Dominic Camelli 
The climax to The Venture Bros. season 7 came and went this past Sunday and it has to be said, what a season! They tied up a lot of loose ends, some of which we never knew needed tying up. Join us as we break down the season and what exactly these revelations mean for the show going forward.
Let’s first talk about that final episode and where it leaves us. As far as season finales of The Venture Bros. go this one tied up really nicely in terms of narrative and was so calm the series almost feels complete. This episode starts with Dr. Thaddeus “Rusty” Venture showing his incredible lack of competence, a staple of the series, as he is taken moments after the “Black Out Team” arrives via teleporter. We are introduced to Hank Venture walking through a frozen wasteland from the movie Barbarella, revealed to us by The Action Man who drops the bombshell that Hank is dead. The Guild is performing a play where The Monarch and Henchman 21 will become level 10 villains. For the first time ever the name of the boys’ mother gets dropped, Bobbi St. Simone. We also get confirmation along with the characters that The Monarch and Dr. Venture are in fact related since it was hinted at earlier this season.
My personal favorite scene is where we realize Hank is just in a coma and Dean Venture is talking about what a bad brother he is and how much he admires Hank. After how the previous episode ended you could be forgiven for being unhappy at how the characters acted, but Dean is at least partially redeemed and it really gets to me, at least. Speaking from the polar opposite position to my brother, this moved me on a personal level. I could not help but feel like this was a realistic way for brothers who love each other to act, even after growing apart. This is where we see what Dean knows and how he longs for a simpler time, and for things to be how they were in the past. This is just so human it is hard to believe a cartoon character can be this way. The writers did a great job and Michael Sinterniklaas’ (Dean) delivery was extremely good. Brothers have a special kind of relationship and this captures that well.
Moving on from the finale, we are taken to the first arc of the series categorised by an unexpected turn of events turned all the way up to 11. Each episode dropped a huge bombshell and ended on cliff hangers, condemning me to the longest 3 weeks of my life. First things first, Jonas Venture Sr. was ALIVE! This was shocking enough, but then freaking Vedatata shows up and we learn he’s The Monarch’s father, the original Blue Morpho. We get further confirmation that Jonas was a horrible person and treated his “friend” horribly, blackmailing him, along with the implication that he slept with The Blue Morpho’s wife. A personal highlight comes when the “Mr. Perfect” character is revealed to be a jerk. There is a lot to unpack in this arc like the fact Red Death was on Gargantua 1. The hangar bay incident mentioned all the way back in season 1 was also The Guilds fault but was blamed on Sphinx which inadvertently led to Brock Sampson joining the OSI during the Pyramid Wars. The thing that always gets me with this show is how they keep bringing the older stuff back.
There was a lot of character development in this season, from showing that Dr. Venture is actually a skilled mediator and that Dr. Mrs. The Monarch has a lot of emotions when it comes to putting the past behind her and disappointing her husband. The characters in this show actually grow, one of the more common issues with multiple season TV shows. I told a friend of mine that if we get a name for the boys’ mom that is where the series will end, but I am happy to report that I was wrong. They confirmed at the end of the finale that they will be back, and my money says that when we do come back, we will see a new Hank and The Monarch have some unpacking to do. Knowing full well I left out so much of what made this season so amazing, please start a conversation in the comment section, I’d love to hear your thoughts and theories about season 8 that will likely come out 10 years from now! And when it does it will be grand.
