A beautiful boy with a messed up life, if we have to be honest, Justin went through a lot.
It has been 2 years since Netflix released the final season of 13 reasons why, and Justin probably is staying in the heart of millions of fans. All that charm, good looks, and most importantly, that smile shall be impossible to get over.
At the end of the season, we see Justin’s life finally getting on a proper track, and out of nowhere, dang, he meets his end. So, what really happened to Justin Foley in 13 reasons why?
How was Justin Foley’s past life?
Justin was raised by his single mom, Amber Foley, who is shown as a drug user and less concerned person throughout the series. It is also mentioned in the series that she probably let Justin grow up with more than dozens of her boyfriends. We can only imagine what little Justin might have gone through because of his mom’s changing partners.
Sadly, in Episode 12 of Season 3, Justin shares a story with Jessica where he mentioned being assaulted when he was only 5. He confirms being the victim of his mom’s drunk boyfriend for almost 2 years. So, since childhood, Justin suffered emotionally and physically because of his mom and her relationship.
During the time the story revolves around, his mom has a boyfriend named Seth Massey, who was a petty drug dealer. Both Justin and Seth are involved in many disputes with each other. Justin loved and hated his mom at the same time. Thus he couldn’t have done much against her or all of those boyfriends.
Who were Justin Foley’s girlfriends and close friends?
It was always Jessica for Justin. From Season 1, we see on and off bonding between them, but she was the one that he had loved most in his life. Even though they had the occasional stagnancy in their relationship, they both knew they were gonna end up together yet again. Just like his feeling for her, she was equally enthusiastic about him.
However, when Jessica knew what Bryce Walker did with her, we witnessed a major breakdown in their relationship. On top of that, as Justin didn’t reveal the truth to her and kept denying that Bryce had sexually abused her when she was drunk, we were pretty sure their relationship was done.
Although what Justin did was completely wrong and unacceptable to every inch, let’s also not forget what Bryce meant to him. They were like a brother to each other. When Justin needed a home, the Walker family gave him the place to stay and all other happiness that he truly deserved.
Although it was his duty as a boyfriend to fight back and beat the sh*t of Bryce walker of Seasons 1 and 2, he was mostly scared of the word that would come out of his mouth when he revealed the truth.
Seriously how could he? Those revelations would have emotionally torn her apart, and that would also fail him as a boyfriend. Yet, even though he revealed the secret later, it’s obvious he failed to be the ideal boyfriend that Jessica truly deserved in her life.
Justin also dated Hannah, and we all know how it ended up. Actually, if we have a close-up, we have to accept he doesn’t hold the credit for all of those breakups and tragedies he created for those girls. There was always the involvement of some other guy or, say, of Bryce walker.
Justin had our boy Clay as a best bud and was also his adopted brother. Altogether, when we thought everything was going alright in the series, especially the moment when Justin arrived prompt to dance with Jessica, he collapsed.
What really happened to Justin?
If we overview the overall life of Justin Foley, a lot happened to his life. There might have been more sorrow in his life than his taste of happiness. In the last episode of Season 1, we witness Justin stealing a gun and money from his mom’s boyfriend and leaving the town.
It was later mentioned in the series that he was away for at least 5 months, and god knows what kind of person he became between those periods. Jessica also had a breakup with him, and because of all the mess he believed to have created in his life, he had become addicted to heroin- a syringed drug.
With all the stolen money wasted on drugs and motels, he also confesses to getting involved in a sexual relationship for the money.
As a consequence of those habits, Justin suffered from HIV-AIDs, and sadly he deceases in the last episode of the series.
Although early symptoms were shown in his body, he was unaware of them. He thought it to be some ordinary flu. Later we see dark spots all over his face, and out of nowhere, the Doctor confirms to Jensen’s parents that their adopted son has aids due to an unprotective physical connection or due to strings.
So all of your favorite Justin Foley dies. Before his death, he is seen talking to his buddies in a hospital bed. Eventually, when he knew his death was so near, he asked Clay, ‘Will you hold my hands, bro? That was truly an emotional scene of the series and might have broken the heart of millions of watchers.
Was Justin Foley a nice guy?
There were countable moments in Justin’s life that he didn’t want to be a part of. However, the circumstances dragged him to the dark side and also forced him to hurt many people in his life.
Being the first person in Hannah’s Tape, Tape 1, Side A, Justin was entitled to share Hannah’s improper picture with the whole Liberty High School. But was he really the one to share it?
He might not be the one to share the photos, but he had to be strong-headed regarding his private photos of her. Bryce and the other guys who leaked the photo, and he is also totally accountable for it. If only he had shown the respect that she deserved and raised his voice against the boys, then he would probably not be included in the first tape.
Let’s not forget that he is the only person who was included in two tapes by Hannah. One for carelessness and another for ignorance. In other words, letting his girlfriend, Jessica, gets raped by Bryce.
We know Justin made a mistake that is completely unforgivable, but what makes him special in the series is his acceptance and his desire to make himself better and better.
The problem with Justin is that he lacked courage, didn’t want his words to hurt anyone, and was decent in nature. If only he had the hands and support of someone from the people like Clay, he would probably be the nicest person to exist.
Did Justin deserve a better ending at the end of the season?
Justin’s death shall be considered a depressing moment in the entire series. Just because some character is dead in the series, it might not be favorable to call it a sad or unacceptable ending. What truly matters is the character’s story development and how they are tackling themself to make more out of themself and influence the watchers.
When the series finale came out on Netflix, many fans of the show were against the ending. It was obvious for some fans to get over his death, as Justin was improving himself from every prospect. He now had adoptive parents, Clay, and a nice relationship with Jessica. So why did show writers give him the improvement pills and eventually kill him in the last episode?
Let’s say Justin is alive and surrounded by all the joy and prosperity. He would have nice support from his new parents and all the caring from his respective lover and brother. But don’t we think he would have reached the breaking point at some moment in his life.
The mistakes he made in the past would have haunted him and filled him with regrets. So, it is pretty clear that Justin would have never gotten over the fact that, in his presence, he let one innocent girl get raped, and also, according to one dead girl, Hannah, Justin is one of the responsible people for her death.
All in all, it was a beautiful end to a beautiful boy’s life. Show writers developed up-to-scratch plots for him. They carefully gave him a chance to change and shed light on hope in his life. By the same token, they gave him death as if it was the only way Justin could forgive himself and the past issues that he had caused knowingly or unknowingly.
In context, Justin’s death might be unnecessary for some fans, while they might also want an alternative ending for him, perhaps the one where he gets into the Car with Clay and go to the new school. In any case, it was the end we didn’t deserve but possibly the satisfactory end we got.
