The Deuce's "cheesy" finale undermined the entire series

The Hollywood Reporter

In the David Simon HBO pornography drama's nostalgic final moments, "I felt a pang of betrayal from a series that forged itself through violence and never looked backward," says Robyn Bahr. "The Deuce thrived because it refused to romanticize the pre-Giuliani era, denying its viewers any erotic pleasure from its on-screen indulgences. The series was rooted in grim, Spartan realism — a far cry from the uncharacteristic cheese and unearned nostalgia of its dreamlike epilogue." Bahr adds: "The scene only lasts about 10 minutes, yet undermines almost everything the series argued about complicity in an abusive industry...For a show that hellbent on shoving your snout into the muck, The Deuce suddenly came across as a goopy rom-com about the caprices of fate."

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