The Goldbergs Star Wendi McLendon-Covey, EPs Break Down The Series Finale That Wasn't Meant To Be The End

Warning: The following contains spoilers for Wednesday's The Goldbergs series finale. Proceed at your own risk!

The Goldbergs clan is officially out of videotape: The long-running ABC comedy wrapped up its 10-season run on Wednesday with a Back to the Future-themed series ender, appropriately titled "Bev to the Future."

In the finale, Adam accompanied his mom, Beverly, to her high school reunion, where she hit it off with her former boyfriend, George (played by Rob Corddry). Upset that his mom was moving on from his dad, Adam tried to thwart Bev and George's potentially reignited spark so she wouldn't end up with the wrong guy. But after an emotional heart-to-heart with his mom, Adam came around and invited George to baby Muriel's first birthday.

In other relationship developments, Adam and his girlfriend Carmen drove off in his uncle's DeLorean (hinting at a bright future for the pair?), and Barry and Joanne eloped to prove to everyone that they're a serious couple!

If it felt like the episode gave some closure while leaving the door open for another season, that's because it wasn't originally intended to be the show's swan song.

"We weren't quite positive it was going to be our [series] finale when we wrote the final episode of the season," co-showrunner/exec producer Alex Barnow tells TVLine. "I think, truthfully, had we known it was really the final episode, we would have done a more full-bodied tribute to the show."

Adds co-showrunner/EP Chris Bishop: "We would've dug in with a more emotional story and had more flashbacks and seeing the characters and how they grew across the decade."

The show's cast, similarly, didn't know the series was coming to an end until after they had already filmed their final scenes. "They told us like four days after we wrapped our season. So, like, two days before our wrap party," star Wendi McLendon-Covey, who plays matriarch Beverly Goldberg, shares with TVLine.

But the delayed news actually turned out to be a blessing in disguise. "In retrospect, I guess [it] was the best way for it to happen because if we knew ahead of time, nothing would've gotten done. We would've all been sobbing," McLendon-Covey notes.

Plus, the writing was on the wall, seeing as how the show had enjoyed a long run and appeared to be nearing its finish line. "You got to know our time is not expanding. We're going to be ending at some point," the actress continues. "So I think we went into that last week, thinking this could be it, so let's savor every moment. We were coming in on our days off and just walking through the set and taking pictures of every single thing, or stealing things, or telling people we loved them. Like I said, I think it's best that we didn't find out until we were all safely at home, ensconced in our beds, because I was a wreck."

Below, the EPs and McLendon-Covey talk about what would have been in a Season 11, what they won't miss about the show's '80s aesthetic and more. Plus, scroll down to grade the series ender!

What would a series finale be without a montage to The Goldbergs' early seasons, including scenes of a younger Adam and departed family members Murray (played by Jeff Garlin) and Pops (George Segal)?

Speaking about his vision for the episode, Barnow says, "We really just wanted to capture the sense of where we started from and where we're ending. In the finale montage, it was really important for us to see the children when they were young... and where we're ending up: Erica with a husband and baby, Beverly potentially moving on with a new love interest, Adam with his girlfriend and driving off into the future, Barry getting married. So it's really trying to bookend something that's basically impossible, which is a lifetime with these people, 10 years with these people."

And while we don't know exactly where every character ultimately ended up, "I think their futures look positive and happy," Barnow shares.

As for whether the EPs spoke to creator and former showrunner Adam F. Goldberg about the series finale, Bishop says, "We did not. We hope we honored his original vision for the show, and I hope when he sees it, he's proud."

Rest assured, there is love in Bev's future, even if we won't see it play out. "Our hopes were, if there was a Season 11, that we could explore possibly a more permanent relationship for Beverly and the Rod Corddry character," Barnow shares, adding that first they needed to give Bev time to grieve Murray's death before diving into the world of dating.

"We felt like this was a really nice way to end it, with the possibility of romance, the idea that she would find another person from her past that she would be really excited to be with, and that her kids could leave home and feel good that their mom was in a happy relationship," Barnow continues. "That didn't come to be, but I think the ending, while it's elliptical, suggests that maybe all that will happen."

McLendon-Covey, too, was looking forward to the idea of exploring Beverly's romantic future. "I would have loved to see her find love for real, because she did ultimately remarry [in real life]," the actress says. Looking back at the season, McLendon-Covey is grateful "we got to see her be a bubbie for a little bit" and "have a lot of fun with her friends."

"Filming Season 10 was really fun. There was a lightness to it that we didn't have prior, and so every day, going to work was a pleasure. And even in the early days, when we didn't realize how stressed we were, it was still a pleasure," McLendon-Covey says with a laugh. "I'm just so grateful for the past 10 years."

Which aspect of the show's '80s setting is McLendon-Covey happy to leave behind?

"All of it! I've lived through the '80s twice now! I don't need to go back ever again," the actress replies. "Everybody asks, 'Oh, you must've saved a ton of clothes...'  No. I would take all those shoulder pads, throw them in a fire and dance around it like a witch. I'm so done with the '80s fashions. But I love the decade because of the optimism that we had back then."

And what about Beverly's signature big '80s hair?

"The wig lives in my home dressing room. I said, early on, 'I'm starting this series with hair, and when I leave this series, I'm still going to have hair. So you're going to wig me. If you're going to do that, if that's what [her] hair looks like, you're not doing it to mine.' So here I am, not bald, talking to you," McLendon-Covey concludes with a laugh.