--spoiler-- this is how you do comedy. i should say up front that, unlike what's been written here, i thoroughly love this show from its very first moment to its last second. in my opinion every single scene from start to finish, "the final joke" included, is perfectly attuned to the spirit of the whole thing and extremely creative, funny, and clever. the pace dips here and there, and it may look like it's departing from earlier seasons by its very nature, but in an ongoing organism, especially in something as merciless as comedy, there are ups and downs, that's normal; you can't please the viewer any other way, they'd get bored.