Double Merde: ‘Mythic Quest’ Drops a Divisive Bomb in Season 4 Finale

Another season of AppleTV+’s Mythic Quest ends, bringing the dysfunctional hijinks of our video game developers to a close. Finales of the past left a few threads open to pick up in the following season, but for its fourth season finale, Mythic Quest chose violence. The final moments of the finale (directed by cast member Ashly Burch) are divisive. It threw a romantic pairing out like a bomb before leaving the room. Playing “Burning Down the House” over the end credits is a great cheeky wink.

MQ’s Quebecois overlords Jacques and Jean-Luc are coming to weigh in on the company’s future. Evil genius Jo (Jessie Ennis) is thrilled about the visit as it’s been her “darkest dream” to become Jacques and Jean-Luc’s assistant. She’s spent months befriending their current assistant, Jean-Georges, so now’s her chance to stab him in the back and take his job. And wouldn’t ya know it, Jacques and Jean-Luc have canceled due to their ongoing feud and sent Jean-Georges in his place. As the only fluent French speaker, Jo takes the lead with a malicious gleam in her eye. With an airy smile affixed to his face, Jean-Georges insults each team member en Français and tells Jo in no uncertain terms that he’s aware of her scheme. He loves Elysium, but Montreal wants a change in management. Jo is being promoted to the head of Playpen, and she couldn’t be more upset. Her dreams are dashed. Shine on, Jo, you dark, haunted diamond.

The rest of the episode is all about romance in one way or another. Brad (Danny Pudi) is so drawn to Elysium’s monetization potential that he scuttles his sexy embezzlement heist with Anna (Karolina Szymczak) and throws her thumb drive of malware in the trash. Only the sweet balm of data can calm him after this heartbreak. Carol (Naomi Ekperigin) is having a rough hangover after a red-wine-and-K-drama bender. David warns that he knows about her dalliances with the testers, Mikey (Michael Naughton) and Andy (Andrew Friedman). While napping in her office, Carol dreams of a Challengers moment in which she suggests a threeway, starting with a kiss between Mikey and Andy. She wakes just before their lips touch and realizes she probably needs therapy.

Mythic Quest saved its big romance bomb for the end. Poppy (Charlotte Nicdao) is unpacking after David convinced her to stay, leaving her gorgeous boyfriend waiting in the Netherlands. Ian (Rob McElhenney) stops by and gives Poppy the hard sell on why they should both just leave MQ. Working without Poppy will be Hell for him, and it’s only a video game. He drives Poppy to the airport, and on the way, she asks him to interpret her new sculpture. He says that it looks beautiful and empty, like a bubble that could burst at any moment. This sends Poppy into a tailspin that Ian solves by explaining that she has something amazing with Storm and that if there’s even the slightest chance it’ll work with someone she truly loves, it’s worth trying.

Later, Ian is back at MQ, trying to sign into his desktop. Poppy catches him, explaining that when she got a notification that Ian was trying to sign in, she faked labor to get the plane to turn around. When they landed, she booked it before the ambulance could arrive. Claiming your unborn child just “went back up there” is a big swing. Poppy and Ian have a heart-to-heart about what’s important to them. Poppy says that Ian’s words resonated with her and that she wanted to return to him and MQ because she truly loves their work together. They hug and when Poppy pulls away, Ian pulls her back into a kiss. They make out for a few moments before splitting, eyes wide and mouths gaping. Just as Poppy is about to say something, we hit the credits.

Where these two go from here is anyone’s guess. AppleTV+ has not yet renewed Mythic Quest, but this would be a major story to tell in a potential fifth season. Their kiss culminates a season of romantic foreshadowing, so it’s not out of nowhere. The chemistry between McElhenney and Nicdao is a fantastic engine for the show already, so they could sell a great nerd romance together. Still, it’s disappointing to see a show as clever and fun as Mythic Quest make a lazy choice. Poppy and Ian are an amazing duo, and it was great to see a platonic friendship represented on TV. When Harry Met Sally is awesome, but it’s also wrong: men and women can be friends without becoming romantic.