The Crowded Room – Season 1 Episode 10 “Judgment” Recap, Review & Ending Explained

Judgment

How does Ariana save Danny’s life?

The final episode of The Crowded Room begins with Danny waking up the next morning and finding Ariana in his bed. He does not seem himself and is visibly suffering from his bleeding wrists. She asks him to let her help but Danny does not want to abandon “the quiet,” something he has never felt before. She repeatedly asks him to wake up and finally throws him off the bed.

Stan goes to get his prescription filled but Russ, the man at the counter, said he got it two weeks ago. He cannot give out the pills again. Stan has a reaction and Russ slyly hands him a note, asking him to see the doctor soon. Stan gets the call and meets Rya later that night to discuss it. If he hadn’t fallen down, he would have been dead. He regains consciousness but it is not Danny who’s back.

Jack greets Rya and Stan when they visit to see him. Judge Posner has scheduled the final sentencing a week later. There isn’t a lot that could change in between, although the jury will be well-informed of these developments.

Why has Jack imprisoned Danny?

He’s not letting Danny out, ever. We see the crowded room in Danny’s head. Jack has actually physically locked Danny behind a prison, asking him to stay put. He did this because he felt Danny was never ready to face the cruel world by himself.

At the coffee shop, Rya and Stan discuss the latter’s PTSD from war. Stan lost men under his command and he was too young for the responsibility. Yet, he defiantly owns up to his shortcomings and blames himself because he signed up to be a volunteer. Rya tries to explain to him that all victims do this. They get hurt and blame themselves when it is really not their own fault. This stems from their will to exercise a semblance of control over themselves.

Rya gets an idea all of a sudden and explains it to Stan during the car ride. He gave her a drawing of Adam beside Danny on the bunk bed. “We have had the wrong witness all this time,” quips Rya, referring to Danny. Adam needs to testify for the case to work. They need to show Danny that it was not his fault. 

What idea does Rya get to make one final defence for Danny?

In the process, Rya also loses her job. She couldn’t afford to lose any more classes and had to make a choice. But she is fine with it, as long as Danny gets a fair deal.

Stan calls Danny to the stand but Jack is too smart to let this get away. He changes his accent and pretends to be Danny. Jack’s lies continue as he spins the abuse around Candy. She was the reason he stayed close and hated Marlin.

Stan calls him a “hostile witness” and Posner allows him leeway to continue his bizarre line of questioning. He shows Jack a photo of Adam and this causes Danny to wake up. There is resistance and resentment in his voice. Is the British gentleman finally cracking? Stan continues the assault. Next, he shows him a photo from Danny’s living room of Candy holding just one baby – Danny. Stan asks Jack where is Adam today. Jack starts faltering as he keeps looking over at Danny banging his head against the bars. His accent is back and he is clearly nervous. 

Stan shows him several photos. Danny is alone in all of them. Adam was never real. Candy only had one son. Danny finally manages to break through the prison and heads toward the room of the “undesirables.” Jack remains quiet as Danny walks into the room filled with water and finds Adam floating lifeless. Jonny, Mike, and Ariana surround Jack and the spotlight goes off, meaning he is no longer in control.

Ending Explained:

Was Adam real?

The spotlight turns back on and focuses on Adam, who wakes up. Danny regains control and tells the court the truth. Adam “had to go away, because of what he did.” Adam let Marlin do whatever he wanted to him. Marlin “raped Adam over and over again.” But Adam took it all because he didn’t want Candy to be alone. He wanted Danny to be by her side.

Stan once again asks him, “You never had a brother, did you, Danny? Who was Adam?” ” Me. Adam is me” is the reply.

The jury unanimously finds him not guilty. When Rya is seen questioning him about that day at the trial a few months later, he calls Rya the “saint who saved me.” Danny looks so much better with a cute haircut and a glowing face. He seems at ease with himself in the facility (St. Fran’s Psychiatric Centre) where he is getting proper treatment. After the trial, Rya had no contact with Danny. He was taken to the facility and had new doctors. Candy contacted her with the details. He finally met her two years after the trial.

How does The Crowded Room end? What happens to all the characters?

Danny confessed he had to “finally face the music.”

Candy appreciates the beautiful paintings Danny has made (the ones we see in the opening credit). They ease into a conversation. Candy is now divorced and living alone in Oakville. She apologizes to Danny for “letting him down.” He asks when she knew what was happening to him. She tells him about his biological father and how she got pregnant with Danny at a very early age. She then tells him he was four when she realized what he was doing to him. 

Things became harder for her alone. But Marlin came in like a “saviour” for them: they both needed a strong presence in the house. She breaks down confessing to Danny that she couldn’t handle facing the truth: that she exposed Danny to another monster. She couldn’t protect him. Danny is unconvinced by her pleadings and doubts if he will ever see her again.

Rya is now practising as a therapist and she has published her work in the DSM. 

The fusion therapy is finally working for Danny. All the personalities had his characteristics, which taken together, indicate a smart, intelligent, and charming young man capable of great things. Rya walks away from the facility and when she looks back, she catches a glimpse of Danny with what looks like Adam in the window. Once inside the room, we see Danyy alone, lost in his paintings as the room fills with fireflies. 

The Episode Review

I have not misjudged a show as badly as I have The Crowded Room ever. I had lost hope after the first three/four episodes but Tom Holland has single-handedly elevated it. The whole team rallied behind him to make Danny’s condition and acceptance of it a centrifugal force driving them. Everyone chipped in, doing their bit. Amanda Seyfried, Emmy Rossum, and the remarkable Christopher Abbot seized their moments in the finale. 

The Crowded Room managed to branch out to some extent in its final showcasing. Exhibiting Candy’s bittersweet experiences with her husbands revealed another broken soul. The lack of reconciliation was a brave decision but creatively, the showrunners remained true by not characterizing the ending otherwise. 

Holland is a shoo-in for all acting awards due to a fantastic performance that bodes well for his future. Ultimately, the show was very rewarding, which isn’t something we can say about certain other recent shows.