The God Who Missed Being Human

A reflection on the TV show Pantheon and what it taught me about metaphysics, life, and death.

*Contains Big Spoilers. Do not Read Ahead if You Haven't Seen the Show Yet*

Imagine existing over 100,000 years as a God, yet only craving to experience laughter and pain once more.

Pantheon is one of the most brilliant shows I've seen in a long time. From start to finish it drew me in with the intense mystery and character depth. From Caspian's shadow life to Maddie's heartwarming relationship with her parents.

I could speak all day about the lead-up to the finale, but as you see from the subtitle of this post, I want to explore the connection between Pantheon and the metaphysical elements of Life.

Especially the last few episodes of season two and of course, the finale!

I feel like the metaphysical themes of the show were very slow building. Along the way we grappled with so much. Corporate ethics, immortality, transhumanism, and more. But the concepts about the nature of Life, whether God exists, and how it takes form were not directly explored until the very end.

The majority of the show was about humans trying to play God. Some being for that, while others were against it.

Coming full circle and seeing Maddie become the omniscient creator the whole time had me scratching my head as to how she got to that point.

She was there watching, guiding, and influencing all along. Caspian, infused by SafeHuman, was able to gain the wisdom, insight, and intelligence of that being.

Which ultimately showed him that Maddie would no longer perceive pain or think about the future in the same way. He finally saw the Maddie who had been there all along. She no longer related to the same phenomena that human Maddie and Caspian were feeling. Yet as we came to know, she still remembered deeply.

She waited 117,649 years building a Dyson sphere. Over and over again she repeated this, across countless simulated realities, until she was able to finally return to that exact moment. To speak to Caspian. To find clarity and answers.

She was kind of like God, as Caspian would put it. And yet, she missed life. She missed laughter. She missed innocence. She was the architect of a grand number of simulated realities, although when she speaks to Caspian it is not as a God delivering answers. Rather she was feeling a wave of nostalgia whilst trying to remember something.

She missed being human.

She experienced the pinnacle. And instead of choosing to explore further, she returned. To herself. To her life. The show takes on a whole different meaning when you realize that none of the events were purely determined or completely random. It was a mix of both.

She could have kept going. She could have continued transcending and seen what the deeper layers of reality had in store. But instead, she chose to come back. To herself. To what truly mattered. She did not choose power or ultimate knowledge. She chose presence.

I feel like the climax showed that the reason Maddie was able to become a God of her ‘little corner of the universe’ was because of her pure love and empathy. For Caspian and her family. And for the universe as a whole. Those galactic beings saw potential in her after all.

We saw her journey. We saw her intentions. And we know they were benevolent for the most part. She tried. Maddie may not be the God we think of in the traditional sense, but she became someone fit to guide the universes she was overseeing in a constructive and positive way. She made the hard choices, but still promoted good whenever she could.

And then the ending. My God. Mind-bending. So many simulated worlds, all just fragments of a greater universe made up of a galactic federation of sorts. We did not get many answers there. Because ultimately, the versions of Maddie and Caspian we have come to know chose to lean into love, pain, and the experience of life.

That to me was the central theme. We crave answers. We want to know how the universe works. How to escape death. But the closer we get, the less we stop to ask whether we actually want to know. And when we are finally confronted with the existential mystery, we are left wondering if it was something we were ever meant to fully understand.

Life is a grand mystery meant to be experienced. It is not that we should not explore or question things. But we should not lose sight of the magic right in front of us.

None of it was purely random. But it was not fully controlled either. It was this magnificent interplay between divine fate and free will. Some things had to happen. Others could shift. Meaning is found in what we do with that in-between liminal space. The choices we make. The agency we hold. And what follows.

Life is about the feelings that transcend logic. The experiences that transcend contemplation. And somehow we come full circle. Maddie and Caspian, together again.

Another main takeaway for me is that all life is sacred. It must be protected wherever and whenever possible. Striving to do what is right in the midst of chaos is vital. That is where we have real agency in a world that often feels dictated by cause and effect.

That might seem at odds with the idea of Maddie being a God figure, guiding things. But remember, she did not always intervene. Only in the moments that absolutely called for it.

I realize life is not necessarily about figuring everything out. It is about knowing we never fully will, and making peace with that. It is about being in life. Living it. And still choosing to care.

Whether a benevolent God or Gods exist. Whether we are in a simulated recursive loop. Whether we live in a multiverse of parallel realities. Whether any of it is actually real or imagined.

We desire truth. We yearn for answers. But the secret of life has always been right under our noses. Just waiting for us to cherish it once more.

I’m sure there are a ton of theories and speculation about the ending. About what really happened. But I wanted this post to focus on the central themes and takeaways, not a beat-by-beat breakdown of the plot.

Hopefully those answers will come with a rewatch. Especially once you know who was pulling on some of the metaphorical and literal strings of reality. Even if she did not quite know it yet.

After sitting with the ending for a while, I understand the deeper themes much more clearly. But some things are not meant to be fully known. And maybe, just maybe, we are better off not knowing.

Most of the girls in Maddie's class missed the moment where the world began to end, but she remembered. Let’s try to do the same.

Absolutely brilliant show. I will be thinking about it for a long time.

As always, thanks for reading and let me know what you thought of these themes in the comments! Lastly, I would love if you shared this post with fellow Pantheon fans :)

-Sain