Carol & The End of The World – Season 1 Episode 8 Recap & Review

The Life & Times of Bashiir Hassan

Carol & The End of The World Episode 8 begins in Eric’s house. His son, Steven, is disappointed at seeing his father just sleep on the couch all day. He goes about his own and, ultimately, tells Eric that he’s moving in with his mother. Eric tries to convince him to stay but Steven says he’s going to Canada, where his mother is staying. Eric insists on driving him there.

Meanwhile, Carol’s parents’ trip on the cruise takes a bad turn when the entire staff follows the Captain and leaves the ship. They are now struggling to survive.  Things get worse when a boat of pirates arrives and comes on board.

Despite Eric’s protests, Steven is all set to leave. He tells his father to head towards Niagara Falls. On the way, Eric tries to make conversation with Steven but he is more inclined to wear his headphones. Eric worries Steven’s mother will leave him again but he says she won’t because she’s happy now. She has a dog and makes sculptures. Eric says he would never leave Steven. Steven reports that he wasn’t leaving the couch either.

At a rest stop, Eric shows Steven his personal style of making a trail mix. It includes the perfect combination of sweet, sour, salty, bitter and umami. Steven actually begins to enjoy the process. The final result is surprisingly pretty good. Steven suggests slushies to go with it.

The pirates round up all the passengers on the cruise. Michael asks them what they want. The pirate leader describes his life of stealing the things he’d been deprived of. But now, after the planet appeared, they are going after rest and relaxation. Michael suggests they can do that all together but the pirates don’t want the other passengers around due to long lines at the water slide.

Eric tells Steven all his other skills and tells him to call anytime he needs. They even sing a song together. Steven asks Eric about being in love with his mother. Soon, he’s rambling about his girl problems.

On the cruise ship, dark clouds roll up in the sky. When the ship tilts, the leader loses hold of his gun. Michael is able to grab it and they are about to take their ship back when they realise that three of the pirates’ group fell overboard. Michael and the others change their mind and help pull the men back on board.

Then, a large tidal wave comes up. The pirate leader heads to the bridge with Michael, Pauline and Bernard. He tries to navigate through the wave and for a second, the throuple thinks that they are at the end. Then the leader manages to get them through to calmer waters and everybody cheers.

Eric and Steven make camp for the night near a rest stop. Steven admits this is better than riding a bus on his own. When Eric falls asleep, Steven reads the letter Eric wrote for his wife. In the letter, Eric talks about his joy at learning she was pregnant with Steven. He doesn’t know what he will do without Steven but he tells his wife to take care of Steven and give him the best final months of his life.

Steven tears up and gives Eric a tight hug, waking him up. He confesses that he lied, he doesn’t actually know where his mother is. He just knew Eric wanted to see her. Eric is overjoyed that Steven isn’t leaving and gives him a bear hug.

The pirates help the cruise passengers get back on land. He says their new plan is to go on a road trip across America. Bernard helps give them directions. Eric and Steven decide to go to Niagara Falls anyway while the pirates head to the Grand Canyon at the end of Carol & The End of The World Episode 8.

The Episode Review

Carol & The End of The World Episode 8 goes off the beaten path and looks at stories about Eric and Carol’s parents. Both tales are interesting and written in perfect three-act arcs. However, the previous few episodes held a spark that is slightly dimmed in this one.

Eric’s story is really more Steven’s tale to tell, as the young boy tries to reconnect with his father under the guise of leaving. His actions work and Eric realises he needs to be more mindful about his son.

The segment on the cruise ship has lower emotional stakes although it ends on a poignant note when they all decide to help each other. The pirates’ looting rest and relaxation is also a clever statement on the state of our world. Overall, an enjoyable episode even if it slightly differs from the previous ones.