‘Transatlantic’ Ending Explained: Does the Emergency Rescue Committee Succeed in Its Mission?

Welcome to the Ending Explained for Transatlantic, a new series coming to Netflix this weekend. The series tells the story of the Emergency Rescue Committee. A new and exciting association whose mission was to save as many people as possible from the grasp of the German forces during the occupation of France. The miniseries is based on the novel titled, The Flight Portfolio, which is, in turn, based on real-life events. This is a true story, and while sometimes it is said that reality is stranger than fiction, this is not one of those times.

Actually, the show is pretty standard regarding the story and how it tells it. This is not to say that the story is bad; not at all. It is just to say that the story is simple in its content and structure. This simplicity makes it effective, and the result is a show full of emotion, great performances by each actor, and great production values. The ending might come as a bit underwhelming, as maybe a lot of audience members would want something happier, but the reality of the ending hits you on how grave the situation was.

The following paragraphs contain spoilers for Transatlantic. Read at your own risk.

Who Are The Members Of The Emergency Rescue Committee?

The series begins with introducing our main characters, the first and most important of whom is Mary Jane. Mary Jane is a rich American woman who has been living in France for a couple of years. She is one of the founders of the ERC, and as such, she needs to be at the forefront of the story. She has stayed in Paris to help people cross the Atlantic to new places where they could be free from the Nazi menace. Mary Jane is naive, but she is resourceful and loyal. However, she has her own issues, as her father back in Chicago threatens to disown her.

We also meet another very important character named Albert. Albert is a young German man who is now a fugitive for being a Jew. Albert explains that being a Jew was never part of his personality, as his parents never taught them much about that heritage. Nevertheless, they are Jewish enough for the Nazis, and now as we meet him, he is on the run with his sister. Mary Jane helps him and his sister escape prison at the start of the season, and a relationship is quickly established.

We also meet Lisa, a tough and beautiful young French woman who creates a route through the mountains to get people from France to Spain. Lisa is resourceful and prideful. She gets into a relationship with Paul, a young clerk in the hotel where Mary Jane stays at the start of the season. We also meet Varian, a young American who also works as a founding member of the ERC. Varian is gay and will rekindle his relationship with an old flame named Thomas, who is part of the Resistance.

All these characters will clash at the start of the season, and together they will start to get people from France into safer territories. The Jews are not the only ones who are in danger. Anyone who the Nazi party labels as undesirable are a target; this includes homosexuals, and other ethnic groups, like the gypsies. It is a very dangerous and horrifying time, and our heroes are battling against the clock as the war is just around the corner.

Does The Emergency Rescue Committee Succeed In Its Mission?

By the war’s end, the Emergency Rescue Committee managed to save more than four thousand lives. This is to say that, yes, the ERC was successful in its mission. Of course, they could have done so much more, but their resources were limited, and the forces against them were too strong. It was a miracle that they were able to save as many people as they could. As the season comes to a close, we learn the ERC is at risk of being dismantled, and on top of that, Paul has been captured by the police.

Petit, Paul’s brother, looks for help, but the Resistance rejects him and sends him away. Thomas is shocked and feels conflicted between his loyalty to the French resistance and Paul, his friend. The entire team plans a rescue mission, and they are successful. Petit manages to save his brother, but he is shot in the process. Paul is free, but it costs him his brother. His relationship with Lisa is also finished after her husband returns looking for her.

Mary Jane is seeing the sign on the wall and plans to leave for the USA. She wants Albert to come with her, but the German man decides to stay in France and continue to fight the Nazi forces. Albert and Mary Jane say goodbye as she takes a private plane that will take her across the border and from there back home to Chicago. Varian also says goodbye to Thomas, who stays in France. It is a sad ending for everyone, but war is at the door, and it would be a war that would cost millions of lives.