Warning: SPOILERS for Matlock season 1, episodes 18-19, "Tricks of the Trade."

It’s been a wild ride, but the first season of Matlock’s cast gets a big moment.

Considering the strength of Matlock’s reviews, it’s also unsurprising that the season 1 finale happens to be one of the most incredibly well-crafted episodes in recent television. Almost every hanging question is answered by the time the credits roll, but some questions are answered in ways that make us wonder what could possibly happen next. That leaves us with a lot of questions to sift through. Fortunately, the Matlock season 1 finale is at least polite enough to keep most of them separate from one another.

Matlock Season 1 Finale Ends With 4 Cliffhangers

They Went All Out For This One

Olympia finds out that Julian was indeed responsible for the Wellbrexa coverup, but she hasn’t decided how to deal with that yet. Billy finds out that Claudia is pregnant. Alfie tracks down his father. And in the middle of it all, there’s no telling how long Matty has before her secret is ultimately exposed. Olympia might be on her side in a moral sense, but that alliance hasn’t been forged in steel just yet. There are still pretty strong vibes that the next season could involve Matty’s exposure as a fraud.

All of these issues combine at once to make Matlock’s season 1 finale a rather heavy hitter. Aside from Matty’s potential exposure, which Olympia’s hung over her head for a couple of episodes now, most of the finale’s reveals happen so quickly that there’s little time to theorize about them. Perhaps Billy is the father of Claudia’s baby. Perhaps this strange man is Alfie’s father. And Olympia might ultimately have to choose between protecting a friend or the father of her children. These are big questions that clearly won’t be answered until Matlock season 2.

Will Olympia Hide The Truth About Julian’s Wellbrexa Role From Madeline?

She Has A Duty To Family Above All Else

There was a brief moment in the Matlock season finale in which it looked like maybe Julian wasn’t actually guilty. He really did pay for the brownstone out of his trust, and it wasn’t just a payoff from Senior. Unfortunately, Olympia soon finds out that Julian did take the Wellbrexa study and has been keeping it in a safe deposit box. It’s not entirely clear why he kept it in the bank instead of the shredder, where it objectively belongs, but he did what he did.

We’d already seen earlier in the episode that Julian cares more about his father’s approval than anything else. He literally cried about Olympia getting promoted, and Senior calls him out on that later in a way that rides the line between harsh truth and straight-up abuse. Olympia and Julian have only recently reached a solid point in their relationship as co-parents, so it’s hard to imagine her outing Julian right now. There’s little doubt the pigeons will come home to roost eventually. They just might fly the scenic route to get there.

The Arrival Of Alfie’s Father Can Further Create Conflict In The Kingston Household

He Could Become A New Season 2 Plotline

Throughout much of the season, Matty and Edwin have disagreed on the issue of ing Alfie’s probable father. But in the final moments of Matlock’s season 1 finale, it appears that Alfie has taken matters into his own hands. Because we’re only just meeting this man, there isn’t yet sufficient evidence to show the man claiming to be Alfie’s dad is telling the truth. But whether he is or not, his arrival disrupts Matty’s household in a number of ways.

Alfie’s dad could create entirely new conflicts for the series. While Ellie’s death has been Matty’s primary motivation throughout the season, there hasn’t been much discussion about whether anyone else is involved. If they were, Alfie’s father would be a natural suspect. This means that Matlock season 2 might dig more deeply into Alfie’s father and his relationship with Ellie. And since the heads of the household were already in disagreement about whether to him, his arrival will likely fuel that argument even more.

How Olympia Being Partner At Jacobson Moore Impacts Madeline’s Revenge Plan

She Could Be A Great Ally Or Fearsome Enemy

Early in Matlock’s season 1 finale, it’s revealed that Olympia won the long partner race against Julian that’s been occurring over the past few episodes. There were times when it seemed like she stood no chance. But after taking down a major brand and winning a murder case, there’s little doubt that Olympia has paid her dues to win this partner position. And even after talking back to Senior in the confetti-filled conference room, she takes the position with the same amount of grace she’s demonstrated across all major storylines this season.

However, the fact that she’s currently keeping a major secret about her ex-husband puts things in a fairly precarious position. Matty cares about Olympia, and that seems to be mutual. But Olympia shouldn’t be judged for also caring about the father of her children. He’s shown himself to be a good parent, and mostly a good man. Matty knows enough about addiction that she’s likely to realize at some point that shelving Wellbrexa’s drugs would’ve simply led to slightly more graphic deaths. Hopefully, Olympia being a partner means Matty will still have work duties to distract her from that awful reality.

What Matlock Season 1 Finale Means For Season 2

The Shakeup Is Only Just Beginning

Matty’s walls are closing in, and the possibility of her ruse being discovered could have wide-reaching consequences. Sarah’s only been taking cases behind Olympia’s back because Matty ripped the Autry case out from under her, and Matty took that case from Sarah while knowing that Sarah had personal experience with dementia. Although her general goal might seem noble, Matty’s done terrible things to get there. It’s an unfortunate setup that the series will have to pay off before the story comes to a close.

The unfortunate reality is that, while Kathy Bates has certainly made the character more than a bit likable, Matty hasn’t actually grown much this season. Olympia has every right to be hurt by learning the truth about their relationship, but Matty responds to that hurt with yet more blackmail. Whatever direction Matlock takes next season, the stakes are rising. And whether it’s Matty, Julian, Olympia, or all of the above, it feels like somebody’s going to be caught underwater by the time this story concludes.

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