No relationship on Suits can ever top what we get with Harvey Specter and Donna Paulson. And maybe, dare I say, no (drama) workplace romance, either. The “will they/won’t they” the show put its audience through was one of the most grueling times on TV, but everything fades away in Season 8, Episode 16, “Harvey.” Every little thing is worth it when we finally get to Harvey and Donna’s kiss and realize this is it for them. There’s no going back after this moment.
Harvey and Donna’s relationship-solidifying kiss occurs at a perfect time because they’re both emotionally overwhelmed in more ways than one, leading to the type of ultimate realization that’s reasonable. I firmly believe Donna has known for a while (conveniently, in an episode titled “Donna” in Season 7). Still, her breaking point is more immediate here, especially in an episode where she wonders how much of what she puts up with is worth it. And for Harvey, it descends upon him in a perfectly subtle beat where Samantha speaking about the loss of love makes him realize that he can’t lose his.
In most cases, I’m more drawn to the softer and quieter first kisses (the angsty, slow one we get in “Donna”), but for Harvey and Donna, we have everything happening all at once because it’s been brewing and bubbling for ages now. The dreams he’s had, the lingering thoughts, the one type that’s clearly never left them—it forces the longing to crash down on him in a feverish realization that’s so powerful, it’s quite literally consuming him. (Her, too. Girly was ready when she opened the door more and moved aside.)
Harvey and Donna’s kiss in the Suits Season 8 finale is full of every yearning emotion they’ve bottled, erupting like a charged volcano. There’s a tenderness amid the ravenous kisses when she holds his face for a beat, locking eyes to confirm that they’re really doing this. There’s the intention behind his decision to push her against the wall and draw his lips to her pulse point because she’s been his lifeline this entire time. Donna is the person Harvey turns to when anything goes wrong in his life. She’s also the only person he wants by his side when everything goes right. Donna is Harvey’s greatest strength and his one weakness. She’s the one he’d give anything for, and this heated kiss shows us that after this moment, he has no intentions of ever stopping.
They don’t need words at this moment because their bodies are the ones presenting all the promises. Their mouths are the ones giving and taking from each other in equal measure, solidifying that they wouldn’t ever want anything else. The conversations they have in silence here are limitless because they go far beyond any word he could manage in a closing argument. Donna is sharp and clever on her feet, but everything in this silence goes beyond even her best comebacks.
And that final scene when they entwine their fingers before going to her bedroom? It’s yet another tangible confirmation of the fact that they’re never letting go. They’ll fight through everything together, work through their battles side by side, and hold hands through it all. It’s a gorgeously choreographed kiss that glows with a thousand and one emotions under her apartment’s muted and intimate lighting. It’s a perfectly earned showcase of love that proves these two have been connected in a way that’s both profoundly physical and inexplicably emotional.
All nine seasons of Suits are now streaming on Netflix: What are your thoughts on Harvey and Donna’s kiss in the Suits Season 8 finale? Let us know in the comments below.
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