After six seasons (four on ABC and two on CMT), Nashville ended its run with a sentimental, heart-tugging wrap-up in its final episode last night.  Like any great soap opera, it’s all about those wonderfully rich characters that the audience has come to fall in love with; whether they be the good guys, the bad, or somewhere in between.  What was touching about the finale is that many characters lives ended on a happy note, or came full-circle.

Through creator Callie Khouri’s vision for six seasons, we came to love and care about Deacon, Avery, Juliette, Will and so many others, and of course, Rayna James.  And on the final installment, Connie Britton did make one final appearance as the late Rayna with her longtime music city scene partner, Charles Esten, that so many Nashies were hoping for before the final curtain came down.

So here’s what happened and where it all ended up, as we now imagine what these characters lives will be like, unless as now rumored, Khouri puts together a Nashville 2.0 spinoff.

Photo: Mark Levine/CMT

Maddie (Lennon Stella) and Twig (Dylan Arnold) are in the recording studio.  He wants to be her everything.  She feels pressured.  In a conversation with Scarlett (Claire Bowen), she reveals she is just trying to get over her bust up with Jonah and doesn’t know if she can be in a relationship right now.  Later at this advice from Scarlett: “The only thing you need to do is honor what you’re feeling at the moment,” Maddie sits down with Twig and breaks the news over coffee!  “You need someone who can put you at the center of their universe,” says Maddie.  “What if I said I would take you as you are?” Twig replies.  To which Maddie lowers the boom, “I would say you deserve so much more.” Twig is devastated.  Maddie is emancipated.

Then we come to Maddie’s sister, Daphne (Maisy Stella).  It’s the finals of Nashville’s Next Country Star.  Daphne has got her work cut out for her, because of sexy frontrunner Jenny Lee.  Brad (Jeff Nordling) has set Daphne up to lose by giving her a song that is far from her comfort song to perform.  She flips it on him when it is time for her to go live. Daphne does her rendition of the tune with her guitar, stripped-down and soulful.  The crowd goes wild.   However in the end, Jenny Lee is named the winner.  Backstage, Daphne cries in Deacon’s (Charles Esten) arms, but then … Ilse (Daphne’s coach on Nashville’s Next Country Star) is making goo-goo eyes at Deacon, and asks him if he would like to write with her when he comes home from his tour?  Scarlett, Daphne, and Maddie look on and notice the spark. Could this be Deacon’s true new love interest?

Photo: Mark Levine/CMT

Gunnar (Sam Palladio) and Avery (Jonathan Jackson) play pool and in a nice touch which harkens back to six-years-ago on the series. Gunnar says, “You were a total tool,” recalling that Avery was a snotty, bad dude when he first came to town.  Will (Chris Carmack) and Gunnar want to get The Last Highways together, if they can just convince Avery to put the past behind him and move forward.  Apparently, all is well, and they put the band back up on its feet.

Now, we come to the #MeToo socially relevant topic of the day, part of the last episode, where we finally learn Alannah’s (Rainee Blake) plan to nail Brad as the womanizing, power abuser, egotistical bastard he is, and how he uses his company and his status in the biz to lure woman to do “favors” for him.  In her hotel room after her performance, Brad calls and says there is a par-tay going down in his room with lots of people and to join them.  She heads over to find him alone and lascivious.  When he tries to plant a wet lip-lock on her, she slaps him.  He fires back: “The man helps the woman and the woman helps the man,” and that Alannah violated their “implicit contract.”  And that means of course, she will never work again in this town.

A few days later, Brad gets the shock of his life when in walks to his office at Shiny New Records, Deacon, Alannah and Zach (Cameron Scoggins)! The trio announces their plans to purchase his company for $15 million dollars. He laughs them off, but our smart gal, Alannah recorded the whole incident in the hotel room and has his voice on tape, which she happily plays it back for him. Then, to add an exclamation point on the proceedings, getting off the elevator are countless women who have all been harassed by Brad including his on-again off-again wife, Jessie (Kaitlin Doubleday), who adds, “And I want full custody of Jake (their son), too!”

Photo: Mark Levine/CMT

How do we wrap up the other greatest and tortured love story of Nashville, with two of our favorite actors, who got their starts on the soaps, and who made Javery a couple to root for through the good and the bad?  Of course, we are talking about Jonathan Jackson and Hayden Panettiere.  Now together in one piece, and grounded from her experiences with the cult, and with a new lease on life, Juliette has sold her house for a farm 30 minutes outside of Nashville.  Avery knows there is something he is not telling her.  Avery finds Juliette’s savior and bestie. Hallie (Rhiannon Giddens) at the recording studio and when prompted she tells him that Juliette is pregnant with his kid, again!  Next scene, Avery confronts Juliette.  She admits it’s true, and she was going to tell him but did not want to trap him, because she loves him and wants to be with him, but only if he wants her too and, “Not because you feel like you need to save me or that you’re worried about me. But because you’re worried about yourself without me.”   Duly-noted by Avery, but he exits.

Photo: Mark Levine/CMT

And then we get to the crescendo of the finale, as Juliette sings on her keyboard alongside her stilettos, the moving boxes, et al.  While the emotion of the song plays out, the show intercuts the action and brings us to a flash-forward in time.  This was done effectively on the series finale of One Life to Live and Guiding Light, among others soaps, that have to say their goodbyes.  In Nashville time it’s a “few months later” and we see how everyone’s life is shaping up:  Daphne has signed her first record contract!  Will is hand in hand with a boyfriend and it’s Zach.  Jessie has full custody of her son and they are eating popcorn and watching a scary movie together.  Maddie moved into her own place.  Alannah’s career is taking off opening for The Lumineers.  The Last Highways hold an album release party, with … of course, screaming fangurls!

Then it’s time to grab the hankies … we see Juliette with baby bump hanging out on her farm with Cadence on the swing set, and walking towards her is Avery with a large suitcase. He begins with, “Juliette, I need you.  And I want to spend the rest of my life with you.” He adds, “And if you would ….” she cuts him off.  “Yes,” she says. They embrace and kiss as Cadence yells, “Daddy!”  And there you have it … Javery is together at last!

Photo: Mark Levine/CMT

The show’s last season largely centered around Deacon.  And in the last installment, it is Rayna who comes to him when he must make the decision whether to embrace his father who is longing to make peace with his son, or hold on to old grudges.  As Deacon’s career has taken off again as he is now headlining his own tour, Gideon (Ronny Cox) has come to see his son perform and comes backstage to see him, which takes Deacon aback.   He goes to his dressing room where in a ghost/ flashback experience, he recalls Rayna on their wedding night. “Is this real?” he whispers,  Deacon is worried that after all the mistakes and regrets that kept them apart for so long, and caused them so much pain, that things can’t work themselves out.  But the wise Rayna says. “Sometimes somebody gets into your bloodstream. It doesn’t matter how much we’ve failed each other.  We must choose each other.  And I choose you exactly the way you are. And I’m going to love you forever… and ever and ever.”

Photo: Mark Levine/CMT

Deacon is in tears, but it’s time to hit the stage.  Now, feeling reassured that he should give his father a chance (thanks to Rayna from the great beyond), he realized that forgiving his father would not make him weak or less than, but would strengthen his family.  Deacon tells the audience he wants to bring someone special up on-stage with him, his dad, Gideon Claybourne.  From the audience, Gideon is shocked and honored.  Gideon straps on a guitar and Deacon begins to play and then whispers to his dad, “Do you know this song?” To which Gideon, replied, “Son, I know all your songs.” Hankies!

Photo: Mark Levine/CMT

And then came the final note after six years of songs, and so much drama.  As Deacon and Gideon begin to perform the song, “A Life That’s Good”, all the characters begin to walk out on stage and join them singing in unison, but we soon realize the show has broken the fourth wall, and now we are watching the true swan song with the cast past and present, the crew, the executive producers, Ed Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz, and at the center of it all, Callie Khouri who says, “I want to thank the city of Nashville.”  She adds “The beautiful people of Nashville. The incredible cast and crew — the family that we’ve made.  And may we all have a life that’s good.  And that’s a wrap.”  What a touching and honest way to say goodbye.

So, how would you grade the series finale of Nashville? What did you think of how things were left for your favorite characters? What was your favorite moment in the last episode? Share your thoughts in the comment section below. But first check out the heartfelt thanks from the cast of Nashville in the video below, followed by three of the heart-tugging scenes from the finale.