‘Pistol’ took over the English punk rock scene in the 1970s and followed the rise and fall of one of its most prominent bands – Sex Pistols. Based on the memories of guitarist and band founder, Steve Jones, the FX miniseries recounts some of the sad events behind the explosive and short-lived music band.
Eclectic actors, such as a clear and well-spoken band manager, Malcolm, and the mysterious Pauline, make the story very interesting. In the end, the group strives to live together because of the different personalities of its members and their rebellious attitudes. So how are things going? Let’s take a closer look at the finale of ‘Pistol’ and see what happens to the iconic punk rock band. FORWARD SPOILERS.
Read
Pistol Season 1 Synopsis
The story begins with Steve Jones, a brilliant genius of the band called the Swankers. Inspired by the popularity of David Bowie and constantly debating whether the Beatles are right, the band is playing with its own identity while trying to be recognized in the British rock scene. Steve also has a habit of using musical instruments in music venues and proudly claims to have stolen Bowie’s lipstick.
While trying to steal the clothes for the upcoming gig, Steve meets Malcolm, who owns a fashion store called AGE with his partner. Malcolm talks a lot about his anti-establishment beliefs, and Steve realizes that a good store owner can make him a good manager.
Once on board, Malcolm quickly made changes to the band and introduced Johnny Lydon (later renamed Johnny Rotten due to his teeth and attitude) as the lead singer. Steve spent several days under the influence of drugs and insomnia as he struggled to learn the guitar. The band’s name was also changed to Sex Pistols.
As the band begins to roar in the underground, we get a glimpse of Steve’s ordeal, where he is abused by his father. Various actors are joining the expanding Sex Pistols circle, which includes the iconic fashion icon Jordan and the troubled Pauline. Soon, an argument between Johnny and the bus driver, Glen, led to the artist’s expulsion from the band. Malcolm also tricks Steve into firing on Glen. The incumbent bus player, Sid Vicious, is Johnny’s friend and brings a new kind of chaos to the group.
Pistol Season 1 Ending, Explained: What Happened At The End of the Season?
Sid Vicious is soon concerned about a woman named Nancy, who is diagnosed with schizophrenic disorders. For him, his heroin use increased, and his inexplicable behavior led to conflicts with Steve. In these cases, the band embarks on a tumultuous US tour, during which Sid eats excessively on a flight back to London. He survives but soon succumbs to Nancy’s tragic death.
Sid was arrested for Nancy’s murder and subsequently died of an overdose. When Malcolm tries to use the deaths of Sid and Nancy as a marketing ploy, Steve realizes that the manager is only thinking of himself. He then leaves Malcolm and shares the last conversation with Johnny, telling the latter how he was right not to distrust Malcolm. The series closes with the band captions for a fun time while entertaining at a Christmas party.
The ending sees the band suddenly enter and go down. It is especially sad that this group is starting to break up as it has become so popular. In fact, the last episode of the show opens with Malcolm claiming he has to destroy the Sex Pistols. According to the manager, they have become very popular, which makes the band inaccessible and contradicts Malcolm’s philosophy of filtering.
However, it is not because of the manager that the group has disbanded. Instead, the group explodes because of its passionate members. Despite Malcolm’s claims of self-righteousness as a popular club, he is delighted to incur its fame and fortune of it.
However, this also led to Steve eventually realizing that Malcolm’s actions were arbitrary. Steve has been unable to resist Malcolm since speaking for himself in court and is helping him avoid arrest. Seeing a manager try to use a team member and the death of his girlfriend as a marketing ploy is a last resort, and Steve eventually broke up with Malcolm.
Somehow, Steve and Malcolm form the foundation of the band, and their departure in different ways marks the end of Sex Pistols. Earlier, Johnny also gave Steve an ultimatum, asking the latter to choose between him and Malcolm. When Steve chooses Malcolm over Johnny, the singer leaves the band. So, by the time Steve and Malcolm split up, Johnny was already out of the picture. Since Steve and Johnny only work together because Malcolm always pushes them together, without a manager, there is no hope that the artist and guitar will play the band together.
When Johnny meets Steve at the end of the series, he starts their conversation about this is the last time they talk. Although they are part (of the extraordinary memory) of the group sharing happy times, it is clear that neither of them plans to continue with Sex Pistols.
The series, as a focus group, ends abruptly, leaving the conclusions of the team members and their manager indistinguishable. As different members left or were fired, the story did not follow them. Even in the final scene, when Steve and Johnny share their memories of their time together, it is still unclear which one of them plans to do the next. However, the members of the real-life band in which the central actors of the play are based actually continued to play music or became involved in various projects after the dissolution of the Sex Pistols.
Steve Jones eventually relocated to Los Angeles until he played on the Sex Pistols reunion tour in 1996 and 2000. He also appears on programs such as ‘Californication’ and manages his own radio talk show called ‘Jonesy’s Jukebox.’
At that time, Johnny Rotten changed his name back to John Lydon and formed a post-punk band Public Image Ltd. The band’s first song appeared on the UK Top Ten list, and PiL has released several studio albums. Lydon has also sued Malcolm McLaren’s company, Glitterbest, for a number of lawsuits, including non-payment of benefits, unfair contract obligations, and damages.
The drummer, Paul Cook, continued his music career with a punk rock band called The Professionals. He still lives in England with his wife and daughter. Meanwhile, Glen Matlock, who was expelled from the party, joined the group in the years that followed between 1996-2001, 2002-2003, and 2007-2008. He has also continued his career as a solo artist and is still working with other artists. In 2022, she played with Blondie on her UK and US tours.
After parting ways with Steve and the Sex Pistols, Malcolm McLaren sang solo as a solo artist, focusing on hip hop and world music, and later, funk and disco. McLaren was very successful as an artist, and his debut album, Duck Rock, was approved for silver in the UK. After breaking up with Vivienne Westwood, he spent several years living in Hollywood. He died in 2010 in a hospital in Switzerland after suffering from peritoneal mesothelioma.
Related – Shining Girls Season 1: Synopsis & Ending, Explained
