TV Shows that Ended Well (A thinly-veiled Chuck post-mortem)

[El Pwnz]

Eh, I'm really divided on how I feel about the ending to Chuck. On one hand, it was very sentimental, nostalgic, and did a good job of wrapping things up, albeit in a bittersweet way.

But on the other hand, it was disappointing to not see the team at it's best right before the end. What happened to Sarah ended up ruining all the chemistry that we had come to expect. There was no clever plan to deal with the bad guy, like there was with Shaw or Volkoff. The Jeffster song was amazing, but it wasn't set to anything particularly special. Season 2 had the gunfight at the wedding, and season 3 had the fight in the Buy More. The whole confrontation with the big bad, the final villain of the series, was lacking. Seeing Chuck's Mom again was great, but then she doesn't do anything.

Still, I'm glad the show got to end on it's own terms, and it had a fantastic run.

 

[WaysideMaze]

The British series of Life On Mars ended incredibly well. David Bowie has never sounded so...awesome.

I hated the ending for Life on Mars. I just felt cheated, like nothing was explained.

I know that it was meant to end a bit ambiguously, but I hate that in shows.

Ashes to Ashes, the spin-off, explains it a little better, so I've been told. I've yet to see that though.

I had to stop watching Ashes to Ashes after 2 or 3 episodes because the female lead was just so awful it ruined it for me. The rest of the cast was as solid as ever but they really could have done with someone other than her.

[HEADING=3]THE BAD[/HEADING]
BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER: Whedon did what he could with the final episode, but the damage had been done. The 6th and 7th seasons are disasters, and most of the 7th is borderline unwatchable.

I'd throw season 5 in with that.

Spoiler

A whole season of "WAAAHHH JOYS DEAD!!!"

It should have ended after season 4

 

[Kapol]

Scrubs ended very well. It was both emotional and funny, but my favourite is Monk. It's the only TV show that has ever made me cry and I can promise you all that I was crying through most of the final episode. It's one of those endings where you really feel that something happened and that things are looking good for the future. Scrubs did this too (I count season 9 as a spin-off since the setting is different and almost all characters are gone), but it didn't have the same emotional weight of a series like Monk which has always been a bit sad.

I agree both were really good endings. I also don't really count season 9 as 'season 9' but more as a new series. Honestly, I prefered Scrubs ending personally. It just seemed... right. Like J.D. was finally getting himself together and showing maturity, and by doing so was leaving the place that was like a home to him. And that scene at the end with so many of the characters he'd met was easily one of my top 5 for the series (Hooch IS crazy). And then the way he turned around and saw himself alone just sent it over the top for me, but in a good way. Almost as though it had not only been a way to show his experiences at Sacred Heart, but also to show as he was leaving that through his maturity, he was kind of leaving his fantasies behind too.

Mind you, Monk was much more of an emotional ending. There was some humor, but for the most part it was there to show that Monk's journey was over. And it fit really well for the series too. But if Scrubs had tried something like that, I think it would have seemed out of place and not really true to the series.

 

[Yopaz]

Scrubs ended very well. It was both emotional and funny, but my favourite is Monk. It's the only TV show that has ever made me cry and I can promise you all that I was crying through most of the final episode. It's one of those endings where you really feel that something happened and that things are looking good for the future. Scrubs did this too (I count season 9 as a spin-off since the setting is different and almost all characters are gone), but it didn't have the same emotional weight of a series like Monk which has always been a bit sad.

I agree both were really good endings. I also don't really count season 9 as 'season 9' but more as a new series. Honestly, I prefered Scrubs ending personally. It just seemed... right. Like J.D. was finally getting himself together and showing maturity, and by doing so was leaving the place that was like a home to him. And that scene at the end with so many of the characters he'd met was easily one of my top 5 for the series (Hooch IS crazy). And then the way he turned around and saw himself alone just sent it over the top for me, but in a good way. Almost as though it had not only been a way to show his experiences at Sacred Heart, but also to show as he was leaving that through his maturity, he was kind of leaving his fantasies behind too.

Mind you, Monk was much more of an emotional ending. There was some humor, but for the most part it was there to show that Monk's journey was over. And it fit really well for the series too. But if Scrubs had tried something like that, I think it would have seemed out of place and not really true to the series.

I've never really thought about how Scrubs ended with that kind of complexity, but you're right. It really was a huge milestone in J.D.'s life and him looking into what the future might give was a great touch. When I picked Monk as my favourite I chose that because it spiked more emotion, but then again Monk always was more serious with touches of humour. One of the reasons I love the ending of Monk is probably that both Monk and Randy get to be happy. Randy is one of my favourite characters from a TV show because he's funny, but most importantly because he's always struck by bad luck, but never lets that get him down.

Both these endings are great and picking one over the other is a hard choice. If I could forget I ever watched any of these series just so I could get to watch them all over again I would do it in a heartbeat.

 

[Seventh Actuality]

What, page two and no Daria? That's the only show I can think of with the distinction of ending well twice...the last regular episode was an understated and emotional wrap-up of the themes and the main character's development, then they went and did a TV movie that served as more of a grand finale for tying up loose ends. And it, also, was awesome.

 

[Avatar Roku]

First 2 things to come to mind were The Wire and Avatar: The Last Airbender. The Wire ends on a bittersweet note; Marlo is forced to go legit forever, but he never got a real comeuppance. McNulty and Lester are thrown off the police force after doing what they had to do, but said actions let them get rid of Marlo in the first place. We have the next generation of Omars and Bubbles and we see that the game continues. Hell, the only character who actually got an unambiguously good ending was Bubbles, after finally getting clean.

It probably sounds like I'm criticizing, but I'm really not. It fit with the tone of the show so well, anything more happy would have felt like an asspull.

As for Avatar, there was a bit of Deus Ex Machina, and the writing was just generally less good than in season 2, but we still got some epic fights and closure. Plus, Suki was made a member of the Gaang just before the ending, so that's cool.

 

[Vigormortis]

Star Trek: The Next Generation had a great send-off with its final episode. It was a heartfelt ending to one of the best sci-fi shows in television history.

Ed Edd n Eddy! It had 140 episodes 4 specials and ended with a movie on a very cheerful note! Loved it as a child and still love it now!

I was about to list a few shows that had good endings, but you two just went ahead and ninja'd me on what were probably going to be some of my top picks.

God, I loved those endings. The writers of both shows just nailed it. The perfect way to end them. Nothing crazy. Nothing flashy. Just a touching, heart-felt, "average day but with a twist" scene with all the characters, in a round about way, contemplating all that's come to pass, and leaving the viewers with closure.

Watching them now not only fills me with a strong sense of nostalgia, but still puts a smile on my face. Love it.

The only other show that comes to mind at the moment is Reboot. That too had a fantastic ending.

 

[Guffe]

Friends.
Yes the old series about 6 friends being through loads of strange stuff over the years.
I like the series and I think it was a proper ending to the series they made.

 

[GonzoGamer]

Cowboy Bebop: so sad, yet so badass.
I didn't know if I wanted to weep or get in a fight...it basically gave me pms. I will never forgive it for that but I will never forget it either.

 

[viranimus]

Hrm... to no surprise a mention of end and tv, of course the public cannot miss the opportunity to remind everyone how the simpsons needed to die in 1990 /eyeroll.

Anyway. One of the best endings to a show I saw was to a failed little show called Happy Town. Most people would not recognize it but it had a surprisingly solid ensemble cast for a summer replacement series, featuring Amy Acker from Joss Whedon fame, Abraham Benrubi from Parker lewis and ER,Steven Weber from wings as well as Sam Neill from all sorts of things. The show was not particularly original but it had just enough interest and soap opery twist for a summer replacement show. It only lasted 8 episodes but I cannot remember a show that was cut so short, that ended things so concisely with closure fully in tact, while keeping the door wide open for a hopeful future that never materialized. Had the show been a fall premire, or given half a chance on a different network it would have likely done quite well.

I will give my nod of approval for the Galactica ending. I thought the whole the end is the begining is the end sort of ending was quite fitting, buuut, what baffles me is how people seemingly dont like it because there is religious context in the ending as if the mere presence of religion somehow negates the quality of the ending.

One of the WORST endings I can think of was Stargate Universe. Granted the show was cancelled and in essence failed, but the problem is the producers knew the show was cancelled and allowed to finish the remaining season. They promised an ending of closure, yet... closed the series on a massive cliffhanger they in turn promised would get resolved with a direct to dvd film that never materialized.


Now... I will go all clairvoyant here and claim the next tragic series ending will be that of Fringe. I still enjoy the show, but the ratings are the worst they have ever been, and far too low for fox. The problem is, that fox wont cancel the show outright. They simply will not renew the show after the end of this season. So. the show runners trying to make the best show they can will try to give reasons for people return next season leaving the shows hiatus on a cliffhanger, that will never get resolved. I really dont see the show getting renewed. I dont see the producers trying to give any closure to the fans at the end of this season, which will end in massive dissapointment.

 

[Doneeee]

Monk. Oh god I loved that show so much and the finale brought everything full circle. It was heartfelt and really satisfying making you think that the characters have a bright future. Ah I miss that show. God bless Tony Shaloub.
edit:It seems some other people have already mentioned monk

 

[Aur0ra145]

MASH had a great one. Lost was good, but it made me rewatch the entire show. Cowboy Bebop was also quite entertaining. Generation Kill had a good ending, even if it wasn't super badass or anything. Band of Brother had an appropriate ending. Even Tour of Duty has a pretty good ending, though the whole SOG thing was sorta dumb.

 

[WaysideMaze]

Now... I will go all clairvoyant here and claim the next tragic series ending will be that of Fringe. I still enjoy the show, but the ratings are the worst they have ever been, and far too low for fox. The problem is, that fox wont cancel the show outright. They simply will not renew the show after the end of this season. So. the show runners trying to make the best show they can will try to give reasons for people return next season leaving the shows hiatus on a cliffhanger, that will never get resolved. I really dont see the show getting renewed. I dont see the producers trying to give any closure to the fans at the end of this season, which will end in massive dissapointment.

I can't emphasize enough how wrong I hope you are, but yeah it does look like things are heading that way.

There's so much that I feel needs to be answered though! I really would like it to have a proper ending. At least tell us who The Observer is!

 

[BloatedGuppy]

First 2 things to come to mind were The Wire and Avatar: The Last Airbender. The Wire ends on a bittersweet note; Marlo is forced to go legit forever, but he never got a real comeuppance. McNulty and Lester are thrown off the police force after doing what they had to do, but said actions let them get rid of Marlo in the first place. We have the next generation of Omars and Bubbles and we see that the game continues. Hell, the only character who actually got an unambiguously good ending was Bubbles, after finally getting clean.

Carver and Cutty have generally positive arcs as well.

 

[DustyDrB]

First 2 things to come to mind were The Wire and Avatar: The Last Airbender. The Wire ends on a bittersweet note; Marlo is forced to go legit forever, but he never got a real comeuppance. McNulty and Lester are thrown off the police force after doing what they had to do, but said actions let them get rid of Marlo in the first place. We have the next generation of Omars and Bubbles and we see that the game continues. Hell, the only character who actually got an unambiguously good ending was Bubbles, after finally getting clean.

Carver and Cutty have generally positive arcs as well.

As do Daniels and Namond.
A good many characters got a decent ending in The Wire. The ones that didn't just really had it bad. And some of the people who don't deserve it (Marlo Stanfield) got off easy.

Lost had a fantastic ending.

Chuck's was very good as well; I was surprised, actually, that they were so ballsy with it. Talk about bittersweet.

And it doesn't strictly count, but the end of Michael Scott's era in The Office was brilliant

I wish the show ended either with the episode in which he proposed to Holly, or his final episode. I finally quit watching The US Office this year. Those first three seasons were something special, though.

 

[Ectoplasmicz]

The British series of Life On Mars ended incredibly well. David Bowie has never sounded so...awesome.

This a million times. The whole lead up to it, the whole damned show, everything was great.

One of my favourite series ever, and the ending is a BIG reason for that!

 

[Launcelot111]

It should have ended after season 4

I'd go one further and say it should have ended after season 3. We get all the good Faith and Angel parts and we get Spike still as his funner criminal self and we get the Mayor and end with the high school blowing up. That's perfect. No Riley (this is essential to me), no Dawn, no weird Buffy/Spike love, no supervillain Warren crap, and no Season 7. We'd miss Anya and a few great episodes, but it would be a worthwhile sacrifice in my mind.

Back on topic, my personal favorite finale is Friday Night Lights. Runner ups go to Reaper (even if it wasn't a planned finale), Arrested Development (it was Annyong the whole time), and Garth Marenghi's Darkplace

Chuck's finale way very middle of the pack for me. I liked some of the throwback references, but the plot and the general existence of much of the supporting cast brought me down. Battlestar Galactica and Lost were both just absolute trash finales

 

[CommanderL]

I am going to say chuck stargate atlantis even though it got cancelled the final ep of them returning to earth with atlantis and watching the sun set and the 4400 again cancelled but the clif hanger ended with a sign of hope

 

[ph0b0s123]

Generally it is down to how much notice the show is given that it is going to be canceled. Normally shows that end baldy is due to them not knowning untill it is too late that the axe is failling. I think studios have responsibility to end shows well, that have managed more than 1 or 2 seasons, rather than pulling the rug from under.