TV show endings can be difficult to get right, and it’s impossible to satisfy every viewer with the conclusion of a long-running and beloved series. However, while somegreat TV finales enhance or even savetheir shows, others have the opposite effect. Unpopular twists and turns can make such endings difficult to revisit, and in extreme cases, thesefinales can alter how you view the entire story. There are some shows I love enough to look past my complicated feelings about their endings, but sometimes, that also means ignoring that they happened.
After all, it can be difficult to look back on a story fondly when you know your favorite characters will go in a direction you dislike, or when you realize that some of the best moments will be tainted by the conclusion. There aren’t many TV shows that make me want to quit a series altogether, and I’ll typically still appreciate the rest of the show for what it is. However,there are a few series I love that have endings I mostly just ignore. This helps maintain my appreciation for the high points, even if they pay-off isn’t necessarily worthwhile.
Plenty of lip service has been given toGame of Thrones’ending, which proved divisive from the moment “The Iron Throne” first aired. My feelings heading into the finale were already complicated, as I didn’t agree with the execution of Daenerys Targaryen’s Mad Queen turn, nor did I appreciate the treatment of characters like Jaime, Jon, and Tyrion throughout the final season. But"The Iron Throne" really drove home my issues with the HBO show’s conclusion, rushing to kill off Dany and crown Bran Stark as king — incidents that really should have been drawn out with more care.
I’ll always love this fantasy show, but I’d rather pretend season 8 didn’t happen and wait for George R.R. Martin’s books.
It’s a common complaint aboutGame of Thrones,saying the series rushed to its conclusion, but it remains one of the biggest problems with the ending. The series also got very meta in its final installment, with dragons suddenly understanding the symbolism of the throne and Tyrion harping on about stories and their impact. All of these things made it difficult to squareGame of Thrones’ending with the rest of the series. I’ll always love this fantasy show, but I’d rather pretend season 8 didn’t happen and wait forGeorge R.R. Martin’s books.
The 100is another series with a controversial ending, and if I’m being honest, I now just pretend the series concluded with season 5. Bellamy and Clarke looking out at a new planet and being told to “do better” feels in line with the sci-fi series' overarching themes, but everything that happens after seems unnecessary — andThe 100season 7 spirals into something that feels unrecognizable from the rest of the CW show. The plot goes off the rails in a way that’s never fully satisfying, and the major players start acting very out of character.
There are aspects ofThe 100’s ending that I do like, including Octavia’s redemption arc (though I think her story could just as easily ended in “Damocles: Part 2”). But overall, the positives aren’t enough to make me invested in seasons 6 and 7. I mostly just ignore the conclusion in favor of the journey beforehand; Clarke and Bellamy go through too much to part in such a devastating way, and it’s frustrating that they don’t learn from seasons 1-5. If the story had followed the new generation, perhaps its ending would feel warranted.
People joke thatHow I Met Your Mothershould actually be calledHow I Met Your Aunt Robin,and I think that criticism is completely valid. After investing nearly a decade into this story, it’s reasonable that viewers were disappointed about the ending. It seemed as though Ted meeting his kids' mother was never the point at all; instead, he wanted permission to pursue Robin, a character the series had proven was wrong for him time and time again. After developing Tracy’s character and putting Robin and Barney together, this was especially frustrating.
The direction ofHIMYMmay feel realistic, as people die and get divorced, but it’s not what I was watching the show for.
How I Met Your Motherundid seasons of character growthand flipped everything viewers had been rooting for. Given that, I find it best to mostly ignore the final season, focusing on what came before instead. I thoroughly enjoy the journey of the 2000s sitcom, even if some parts of it haven’t aged well. But I’m content with meeting Tracy and leaving things on a high note. The direction ofHIMYMmay feel realistic, as people die and get divorced, but it’s not what I was watching the show for.
Killing Evefelt groundbreaking when it first premiered, and its early seasons kept that energy going. The series upended many media tropes surrounding women, delivering a compelling story centered on two characters who felt dissimilar from any others I’d seen on TV. The back-and-forth between Eve and Villanelle was gripping because of how complex the two women were, and their unexpected dynamic and later romance was one viewers fell for. While a traditional happy ending was probably not in the cards for them,Killing Eve’s conclusion felt insulting to all it had set up.
Unfortunately,Killing Eve’s ending left many viewers feeling disappointed in the series, myself included. There are valid criticisms to be made about how the series played intoHollywood’s “bury your gays” trope, and overall, the finale just didn’t feel like a compelling place to end Eve and Villanelle’s narratives. The tragic twist diverged from the show’s themes, basically punishing Eve for stepping outside the “normal” life laid out for her. Season 4’s religious themes also felt oddly placed. All of these explain why I’d rather pretend this masterpiece hadn’t ended the way that it did.
Supernatural’s ending wasn’t as controversial as some of the others on this list, but it left the characters in a pretty bleak place — and for me, that didn’t pay off everything they’d been through. I’ve always preferred Eric Kripke’soriginalSupernaturalending, the season 5 finale, but I understand why the series continued beyond this. However,Dean’s fate in “Carry On” felt underwhelming and unearned, and there’s no denying that Castiel deserved a better conclusion as well. If the characters were going to die, it could’ve been handled better, but the execution just made it depressing.
Sam’s fate was a silver lining ofSupernaturalseason 15, as his character finally got the ordinary life he wanted from the beginning. Sadly, this fitting and in-character conclusion didn’t take away some of my other reservations about the series finale. And all the discussions of apotentialSupernaturalseason 16make me even more worried, as this risks further hurting the CW show’s legacy. In fact, it could end up undoing some of the strengths of season 15’s ending. And even retconning the more dubious elements doesn’t necessarily mean the next conclusion would be better.
