The 'Hijack' Finale Is as Justifiably Batsh*t as I'd Hoped
This story contains spoilers for the season finale of Hijack.
Since the very moment I pressed play on Hijack, I've been dreading one thing: flying. And that's exactly what I had to do this morning. (I'm not kidding—DM me for my flight info, which I probably won't give to you. But still. I stashed my Biscoff cookie to prove it.)
You know, I'm a nervous flyer to begin with, but Hijack really messed me up! Before takeoff, I legitimately did a 360 to see if who looked (and didn't look) trustworthy. My neighbor, taking a few too many pictures of the New York City skyline? Kinda sus! I contorted my face into Idris Elba's perma-scowl, so that no one would talk to me. At the end of the flight, that same picture-taking neighbor did the thing where he immediately stood up and stared at me until I moved. Man, my Hijack binge has me feeling a little crazy! Idris Elba taught me how to throw fists in tight quarters! Don't fuck with me!
Anyway, that's all to say: Happy Hijack finale day, folks. I hope you celebrated by doing literally anything else than boarding a plane. Since you humored me just now, I'll get right to my takeaways from the final episode.
Idris Lands! This! Damn! Plane! (Sort of.)
Going into the season finale, I was hoping—damn near praying—for a justifiably batshit ending to Hijack. It would've been too lax for some random passenger with a Harrison Ford-level of piloting IQ to step in and land the plane. I got exactly what I wanted: Sam, essentially, negotiating a 200-ton aircraft to the ground. He manages to convince Amanda to open the door for him, which was largely expected. What I didn't expect? Sam channeling every single bit of Idris Elba energy to tell her that she can land this damn plane. Sam has had no business meddling in about half of Hijack's events, so it's only fitting that this season's final moments show him violently rocking back and forth in the cockpit, while he calms down a woman who was blackmailed into flying a hijacked commercial flight. Hijack! My show of the summer.
Stuart Takes an L
Another thing you knew would happen: somehow, nearly all of the passengers would vacate the plane, leaving only two people—Sam and Stuart—to fight to the death. It could've been a scene in Top Gun, if Maverick started piloting for Southwest. When Amanda finally lands Flight KA29, everyone hops off the bouncy-house slide and into safety. The police rounds up the hijackers—save for Stuart.
In a hilarious thriller-genre-plot-hijink, Sam is about to leave the plane, when the door suddenly closes on him. This leaves the poor dude—who just verbally landed a plane—to deal with Stuart. Even though they tussle a bit, and Stuart lobs some Bond-villain threats to Sam, our guy beats him with his brain. Sam uses his phone as a decoy, asking his ex-wife to call him—which she does at exactly the right moment. The episode ends soon after, with Stuart in cuffs, and Sam a hero. More on Sam's future (because he has to have one, right?) soon.
Is There, Like, Any Deeper Meaning To This Show?
You know, I'm not sure! Ultimately, I don't think so, which is exactly why I love Hijack: it's a throwback to the twist-turning, genuinely surprising network television of yesteryear. It's perfectly OK to watch Idris Elba go full Idris Elba to save a couple hundred airplane passengers. If I was stretching, though, is Hijack trying to say something about government incompetence? In Hijack's world, the British government is terrible, uncoordinated, and stuffed with opposing strategies—and a secret criminal underworld is booming right underneath their feet. You have to wonder if this portrayal is simply to juice up the plot, or if Hijack is actually saying something. But, yeah—in this case, it's OK to simply pump your fist when Sam tricks Stuart.
What's Next?
Well, first of all—Apple TV+ has billed Hijack as a limited series, so there's technically no hope for a second season. But I don't believe it. Hijack spent much of its latter half building up intrigue around a secret terrorist organization, plus Stuart is still alive! Hijack leaves us with too many open ends to convincingly tell us we'll never see Sam again. Of course, the SAG-AFTRA strike will likely delay news either way, but I bet we'll fly Kingdom Airlines again. In the meantime? Join me in rampant, unhinged speculation of Hijack's future.
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