Upamanyu Biswas
Netflix’s ‘The Four Seasons‘ centers on the exploits of a group of lifelong friends and couples who find themselves in an awkward situation when one of them decides to get a divorce. While the show primarily delves into comical situations arising from relationship misunderstandings, friendly arguments, and marriage problems, the story also explores life’s ugly and messy side, including mortality. This becomes abundantly prominent in the later episodes when Nick passes away in a tragic accident, leaving his new girlfriend, Ginny, and his circle of friends to mourn and celebrate his existence. The incident marks a massive change in the narrative and compels the others to self-reflect and find their way through the difficult problems in their life, which seem insignificant compared to Nick’s loss. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Nick Meets an Untimely Death After a Small Fight With Ginny
Despite spending a large chunk of the narrative on the positive and amusing aspects of life, ‘The Four Seasons’ touches on some dark and depressing ideas when Nick passes away in the series. The incident occurs at the worst of times, as we see Nick trying to change and find his better angels. In the beginning, the character constantly prioritizes himself over everyone else when making important life decisions. To that end, it becomes evident that he is selfish and unable to look beyond himself when making life decisions. However, near the end, Nick starts to make an effort to change himself, especially after having a rare fight with Ginny. As a result of this fight, Nick decides to go out for some quick grocery shopping, intending to look after Ginny’s needs. Tragically, on his way back, he gets involved in a car crash and dies.
Earlier in the day, Nick attends a get-together filled with Ginny’s friends. During the event, he realizes that they are incompatible with his older sensibilities. He begins to miss his interactions with his friends, who are busy celebrating by themselves, and decides not to invite him. Following a video call with them, Nick stays in the upstairs bedroom, deciding that it is better to avoid Ginny’s friends than to make an effort to socialize. Ginny confronts him about this, stating that she always goes out of her way to mingle with Nick’s friends even though she never enjoys it fully, either. It shows the skewed dynamics of the relationship, which angers Ginny and compels her to leave him alone at the house while she goes out with her friends. To atone for his mistake, Nick heads out for some late-night shopping. However, the sequence of events ends up costing his life.
Ginny Blames Herself For Nick’s Passing
After news of Nick’s death passes on to the main characters, they start preparing his funeral services, which Anne, his former wife, essentially handles. As Nick and Anne spent around 25 years in a married relationship, Anne feels a sense of possession over his life even though things ended badly between them a year ago. She and her friends phase Ginny out of the funeral preparations, thinking that her relationship with Nick was a casual fling akin to a summer romance. The group pushes their support of Anne, agreeing with her desire to throw Ginny out of Nick’s funeral. However, in their pursuit of adhering to Anne’s wishes, the event becomes substandard and lacks any real value. Anne also disallows Ginny from speaking some final words on Nick’s behalf, despite her feeling incapable of doing so herself.
Later, Ginny confronts them about their abysmal attitude towards Nick and not putting enough effort into organizing a better event. At this point, the main characters start to realize that Nick and Ginny have a much stronger relationship than they wish to admit. This is particularly true in the case of Anne, who acknowledges the fact that she let her bitter feelings for Nick and a need for revenge overtake her desire to honor his memory. She wanted to take over the entire funeral proceedings because she felt that if she didn’t, her 25 years with Nick would have been meaningless. Meanwhile, Ginny confesses her guilt over Nick’s death because she believes it was her fight with him that inadvertently led him to die in the car crash. As they share their feelings, Anne and Ginny understand each other better while stopping their animosity.
Ginny’s Pregnancy Overrides the Pain of Nick’s Death
While the final moments are tinged with the bittersweetness of losing Nick, a major revelation comes to the fore that changes everything. After Katherine is surprised by Ginny rejecting some alcohol, Anne breaks the news to the whole table that the girl is pregnant. The announcement takes everyone by surprise and leaves them speechless. It is a monumental piece of news that suggests that Nick and Ginny’s love story had a tangible legacy attached to it, especially if we accept that the former is the father. While the show provides no confirmation, the pregnancy is likely a way to offer a more wholesome ending to Nick and Ginny’s storyline, bringing a more positive feel to everything.
The pregnancy could also explain why Ginny feels so guilty about her part in Nick’s death. With motherhood looming in her future, she may feel that the prospect of having a child is something she should have shared with Nick. However, now that he is gone, the bright future with her lover is forever lost. To that end, she must feel doubly sad about his death, even though she logically had no part to play in it. Still, the fact that she could be the mother to Nick’s child is an uplifting end to her year-long romance with Nick, who, despite his flaws, always saw the best in her and kept fighting to preserve their relationship while others looked at it with disdain. Therefore, his death opens the door to new and interesting developments, both within his circle of friends and in Ginny’s life.
Read More: Is The Four Seasons Based on a True Story?
