I am utterly convinced that The Righteous Gemstones should have ended with the Season 3 finale instead of Season 4—here's why

I've seen plenty of shows that didn't know when to quit. But when I finished viewing the Season 3 finale of The Righteous Gemstones, something became painfully obvious to me—it should have ended right then. That finale didn't just conclude a season; it concluded the whole series in a way that felt deliberate, deserved, and oddly serene for a show based on mayhem. I was just sitting there thinking, "Wait, are we actually getting a Season 4 after this?

Don’t get me wrong—I love the show. I’ve stuck with the Gemstones through every betrayal, sermon, explosion, and Baby Billy hustle. But Season 3’s ending? It felt like the perfect curtain call. The family found something close to unity. Jesse finally started acting like a real leader. Even Eli let go. For a series rooted in dysfunction, seeing that emotional and narrative closure land so well made me question why there’s more to come.

The Righteous Gemstones season 3 already felt like the final chapter

The way Season 3 tied up the storylines didn’t feel like just another season ender—it felt like a natural conclusion to everything that came before. Jesse’s growth as a character wasn’t just hinted at; it was shown. Eli stepping back was huge, and the siblings finally coming together felt like the answer we’d been waiting three seasons for.

The Simkins/Peter chaos was tied up in typical Gemstone style—noisy, over-the-top, and oddly moving. It all worked. These weren't forced, closed loose ends. They were genuine character arcs that had reached their conclusions. If the credits had rolled and that was it, I wouldn't have had a single thing to complain about.

Most of the arcs in The Righteous Gemstones season 3 were wrapped—And that was enough

I know some people will complain that not everything was resolved. And they're right. Gideon's desire to preach and the "so what?" of the family business still linger. But to me, they were epilogues, not cliffhangers. They weren't unresolved business. They were possibilities.

That's an important distinction. You don't have to detail every conceivable resolution for a story to be satisfying. The show offered us emotional resolution. Jesse, Judy, and Kelvin gained their balance. Even Baby Billy received a spoonful of something akin to self-preservation. The large character arcs were addressed. That's what matters.

The stakes in The Righteous Gemstones season 3 were never going to be higher than this

Season 3 provided us with all that—internal breakdowns, outside threats, and the sort of existential reckoning that compels a family to either hold together or break apart forever. The Gemstones selected one another, and in the process, they grew.

What bothers me now is the dilemma Season 4 is in. How do you follow up on that? Do you make it bigger? Funnier? Louder? Or do you risk losing the emotional momentum just to keep going further? That's the risk when a show doesn't know when to stop. It ceases to be art and becomes content.

I'm not saying season 4 of The Righteous Gemstones can't work—I'm saying it didn't need to happen

I understand—HBO had Season 4 locked, and the showrunners left themselves an open door. Perhaps they had a new path. Perhaps there was a new villain brewing in the background. I'd be happy to be proved wrong. But from where I'm sitting now, all that needs to be said has been said.

Going beyond that point threatens to dilute it all. We've watched the family fall apart and come back together again. We've seen their strength tested, and we've seen them finally grow up, at least to some extent. If Season 4 has managed to introduce something entirely new to the mix, that's great. But if it's the same old, same old? Then I can't help but feel like the true conclusion was reached a while ago.

Therefore, the Righteous Gemstones season 3 arcs weren't simply wrapped up—they were wrapped up with purpose. And fans apparently concurred. You could sense the collective "Wait, that was perfect—why carry on?" in the air.

And hey, perhaps that's just the way of good storytelling. It leaves you wanting more, even when you know you don't really need it. The Righteous Gemstones provided us with that special something: a finale that worked. That should have been enough.

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Also read: The Righteous Gemstones Season 4 ending explained: A stolen gold Bible, a wedding and a divine farewell

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