The Decameron official trailer
In a series about the black death, it is natural that there will be some fatalities throughout The Decameron. Set against the backdrop of Giovanni Boccaccio's classic tales, the show transports us to 1348 as a group of nobles flee the bubonic plague decimating Florence and seek refuge in Visconte Leonardo's idyllic Italian retreat.
As the series unfolds, the characters are seen grappling with the perils of the plague, bandit attacks and each other's plotting. At least 16 characters die during the eight-episode series and all for various reasons and methods.
Here we explain the finale to The Decameron and what happened to certain key characters.
Who survives in The Decameron?
By episode 8 entitled 'We've Had A Good Cry', mercenaries stormed the gate ready to claim Villa Santa for themselves and kill its guests. Pampinea tried and failed to bribe them to flee with her money as the mercenaries surged through the villa and fought the guests anyway.
The survivors tried to find an exit out of the villa but needed to distract the mercenaries. Panfilo helped distract the mercenaries while Tindaro also sought to protect the survivors and die a hero.
Villager Calandrino was fatally shot in the chest while trying to wave the white flag.
The only remaining survivors of Villa Santa are Sirisco, Licisca, Filomena, Misia, Stratilia, and Jacopo, the son of Stratilia and Leonardo.
Why did Panfilo sacrifice himself?
Panfilo was grieving over the loss of Neifile to pestilence in episode six and was beside himself. Panfilo was willing to escape and defend his friends, but knew they needed a distraction to allow the gang to escape.
Carrying Neifile’s dead body and using their fear of the deadly illness, Panfilo sought to distract the mercenaries and buy his friends some time to escape.
Panfilo and his deceased wife’s body were shot by arrows and he died lying next to Neifile.
Why did Tindaro take on the mercenaries?
Tindaro, who sought to protect Stratilia and her son Jacopo, engaged with the mercenaries even though he had no chance of winning. Tindaro was fatally wounded and died at the villa.
His death marked the end of his character arc after he started the series as a weak, useless and arrogant man. The series saw Tindaro seek to become a father figure for Jacopo and his sacrifice meant he died a hero.
Why did Misca kill Pampinea?
What was probably the most shocking death in the finale was Pampinea. The selfish Pampinea, played by Zosia Mamet, was served by the ever-loyal Misia who was grieving over the loss of her girlfriend Parmena.
Pampinea claimed she was the heir to the castle based on a forced engagement, lied about a pregnancy to lay claim for the estate, partnered with the mercenaries and double crossed people within the villa.
While Misia largely stuck by Pampinea, but it was when she learned the pregnancy was fake that Misia’s attitude turned. She insisted that Pampinea should hide in a barrel for her own safety, but Misia lit the barrel and the whole cellar.
The scene is meant to represent Misia freeing herself of Pampinea on her own terms and in a twisted way, save Paminea from the mercenaries.
Actress Saoirse-Monica Jackson said: “It’s the biggest thing that she does the whole series — I think it’s the biggest thing anybody does the whole series,”
What happened to Filomena and Licisca?
Filomena (Jessica Plummer) and Licisca (Tanya Reynolds) discovered they were half-sisters and decided to build their new family relationship after some testing days. Now on equal footing, Licisca is no longer Filomena’s servant and they both agree to check on how their ill father is faring.
The complicated love between the half-sisters has been tested throughout the series and the finale offered some hope they can move on together.
