The Crowded Room redeems itself with an excellent finale

But even so, many viewers have struggled to remain hooked throughout the series, which initially offered up a stream of steady questions but provided answers through a slow – and arguably considered – approach.

Spoilers weren't to be revealed at speed, such as the true nature of Rya Goodwin's (Amanda Seyfried) psychologist character and her relation to Danny Sullivan (Tom Holland), or the issues of child abuse and dissociative identity disorder.

Even so, we could all hedge a bet on where the series was going, especially given the fact that the opening credits reveal that The Crowded Room is inspired by the book, The Minds of Billy Milligan by Daniel Keyes.

It was never the fact that The Crowded Room was considered a bad series – it's far from it. The early episodes of the show are just an example of uneven pacing that could have been improved for the sake of viewer curiosity.

All of that being said, the final episodes provide such a magnificent feat of heart-wrenching performances that you'd be remiss not to tune in.

We've followed on in confusion as Danny's mental health condition unfolds, with 'alters' like Ariana (Sasha Lane), Yitzak (Lior Raz), Jack (Jason Isaacs), Jonny (Levon Hawke) and Mike (Sam Vartholomeos) all being revealed to be a figment of his mind.

Most interestingly, the series starts to adopt a dual narrative in the later episodes, with Jack taking on a father-like role in deciding what's best for young Danny.

But the show gets considerably more charged and tense as it enters the courtroom, with Danny's lawyer Stan Camisa (Christopher Abbott) battling demons of his own while also repeatedly butting heads with Rya about what would be the best deal for Danny.

Seyfried's pained portrayal of Rya is an apt encapsulation of the viewer's emotions when watching these final episodes. You root for Danny despite his pitfalls and we come to learn of his tragic childhood, his triggers for his dissociative identity disorder and the way he has been failed at multiple junctures in his life.

But underpinning this series and the curiosity you have to finish it is the feeling of being as heartbroken as Rya, who has helped bring those buried details of Danny's life to light.

The finale picks up after Danny's suicide attempt, an act that was predetermined by Jonny's retrieval of a metal clip and one that was done after Danny was let down by his mother Candy (Emmy Rossum) on the witness stand.

A marker of a series is not whether it can illicit tears from those watching, but the heavy weight of disappointment, powerful monologues and Danny's own eventual confrontation of reality are all things that will undoubtedly leave you with a lump in your throat.

The final episode is a change in pace, one that's a lot more tense and less emotional but is ultimately a race against time as Stan and Rya try to demonstrate Danny's condition after Jack's alter territorially takes over.

For the first time, we hear about Danny's childhood in his own words and how he used the alter of his twin Adam to deal with his step-father's abuse.

While the series could aptly sign off with Danny being proven not guilty by reason of insanity, The Crowded Room picks up some time after - with Danny now in a mental health facility and being visited by Rya, who is happy to see that Danny's fusion therapy is working.

The long-awaited reunion for Danny and Candy happens, with an outcome that is more realistic than hopeful. But the series ends with Danny transforming back into the sweet-natured, thoughtful person we've known him to be when separated from his alters, now surrounded by his impressive art instead.

Even though it's a relatively happy ending for our protagonist, you can't help but continue to sympathise with Danny, who is saddled with a life of loneliness despite getting better.

It's a moral conundrum that's beautifully written into the series – fusing Danny's alters together gets rid of his only friends in life, but it's an altered reality that we've seen has devastating consequences.

There's no denying that much of the reason why anyone should tune in or continue watching The Crowded Room is for Tom Holland's portrayal of Danny. From the premiere episode, it was clear that Holland, who also serves as executive producer on the show, was the right person to play the pained and multifaceted role.

But it's in these final episodes that Holland underlines just how a complicated role like this would warrant some time away from acting.

Not only does he perfectly execute Danny's role, the sheer amount of effort needed in terms of physicality, voice acting and presence to pull off each of these defined and starkly different characters is a feat that shouldn't be overlooked.

When the viewer is finally made aware of these multiple personalities, we see the same scenes we've seen previously - but now with the reality of it being Danny all along.

The now viral clip of Holland's performance as Ariana with his late-night lover Jerome (Elijah Jones) has been doing the rounds on the internet with out-of-context clips and homophobia being rife, but it's Holland's encapsulation of the always emotional, tragically sad and angry Ariana that is so outstanding.

The Crowded Room could have very well played its viewers all along and revealed that Danny, much like Billy Milligan, was a chilling serial criminal.

Instead, the series only utilises the disorder that Milligan was diagnosed with and does so to deliver a harrowing exploration of mental health and the legal system that lingers with you long after watching.

In an age of box set releases and binge-watch streaming, The Crowded Room has proven why it's so good to savour dramas as heavy as this.

The weekly releases may have swayed or deterred viewers, but if you're someone who let this series fall by the wayside, bear with it - because it may very well be one of the best you'll watch this year.

All episodes of The Crowded Room are available to watch on Apple TV+. Start your seven-day Apple TV+ free trial.

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