Best Ending for a TV Series?

[Va Lefty]

I think it was the great Gene Siskel that said his defination of a great movie was a simple question. What happened next? I think that is a great test to apply to TV shows. Which show did you feel that way about? Many shows didn't have a finale, of those that did, what was your fav?

[AsahinaKimi]

1. Friends

[Lindsey]

2. I've never seen a more creative, innovative, and incredible

series ending than Six Feet Under. It was absolute perfection.

[PassingFair]

44. I agree...I laughed, I cried...

I loved the fast-forward approach, and
felt that the characters were handled
with respect, love and humor.

[rcrush]

3. I kinda want to slay the dragon...

[Faygo Kid]

4. Newhart was spectacular, but I have to go with The Fugitive.

OK, I'm old. But it changed TV history. Shows never wrapped up before the one-armed man was caught. The nation was transfixed, and TV would never be the same.

[Drunken Irishman]

5. What about the ending to Newhart?

I thought that was pretty good.

And I'm not talking about The Bob Newhart Show, but the later Newhart which tipped its hat to TBNS with its ending incorporating Suzanne Pleshette and suggesting all of Newhart was a dream of Robert Hartley.

[AllenVanAllen]

8. That ending was brilliant.

Even though the idea wasn't original it was still pretty freakin' cool.

[Drunken Irishman]

15. Yeah. I think it was just so unexpected.

When you realize it's Suzanne Pleshette in the bed next to him...you're like HOLY SHIT.

[Orrex]

6. Most Fucked Up Ending has got to go to The Prisoner

But I can't stand the show itself, so I'm reluctant to vote for it.

Gosh.

[phasma ex machina]

10. Seinfeld's "spiteful, unforgiving moralist" finale ranks down there too. nt

[Drunken Irishman]

18. I love how there is an ongoing gag in this season's Curb Your Enthusiasm about that bad ending.

[pokerfan]

32. "We screwed up one finale, we can't screw up another..."

(Jerry on Curb)

[Ohio Joe]

7. Other - The Shield

Granted, there was not much in the way of wondering what happened next but that was part of the great appeal of it to me. Pretty much every loose thread was sewn up in a satisfying way.

[Lucian]

9. The only ending I saw on that list is Angel.

I like how at the end the whole Apocalypse was brought on. I'm dying to know what happened next! But I don't think we ever will. x( :(

[Mojambo]

17. Read the comic book Angel: After The Fall. n/t

[edbermac]

11. I Married Dora.

From 1987. About a single dad with 2 kids, who marries his maid, an illegal alien, to prevent her deportation. Show got poor ratings and only lasted 13 episodes.
Last episode had him at the end of the show at an airport leaving his wife/maid and kids behind to fly overseas for a contract job. He suddenly comes back to the airport lounge and...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VvVR99yafr8

[Orrex]

13. Wild!

I never even heard of that show. That's a cool way to take the bull by the horns, though.

[Duer 157099]

12. That's a tricky question, because when I like the show, I can't stand that it ends

Even if the ending is brilliant, like The Newhart one was. I never want to see my favorite series end.

So I'm left with shows I don't care about and then the sooner they end the better.

[brettdale]

14. MASH

Mash has to be the best ending ever.

GOODBYE

[Starbucks Anarchist]

16. Six Feet Under.

The Shield also had a great ending.

[mentalsolstice]

19. Sopranos!

eta: otherwise I'd go with Newhart. I wish I could have an epic dream like that.

[fNord]

20. LEXX

The earth was destroyed (we knew it would happen, but not like that) Kai came back to life, and then died, and even the lexx died.

A total end.

[rcrush]

21. that was a weird ass show

I couldnt stop watching it was so weird.

[fNord]

22. you know?

but tell me...

wasn't the ending just perfect?

[rcrush]

23. Its been years I cant remember it very well

I remember I loved that song that Kai would sing. I loved the theme song to. I need to find this show online.

[Mojambo]

24. We used to get totally baked and watch Farscape and then Lexx.

Goddamn Lexx was fucking weird.

[rcrush]

25. Lexx was fucking weird man

[EndersDame]

38. Lexx was crazy weird but in a cool way

[slay]

28. Same here!

Massive bong rips to Farscape meant we were always in for a crazy ride. :smoke: We'd even unplug the phones so as not to be interrupted. Lexx was really weird, but Farscape is what really sent our minds flying. Like Season 4, episode 11 - "Unrealized Realities" when John goes down the wormhole without his ship and runs into Einstein for the first time. Man, what an awesome show.

[fNord]

30. Fuck you both

"farscape" was a complete rip-off of LEXX. A dopey guy, a Hard core alien woman who kicks ass, and a living, talking ship?

can we please steel anything else from the German/Canadians to keep our bullshit network alive..... and fuck you too "SYFY" whatever the hell that is supposed to mean.

[EndersDame]

39. Farscape was alot different than Lexx

I dont know how much you watched of it but more characters were added and it was a totally different dynamic plus the Jim Henson company was involved and they added a certain element of quality to it as well.

[slay]

52. Farscape was so superior to Lexx in every way that it is to laugh at the foul mouthed fool who

thinks otherwise. :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: Seriously though, Farscape had better writers, better acting, and an all around better storyling. Lexx. Pfft. That's pretty far down on my sci-fi-that-is-awesome list. Farscape forever!!!!

[csziggy]

29. Oh man, I've been trying for weeks to remember the name of that show!

Thanks! And yes, it had a weird ending, but the entire series was weird.

[slay]

26. ANGEL - yes Newhart was good, but Angel was just - WOW

it had it all - love, death, betrayal, or and and giant fucking dragon! The way it was left with them fighting the good fight against insurmountable odds summed up the show in such a powerful way. ANGEL - 5x22: "Not Fade Away". Best Series Finale ever!

[rcrush]

27. I would like to add Forever Knight and Babylon 5 to this list.

You're Welcome!

[fNord]

37. yes Forever Knight had an awesome ending.....

Thank you

[Iggo]

47. Was Forever Knight the Canadian vampire cop?

'Cause that one was good.

[PVnRT]

57. I wish the ending to Season 4 had been the series finale as originally planned

That episode is one of the finest that show ever put out.

[Iggo]

31. Of those listed, Angel.

That was badass. Reminiscent of Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid.

[RFKHumphreyObama]

33. I would say "The West Wing"

But I think they botched that one up big-time by showing the scene with the opening of Bartlet's presidential library which also revealed the fate of the various characters early on in the series. It would have made much more sense as the final scene of the very last episode with Santos opening the presidential library and Bartlet giving a brief and powerful epitaph about his administration.

[6000eliot]

34. How can you top St Elsewhere?

It turned out that the entire series was imagined by an autistic child!

[AngryOldDem]

49. And to my mind...

...that was one of the biggest "fuck yous" to its loyal fans, myself included. That was one of the shittiest series finales ever, but in retrospect, the way that series was going toward the end, it really wasn't all that surprising.

It did some creative things in its day (the dreams episode in comes to mind), but it was really grasping there at the end. I think the producers just didn't know how to end it.

[LostInAnomie]

35. Moral Orel

[Quantess]

36. I actually wasn't crazy about the Six Feet Under ending. It was my least favorite episode.

I just recently watched all 5 seasons consecutively in a few weeks' time. I absolutely loved the entire show, but I thought the last part of the last episode was too much.

Mostly, I was really annoyed that Claire ended up marrying Ted the republican.

The entire series established that everyone is going to die. We know all those characters would die someday. So why spell it out for the viewers?

[LynneSin]

51. I'd like to think Claire had some influence over Ted the Republican

and they didn't marry until she was like 40 or something.

[sarge43]

40. Star Trek: The Next Generation. n/t

[peekaloo]

41. Alan and Denny being married by Scalia on 'Boston Legal'.

The Chinese buyout of the firm was an uncomfortable reminder of things to come. (?)

[carlyhippy]

42. Seinfeld....all the past characters got their payback

The low talker, the soup nazi, Jackie Chiles, the bubble boy, on and on and on

[Bertha Venation]

43. Did you mean to say "Newhart" instead of "The Bob Newhart Show?"

:)

[gmoney]

46. +1

I didn't want to be the first to split that hair.

[SeekerBlue]

45. I like that all these are from the 1970s and 1980s

Ha.

[NJmaverick]

48. Sopranos- Never saw a show piss off more people

:evilgrin:

[LynneSin]

50. For me it will always be "Sex and the City" - Carrie & Mr. Big finally got back together

That Russian was no good for her. Charlotte got her baby, Samatha said "I love you" and Miranda made peace with living in Brooklyn

[meegbear]

53. Is that 'The Bob Newhart Show' or 'Newhart'?

[Va Lefty]

59. Should be Newhart; my bad

[JonLP24]

54. I'll say

The Wire.

It was mostly sad. Even more sad because it was accurate to true life.

[sarge43]

55. Yes and it passed the Ebert test

We do want to know what happened next.

[PVnRT]

56. I liked the ending to Battlestar Gallactica myself

Spoilers, highlight to see.

I especially like how they became our ancestors, instead of actually make present-day humans on Earth the "13th tribe." Plus, any series where a Hendrix song features prominently in the plot is awesome by definition.

[yawnmaster]

58. I really liked the first finale for Magnum...

The finale of the added season, not so much.

[Fire Walk With Me]

60. MASH, Babylon 5, Twin Peaks.

[Fire Walk With Me]

61. MASH, Babylon 5, Twin Peaks.

So nice I had to say it twice.