Orphan Black 5×10: “To Right the Wrongs of Many” Roundtable

The one where it all ends
by Faith Bektas on August 15, 2017
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orphan blackOrphan Black says goodbye to clone club with a touching and downright beautiful finale episode

When the creators of Orphan Black announced last summer that season 5 would be the final season of the series, to say that fans completely lost their minds would be an understatement. Knowing that the stories, characters, and clones we’d come to love would be leaving us, really cut us deep. There are no words to use to thank the cast and creators for the impact that Orphan Black has had on the fans, but we know that the finale episode was undoubtedly a thank you from the show to us, clone club.

The episode hit hard in true Orphan Black fashion. Action, mystery, a little violence, and Tatiana Maslany doing what Tatiana Maslany does best… absolutely everything. Watching Sarah (Tatiana Maslany) and Helena (Tatiana Maslany) take down the heads of Neolution by killing PT Westmoreland (Stephan McHattie) and Virginia Coady (Kyra Harper) respectively, we were in awe. The sestras have come such a long way since season one and the tears in our eyes when Sarah helped Helena deliver her babies didn’t stop flowing.

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As the episode headed to its conclusion, we were left to wonder how everything would be tied up. Every show has loose ends, but we hoped that Orphan Black would address some of theirs. We weren’t left disappointed. Rachel (Tatiana Maslany) stepped up to the plate for her sestras in one of the most touching things she has ever done. By delivering the names and addresses of each LEDA clone, Rachel provided Cosima (Tatiana Maslany) and Delphine (Evelyne Brochu) an opportunity to save all of their lives with a treatment made for the clone’s sickness. Speaking of Cosima and Delphine, the two finally got their happy ending. What a gorgeous ending for a couple that showed us that despite the hard times, true love really will conquer all. Elsewhere, Alison (Tatiana Maslany) and Donnie (Kristian Bruun), one of the constant bright spots on the show, received their own happy ending. With Helena (Tatiana Maslany) and her babies, who she heartwarmingly named Arthur and Donnie, living in their garage, the group formed their own version of family and we couldn’t be happier. Despite having her moments of complete heart break and confusion, our original eyes into the world that is Orphan Black, Sarah Manning, finally found peace in the life she has created with Kyra and her sestras.

Orphan Black has left a lasting impact on our hearts and our minds. No show will be able to fill the void left by the show ending, but we’ll continue to share memories, thoughts, pictures, and stories about our little show that could. With all that said, we have so much to discuss with the guests of our final Orphan Black roundtable. We can’t wait to hear what they thought of the finale episode, so let’s meet them.

Valerie Anne (@PunkyStarshine) – “TV recapper at Autostraddle.com, Twitter obsessed lover of stories.”
Eam (@CloneClubGlobal) – “Music fan, Publicist and Founder at Clone Club Global.”
Nahrain, Daneela, & Christina (@CloneClubTO) – “Three regulars at Bobby’s bar.”
Helen (@OBAddicts) – “TV & Book lover. Mother of fur babies. MGR of @OBAddicts, @SOAMayanAddicts and @Strainaddicts”
Anny (@clonepatronus) “Artist. Theorist. Life long Beth Childs lover.”

 

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1) What were your hopes for the series finale episode before it started?

Valerie Anne (@PunkyStarshine): I just wanted my sestras and the people they loved to survive. This season has been a massacre and they’ve spent so long fighting so hard, I just wanted a happy ending. I got my wish, tenfold.
Eam (@CloneClubGlobal): After being put through five years of ups and downs, heartaches and anxiety, we were really truly hoping for a happy ending for everyone! Everyone but Virginia Coady and P.T. Westmoreland. We hoped they would both die a long & painful death. (Alas, it was quick, but looked completely painful at least!! Side Note: May we just say, we were at the Season Finale live screening at The Royal Cinema in Toronto and everyone in the theater cheered and clapped when the two met their demise! Naturally, a lot us approached Kyra Harper after the Q&A to congratulate her fantastic overall series performance, and uh had to awkwardly apologize for cheering on her death scene!
CloneClubTO (@CloneClubTO): We had hoped for a successful baby delivery and it happened! We were also hoping for a Cophine proposal, but we’re content with their happy ending! We’re still hoping Cosima and Delphine adopt Charlotte though.
Helen (@OBAddicts): I hope we would have some closure in quite a few of the Clones’ story/lives, with of course NO deaths for the Clones, Fee, or Art.
Anny (@clonepatronus): My initial hopes and fears were that it was going to be a heartbreaking, intense episode full of twists and deaths and that it was going to be emotionally exhausting. Boy, was I wrong.
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2) How beautiful was Helena’s labor scene with Sarah helping her? Side note: How hard did you laugh at the names she gave to them initially? 

Valerie Anne: The weaving together of the flashback scenes of Sarah giving birth to Kira and Helena giving birth to her twins was so perfect. I was kind of hoping she’d keep the names Orange and Purple, to be honest. (I also kind of wish she named them S and MK but I guess ALL my wishes couldn’t come true.)
Eam: The raw emotions between the two were palpable. So remarkable to watch Tatiana play alongside Tatiana in a highly charged, highly dramatic scene with herself!! It really does not get old– how can one person play different versions of herself in a given time and be incredible at it? We will be remiss if we don’t acknowledge Kathryn Alexandre’s devotion to the many roles she gets to play alongside Tatiana. She’s the unsung hero in Orphan Black. The babies color coding bit?! We can’t even… Very clever and downright hilarious!
CloneClubTO: It was such a beautiful scene and when you add Trevor Yuile’s beautiful score to it, it just makes it even more emotional. We didn’t expect Orange and Purple. We totally thought she’d name them Jello and Mango.
Helen: That entire scene was incredibly precious, I thought it was brilliant how they tied Sarah’s birth of Kira into Helena’s birth of the twins. I loved how Art, their male protector throughout the series, was there as well for that precious moment. As for Helena’s initial names, that was HILARIOUS & so very Helena-like, except I was thinking she’d call them Mango 1 & Mango 2! LOL!
Anny: I absolutely loved the parallel they have sketched out between Mrs. S helping Sarah in labour and Sarah helping Helena. I loved the very smooth transitions and the very intense emotions expressed by both Sarah and Helena. Seeing Sarah smile really warmed my heart. I really missed that.
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3) How much did it mean to you to see Mrs. S in flashbacks? 

Valerie Anne: It HURT, but it wouldn’t have felt right to have a final episode without her.
Eam: It was such a pivotal moment in Sarah’s life that we were given- and of course Mrs. S was there to offer support if not give guidance in an important decision Sarah had to make. Mrs. S holding Sarah’s hand, rallying by her side during active labor– what a stunning, emotional scene. Mrs. S’ comeback was everything!
CloneClubTO: A lot! She’s been such a vital character throughout the series, and it meant a lot to her “chicken army” to see her in the series finale. It also showed how much Sarah has learned from her mom.
Helen: It meant EVERYTHING! It was only fitting that her presence be seen & felt throughout such a touching, intense & extremely emotional series finale. It was perfection!
Anny: Since Mrs. s is one of my favourite non-clones, if not favourite and she was one of those that we knew the longest, it was very beautiful to see it come full circle. Especially the opening scene in the car really touched me (the Planned Parenthood references!) and then Sarah’s: “I don’t need your support, I don’t need nothing from you” just really hit home. After everything Mrs. S has done for Sarah and the sestras, after all this time, after her death, this scene felt just like a stab right into my heart. And I love Mrs. S. So I enjoyed this last stab. I’m very glad that they did acknowledge her central importance to the show. It would never be the same without Mrs. S and her notion of home and family.
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4) What was your favorite moment in the series finale? We have to say Cophine finally getting their happy ending had us in tears. 

Valerie Anne: Cophine getting their happy ending was suuuper high up there. Because they were working together, flirting and smiling and relaxed, traveling the world, saving their sestras. HOWEVER, I think my favorite moment in the series to date was when Sarah, Cosima, Alison, and Helena were sitting in the backyard, bonding over the things that scare them. Talking like real sisters for the first time, about real life everyday things, not about murder and clones and the chaos they’ve had to put up with until now. Just being…together.
Eam: Cophine’s story was a happy ending indeed! But the birth scene with Helena & Sarah vis-à-vis the flashback labor scene with Mrs. S & Sarah was our favorite scene. The scene conveyed such a real strong bond between these women– full of love and commitment.
CloneClubTO: Of course any Cophine moment, but we couldn’t hold the tears in anymore when Helena named the twins after Art and Donnie. We saw it coming, but we still weren’t ready for it.
Helen: I definitely loved the Cophine happy ending, but I must say, the Helena baby shower/cookout was by far the BEST! It was so incredibly satisfying & beautiful that they (the writers) gave us that moment when the dream sequence from season 3 wasn’t real, & our hopes were ripped from us when she woke up in a coffin/box with Pupok.
Anny: THE WHOLE THING. Is it even worth mentioning Helena’s baby shower, real this time? Probably not. I loved it. I absolutely loved it. Also seeing Sarah struggle and then the sisters coming together to make her feel better combined with undertones of Rachel’s great gesture of help… I need to rewatch this episode twenty times to be able to take it all in. It was so good.
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5) What are your final thoughts on Orphan Black?

 Valerie Anne: Orphan Black was truly something special, and I’m not sure there will ever be a show quite like it ever again. Between the sheer skill of having one actress play so many incredibly distinct characters, to creating so many of said characters without them all being extreme stereotypes or caricatures, to have two queer women survive til the end and live happily ever after, to have a gay man who also got his guy, to have a trans man as one of the clones and ensuring we knew he got the cure in the end, to have the women at the center of it all triumph by working together at every turn. It was complex and rich and beautiful and I’ll miss it forever.
Eam: We are trying to understand and accept the many open ended story lines… making room for a future sequel perhaps? Or a movie? What happened to Cal? Shay? Mud? Tony? Krystal?! The people on the island? Kira’s special abilities! Cophine proposal! Cophine wedding! What becomes of Rachel? We just can’t let go. We’re not letting go.
CloneClubTO: We’ve loved every second of the trip and can’t thank the cast and crew enough for creating such a smart TV show. Graeme Manson hinted at the finale screening in Toronto that he’s hoping for an Orphan Black movie, so we can’t wait for that if it actually happens!
Helen: OB is one of the most unique shows ever made. I don’t think we’ll ever see anything even remotely close to it again. The originality & cast are in a league of their own. It’s brilliant, just brilliant. I’m so thankful for watching, & falling in love with this series.
Anny: Final thoughts – I’ve been fairly critical regarding season 5. Compared to my favourite seasons 1 and 4, it felt very different in tone and I personally did have some issues every now and then. I’ve expected something else and I cannot say that I was disappointed, I was just slightly underwhelmed that their focus has shifted somewhere else than I would have liked. But again, that’s just my view. All in all, the whole show, the whole thing. An absolute masterpiece, a combination of art, amazing acting performances, great music and wide, wide array of  incredibly talented people who will work hard doing their jobs no matter what. Also, may I just say, I loved the ending. I love that they didn’t try to betray us with the feeling of false security. Not this time. Just this once. We got what we wanted. Can’t remember how many times I’ve been exclaimed this one on Twitter: “Honestly, just give me some happy clones!” And they did.
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6) What would you say to the cast and crew of Orphan Black? 

Valerie Anne: I mean, “thank you” will never be enough. The cast and crew have been so great at engaging with fans from the very beginning. We had this little subfandom called the clonesbians when the show started, and the folks involved with the show never stopped shouting us out. They talked about the queer community with such compassion and care and it was clear they wanted to tell our stories right along with everyone else’s. It sounds like so little, but it means so much.  
Eam: For taking us on a journey.For making us cry, laugh, angry, scream, cry and laugh some more.

For creating a show that built lifelong friendships and community that we can call family.

For the best five years you have given Clone Club.

THANK YOU SO MUCH. #ThankYouOrphanBlack. You are already missed.

CloneClubTO: Just thank you again for creating such a smart TV show. Thank you for always being so interactive with fans whether it’s on social media or at fan events, everyone is so humble and kind. Thank you also for opening our eyes to the television industry in Canada and the impact it’s had on our city of Toronto. We’ve fallen even more in love with our city because of the show.
Helen: THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU! Bravo & good luck in all your future projects. Job well done. You’ve left a beautiful mark on my heart.
Anny: Orphan Black is something so deeply personal to me. Honestly, I’m still looking for words that would even remotely express the amount of gratitude and how attached I am to anything that has to do with this show. I’m currently working on a drawing that I’m going to post soon and I hope that that is going to be able to express my emotions a little more. But definitely, it would be many thanks for creating a tv show that has touched me so deeply and for inspiring me in so many incredible ways and for giving me a unique experience that I’ll cherish forever.
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7) What does Orphan Black mean to you? 

Valerie Anne: To me, Orphan Black means family. I’ve met some of my best friends through this show. My own band of sestras and brother-sestras who I would also take on an evil corporation or two with. 
Eam: Orphan Black is storytelling at its finest. It is about representation. Its story and its characters are so relevant and needed to exist TODAY, and we believe it will just be as relevant and important in the many years to come. More than that, Orphan Black gave us a sense of kinship and belonging. We dare explore new territories and experience life through our bold choices! Yes we can proudly profess, Orphan Black did that!
CloneClubTO: Orphan Black means family to us. We’ve gotten to meet so many wonderful clone club members from across the globe because of this show. Every time someone came to visit the city, they’d contact us and we’d all meet up together and have a drink at Bobby’s Bar (The Cameron House). Orphan Black and Tatiana Maslany have really changed our perspective on a lot of things and in a positive way. We all feel a little stronger and more confident thanks to them.
Helen: To me, OB means family, love, acceptance, strength, vulnerability, & never giving up. Fight for yourself, your loved ones, for what’s right, and be who you are, and be PROUD of who you are. There’s a little bit of us in each character of this show, that’s what I love the most.
Anny: For me, the number one things that I associate with Orphan Black are family, love, emotional closeness, supporting one another and beautiful and complex characters that are highly relatable in so many aspects of our lives. Orphan Black means the sense of belonging, the sense of being an individual human being, free of any judgement and an endless support from the other Clone Club members. We are all so different, but at the same time, we were brought together by this amazing weird little show. Together, we are one, I guess!
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8) On a scale of 1 being not at all and 10 being so much your eyes were swollen.. how much did you cry when you realized there will be no more new episodes of Orphan Black?

Valerie Anne: I’ve been crying on and off about it since the second they announced it, but my eyes have been a waterfall of various degrees since the moment the final “previously on” started. So I guess my answer is, on a scale of 1 to 10: 324B21.
Eam: Ask us again in a few… weeks? Years? We haven’t cried yet. We’re still in denial. We’ll binge watch all 5 seasons in the coming days, attempt to move on and most likely fail, then repeat. We’re here to stay. #CloneClubForever #ClonelClubForLife
CloneClubTO: I think we’re at a 3 right now. It hasn’t hit us. We’re still smiling at all the cute moments from the finale. Check back with us next Saturday at 10 pm. 
Helen: In all honesty I got teary eyed earlier in the week when I was making a tribute video, and going through all the scenes that will forever be in my heart. So I’d say 6, lol. It’s hard letting go of 5 years of the sestrahood. But I think the timing was perfect, and it ended exactly how it should’ve. Bravo!
Anny: Actually about a 2! (Yes, weird!) It’s usually the moving moments that will make me cry rather than the inherently sad ones. Also, Orphan Black as itself is not over as soon as we, the fans, are still here. Rewatching, making fanart, writing fanfiction, constructing and deconstructing some weird and wacky theories. Orphan Black isn’t over, because Clone Club is still here. But I have to say, the prospect of its absence in some version of our future is what really worries me.
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Final Verdict: Despite leaving some loose ends, Orphan Black 5×10 hit fans with a spectacular knockout blow

Orphan Black “To Right the Wrongs of Many,” did what every good series finale should do. It left its fans with a sense of closure and contentment. Sarah, Cosima, Helena, and Alison all got the happy endings they desperately deserved and wanted. Leda clones all over the world will get the treatment they need to survive, and a new generation of Leda offspring will get the chance to thrive. While there are definitely loose ends that Orphan Black didn’t address (like where is Cal? What happened to Krystal? Was Delphine planning to propose to Cosima at Felix’s art show?) we’re more than okay with how it ended. The series finale made us cry, more than we care to admit, but it also made us happy. We were elated to see the sestras together one last time, as a family. Being “normal.” We’re also content with knowing that all of clone club can relish in the notion that although some of our favorites didn’t make it to end, their legacy will live on. We’re looking at you, Mrs. S. So thank you, Orphan Black. For five years of imaginative, complex, beautifully imperfect characters and stories. Perhaps those loose ends we’re so curious to know the answers to can be addressed in a feature film? *Wink Wink* to creators John Fawcett and Graeme Manson. We’ll be waiting.

We’d also like to take a second to say how talented we think Kathryn Alexandre is. As Tatiana Maslany’s clone double, she had all of the same work load behind the scenes. She is the unsung hero of Orphan Black. Clone club knows that Orphan Black wouldn’t be what it is without her. Your talent, dedication, and grace was not overlooked. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.

Orphan Black's series finale proved that clone club has something to be proud of

Orphan Black continued to provide viewers with thoughtful, creative, emotionally gripping episodes right until the very end. The series finale proved that no matter how much fans may doubt or question the motives behind certain writing, directing, or even acting choices, this show pulls through time and time again. Orphan Black, you will be missed.
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About the Author
Faith Bektas
Currently residing in New York, Faith is a fan of any and all things television. After going to school for Media Arts, she gained a whole new appreciation for the work done behind the camera. (It's insane just how many things go into the pre-production of a show!) She loves shows with clever, witty, and thoughtful writing. (Let her know if you have recommendations!)

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