When we started watching “Daisy Jones & the Six” Episode 9, our belief that artists can be a special type of insufferable was reaffirmed. And when we switched to Episode 10, it was the best thing in the whole series, with the intercuts between the happenings of the day and the lyrics of the song being in a certain synergy that heightened the emotions of the characters. Our biggest pet peeve, however, is that the writers waited an entire season to finally reveal why Daisy and Billy couldn’t be together. Throughout the season, we had just not liked the characters because we couldn’t figure out what their problem was. But we realized it in the last two episodes, and we couldn’t help thinking that we had been robbed of a better understanding of Billy and Daisy due to this.
It is also unforgivable that four of the band members wanted to leave because they couldn’t work with their exes. These are artists we are talking about, yet only one of them, Eddie, noticed, and rightfully so, that he was being undermined and his voice was not being heard. The motivating force behind every artist is to give their voice a platform, yet only Eddie cared that he was being robbed of it. Did Warren, Graham, and Karen really not care? It wasn’t okay that Daisy and Billy’s love story dominated the series, and even that wasn’t as well done as it should have been. They oversimplified it all, and while it remains fast and entertaining, it failed to be as spectacular as it could have been. But we were not disappointed because we managed our expectations within the first few episodes themselves. Its lost potential still tugs at our hearts a little bit though. This is how the final two episodes of “Daisy Jones and the Six” play out.
Spoilers Ahead
The Aftermath Of Daisy’s Overdose
To put it simply, the aftermath of Daisy’s overdose was her divorce from Nicky. When she woke up, Daisy immediately went to find Billy and asked him about what had happened. Upon coming to know that Nicky left her while she was in that condition, she wastes no time in kicking him out of her life. After that, Daisy starts her journey of sobriety. She doesn’t quit drugs but starts limiting her intake and her feelings for Billy just get stronger. Meanwhile, Teddy suffers a stroke and is hospitalized. The entire band is worried, and Simone flies in from New York to meet him. She and Daisy finally reconcile after she apologizes to her once again. As for Teddy, he is told to take better care of his health and cut back on stress. But the shock of recent events has helped to smooth out the tensions between Daisy and Billy. When they go to Pittsburgh, which is Billy’s hometown, they are all welcomed very warmly.
At a homecoming party, Camila talks to Daisy, asking her if she will ever have children, and Daisy says that she doesn’t want to because she doesn’t want to pass on her generational trauma to anyone else. What Camila says next makes us wonder why she was not the leader of her own story and just the supporting character in two very unlikeable characters’ love stories. She tells Daisy not to underestimate herself and that there is a lot more to her that she has to discover. This is the kind of confidence and respect that nobody has ever shown Daisy, not even Billy. Since she has been limiting her drugs and taking the time to think about herself and her life, Daisy has realized just how much she has been fighting her feelings for Billy. The next time they are practicing, she blurts out to him that they should be together. While she tries to backtrack from it, Billy tells her that they should use what they have between them to fuel their creativity instead of acting on it because he is never going to let go of Camila. This is what we meant when we said that artists could be a special brand of losers.
Daisy and Billy have a moment, which is unfortunately witnessed by Camila, though she doesn’t confront them about it right away. Soon enough, they fly to Illinois, which is where they hold their last show, though none of them know it yet.
The Start Of The End
When Daisy meets Simone in Illinois, she comes to know that she has turned down an offer from Attic Records because they wanted her to end her relationship with Bernie and she wasn’t willing to do anything that wouldn’t allow her to be true to herself. That brings Daisy to tears, as she has been fighting her feelings for Billy for way too long already and doesn’t know what it means to be true to herself. Meanwhile, Camila finally confronts Billy about what she saw, and he confesses that he kissed Daisy once, but nothing has happened since. Daisy corroborates this, though when Billy tells her that nothing ever will happen between them, it crushes her heart a little too much. When Daisy and Camila have a conversation, Camila calls her out, saying that she and Billy deserve each other.
When Daisy goes back to her room, she finds some childhood pictures of her that have come in the mail, sent by her mother. She is surprised and emotional at this and calls her mother, only to be disappointed again. Her mother asks Daisy why she has been calling herself an orphan this whole time in the media and asks her to be grateful. But Daisy is done with her and tells her never to call her again. Daisy’s heart has been broken way too much that day, but that has strengthened her. Instead of crumbling down, she has started seeing the unfairness of it all and is about to turn over a new leaf, but some more things must happen first.
As for the other band members, Karen and Graham are on the verge of breaking up. Karen got pregnant, but she doesn’t want to stop her career. Graham has always wanted a family, and he is excited about it, but since Karen is reluctant, they decide to take some time to think about it. However, before anything can happen, Karen miscarries during the house party. But she tells Graham that she got an abortion. He asks her why she did not tell him, and she replies that it would have been harder if he had been there with her. All this time, we had felt that Graham was the better Dunne brother, but seeing how he told Karen that “she will be forever alone,” maybe he is just as bad. Nobody deserves to hear that just because they want different things in life than everybody else.
On the other hand, Eddie tells Billy that he wants to quit the band because he doesn’t want to be on the sidelines anymore. This causes a huge fight between the two, with them coming to blows. When Warren notices the bruises on Eddie’s face, he asks him why they can’t just enjoy the high life, and Eddie tells him that he wants more from life than just to follow someone around.
Why Does The Band Split? What Happens To Billy And Daisy?
Amidst all this, Billy is getting desperate as he doesn’t want Camila to leave him. He leaves many messages for her, asking her for a chance to work on their relationship but is met with silence. In his desperation and heartbreak, he starts drinking again. The time for them to perform comes, and Daisy goes all out with her makeup, probably signifying that she is about to start a new chapter. It is a sold-out stadium and the performance of the band is electrifying. Billy is drunk and unhinged, and when the band takes a short break, he kisses Daisy and tells her that Camila has left him. He wants to be with her as two broken people who can be together, but Daisy pushes him away and tells him that she doesn’t want to be broken anymore. Meanwhile, Graham tells Karen that he loves her, and if she feels the same, they can be together again. But Karen knows that they want different things in life and doesn’t say the words he wants to hear. It is the band’s last performance on stage. Billy leaves in the middle of it, with a cue from Daisy, so that he can see Camila and try to save his relationship with her. The next day, Daisy was leaving the band anyway, but so were Eddie and Graham. That was the end of “Daisy Jones and the Six” as a team.
In the present day, their interview was being taken by Julia, Billy, and Camila’s daughter. The members have gone on to live good lives even after the band ended. Graham had the family he always wanted; Eddie formed a band of his own, and though they did not reach the superstardom of his previous band, they were doing alright. Eddie married Lisa and has gone on to perform on some other records. Karen did what she wanted and is a star in her own right. Billy went to rehab and started seeing a therapist before eventually winning back Camila, who he called the love of his life. Even Daisy pulled her life together and got sober. She has a daughter of her own and is in a much better place in life. She says that if she and Billy had gotten together, then they would have just ruined each other more. Not being together was the best thing that happened to them. As for Camila, it has been a while since she passed away. But before going, she leaves a message for Daisy and Billy. She tells Billy to call Daisy when he is ready, and she tells Daisy to take that call. That is how “Daisy Jones & the Six” ends, with Billy showing up at Daisy’s doorstep.
Final Thoughts
It took us a while to understand, but the main problem with Billy and Daisy’s story is their addiction. An addict, even when he is off whatever he is using, will always be termed as “recovering” and never “cured.” Whatever Billy and Daisy’s troubles in life were, they never faced them and just used drugs as a coping mechanism. Billy went to rehab, yet he did not sort himself out mentally. Neither Billy nor Daisy had ever learned to like each other, which meant that they could never respect the person who mirrored them. They loved each other but did not respect or like each other, and that is why they could not be together. There was a point there when they said that they needed the time to heal, to be able to love each other without heartache, and the years apart hopefully gave him that.
Our only problem is that while we know where Daisy’s problems stem from, we don’t know enough about Billy. Additionally, why did the writers wait for 8 episodes to show us the issues the rest of the members had in the band? That felt a little unfair to them. Overall, “Daisy Jones & the Six” was a good show in terms of pace, effect, and Sam Claffin. It would have been better if Daisy and Billy’s love story did not feel so juvenile for the most part and if the rest of the members had been given equal importance. Otherwise, it is a great and engaging watch.
