Ranking the Winx Club Finales

INTRO:

I’m surprised I haven’t made this yet. Yes, Winx fans can remember the golden age fondly for many reasons, one of which being that back then, Rainbow could craft a damn good finale. Usually over the course of a few episodes, we’d experience rising tensions and a great buildup to a climactic battle, with a cute lil denouement to finish off the season. But as the years have gone on, and the writing quality of the series has dwindled, it feels that the ability to craft a satisfying finale has been lost as well.

And so today, mostly for fun, we’re going to be ranking all the finale episodes of Winx Club. What counts as a finale episode will change depending on how that season’s buildup towards the climax is structured, as it can vary from the last eight episodes of a season, to… literally just one episode to wrap everything up in a rush.

Note, we’re gonna be excluding the spin-off World of Winx series just to make this easier. Now without further ado, let’s begin.

NUMBER 8, Season 6:

Season 6 as a whole is a mess. By far, it is the weakest in terms of… everything. Either the season has no plot and is just doing whatever it wants with no direction, or we’re on an arbitrary fetch quest for some meaningless macguffins like an emerald, or a staff, or a key… can the key lock this season in a vault far, far away from me?

Once the Winx forge the Legendarium Key, an item which is needed to permanently lock the Legendarium to keep the Trix from using it to wreak havoc, and, more importantly, to keep Acheron from breaking free, the Trix decide to… turn Cloudtower invisible so the Winx can’t find them. And then we decide to visit Solaria for some reason, make an anti-invisibility device with a stupidly long name, and then get the key stolen by Rumplestiltskin.

After finding the Key, the season loses any idea of how to drag its story out until episode 26, so the Winx just kinda wander the Magical Universe aimlessly looking for something to do, or wait for the Trix to attack them. This destroys any sort of stakes that the Trix and Selina may have posed by eliminating the sense of urgency to lock the book. And it’s made even less urgent when Daphne and Thoren decide to get married. Sure! It’s not like we have perfectly capable villains on the loose actively trying to kill us all now that we’ve lost our only way to stop them.

Episode 25 is jam packed with wedding filler until Acheron is freed. And I will admit, his entrance is cool, and I love his design. Oh, and this little moment from Icy is perfectly memeable. “No one double crosses the Trix!” And I dig Cloudtower falling out of the sky, but then having some… random lizard spirit be summoned feels… out of nowhere? Like, yeah, Bloom fought these things back in the Vortex of Flames, but we never got a clue as to the fact this thing was gonna be plot relevant again beyond just being a random monster for Bloom to fight.

What then follows is a lackluster battle between Bloom and Acheron where they’re both slow as molasses, and Bloom manages to defeat Acheron by… stuffing him into the Dollar Store Agador Box (Yes, we’re calling it that because that’s exactly what it is). A box which Eldora just randomly gifted us earlier this episode… convenient!

Acheron is defeated within like 15 minutes of his grand entrance, making him the least effective villain the series has ever had. Hell, Kalshara was more intimidating than this. And then the rest of the finale is just Bloom fighting the Trix, even though she could literally just leave at any moment before she’s trapped here. Girl, just… just leave, they won’t be able to follow you.

And then the… nostalgia bait. Cue a sequence of Bloom reminiscing about her friends, using the love she has for them to empower herself. A moment that should be emotional for older fans given this whole season is predicated on nostalgia, celebrating the franchise’s anniversary, but the surrounding story renders this completely hollow. And it’s made even more shallow given any flashbacks to the events of the first two seasons aren’t even from those seasons, but rather, the one-hour Nickelodeon specials… yep, don’t care. This is officially super shallow.

Season 6’s finale at least fits how lackluster and poorly structured the rest of this season is. And as such, it remains in my book the worst finale this show has ever had—a perfect ending to Winx Club’s worst season to date.

NUMBER 7, Season 8:

Season 8 has received a lot of criticism, though I’d argue it’s actually not as bad as people make it out to be. In fact, as much as I loathe the Prime Start hunt as another macguffin chase, it at least tries to be interesting and well structured unlike the dumb fetch quests of season 6.

Even the penultimate episodes prove incredibly interesting, focusing on Icy’s backstory as the princess of Dyamond who lost her world to the… Queen Beryl knockoff shamaness. I especially love the bond between her and Sapphire as she desperately tries to find a way to bring her back to her human form.

But then… episode 26 is a trainwreck. The Trix basically now hold the key to taking all the Prime Stars from both the Winx and Valtor, and because of this, Valtor becomes even less interesting than before, if that was somehow even possible. Then there’s the weird angle of him wanting to release the monsters of the… Dark Dimension? I’m sorry, what now? Is this Obsidian, or… what is going on? I thought he just wanted to become the most powerful sorcerer in the universe; now he wants an army of demons?

Valtor’s bland writing and inconsistency really just contribute to him overstaying his welcome. The whole episode is built around defeating him yet again when I’m pretty sure we’re all sick of having to put up with him. The only highlights are the design of his new monster form, and the Trix actually helping the Winx defeat him.

Other than that, it’s left on an open note that’s completely unsatisfying. The only characters who feel like they’ve had to change as people are the Trix, but that alone doesn’t make up for how lackluster and anticlimactic the rest of this finale is.

NUMBER 6, Season 7:

Like season 6, season 7 was also a mess in terms of plot and structure. Yet somehow, the absence of any kind of plot made season 7 more bearable, at least to me. And surprisingly, its finale had a much stronger structure. From episode 22 onwards, we go from discovering the ultimate power of fairy animals, to Kalshara snatching it, to the return of the Trix, in which everyone’s favorite trio of witches actually comes across as competent and threatening for the first time in years. Trix return.

Like, holy crap, they actually managed to make the Trix a legitimate threat, partially because they’ve been absent since the season 6 finale. And also because, let’s be real, their fairy animals are amazing. My personal favorite is Stormy’s giant thunder owl Occula, because… just look at this thing’s design. I don’t know where they got the idea for this thing from, but it was genius.

And we get a full-on siege of Alfea, with Roxy and the other students actually fighting back like the good old days defending their school, while the Winx are on their own mission. All of this makes for an actually compelling few final episodes. And all of this culminates in the reveal of the Trix fusing with their fairy animals, which is a criminal move because these badass designs got no real time to shine with all their new powers.

I mean, the fairy animals are the best part of this whole season. Especially the bonds between the Winx and their fairy animals, which makes saying goodbye to them a very bittersweet ending to the season. Though it is kinda killed by… that swan. The Infinity Swan.

I… what even is this thing. No foreshadowing, no mentioning of this swan in any kind of fairy animal lore. The fairy animals just combine their powers, and… this thing appears, and the Winx’s animals are gone forever. I… ugh. And yes, this is enough to tank the finale as a whole. It’s fine enough for a very dull season, but it just does not hold a candle to the finales higher up on this list.

NUMBER 5, Season 5:

You know, after slogging through seasons 6 through 8, season 5 suddenly becomes a whole lot better. Suddenly, the average story becomes… refreshing. And the same goes for its finale episodes, quite honestly.

As predictable as the seals of the Pillars of the Infinite Ocean plot got, I still really enjoyed it, especially the Winx’s ideas to destroy the last seal before Tritannus could take it. I enjoyed seeing how desperate it made Tritannus in the last few episodes, and his plot to use Aisha’s Sirenix powers to activate the Throne was actually a neat twist. I do have one major gripe with this, but we’ll talk about that in a little bit.

The huge battle at the Pillar of Light, and the ensuing battle on Andros with Tritannus’ massive army, provides the finale with enough stakes to keep the story engaging. And I love the little moment of Darcy and Stormy coming to Icy’s rescue, and the Trix’ moment to fight together before… ya know, getting yeeted from the Infinite Ocean.

Now, my big problem with this finale is the fact Bloom is the one to defeat Tritannus. This villain has been personally to Aisha for the whole season, for being her cousin, and for trying to destroy their family, and all after she’d just experienced losing Nabu. If anyone should’ve been given the chance to defeat Tritannus alone, or alongside Nereus, it should’ve been Aisha.

And it would make more sense for Tritannus to activate the Throne with Bloom’s Sirenix and Dragon Flame. It feels like we’re cheating Aisha out of her bg moment just to give Bloom more attention she doesn’t need.

That said, I really dig Tritannus being unapologetic after his defeat. Him being sent to Oblivion still feels weird given… ya know, we don’t really have hard and fast rules about which criminals go to which horrifying extradimensional hell prison, but this moment from Tritannus almost redeemed how annoying he was for most of this season… almost. “I’m sorry that I didn’t crush you all when I had the chance.”

NUMBER 4, Season 3:

If we’re all gonna be honest, season 3 is still the best season to date in terms of writing and structure. The plot hits the ground running, Valtor is a fan favorite villain who makes things personal for the Winx, and the Winx are all putting their lives on the line to gain Enchantix and become full-fledged Guardian Fairies. Yet for all that, the finale kinda leaves a lot to be desired.

After the finales of seasons 1 and 2, where the battles took over the course of several episodes with plenty of buildup, it can feel jarring to have the third season wrap up Valtor’s story in two separate incidents in the last two episodes.

Yet that’s a bit unfair, as Valtor as a villain is essentially making a desperate last stand, which fits him far better than either the Trix in season 1 or Darkar in season 2. It works well to show how scornful and aggressive he can be when he believes he’s cornered.

Really, season 3’s finale is a better version of season 5’s, with Tritannus essentially serving as a Discount Valtor trying to destroy the Winx in one fell swoop. So because this fits Valtor’s story rather well, along with the Spell of the Elements doing a pretty solid job on escalating the dangers facing Magix in episode 25, and then serving as personalized enemies in episode 26 for the Winx, season 3’s finale is… good. Not great, but it does its job and does it well.

NUMBER 3, Season 4:

Season 4… oh season 4 for. It’s still my personal favorite season, but I have to admit that it has a lot more problems than I remember. Of the original four seasons, it’s definitely the weakest. But that said, one thing I still adore is the plot from episode 17 onwards regarding the Fairies of Vengeance.

The fact the Winx are up against Queen Morgana and the Major Fairies of Earth essentially means they’re in a war against the people they’ve been trying to save for the season’s last 9 episodes, who are far more of a threat than the confident Black Circle in the season’s first half. It also adds dimension in a battle of ideologies, emphasizing the difference between pursuing justice and vengeance.

And then you get the darker storyline with the final Gift of Destiny, foreshadowing that one of their own is going to die, and they may not be able to save them. All to come to a head as the Black Circle, having lied about their repentance, make a last stand to try and kill all the fairies at the Day of Justice ceremony, where Nabu has to sacrifice himself to save them all.

Now, Nabu’s death carries a LOT of issues in terms of representation, namely the fact he’s black and Indian coded—the only major male character to be either, and he’s the one they chose to have die. They did this specifically because Aisha was now engaged to Nabu, but it winds up with terrible implications that people of color specifically are doomed to lose their loved ones or die when they’re at their happiest, and they just don’t get happy endings.

Having one of the other guys die would’ve carried much more impact, erasing all the bad racial implications. Hell, imagine if Sky was the one to die. Bloom was the one who had to fight Nebula to prove that vengeance wasn’t the right course of action, so imagine if she joined the Fairies of Vengeance to avenge Sky, and the other Winx had to make her come to her senses. Roxy, the protege, ends up saving her mentor Bloom from herself. So much stronger, and so much less… yeah.

With all that said, the structure here is great, and had Rainbow avoided that problem, it could’ve gone down as the best finale of the series. Specifically I love that episode 26 almost entirely serves as a denouement with the Winx wrapping up loose ends and deciding what to do now that their mission on Earth is technically over. It’s a strong sendoff to the series, and one that probably would’ve been higher up on this list had it not done what it did to Nabu and Aisha.

NUMBER 2, Season 2:

Can we just all agree season 2 is the most underrated season of the whole show? Whenever people talk about their favorite season, no one says 2. Which is a shame, cuz this season I feel is what stepped the show’s writing up from solid to damn good, specifically in the fact all the characters besides Bloom go to shine.

I mean, who could forget the episode dedicated to Musa’s mother and her strained relationship with her father, or the mission to Eraklyon with the discount anime heroes and the… oh, uh… yeah Yoshinoya’s also a bit of a representation problem isn’t he? Can’t speak on this myself but I’m just gonna bookmark this as, “Look into this one and ask what Asian viewers think.”

Moving on from that, we get to explore Flora’s adorable crush on Helia as she grows more confident in herself, and Tecna learns to be vulnerable and be more upfront about her feelings with Timmy. Everyone’s got some kinda story going on, and this is made even better for the Winx with these arcs resulting in them getting their Charmix power-ups.

But Aisha, the new member of the group, somehow wound up becoming the best written and most compelling of the group real damn quick. Her story of overcoming her loneliness from her rigidly structured childhood, and her becoming more and more comfortable in the Winx Club, makes her by far and away the most relatable and interesting of any of the Winx. No shade on Musa, but damn Aisha’s story is great. Eh, that’s probably why she and Musa are besties… SONIC. WAVE. FOR. LIFE.

Even Bloom gets a bit more interesting as she tries to learn more about her birth family, and we see her and Sky’s relationship strain a bit since they’ve just started dating, and Avalon is lowkey stringing Bloom along trying to gain her trust. It’s honestly kinda amazing seeing these two get frustrated with each other’s bullshit, because 1. It proves neither of them are the perfect people season 1 kinda accidentally made them seem to be, and 2. It makes their conversations with each other, and Sky’s speech about how much he loves Bloom in the finale, all the sweeter. They truly love each other, flaws and all. Like yeah, Bloom’s Charmix is kinda bullshit, but this more than makes up for it.

I mention all of this because it makes the setup for the finale all the better. Bloom’s misplaced trust in Avalon results in her being kidnapped and being turned into everyone’s favorite non-character Dark Bloom (Jk I love Dark Bloom too I just wish she did more), and everyone else has to save her. That’s right: literally everyone but Bloom is now center stage, each getting their moments to kick ass in order to save the girl everyone mistakenly called a Mary Sue. Season 2, I salute you.

Oh, plus it gave us the Trix fusing into a nightmare monster to kick Darkar’s ass after he tried to kill them. This was like… the last time I legitimately respected the Trix as anyone’s minions, and I stan.

NUMBER 1, Season 1:

Okay, yeah, I did drag season 1 a bit, but it’s still compelling in its own right, ESPECIALLY from episode 18 onward. I mean, really, episode 13 onwards really starts escalating Bloom’s struggle to learn who she is and amplifies her trust issues until she gets her powers stolen, which kinda shows just how good season 1 really is in its second half.

The Army of Darkness (or as I prefer to call them, the Army of Decay, because it’s one of those times the 4Kids terminology is superior) are by far and away the best tool for setting up a climax I’ve seen from this show. The fact the Trix, now with the stolen Dragon Flame, are able to control an infinite armor of horrific rot abominations, and use that to essentially lay siege to an entire planet, control one of the three major magic colleges, and fucking trap all of Magix City’s residents in… well, let’s be real, they all look like rotting corpses. Just… I LOVE ALL OF THIS.

Season 1’s last eight episodes do an amazing job building a dreadful and intense atmosphere as a literal war is raging. Not to mention this is the only real time in the show the Trix are truly competent villains with clear goals. The first season actually did a great job setting them up as your typical mean girl antagonists, and then pulling a huge fakeout when you learn that in reality, they’re basically cultists descended from the three witches who ruined all our lives, and their goal is conquest and the annihilation of anyone who opposes them, full stop.

I think what also really sells this is the fact the Trix have clearly become drunk on power. They’re becoming deranged and arrogant, relying on their Army to do most of the work for them now, but still being ruthless enough to where everyone legitimately fears what they might do next. Even the professors are unnerved by the Trix’s ambitions.

And… that last episode. HOLY. FUCK. Season 1 still has the best fights in the show, but that last episode really delivers even after all these years. Neither the Winx nor the Trix have put their powers on full display in this way ever since, which is a shame, because DO YOU SEE THIS? DO YOU SEE HOW ANIME THIS FIGHT IS? DO YOU SEE HOW MUCH ASS BLOOM IS KICKING?! God, I wish she had this kinda power in her Enchantix form.

And when that’s all done, we get a wholesome party to celebrate the end of this long nightmare at Alfea, including the professors getting shitfaced because they can finally relax. It’s so satisfying after such a grueling war, includes some nice character moments (One of which being Mirta deciding to study at Alfea and Flora welcoming her with open arms), and has a really cute talk between Bloom and Sky at the very end. In terms of finales, season 1 reigns supreme, very easily.

CONCLUSION & OUTRO:

When you really boil it all down, the show’s older finales were… well, fire. Sure, season 3’s was a bit of a bust, and 4’s is tainted with really problematic implications regarding Nabu and Aisha, but I think it’s a shame we haven’t seen a truly epic, cathartic finale since seasons 1 and 2. Nothing has come close since to matching their incredible scope and emotion.

And that kind goes hand-in-hand with the show’s writing quality. A finale can only be as good as a season’s general story, and, uh… we all know what the show has been like from season 5 onward.

Anyways, if you enjoyed this and would like to see more content like this from me, then be sure to not only subscribe, but also to ring that bell for notifications because YouTube hates creators. Also please consider, if you’re willing and able, pledging your support for myself and the channel over on Patreon. All Patrons, $1 and up, will now have access to the private Union of War Discord server, as well as early access to full video scripts and videos before they go public.

I’m the Unicorn of War, and fuck season 6.