The Beverly and South Crenshaw High Showcase finally becomes the main storyline in “Finish Line,” but even that can't save All American's urgency and pacing issues. “Finish Line” follows KJ's perspective as he balances being on the field for drills with running around with a clipboard, trying to make sure everything runs smoothly and that the coaches get a chance to see every player perform. Most of the Showcase events have been skipped over, with the exception of a brief showing of KJ trying and failing to connect with his receivers, to make room for the main event: the rematch between South Crenshaw and Beverly.
The bigger issue here lies in how nothing can go smoothly. After a solid performance, KJ ends up with a day-ending injury that could potentially put an end to his days at quarterback. This is meant to be a game-stopping emotional climax, but it is left with nothing but deflating air in the immediate aftermath. Directly following KJ's fall to the ground, Khalil and the rest of the players take a knee, and KJ's reaction suggests he is in real, serious pain. The trainer, in the aftermath of the injury, is on top of KJ's health, directing him to go to the hospital immediately to have a doctor look at him to determine what the rehabilitation timeline is and if he will be able to throw again. But, in the fashion of season 8's pacing issues, the urgency of KJ's injury is non-existent.
After being told to see a doctor, KJ remains in the locker room, stuck in his own anger and fear, and then proceeds to argue with Amina about how easy his life has been until this point. Afterward, he has an entire conversation with Coach Kenny, a representative from GAU, Jordan and Spencer's alma mater. Coach Kenny's discussion with KJ reminds him that not every injury is career-ending, and that he can work his way back from this if his heart is in the right place. Additionally, Coach Kenny informs KJ that he is getting a scholarship to GAU in recognition of his leadership and behavior on and off the field.
Just when one may think this would be the perfect opportunity to inspire KJ to go to the hospital, “Finish Line” pushes the very clear direction even further, with KJ and Cassius having one final conversation. KJ learns that Cassius will not be his coach in his senior year. It makes sense not to push this reveal to the following episode, but the refusal to bring KJ to the hospital to get his supposedly bad injury looked at removes all the stakes and urgency from it. At this point, KJ's injury appears to be nothing of real concern, especially when he pushes it off even more to speak to Amina before visiting the hospital.
KJ's decision to see Amina before going to the hospital is meant to be romantic. It suggests that she is more important than his own health. However, it just comes off as irresponsible when this is supposed to be a significant issue for KJ. If anything, the refusal to deal with it quickly just tells the audience there is nothing to be concerned about, and the stakes they tried to build are meaningless. KJ and Amina getting together ends the will-they-won't-they of their relationship just in time to head into the series finale.
“Finish Line” also spends time tying up loose ends for Khalil, Tori, and Amina in other ways. Khalil finds out that Stanford is interested in speaking with him. Tori talks out the drama she has had with both KJ and Amina in ways that allow everyone to move beyond their issues fairly quickly. There is no real time left in the show to truly start to build a real friendship between Tori and Amina, but they do create a foundation that would allow them to be friends one day, which is a vast improvement from all of the problems they have had.
Still, All American never quite committed to Amina and Tori's relationship in a way that allows their dynamic to have a strong payoff. The only thing they have shared is their bond with Khalil and KJ, and while they do mend bridges by making sure to emphasize that they are turning over a new leaf for themselves and not because of the boys, it still acts more as closure to a not-quite rivalry than it reads as the beginning of a real friendship. Tori and Amina's relationship was never given that much time to be explored in depth, so while it is nice that they are starting to move on, that is really all that can be said about it.
However, perhaps one of the most bewildering decisions regarding Amina occurs in a one-on-one scene with Coop. Since season 7 began, All American has had a severe issue with trying to characterize Amina as someone who is more emotionally intelligent than those around her, and this problem strikes again when Coop is talking to Amina about her relationship with Breonna. In this moment, Coop comes off as the uncertain teenager who does not want to make a mistake, while Amina is written as the mature adult with years of experience. This is completely flipped and the wrong presentation of both of their characters.
As recently as season 7, Amina was trying to pull off a fake dating scheme to get Khalil to notice her romantically. In season 8, Amina never actually bothers to work things out directly with KJ before everything blows up and gets revealed at Coop's family dinner. Why is the audience meant to believe that Amina is so emotionally intelligent? That is not to say that Amina cannot be brave and smart. Still, the presentation that Coop, who has significantly more life and romantic experience than Amina, needs Amina to push her in the right direction makes absolutely no sense for Coop's character, who has been through so much that Amina is giving Coop advice she would know anyway.
If Coop were going to have a scene of vulnerability and uncertainty about her relationship and where she is in her life, that conversation should have been had with one of her adult friends. Although Coop does not actually interact with any of her friends throughout "Finish Line," this is a conversation that would have made more sense if she had it with Spencer, Jordan, Olivia, or Layla.
All of them truly understand what it means to try to juggle a professional life and romantic relationship while going through a new chapter of life. Amina, as well-intentioned as she may be, is still in high school. While Amina may have had something beneficial to say, something this important to Coop may have been better portrayed by someone who had already seen Coop's growth as a person from a teenager to adult and how her growth in different chapters of life had already played a role in how Coop's relationship had previously unfolded with Patience.
“Finish Line” follows the trend of the previous few episodes, emphasizing specific characters in each plot. But the decision to force everything into such a short window of time continues to harm the pacing, stakes, and intrigue of the show. Olivia has been in labor for several episodes now. It took an entire season to reach the Showcase, the headlining event that was only relevant for one episode. “Finish Line” does its job in continuing to close out storylines but does so at the expense of allowing season 8 to truly have a real climax or stakes. With only one episode left, the series finale will have a lot of responsibility to shoulder the emotional weight of a solid conclusion.
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