Salvador Ending Explained: Does Salva Save Mateo’s Life? Why?

Netflix’s Spanish series ‘Salvador’ presents an intense narrative of revenge and justice that centers on the complex reality of socio-political extremism. The titular character, Salvador “Salva” Aguirre, helms the narrative as a paramedic whose past with substance abuse influences his complicated and estranged relationship with his daughter. Even so, when a football match leads to extremist attacks around the city, he’s surprised to learn that his daughter, Milena, is a part of the White Souls, the most notorious Neo-nazi group in town. Soon enough, tragedy strikes when, in the midst of growing civil unrest, Milena ends up falling victim to a lethal and targeted attack. This launches her father into undertaking an investigation of his own. Unfortunately enough, people from the darkest underbelly of society might be the only ones with the answers he’s searching for. SPOILERS AHEAD!

Salvador Recap

Salvador is a paramedic who is recovering from his alcoholism and gambling addiction. Yet, despite his current sobriety, he has made plenty of mistakes in his past that continue to haunt him. The deterioration of his relationship with his daughter, Milena, remains his most prominent regret. One night, while tending to a call about a beaten-up man in a bar, the father is faced with the same when he spots his daughter among the bartenders. However, when he tries to talk Milena out of hanging out in Neo-nazi bars with shady characters, she simply rebuffs his advice. Her father has been absent for most of her life. For the same reason, she has no interest in letting him back in her life, especially over the new family she has found in the white supremacist organization.

As a result, when the regulars at the bar, known as the White Souls, decide to cause trouble in the streets in the name of football pride, Milena readily goes along with them. However, in the violence that erupts, she ends up severely hurt, especially after falling off the bridge and into the river. Fortunately, her father happens to be on-call in the same area and manages to get her to a hospital after her friend, Julia, fishes her out of the river. Nonetheless, the coast isn’t yet clear for the young woman as a group of masked thugs end up attacking the hospital. One of them targets her specifically and brutally stabs her to death on the hospital room floor. In the aftermath, the doctors around and a desperate Salva try to save her life, but Milena ends up passing away.

The next few days that come are difficult for Salva, who has to go through the unthinkable ordeal of attending his daughter’s funeral. Worse yet, Milena’s allegiance to the White Souls means she receives a Neo-nazi service, which most of her father’s friends aren’t comfortable attending. Furthermore, when the news of her death inevitably makes it to the news, the paramedic begins to receive unwanted attention about his own possible affiliation with the white supremacist group. Simultaneously, another news item makes headlines about the Molotov fire attack on Abel, an officer, believed to be targeted by the White Souls. Local detective duo Martin and Andujar are on the case for both.

Yet, when Salva fails to get straight answers from them about the investigation into Milena’s murder, he begins to believe the police department is dismissing the case on account of his daughter’s extremist beliefs. This compels him to try to seek answers elsewhere, namely from Carla, the owner of the Nazi bar Milena used to work at. As a result, he finds himself learning more about the White Soul organization and begins to internalize the untrue theories Carla feeds him about the possible involvement of left-wing extremists in his daughter’s murder. Meanwhile, Julia continues working with Martin as a secret mole under the threat of losing her daughter, Ana, who was previously taken away by child protective services. Eventually, as Salva gets closer and closer to Carla, even agreeing to help her out on a few dubious excursions, he receives an intriguing invitation.

The invitation is for dinner with Nicolas Davila, a wealthy businessman, who is, coincidentally enough, on Martin’s radar as a possible puppeteer behind the White Souls and corruption in the police department. As such, the detective ends up convincing the paramedic to attend the dinner party, instructing him to take Davila’s deal no matter what. On the night of the meal, Salva is faced with a curious proposition. The businessman, who uses his money to shape the nation’s narrative and push an anti-immigration agenda, wants the paramedic to be their new subliminal spokesperson, selling the fantasy of a grieving father and a converted leftist. In return, he offers to disclose the real perpetrator behind Milena’s death. Thus, Salva learns that Mateo, his former neighbor and his daughter’s friend, is the one behind the murder.

Salvador Ending: Why Does Salva Save Mateo’s Life?

After Salva discovers the identity of Milena’s killer, he’s beyond devastated to learn that his daughter’s death was the work of a hateful, misogynistic, and entitled man whom his daughter possibly considered a friend. Therefore, the call that he receives the next day during work almost seems to be a work of fateful intervention. The paramedic knows that Davila has many higher-ups from the police in his pocket. The businessman wants the public to think Milena’s death was at the hands of an Arab man so that he can peddle his racist and bigoted ideas forward. This means any attempts to bring Mateo to justice through official channels are bound to be impossible. As such, the father takes a different approach.

Salva uses Julia to get the information about Mateo’s hand in Milena’s murder to Nacho, her boyfriend, who is bound to grow thirsty for revenge. Initially, the White Souls try to protect Mateo from the angry lover’s attack, at least in public, to avoid any scandals. Nonetheless, they allow Nacho full rein to pursue revenge outside of broad daylight. This is how Mateo finds himself, severely injured and bunking out in an underground tunnel, hiding from the homicidal man on his tail. During this time, he ends up calling Salva, his paramedic friend, unaware that the latter knows his secret. However, the father does something unexpected. He knows that the police will be no help in actually saving Mateo and would instead prefer to let him die so that Davila can avoid the possibility of the truth about Milena’s death leaking.

For the same reason, Salva and his friend, Toni, and Marjane decide to drive out to Mateo to help him. Throughout the series, the grieving father insists that his pursuit of Milena’s killer has nothing to do with revenge. Instead, it’s just a simple search for the truth. Although he stumbles along the way, gives in to his anger, and makes some bad choices, his conscience ultimately remains steadfast. Salva knows that his daughter was far from an angel, and that she had indeed hurt many people. Yet, he carries partial guilt for how Milena had turned out. Furthermore, he believes that her immorality doesn’t rob her of the promise of justice. As such, when he decides to help save Mateo’s life, it’s in pursuit of the same. He wants to bring his daughter’s killer into the light and punish him for his actions without fulfilling any revenge fantasies. In doing so, he becomes a direct antithesis to Davila and the other neo-nazis in the show, who mold the truth to fit their narratives. Instead, he becomes a champion for real justice.

Does Julia Leave White Souls? Does She Get Custody of Ana?

Salva’s pursuit of his daughter’s killer isn’t done in the service of posthumous reconciliation and reparation for Milena. He knows that his own contribution to his daughter’s childhood, or lack thereof, has led her astray in her adult life. He wasn’t there for her and her mother, so they found community and support elsewhere among a group that preys on vulnerable and lonely people like them. As such, it’s natural for the paramedic to carry a sense of responsibility and a desire to somehow reconcile the mistakes of his past. Nonetheless, he knows that amends cannot be made through revenge and perpetuating cycles of violence.

Instead, Salva finds a way to learn from his past and correct his mistakes by doing for Julia what he couldn’t do for Milena. The two women are similar to each other in many ways. They both find their ways into Neo-nazi circles partly due to being let down by their actual family members. This sense of isolation is exactly what allows the White Souls to exploit them and manipulate them into joining them. As such, if Salva wants to help Julia, he needs to somehow get her to leave the violent, bigoted group. Fortunately, there’s one member of Julia’s family who hasn’t given her reasons to be jaded: her daughter, Ana.

Julia actually cares about her daughter and is willing to betray even the White Souls for her safety. This is why she has been working with Martin all this time. Consequently, Salva bargains for a better future for the young woman using his own usefulness to Detective Martin. He arranges for Julia to cut a deal wherein she would have to testify against the White Soul in order to gain full custody over Ana. Afterward, he offers her an out-of-city flat he had initially bought for Milena. In doing so, he ends up saving Julia and Ana’s lives, helping them escape an echo chamber of hatred and bigotry. The fact that the single mother testifies against the White Souls is enough proof that she has cut ties with the group. Nonetheless, her journey of possibility, detaching herself from white supremacist rhetoric as a whole, will likely be a longer, more arduous, and potentially fruitless endeavor.

What Happens to the White Souls? What Happens to the Dorado Brothers?

Initially, Davila’s plan to pin Milena’s death upon a mythic man of Arab descent works in favor of keeping the White Soul safe and protected. Even though the murder was committed by one of their own, it was an independent act. Therefore, the group cannot afford to let the white-on-white crime come into the light and take the bad PR hit. Nonetheless, the fact that Mateo wants the public to know about his involvement in Milena’s death throws the organization for a loop. The latter believes the murder to be one of his greatest achievements as an incel and a male rights activist.

Consequently, Mateo had captured video proof of his actions and even took precautions to ensure the video could be shared with the world in the event of his death. In the end, when Salva saves his life, this is exactly what happens, and the killer ends up having to pay the price for his crimes. This, paired with Julia’s testimony as a former member of the group, gives the justice system enough proof to capture some of the key players from the organization, including Carla, Maximo, and Nacho. However, two hidden collaborators, the Dorado brothers, manage to get away from the ordeal scotch-free.

Ignacio and Aljendro Dorado are brothers on opposite sides of the fight. The latter is a defense attorney for the White Souls, while the former works in the police department as the Chief Inspector. Yet, secretly, both are actually in Davila’s pocket. For the same reason, their high-up connection to the wealthy businessman allows them to emerge from the incident without any scratches. Although law enforcement pays attention to Julia’s words against the extremist group, they turn a blind eye to her testimony against the brothers. In the end, Ignacio even enjoys a promotion while Martin receives a demotion for her efforts. This conclusion showcases the corrupt nature of the system as a whole and its devotion to power more than justice.

Why Did Mateo Record Milena’s Murder?

Mateo’s recording of Milena’s murder becomes one of the most instrumental narrative tools in the show’s climax. It provides a conclusion to the story’s central mystery while also becoming evidence that can be used to deliver justice in an otherwise unjust system. Therefore, the reason behind this act of self-sabotage becomes a point of intrigue. For the most part, the show highlights the realities of neo-nazism and its influence and impact on society. It tackles the recruitment tactics that bigoted organizations use and exactly the kind of people they’re likely to target. However, the nucleus of Milena’s death is revealed ot be something different. Mateo didn’t murder her because of her political ideology.

Instead, Mateo murdered Milena because of her gender. The killer is an incel who spends most of his time in online chatrooms talking to other violent men who fantasize about harming women to channel their own insecurities and shortcomings. In the early days of their friendship, Mateo became a rock for Milena, providing constant support for her in the hopes that she might one day sleep with him. Eventually, they do hook up, but it doesn’t develop into a relationship. In fact, Milena ends up dating another man, Nacho. For the same reason, Mateo grows hateful of the woman, believing that he has somehow been wronged and betrayed. Thus, he kills and records the entire event as a means to gloat about his “achievement” afterward.