'The Whispers' Can Move Past Bradbury's Ending

Last week, The Whispers season finale concluded on an ominous note as thousands of children from all over the world — plus Claire — were abducted and taken back to Drill's planet for reasons that remain unclear. The Whispers is based on Ray Bradbury's short story Zero Hour, which also had a cliffhanger ending. Zero Hour ended as the alien invasion began, and many viewers who were unfamiliar with Bradbury's story concluded on their own that an invasion was Drill's end plan. And we weren't the only ones — the FBI agents believed that Drill's goal was to take over the planet. As time ran out during the finale, the adults on the show grimly accepted that it may be everyone's last day on earth. Instead, Drill's plan all along had been to abduct children from all over the world, which meant plenty of people were left on earth, shocked and devastated. The upside to this decidedly bleak ending is that it means if The Whispers is renewed for Season 2, it can easily move past the Bradbury story's ending.

Although ABC hasn't yet made a decision regarding cancellation or renewal, showrunner Zack Estrin told The Hollywood Reporter in June that there's a plan in place for Season 2: "It's really hard to describe season two without giving away the amazing ending of the first season — but let's just say it explores similar themes but told in a different way. It involves many but not all of the characters from season one."

His words were deliberately vague because not many fans predicted the finale would end with a mass abduction. But having Season 1 end on that note definitely means there are possibilities for Season 2 that wouldn't exist if the finale had depicted a showdown or "end of days" scenario. Drill was decidedly victorious as Season 1 came to a close, but there are plenty of characters who aren't going to give up that easily. So, how could all this play out in Season 2?

Sean & Wes Team Up To Find The Abductees

Sean and Wes haven't exactly been the best of friends for obvious reasons, but over the last few episodes they definitely put aside their differences in order to fight Drill. And now, they may even form a bond of sorts because they both lost a family member under the same bizarre, tragic circumstances. Although thousands of people lost family members during the mass abduction, Sean and Wes are the only ones who have the knowledge and resources to investigate the incident and potentially bring home Claire, Minx, and the other abductees.

It Explores What Happened In Other Parts Of The Country & World

During the final moments of the finale, we learned that Drill abducted children throughout North America, Europe, and Africa. Since there's going to be cast turnover, it would be interesting to introduce some of the families in other parts of the country and the world. The more insight investigators can gain, the better, and Drill was clearly communicating with many more children than Wes, Claire, and Sean were aware of. It seems as though Drill targeted certain children based on who their parents are — he favored Henry and Minx, the children of lead FBI agents, and of course he ultimately chose the First Daughter as his host. Perhaps Drill also befriended, then abducted, the children of investigators and detectives in other parts of the world. If so, they'd be valuable in contributors to Wes and Sean's quest to get their family members back.

More Flashbacks To 1982

I loved the totally creepy addition of Drill's "adult" friends to the season finale — but it left me feeling like they should have been introduced sooner because they would have been an interesting plot device. We didn't really get much information or backstory on any of them during the finale (heck, they wouldn't even tell Claire their names), but Season 2 could use flashbacks to give viewers clues and help us figure out why Drill so desperately wants or needs so many children for his own planet.

Although The Whispers shared Zero Hour's creepy tone and ominous ending, the TV series added plenty of new characters and plot devices, so it can definitely continue without further inspiration from Bradbury's story. And when The Whispers does end for good, I hope it gives us more resolution than Zero Hour.

Images: Eike Schroter/ABC; thewhispersabc/Tumblr (3)