BWW Recap: EVERYTHING Changes (No, Really!!) on YOUNGER's Explosive, Revealing, See-It-To-Believe It Season Finale

So, remember last week when I teased an explosive season finale? I wasn't kidding... and the cast is certainly all in agreement as well... these two episodes change everything. Liza encounters trouble with all three men in her life (Charles, David and Josh), but it's not as fun and freewheeling as it was in the hospital. Plus, she gets into a kerfuffle with Kelsey, while Diana makes some new developments in her relationship with Richard, and things with Kels and Colin start to get a little rocky, no thanks to devious little editor Pippa. It's a hell of a ride - to the Hamptons and back again - so grab your tissues and keep your emotions in check... 'cause it's all ahead on this week's final Season 3 recap. This one is definitely a SPOILER ALERT no matter which way you slice it (I tried my best, you guys!!), so don't read if you truly want to be surprised by the episode. If you have seen it, read on (thanks for the support!) But again, know going in, that these. Two. Episodes. Change. Everything. And I mean EVERYTHING. NOTHING will ever be the same. Got it? GOT IT?! Good. Phew! Now.... read on:

Liza and Charles: So, we all know Charles and Liza have been a rollercoaster this season. After a few chance encounters throughout the trip, wherein they both regret tripping over their words (which is the writers/actors' way of showing they really are attracted to one another), they finally come together in a BIG way.

They get super comfortable with each other, as Charles reels her in by sharing stories with her of his past, an action to which she does not object.

Thrown into a karaoke bar by the allure of Berlin (cue another one of Liza's brilliant recovery lines after spilling details of her 40-year-old life), they find themselves face-to-face with each as "Take My Breath Away" (Liza's prom song!!) plays in the background. So, inevitably, they share a kiss.

Which, admit it, we all knew was kinda coming. What we (presumably) didn't see coming was the second kiss at the door. We definitely didn't see Josh walking in on the two of them (Yikes!!!!), and we double definitely weren't expecting Liza to walk into her bedroom to find Josh's proposal of marriage, strewn out in rose petals on the bed. :-O.

Feeling uneasy about kissing Liza when he knows she has a boyfriend - and not even knowing about any of the proposal goings-on - Charles asserts he "won't be stepping in again. ... Good luck with Josh."

Well, this will certainly make things interesting for next season! They've had their kiss(es), they've essentially declared their love for one another, they'll still be working together so that tension will still be there, although they won't be together nor will they be acting on it... and it doesn't look like (for now) things are working out with Josh.

Well, with a love triangle as tangled as this one, there's gotta be a few strings that don't always get tied together perfectly in a bow. Sometimes, things just end unhappily. And sometimes... if you love someone, you gotta let them go.

The sad part about the whole thing? Doesn't look like Charles is the only one she's gonna be letting go this week. :-(

Liza and David: Amid all the hullabaloo, this one's kind of a filler storyline TBH - totally weird at such a point in the episode, and the series, where everything else around it is so heightened - but it does end with a gratifying, fulfilling resolution that undoubtedly moves the story forward, so I feel it's worth mentioning.

While attending a seminar for life coach Antonia Steward, whose new book Empirical is pursuing, Liza discovers David - the latter volunteers himself to go up as a case study at the seminar and declares his undying love for his ex-wife (aka Liza). Liza gets herself into quite a pickle here (and note oblivious Kelsey's response to David's behavior and how his ex-wife must feel - LOL!), but comes out the other side with more clarity than ever before (but really... let's face it... she rushes out of the arena while her phone buzzes, she's on speaker-phone in front of a bunch of people including Kels, and explains how her boyfriend proposed to her, which Kelsey knows Josh did... who else thought the ruse was done?!) But no, in talking through her problems with David, she comes to the realization that she does in fact love Josh... and happily heads off to make things right with him.

Too bad it might be too late, and the feeling might not be as reciprocated as she had hoped. :-(

Liza and Josh: With Liza "on hiatus" from Josh while in the Hamptons - and clearly apprehensive to continue the relationship anyway, due to his desire for kids - Josh, with a little persuasion from Maggie, decides he has to go all in and show Liza how much she really means to him.

Unfortunately, his plan (proposing marriage) blows up in his face, when he witnesses Charles and Liza kissing in the hallway.

He's, understandably, bummed... but not as bummed as Liza is when she puts all the pieces of this puzzle together.... and realizes Josh doesn't want to see her anymore.

She leaves it alone, but later returns, fueled by her "talk" with David at the seminar, to tell him she loves him.

But again, she arrives at his door to have him turn her down again.... and it really seems like he's serious this time.

"You were everything to me," he says, somberly. "I chose you.. but you're a liar, and a cheater, and whether you realize it or not, your lies are hurting everyone around you."

Oooh... biting words, but also eye-opening for Liza. She really has hurt everyone around her, with all her DECEPTION and tricks and withholding of who she really is.

Interesting to think that she's living a lie... and this self-help guru person told her what she thought she needed to hear in terms of "getting real" and going back to Josh, but what she needed to hear really came from Josh, who knows her better than anyone else at this point. (Just wish it didn't have to come with such a harsh tone). It's all the more devastating when she walks away, and he closes the door... despondent, yes, but also completely self-assured... he's not reconsidering anything. He's made up his mind. He's totally serious and he's not messing around.

So, what do you think? Can he and Liza come back from this?! They have before... can they reconcile this time? Liza, can you really make things right?! We. Shall. See.

Kelsey and Colin: So, as I also predicted in last week's recap, it seems Pippa's totally threatened by Kelsey's presence at the book fair (or rather, Colin's panels) and will do anything to separate her from her boyfriend and his authorial duties. (Let the eye-rolling commence!)

She's totally jealous, too - just listen to the b*tchy snark in her voice as she says, "Hi, Kels!" and "Don't you have an imprint of your own to worry about?" (I mean, seriously! What a b*tch!) - and how she shows absolutely no compassion when Colin the reveals his party is the same time as hers. She totally wants to keep them apart!!

What's worse is that the hype for Colin's book is dragging all of the guests from Millennial's list onto Random House's... and Kelsey's getting nervous that her imprint, therefore, won't have much of a presence at the fair. ("I hate feeling like I'm competing with him," Kelsey gripes, to which Liza swiftly replies, "You're not. You're competing with Pippa." Does she know her friend or what?!)

Fortunately, Colin sticks it to Pippa when he shows up at the Millennial party, and, with a little help from Liza, they reconcile.

But... it's short lived. When Lauren announces Max is moving in (causing the bedroom to become fairly overcrowded), Kelsey seeks out Colin and asks to stay with him for a short time, while she figures out her next move.

But it seems Colin's really married to his work... like, too overwhelmed to have Kelsey stay with him. "I can't have any distraction," he says, which is all but placing Pippa ahead of Kels (Major uh oh, Colin!) Kelsey's not having any of it. So, she moves out... and into Liza's place, just so she can stir up the pot over there (oh, and stir up the pot she does!) But what does this mean for Colin and Kelsey? #JustaFight or #DoneForGood? I guess we'll just have to wait and see where this thing goes next. But any thoughts in the meantime? #GoodWhileItLasted #DamnitPippa

Broadway Babies: Hey, look, everybody!! It's Susan Blackwell!!! Best known for playing... um... well... Susan in [TITLE OF SHOW], Blackwell here lets the vampires die (filling herself "with life [and] creativity" as Amy, a 40-something photographer who specializes in nudes. Diana calls upon Amy when she wants to shake things up with Richard... of course, the whole thing (as all YOUNGER storylines do) goes horribly wrong, but that's in no way because of Blackwell's performance - she plays the role to brilliant comedic effect: Her delivery of "Lean forward at the waist, and just gather your breasts as if you're presenting a gift to your lover" is a particular favorite. LOLz. Good to have you back, Susan! Now when will you be coming back to Broadway?!

In other Broadway-related news: Diana and Richard have named their parrot after a certain Ozian green-girl, if you know what I mean. (WICKED shout-out FTW!) Thank goodness! The Broadway name lives on!!

Oh, and P. S.: While we're on the subject of Diana... anyone notice how she finally admits she's in love with Richard. And... It's the first of her relationships to last longer than three episodes! (Hugh Shirley came close, but their relationship was based more on lust, and not nearly as romantic as this one!) Could it be the writers' way of hinting that this could actually become something?! Gosh, I hope it does. #Growth for Diana... plus it'll get her out of Liza's hair for a while... while Liza fixes her mess (which she'll definitely appreciate, amirite?) Anyway, as I've said before, very glad the writers took a chance on Diana, and given the circumstances and the exchange between these two, I'm very excited to see where it goes from here. Even if it does involve their parrot making sex noises - LOL!!!

And who woulda thunk... after all this time, we'd end a season with Diana being the one lucky in love, and everyone else just Oh, well. Just goes to show anything can happen on YOUNGER. ;-)

And Then, The Kicker.... Liza and Kelsey: Speaking of "anything can happen"... as if things couldn't get any worse, EW's Emily Burns shows up in the Hamptons just to screw things up a little bit more. She's shopping around her new manuscript, a self-help book from the POV of her Labradoodle. Liza tries to be supportive, but THE TRUTH IS... it's totally lame. (Unfortunately, everyone else thinks so, too: Emily's got no bites... and Liza doesn't have the heart to tell her it's a terrible idea).

BUT here's the twist. Turns out with a little Internet research and help from Marta Beam (again, AWESOME throwback!), Em's figured out Liza's secret... and threatens to expose it via an EW article, if the 40-year-old doesn't agree to publish the "doodle book" through Millennial. GULP!

Liza's at a total loss, as she knows the book's a dud, and Kelsey thinks so too, denying Liza's request to take on the deal.

BUT desperate to keep her secret... you know... secret, she devises a plan to get rid of Kelsey at the party (using her reinvigorated relationship with Colin as a ploy) and announces she's publishing the book herself!

Run roh. So... what will happen when Kelsey finds out?! Will the deal go through?! Will their friendship be over?! Can they ever trust each other again?!

Side note: I say that because there's a tone of distrust in their voices as they initially discuss buying the book. Given that Kelsey says, "Emily is not an author... she's someone's assistant," perhaps writers are hinting at the fact that maybe Kelsey doesn't see Liza as anything more than an assistant - something that could definitely hurt their friendship (like... maybe she's not saying it outright, but she definitely feels it... she wouldn't say it at all if she didn't, you know? And Liza's response - "I'm someone's assistant" - proves she felt the sting of the statement as well. Yikes!)

Then, she says, "And that's why I'm asking you to trust me and publish this book." Kelsey doesn't... so... by transitive property... does that mean... could it mean... ???

Feeling awful about putting Kelsey in a compromising position (that, note, she doesn't know she's in yet), and after her whirlwind conversation with Josh essentially made her reconsider everything in her life and all her interactions... she pulls Kelsey aside and spills the beans.

As Maggie looks on (awww... what a supportive friend!), Liza tells the 26-year-old about her daughter, Caitlin, who's in college (shackin' up with a mystery man, mind you), and reveals her true age.

"I don't understand," an understandably baffled Kelsey replies.

Liza takes a deep breath. "Then, let me explain," she ekes out, before we go into a blackout.

WOW! Explosive, right?! And incredibly revealing!! So, now the cat's out of the bag for Kels. Will be interesting to see how much Liza explains, and how she does it... as well Kelsey's reaction to it all. Will it affect their "Millennial" partnership... given that Liza's revealed she's not a milennial? (Umm.. I bet it has some sort of after-effect). How will Diana react? Will Kelsey tell Charles? Will Liza get fired? These are all questions that are surely ahead, to be tackled in the series' next season.

But let's review what we do know, shall we?

So, here's where we stand: Liza and Josh are broken up (perhaps for good now), Charles has vowed to stay away from Liza in a romantic sense, basically solidifying that nothing will happen with them either. Diana admitted she loves Richard, so they're together... Max has moved in with Lauren, Kelsey and Colin have seemingly called it quits, Millennial Print has bought Emily Burns' Labradoodle book, and Kelsey now knows Liza's secret. So, we're all teed up for a fantastic season ahead (hitting screens at some point in the next year!!) Yippee!

As always, thanks so much to you all for the views, clicks and retweets on all of my work. I really appreciate it... and it's been a really fun gig!!

Hope to see you back here soon for more YOUNGER shenanigans next season!

And until then... as always... stay YOUNGER.

Matt Smith is a writer and theatre enthusiast based in New York. For more information or further inquiry, including additional writing samples, please visit mattsmiththeatre.com.