‘One Hundred Years Of Solitude’ ending explained: who dies in the final episode?

Spoilers ahead

Gabriel Garcia Márquez’s classic novel One Hundred Years Of Solitude is given a TV adaptation worthy of its historic legacy on Netflix.

Directed by Alex García López and Laura Mora, the series follows cousins José and Úrsula who, after getting married against their parents wishes, leave their village and eventually come to establish a new utopian town called Macondo.

• READ MORE: The 20 best TV shows of 2024

The series spans multiple generations of the Buendía family over 100 years in the mythical town, which is haunted by war, plagues, forbidden loves and the occasional curse.

Claudio Cataño, Marco González, Susana Morales, Loren Sofía and Janer Villarreal lead the show’s cast. The series itself is split into two parts, with the second batch of eight episodes set to be released at an as-yet unspecified date.

What happens to Aureliano in One Hundred Years Of Solitude?

After being saved from execution by his brother José and Rebeca, Aureliano leaves Macondo and becomes a revolutionary against the government at large. After amassing a dedicated following, he is promoted to leader of the revolutionary forces of the Caribbean and leads attacks against towns, and their civilian populations, to overthrow the government’s power.

A few years after the death of his father José Arcadio Buendia, Aureliano returns to Macondo to take back control from general José Raquel Moncada, who was appointed civil and military chief of the town by the conservative government. Aureliano’s mother, Úrsula, tries to stop his attack by telling him life in Macondo is peaceful once again under José Raquel, but Aureliano brushes off his mother’s claims.

Recommended

In the final scene, we see Aureliano charging towards Macondo on horseback alongside his troops, before it cuts to black.

Are José and Rebeca both dead?

After the couple move into Arcadio’s house, José walks into the bedroom and closes the doors, when the sound of a gunshot rings out. A line of blood leads to Úrsula, who finds her dead son on the floor in the room.

According to the narrator, José’s death is the “only unsolved mystery in Macondo” – so it’s unclear whether he killed himself, if he was shot by someone else, or if it was some other supernatural occurrence.

José’s wife Rebeca, seemingly fraught with grief following his death, locks herself in the house and reverts back to her old habits of eating dirt. While the narrator remarks that she has “buried herself alive”, it is unclear if she is dead or not in the house.

Where does Aureliano José go?

Aureliano José, the son of Aureliano and Pilar, starts to become obsessed with his aunt Amaranta. After she ends their brief affair, she tells a heartbroken Aureliano José to leave Macondo entirely to prevent further temptation.

Later in the final episode, we see a vision through José Arcadio Buendia’s eyes where Aureliano José joins his father in the revolutionary army.

Does José Arcadio Buendia die?

José Arcadio Buendia, the co-founder of Macondo, dies in the eighth episode. His son Aureliano sees his death in a vision and informs his mother Úrsula, who unties him from the tree and moves him into more comfortable surroundings.

As he dies in bed, he traverses through multiple visions, where he reunites with Melquiades, witnesses a future descendant reading his work, and sees Aureliano José joining his father in the army.