Episode 4 focuses on Jamie’s family and the “ripple effect of this heinous act.”

The British TV show Adolescence has taken Netflix by storm. In just four episodes, the limited series tells the story of Jamie Miller, a 13-year-old boy accused of murdering a female student named Katie Leonard, and the impact the crime has on his family. While the devastating series wasn’t based on any specific, singular event, it was inspired by a toxic internet subculture and a terrifying rise in violence among youth in the U.K.

So, is Jamie guilty of murder, and if so, why would he commit such a heinous act? Here, we break down what happens in the Adolescence finale.

What happens in the final episode of Adolescence?

The fourth and final episode of Netflix’s Adolescence focuses entirely on Jamie’s family: his father Eddie (co-creator, co-writer, and actor Stephen Graham), mother Manda (Christine Tremarco), and sister Lisa (Amélie Pease). Viewers are given a snapshot of what life is like for the Miller family 13 months after Jamie’s arrest. Eddie wakes up on his 50th birthday to a hand-drawn card from his son. The day quickly takes a dark turn when it’s discovered that Eddie’s work van has been vandalized with the word “nonse,” a misspelled accusation attacking Jamie’s family. Unable to scrub the spray paint off with water, Eddie makes his wife and daughter accompany him to a hardware store.

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Unfortunately, a simple errand becomes incredibly challenging. A member of staff recognizes Eddie and tells him, “I’m on your side…your son’s side. For what it’s worth. Because he didn’t do it, did he?” The employee says he doubts the reported details of Katie’s murder, and claims to have seen naked photos of her that were previously shared by one of Jamie’s classmates. The staff member says Eddie needs to hire “a good lawyer,” telling him, “If you crowdfund it, lots of us would get behind it.”

In the parking lot, Eddie confronts a group of kids he believes are responsible for the graffiti on his van. After scaring them off, he throws the can of paint over the side of his van, creating a huge mess in the process. A security guard exits the store and asks Eddie if he plans on cleaning up the paint. A verbal altercation ensues, with Eddie shouting, “You shut up and get in the fucking shop!”

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On their way back home, the Millers receive a phone call from Jamie in prison. He’s calling to wish his dad a happy birthday, but he also shares some life-changing news: He’s decided to change his plea to guilty, finally admitting that he did kill Katie. Jamie tells his father, “I know today’s not the day for it, but…With it all getting closer, I’ve thought about it, and…Dad, I’m going to change my plea.” He continues, “Dad, I’m sorry, but I’m going to plead guilty.”

Discussing why Jamie changes his mind, co-creator and co-writer Jack Thorne told Tudum, “Jamie now knows what he’s done and what his future might be. That allows him to put his feelings in a box and close the lid on himself in some way.” Thorne also wanted viewers to get “a new perspective on Eddie—the complicated vision of Eddie. You need to understand how he allowed his son to become absent, what Eddie taught his son, and what he didn’t teach his son. You need to understand that for the whole family.”

Eddie is shown wrestling with his own anger throughout the episode. “I wanted to eliminate the possibility of thinking Eddie is a violent man,” Graham told Tudum. Instead, Graham sees Eddie as “a hardworking father who goes to work early in the morning, comes back late at night, and puts food on the table.”

Director Philip Barantini viewed Jamie’s decision to plead guilty as a moment of finality for the Miller family. Discussing the visceral scene, he told Tudum, “Imagine that someone you love has been on a life support machine. You’ve been hoping and praying that they stay alive. Then, in this moment, the doctor finally tells you, ‘There’s nothing else we can do, and we’re going to switch the machine off.’” He continued, “That’s what Jamie pleading guilty is for the Millers.”

How does the Adolescence finale end?

The final moments of Adolescence take place in Jamie’s bedroom. While police officers placed Jamie under arrest in the room at the start of episode 1, episode 4 ends with Eddie sitting alone on Jamie’s bed, trying to comprehend his son’s actions. Eddie kisses Jamie’s teddy bear and says that he’s sorry. Explaining why the episode ends where the show began, actor and co-creator Graham told GQ UK, “It’s because, what can be happening in those rooms when we’re not there…How can people be radicalized? Or, how can people begin to develop these concepts and these ideas?” Jamie’s family is forced to confront how and why their son was drawn to the “manosphere” and incel culture—a term referring to men who blame women for their involuntary romantic and sexual abstinence—all while living under the same roof.

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“I think any parent in that situation would always sort of slightly blame themselves,” Graham told GQ UK. “I think Eddie will always carry that cross.” And because of the violent act Jamie carried out, it’s unlikely “there will ever be pure, total happiness again between that family,” he added. “I’d like to hope there could be, maybe one day. But they’re gonna carry this for the rest of their lives.”

As Graham told Tudum, the “ripple effect of this heinous act” is vast and infinite.

Do we hear from Katie in the Adolescence finale?

While Netflix’s Adolescence is almost entirely told from Jamie’s perspective, Katie’s presence exists in the show’s finale in an unexpected way. At the end of the episode, the song “Through the Eyes of a Child,” originally by Aurora, can be heard being performed by Emilia Holliday, the actress who portrays Katie in the series. “The voice in the score is Katie’s voice,” director Barantini told Tudum. “Katie is a part of the whole series…Her presence is always there.”