I admit that the game's ending is a little dissapointing. When I was writing this piece, I was taking the entire series into account.

I've never reach a book, or watched a movie or even played a video game that affected me the way the Mass Effect franchise has. It actually made me care about the game's characters.

Absolutely. The one strength I think ME can defend indefinetely is the character development. 

The way that the Reapers are set up in the Mass Effect universe realistically would have meant an ending where the sentient races of the galaxy were wiped out again.  We are shown time and time again that there is no way for even the combined forces of all the races to possibly win.

I know a Deus Ex Machina isn't the most original thing but if Bioware wanted an ending that wasn't complete genocide of the all the Council species, they didn't have much of a choice.  I guess we should blame them for making such a terrifying enemy.

Well the problem with that sentiment is the story sets up a victory scenario that is very much NOT deus ex machina. One where the weapon is actually a weapon that they can actually just shoot at the reapers as had been suggested the whole game.

But... that's exactly what deus ex machina is...

Right... and that's bad.

You misunderstand. Your comment suggests that an ending "where the weapon is actually a weapon that they can actually just shoot at the reapers" isn't deus ex machina. It is, though. As soon as the Reapers attack, Liara happens to find a gun big enough to shoot them with. Whether the weapon has a valid backstory is irrelevant; it's the weapon's appearance in the first place that constitutes a DEM. The fact that that weapon has unforeseen consequences (i.e., killing all the geth as well, whom, in my playthrough, had become BFFs with te quarians) makes it if anything less DEM-ish. As in, it's not as easy as it was initially proposed to be.

You're misusing the concept of DEM. The weapon is introduced by a scientist that studies the protheans, after ME2 introduces the prothean archives as a vast source of knowledge that may help against the reapers.

Since these concepts are introduced in the story well ahead of the introduction of the weapon the crucible's introduction into the story, while sudden, is not DEM.

DEM has to be a sudden, irrational unforseable event that constitutes divine intervention. If the weapon had actually been a weapon, it would not be DEM. Even though the weapon is sudden it is not irrational and unforseable.

If you want to know more look up Aristotle's Poetics. He outlines this and why its bad writing or just read this http://bitmob.com/articles/in-response-to-ben-kucheras-defense-of-mass-effect-3s-endings-also-spoilers which I wrote when Ben Kuchera said the same thing.

So you're ok with the complete disregard for all the plots holes? Like how the crew was even on the normandy? Like how you see people who should be dead but suddenly aren't? Sorry. I can't respect that. It doesn't seem like you've given it any thought and are just apologizing for it because you like the rest of the games. 

I love the series, not the cobbled together ending.

Spoiler Warning

No, I don't like the Normandy part, I said that. It’s right there. I took Ashley and Garrus with me on the final mission (terrible team, it was an emotional choice) and wouldn’t you know it Ashley managed to get outside the solar system. That doesn’t make sense; that’s silly.

But no, the ending was great, and here’s why:

The game is based around you making decisions to affect how the galaxy operates. But all of this is on done on the foreground of an endless cycle of death and destruction, a cycle that is as old as the galaxy. This current cycle, thanks to you, runs the risk of messing up the larger cycle. Your actions allow one of three outcomes. There is the Illusive man’s dream of controlling the cycle, there is the “let the cycle play out to its logical end” and combine all organics and synthetics option, and then there is the option to eliminate the cycle.

But this is the best part. The little kid? He’s an illusion. He’s a by-product of indoctrination. Yes, see the Illusive man, at the end, reveals that reaper technology was used to bring you back to life and you are then under his control (thanks to the Sanctuary experiments). People who are indoctrinated will have blurry memories (how many times did Shepard act like he had no idea what people were talking about when they were bringing up past missions?) and visions. That kid is a vision. He disappears on Earth in the air duct when Anderson snaps Shepard back to reality. The kid haunts Shepard’s dreams. The kid is there at the end. You are actually talking to the Citadel which, this is where I finally throw in my interpretation, is a reaper. The reaper gives you options on what to do, but clearly doesn’t want you to kill all the reapers. That is clear. Why? Because the Citadel threatens you with the death of all the synthetics (Geth, EDI, etc) and yourself! Yourself! You yourself will die, so says the reaper. The reaper would much rather you become one of their own (controlling option) or end the cycle by completing it (merger option).

The only option left, in the face of knowing you are indoctrinated and understanding that the citadel has the motivation to lie to you, is to kill all the reapers. And guess what you get as your reward? Your life. The ending of killing the reapers is the only way to continue Shepard’s life. Shepard lives through the destruction of the reapers, marking his passage from human, to synthetic, and back to human. Shepard is resurrected in one last gasp of air.

In the end, and this is beautiful, all of your choices lead to the same end. You don’t have a real choice in the face of an endless, mindless, continuing cycle of death and destruction. Only in throwing yourself away and reclaiming your humanity can you unlock this cycle and begin to rebuild organic life without the threat of an endless cycle that will destroy all life. The Shepard guides organic life into a new golden age of freedom.

That said, the Normandy ending is stupid.