily supernatural, feels uncomfortable from everything we know about this universe. But if there’s one thing we can expect from The Leftovers, it’s that we will be forced to deal with emotions we aren’t comfortable with feeling.
The final season of The Leftovers airs Sundays at 9/8c on HBO.
Anisha Vichare
Related posts
Classics
George R. Olson, Tim Rozon, and Sarah Levy Talk the SurrealEstate S2 Finale
[Spoilers for the SurrealEstate Season 2 finale.] How’s everyone doing after the finale? As we close out the second season of SurrealEstate, some of our merry band of misfits are scattering to the winds–Zooey to law school, Phil to the Vatican, and Augie back to his think tank with Rochelle,…
Previewing SurrealEstate Season 2 Finale + Revisiting the Season with George R. Olson
[Warning; General spoilers ahead.] Strap in, SurrealEstate fam, because we’ve arrived at the Season 2 finale, and it’s a doozy. As we saw in the closing moments of last week’s episode, Susan is back. But because we have one more episode left, it’s not as simple as all that, as…
Tyler Hynes Talks Through His Eight-Film Hallmark Holiday Library
Things you realize when you have to re-record your shows on a new DVR – just how many Hallmark movies your people have done. Fan favorite – and one of ours – Tyler Hynes has done eight Christmas movies for Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movies & Mysteries since 2018. Alongside…
Spencer Creaghan Talks About Creating SurrealEstate’s Signature Sound
SurrealEstate is winding down its second season, with two episodes left, and just as in Season 1, Spencer Creaghan’s music continues to be a character unto itself. And every week, he shares tidbits with the fans via his s social media channels, something he started to help give them an…
Andrew Walker Talks Christmas Island and the Magical Hallmark Community
[Warning: Spoilers for Christmas Island.] Now that the Screen Actors Guild strike has been resolved, we’re able to resume regularly scheduled programming and interview our favorites and yours. Up first, earlier today, I spoke with Andrew Walker about Christmas Island, which premiered last weekend and encores tonight and through the…
George Olson and Danishka Esterhazy Talk SurrealEstate “I Put a Spell on You”
[Warning: Spoilers for the episode.] Tonight’s fun new SurrealEstate found Luke caught up in an especially bewitching woman, Kay, played by Tara Yelland, Susan trapped in her house, and Zooey learning the ropes. In the next part of my conversation with showrunner George R. Olson and producing director Danishka Esterhazy,…
Danishka Esterhazy Talks SurrealEstate: “The Butler Didn’t”
[Warning: General spoilers for the episode]. Tonight’s new SurrealEstate, “The Butler Didn’t,” follows the team as they investigate the years-earlier mysterious death of a woman whose ghost now reenacts her hanging by dropping over the banister from the second floor to terrify anyone on the landing or at the bottom…
Scott McCord and Elizabeth Saunders Talk the From Season 2 finale
[Warning: Spoilers for the season finale.] How’s everyone doing after that finale? While we wait and wonder and hope for a third season announcement, soon, here’s what Scott McCord and Elizabeth Saunders had to say about their parts of the finale, and where they hope they get to go next….
Scott McCord and Elizabeth Saunders Talk From Season 2 + A Season Finale Preview
[Warning: General spoilers ahead.] It all comes down this, #FROMily. As Sunday’s episode wraps up Season 2, we begin with the aftermath of the terrifying onset of seemingly simultaneous attacks on Julie, Marielle, and Randall, which accelerate the “We gotta get out of this place” of it all. Sara comes…
Alison Sweeney Talks About What’s Next for Hannah and Mike After Carrot Cake Murder: A Hannah Swensen Mystery
[Warning: Spoilers for Carrot Cake Murder.] Everybody OK after that Hannah Swensen Mystery twist? Thankfully, our favorite crime-solving couple is still on speaking term, even if they’re on a break (hopefully not that kind of break). Most importantly, we already know this isn’t the last film in the series. No…
What They Said: Three Revealing Conversations from Survivor’s Remorse “Closure”
WARNING: Spoilers for Survivor’s Remorse “Closure” The latest episode of Starz’s Survivor’s Remorse featured conversations that showed characters really digging deep into their thoughts, emotions and motivations.
Two Takes: The Catch “The Knock-Off”
Who can you trust? If this episode of The Catch was any indication, the answer is just about nobody. Betrayal was running rampant as Felicity (Shivani Ghai) arose from the dead to seduce-con Margot, Gretchen (Maria Thayer, Gotham, The Mindy Project) played gold-hearted Alice 2.0 before swindling Ethan, Tessa jumped…
What They Said: Top 3 Quotable Moments from Preacher “El Valero”
Both Quincannon and Jesse refuse to give up on what they each think is rightfully theirs. While Jesse is struggling to face the consequences of his actions, Quincannon has laid his past demons to rest and is hellbent on moving forward and putting Annville on the map again. Despite a…
What They Said: Favorite Quotes from Supergirl “Worlds Finest”
Oh, Supergirl. That ending was cold. But I can’t hate on you because the latest episode has quickly become one of my favorites.
What They Said: Top 4 Quotable Moments from Black Sails “XXIII”
The dialogue in “XXIII” is phenomenal. It’s always a fun ride when Black Sails carries its viewers along without giving them the chance to catch their breath. When an episode moves at this unforgiving pace, there is no chance for a breather nor is there a respite from the information…
What Lucifer Said: Favorite quotes from Supernatural “O Brother, Where Art Thou?”
Supernatural episodes are almost always funny but thanks to the dialogue and a certain man speaking said dialogue, I laughed a lot during “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” You know, when I wasn’t busy fearing for Sam’s life or wondering what in the world was going on with Dean and…
What They Said: The Flash, “Legends Of Today” and Arrow, “Legends Of Yesterday”
Two nights of Arrow + The Flash = what more could we ask for?! I don’t know what it is about blending these shows, but I can’t help but feel that every time they come together, they somehow become greater than the sum of their parts. And that’s saying a lot…
What they Said: Top 4 Quotable Moments from Graceland “Little Bo Bleep”
Shoot outs. Fake outs. And long-awaited revelations. “Little Bo Bleep” was a jam-packed episode that wrapped up some loose ends and totally frayed others. Â It finally gave us one Sarkissian in jail and pulled back the curtain on Briggs’ master plan, but it also set up Jakes for a world…
What They Said: Favorite Quotes from Poldark “Part 4”
“What have I told you, I don’t require my wife to crochet and sip tea, but I do require her to remember she’s not a beast of burden.†No, I’m not talking about The Rolling Stones! I have to admit though, just for a second, the lyrics popped into my…
3 Moments of Goodness from Brooklyn Nine-Nine “Johnny and Dora”
The most satisfying part of this season’s finale has to the Jake and Amy kiss. Well, they kiss three times but the last one is the best one — and it means something. The Charles and Rosa dynamic was also great. I love how she’s convinced he doesn’t know anything…