Fans who were eagerly awaiting the final two episodes of Taylor Swift: The End of an Era to drop on Boxing Day received a surprise when Disney+ released the installments three days early. It was a gift for viewers, one that perfectly encapsulated Swift’s love for surprising fans and overserving them with her music.
Disney/The Associated Press
In the penultimate episode, titled Marjorie, Swift took time to delve into the past with a spotlight on two of the women who shaped and influenced her: her mother, Andrea Swift, and her grandmother, Marjorie Finlay. The offering is filled with home videos, including one where Finlay, who was an opera singer, sits with a toddler Swift at the piano and foreshadows her musical journey.
Other videos from the past show Swift growing up on tour alongside her family, revealing their part in her growing business as a budding pop star. Andrea shares that she feels destined to support musical genius, first with her mom and now with her daughter. It’s a touching tribute that explores the personal dynamics behind the Swift train, and aligns with previous episodes that shone a light on the professional family that brought this massive tour to life.
The tears flow in the finale, however, as Swift and her team prepare to say goodbye to the tour for good. In one of many instances of reflection, Swift admits she’s excited to make room for other things in her life again, but that she recognizes this was a massive turning point in pop culture history that she has been privileged to lead.
In another moment, Swift plays a mashup of Never Grow Up and The Best Day, bringing her entire family to tears. Then there’s the clip fans will talk about for years to come, when Swift reads parts of a love letter from her fiancé, Travis Kelce.
“So many unbelievable memories on this tour, but my favourite one is seeing you in concert for the first time and being mesmerized and swept off my feet by a woman who doesn’t even know me,” Swift reads.
“I selfishly say thank you for creating this legendary tour and to Robert [Allen] for making you stop through Kansas City, Missouri. That night two in KC was the beginning of me meeting the love of my life.”
It’s an emotional journey that reminds viewers how impactful the Eras Tour was, not just for Swift and her family, but for the staff whose lives she changed, the dancers she made feel seen, and the fans who came together to celebrate and share joy during a time when those things didn’t always feel possible.
For Swift, the changes brought about by the tour continue to emerge. In addition to her engagement to Kelce, Swift finally bought back all of her master recordings. The tour also propelled the release of Swift’s newest album, The Life of a Showgirl. As noted in the final moments of the docuseries, it shattered musical records and was the “biggest album of her career” – the words “to date” appear onscreen shortly after.
The tease that Swift is working on new music is dominating the conversation after the series’ conclusion and has led to intense Swiftie speculation. Whether that means she plans on spending time in Sweden, where she recorded the Showgirl album, or taking time off to plan her wedding remains to be seen. Swift herself has been clear that her career will continue after marriage though, and her fans are ready for it.
Taylor Swift performs at the Monumental stadium during her Eras Tour concert in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Nov. 9, 2023.Natacha Pisarenko/The Associated Press
It’s a fitting end to a musical scrapbook that highlights (mostly) the best of the best. Looking at the docuseries as a whole, there is a missed opportunity to dissect the errors – and there were plenty of errors – over the 149-show tour and to showcase those involved in bouncing back from the blips. The End of An Era also fails to give real insight into how Swift returns to normal life after filming, the steps she takes to maintain her privacy or why her very first self-titled album wasn’t included in any of her defining eras.
It’s also unclear why the series itself began filming toward the end of the European leg and didn’t document all of the standout moments leading up to that point. There were breakups, announcements, malfunctions, reactions and overall fan frenzies that propelled the show into the historic run that it eventually became; not exploring them feels incomplete.
All in all, The End of an Era remains a cozy watch over the holiday season and is a must-see for any Swiftie. It’s familiar enough to be comforting but is also peppered with emotional moments that will leave you feeling something. Is it a part of the larger Swift machine, with edited moments and carefully curated storylines that the singer herself ultimately approved? Of course it is. But that’s also the point of this docuseries. Nothing Swift does is ever unintentional and that’s why she’s so successfully on her way to the next era.