Scorpion: Eddie Kaye Thomas breaks down that giant finale

WARNING: This post contains spoilers from the season 2 finale of Scorpion. Read at your own risk!

Nothing can be easy on Scorpion, especially for Toby (Eddie Kaye Thomas).

Toby’s journey from gambling team psychiatrist to bona fide suitor and almost fiancé of Happy Quinn has been a rocky one that has nearly killed him in more ways than one. But it all came to a head on Monday night’s finale, “Toby or Not Toby,” when Mark Collins (guest star Joshua Leonard) kidnaps Toby just before he leaves to propose to Happy (Jadyn Wong).

Although he survived, Toby didn’t get the happy ending he was hoping for. After he officially proposes to Happy, she turns him down and admits she is already married (!!). If that’s not enough, Walter lets Paige leave with Armstrong before deciding that he actually loves her. It’s a lot to process. (You can read the full finale recap on EW.com later.) Below, Thomas talks about that proposal, the biggest moments from season 2, and the character he’d like to play if he weren’t Toby.

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: So this was a low-key finale for Toby. No big deal… He just got kidnapped and threatened with death.

EDDIE KAYE THOMAS: Well, the nice thing about being kidnapped is that you don’t have to run around too much when you’re tied to a chair. Which, you know, our episodes are so big and we’re usually doing so much and running around so much — that was actually my first thought when I got the script, “Oh, cool, I’m tied down the whole time. I don’t have to move around much.”

Throughout this season, Toby has grown up so much. Do you think this growth, in addition to his and Happy’s relationship, changes the way Toby approached his kidnapping?

Yeah, I think one of the reasons the show is successful is that these are real people with flaws who continue to grow. Something I love about Toby is that he has a lot of demons and this gambling problem and he’s self-destructive, but he has a desire to change. It’s exciting to be a part of something that’s changing and growing because we’re not doing the same thing we did in the pilot over and over. It’s a living, breathing thing.

I think there’s this comfort that came along after the first season that as bad as things got, no one died. But that changed this season with Megan’s death. Did that change the way you went into this last episode?

With the possibility that I might be killed off? Absolutely. You never know with television. And at the end of the day, the writers and producers want to make good television that’s exciting for the audience. I take every episode that I’m in as a blessing.

Do you think the Happy and Collins’ conflict in the first season led to Collins kidnapping Toby? Or was he just the easiest target?

I think the conflict Happy had with Collins is the same conflict that we all had with Collins. He was a threat to the team, and this team is family.

Speaking of family, we see Toby got his chance to propose to Happy, but he didn’t get the answer he was hoping for…

I’m excited for the season 3 premiere to see how the [fallout] of the season finale is played out amongst the team because what happened with Toby and Happy has big ramifications.

And on the topic of relationships… Do you think Walter can get to Paige in time or has he lost her to Tim Armstrong?

After the very last scene of the finale, as much as that has answered things, it’s going to make the season premiere that much more exciting. So many questions and wants and needs for Walter and Paige and Happy and Toby are being opened up, and it’s really exciting. I’m so grateful that we have clever writers who are listening to the fans and staying true to their original vision for the show.

As the second season wraps up, is there a particular memory that pops up that sums up the season for you?

The second season has been so huge. All the special effects we’re doing and the size and shape of these episodes are bigger than I thought television could be. When we shot the “White Out” episode at the North Pole and got caught in a blizzard, it was as huge and well done as any movie I’ve seen tackling the same subject. I love that television is where it’s at right now.

Speaking of the blizzard… You’ve been nearly frozen to death, oxygen deprived, kidnapped, had acid inches from your face, and everything in between. Do you have any bucket list Scorpion challenge that you’d like to face next?

The writers are just going to try and have us go to every corner of the globe and face every challenge possible. Think of your favorite action movies, and we’ll do it. The Fort Knox episode had some Indiana Jones in it. The North Pole had parts of The Revenant in it. It’s versions of all of our favorite movies!

If there were another character you could hop in and play for a few episodes, who would it be?

Cabe. He’s just pretty badass, and it would be nice to be on the receiving end of Toby’s smartass remarks for once. A taste of my own medicine.