Best and Worst End to TV shows? - Possible Spoilers

[jschild]

I was checking out io9.com and they had a nice link to an article someone wrote about why they considered BSG's finale to be the worst ever. I hated much of it, though there were many touching moments (Adama and Roslins trip over Africa made me cry).

http://ideas.4brad.com/battlestar/ba...cience-fiction

What do you consider to be among the best and worst endings in a TV show?

For me, it would easily have to be Babylon 5's very emotional ending. It was a perfect endcap to a series that, more than anything else, is about consequences. Had me and my wife both in tears throughout much of it.

Another shows' ending that I love (though not on first viewing), was Sienfeld's. I hated it on the first time, but re-watching it a few years later I could really appreciate how Apropos (sp?) it was.

For my worst ending, I will quickly point out the dreck that was the final episode of X-files. A bad ending to a horrible season (guess what Mulder, it wasn't aliens or the government who took your sister, it was ghost children????). Filled with pointless deaths, tons of unresolved answers, and just horrible plotting, a sad endcap to a once great series.

[Malechi]

Best Series Ending Ever: Newhart

Bob wakes up in his earlier series The Bob Newhart Show next to his wife from that series with Suzanne Pleshette reenacting her role. He goes on to describe the "dream" he had about owning a bed and breakfast in Vermont and the various ridiculous people inhabiting that "dream". Truly inspired comedy writing.

Worst Series Ending Ever: Sopranos

Cut to black mid sentence to make the audience think their cable went out. The biggest copout ever.

[jschild]

I had forgot about the wonderful twist of Newhart - That should indeed rank as one of the best of all time.

I don't always mind "the story never ends" endings, IE, NYPD Blue and Star Trek TNG, but Sopranos was indeed so abrupt that you had no clue what was going on.

[Purplebeard]

"V"

Anyone remember "V" from the 80's? No? Sigh.

After a not too terrible start with the first miniseries, they went on to destroy the concept with a second miniseries and then followed it with very short lived TV series. It was a hideous season of 12? episodes being bounced around all over the weekly schedule before they took it out behind the barn and shot it in the head with some mystical crap from the "starchild" I kept wishing they would kill all season. Almost as bad as Galactica 1980.

Hmmm. I'm still bitter about both series. Interesting.

Best ever?......

Not sure if it qualifies....but I liked Serenity the end story (so far) for the FireFly series. Can't think of anything else I've seen that I really liked.

[ollie]

Best Ever: Blackadder Goes Forth (by about a million miles).

Worst Ever: The West Wing (where "end" is defined to be the last two seasons).

[Malechi]

Originally Posted by Purplebeard

Anyone remember "V" from the 80's? No? Sigh...

You are aware there is a new version of the series coming out soon (this Fall on ABC), right?

[jschild]

That doesn't mean it will be any good however.

[Shermif]

For one of the best I've seen, I would have to say the final four-part episode of Avatar, the Last Airbender. Excellent action throughout, a good twist toward the end, great lessons on respect for life, and some very emotional moments at the end with the coronation and the concluding reunion scene. Great writing, great show!

[Onacara]

Great final episode is really a difficult thing to judge because there were a few shows where the last episode itself was not really great..but the way it ended was... (i.e. Newhart and Cheers are great examples) There are others that end very cleverly but leave you saying :WTF:...St. Elsewhere is a perfect example of that. Then there are others that catch you totally off guard. There was a show called "I Married Dora" in the ealry 90's late 80's ???. It was the story of a single father who marries the housekeeper/nanny so she can stay in America. On the last episode the man and his kids are about to board a plane and Dora says goodbye to them. (I'm not 100% sure but I think she had gotten deported and he went their with the kids to really propose to her or something) Anyways...they walk through the door to the plane and the studio audience lets out a big "awwwwwww" and then man comes running back out from the plane. Dora looks at him lovingly and he says "We got cancelled"...She says "the flight?"...and he says "No the show"...and them and the kids just turn to the camera and say goodbye.

MASH by far is the best ending to a long running series.

The last episode of OZ was really good.

The last episode of Invasion was also amazing....."What did you do???? WHAT DID YOU DO???" (If you never saw this show I suggest getting the DVD boxed set)

[skyknight]

I thought Seinfeld was absolutely terrible

[Greyelephant]

Originally Posted by skyknight

I thought Seinfeld was absolutely terrible

Ditto.

Such a great series and for such a weak ending, it just left you empty.


Mash, Newhart, and Cheers were some of my favorites that were already mentioned. When they turned the lights off in the Cheers bar, you felt sad, but happy. Newharts "it was just a dream" was funny all on it's own.

[tubafication]

The ending to Alf was really bad.
What happened was the show got canceled before they aired the last episode. Horrible, just horrible. They then later came out with a movie so that they could show the ending, but I don't think the movie did really well, so it's not really available. Oh well.