HBO's The Wire — many a critic's pick for the best show ever on television — will end its series on Sunday after five gut-wrenching and unabashedly bleak seasons. I sped through all the early seasons on DVD so I could be caught up in time for the finale, but now that it's here, I'm looking at Sunday with equal amounts of excitement and dread. While the show's only been part of my life for a short while, I have a hard time with the fact that it will just end.
I remember feeling the same thing when another great HBO series, Six Feet Under, ended its run in 2005; I believe its ending was utterly perfect, but even thinking about it can make me cry. There's just a special, can't-miss quality to a series finale: The BBC version of The Office needed a couple of specials to wrap up its story, and the 1983 series finale of M*A*S*H is still the most-watched US TV program of all-time.
So tell me, Buzz readers: Which favorite series have you hated to see go? Which could have wrapped up better than they did? Which got the endings they deserved?
Pinko
Buti
Woolrich
Six Feet Under, although I've never seen a more perfect finale.
1I agree with Six Feet Under. Greatness. When it was done, it was done.
Sex and the city. At least we get a reunion of sorts this May!
And my all time favorite... Beverly Hills 90210. I still watch it twice a day on SoapNet and will never give up hope of a reunion. I want to see Kelly and Dylan married with kids!
As for current shows I don't ever want to end...LOST and Dexter. I dread those days already!
2i loved alias- i could have kept watching that! and of course satc
3VERONICA MARS!!!!! I absolutley loved and adored that show...such good writing, great actors...great show overall. I hate that it was cancelled, and since the writers didn't get proper notice, we only got what was supposed to be a season finale instead of a final episode. UGH made me so angry!! I need a movie to wrap things up...but alas, I most likely will not get my wish.
4Six Feet Under and Arrested Development. Six Feet Under went out on a high note. I so love that show. And Arrested Development should still be on.
I guess I need to go add The Wire to my Netflix now.
5Firefly.
6Wonderfalls.
Battlestar Galactica.
Dead Like Me.
Sex and the City's last episode made me very sad. At least we're getting a movie, which I hope will be awesome.
7I'm still not over My So-Called Life ending WAY too early--and it was never given a proper finale. I also hated to see Felicity end--and I did not like how it did those back in the past episodes at all! I still remember being so sad when Dawson's Creek and Friends ended
And The
OC's life was also WAY TOO SHORT!
8I do NOT miss Sex and the City. I found it vapid, self-indulgent and annoying. Unfortunately, such is the state of things today. Consequently, I find most of the shows on television, as well as many of the people who watch them, vapid, self-indulgent and annoying.
Six Feet Under was an amazing show. It's a shame that most television isn't similarly executed.
9There's so many shows that I wish were still going on. It would take me forever to list them.
I think the worst ending ever to a show was Roseanne. My So Called Life was one that ended so abruptly and it left a lot of questions unanswered. That was frustrating.
10I couldn't agree with you more about Six Feet Under. Perfect finale. I blubbered all the way through it and had to watch it again because I missed half of it. I miss the Fishers.
11Buffy! I will always miss that show.
12Right now I'm scared that October Road won't make it, that show is sooo good but usually shows that I like that have trouble finding an audience get cancelled. It's definitely one of those shows that just gets better and better.
DON'T TELL ME WHAT HAPPENED IN THE SIX FEET UNDER FINALE! We're halfway through it on Netflix now, don't spoil it!!
Okay. I think Roseanne had a horrible ending, as did My So-Called Life (although that was more of a non-ending). The Seinfeld finale wasn't awful, but it was disappointing. Although it was such an iconic show that any ending would've been disappointing.
I kind of dug the Buffy series finale but the entire final season leading up to it was disappointing as well. I was a HUGE Buffy nerd so I was glad it ended well, at least.
I hated the SATC ending as well. I still don't trust Big.
And the Friends ending...
As far as good endings go, the Wonder Years finale was good. And the Newhart finale was AWESOME.
13Oh, the Oz series finale was pretty cool, too.
14Whip, i agree about Buffy and Oz. Buffy was the only show i was into 'growing up'. There was a show called Cold Feet which i was sad to see end but they'd killed off my fave character anyway so it wouldn't have been the same...
15Six Feet Under. Best finale ever, but I could have watched that show forever.
Sex and the City, although I'll get a little fix with movie.
News Radio, although without Phil Hartman, it wasn't the same. I feel 30 Rock is a good substitute.
16Oh, and I am LOVING Friday Night Lights, hope the rumors aren't true and that there's more to come. Finally, a great show instead of all the game show/reality crap on NBC and they want to kill it?
17Gilmore Girls!
18I'm a big Joss Whedon fan so the ending of all two of his series - Buffy and Angel. Both finales were fantastic but heartwrenching - fitting send offs for 2 great shows.
Veronica Mars was another one...although that one got cancelled after they shot the season finale - so they never really got to "end" that one.
I still miss the feeling I used to have of anticipating each new episode of all of those shows. I don't think I'll ever be that into a show again.
Other shows: Firefly (although Firefly didn't even have a full season and I only got into it after it was over but the fact that it ended so soon...NOT cool) and I have to agree about MASH. I wasn't around when the majority of it was on but loved it through re-runs and think it's finale was justifiably one of the best TV will ever see.
19Veronica Mars
20Gilmore Girls
Sex and the City
Friends
Dead Like Me
Funny that you mention The Wire in this post because that is what I would say I hate to see go the most!
Its been one of the only shows on the boob tube that has been worth a sh*t for the past 5 years.
Without it, what else is there?
The fact that The Wire has been so unrecognized and shows like Desperate Housewives receive so much attention says OH SO MUCH about our country, I would say!
21o yea i miss gilmore girls! but i thought they ended it ok.
22The Soprano's.
23Six Feet Under was such an amazing show! My boyfriend and I watched the entire series through Netflix and got so into it that we were going through at least a disc per day if not more... And we would catch ourselves talking about the characters as if we really knew them. When we finally finished it I went through a post-Six-Feet depression for like a week! I missed the characters so much! But the finally was pretty good at tying up all the potential loose ends...
24Arrested Development!!!
I get a little upset that one day my love for The Office will have to end - hopefully not for a few more years though.
25Felicity is another one that I really miss... the ending was strange (time travel?!) but over all pretty satisfying...
26The ones I've found I still miss the most are:
The Dead Zone
The 4400
Third Watch
Crossing Jordan
Judging Amy
Law and Order: Trial By Jury
Conviction
Blood Ties (though I'm still holding on to the ever-diminishing possibility that a Canadian network will pick it up - since it is a Canadian show - and that it'll eventually make its way down here to the states again)
I was really sad to see Charmed end, but at the same time, I could *really* have done without the last season. But the final episode was really well done, especially when we got to hear about what happened to the girls, their kids, and even got to see Piper's granddaughter. That was nicely done.
Ones I'm going to REALLY hate to see if they don't come back now that the strike is over (or don't get renewed for a 2nd season, for that matter):
Moonlight
Women's Murder Club
And last, but not least, the ones that will just break my heart when they go - as long as they're still as good then as they are now (and I'm pretty sure they will be...)
Law and Order
27Law and Order: Special Victims Unit
Law and Order: Criminal Intent
SIX FEET UNDER!
We just finished the last season after borrowing it from a friend---LOVED the ending, but so sad that it's over!
28I don't think I will ever get over Veronica Mars ending, best show on television. If they cancel FNL, I will be in the same boat!
29good call folks on the my so called life....
i thought seinfeld's end could have been a bit better but i still love...
i was sad to see cheers go....
30The Office UK and Sex and the City
31oh, and My So-Called Life
32I am definitely still bitter about Veronica Mars, and see I'm not alone!
It seems all my favorites get abruptly canceled:
Firefly
Dead Like Me
Kitchen Confidential
Six Degrees (What is up with that? It was crazy good!)
Carnivale
I'm just waiting for my favorite little shows on the CW and USA to get the ax. Because I like them so much, cancellation must be inevitable!
33Arrested Development, my so called life, friends, sex and the city. fraiser!!! i miss my shows! the dawson's finale was really sad too even though i hadden watched in a while
34Conviction. I still miss Conviction, that was a great show. Oooh and Committed.
35I loooooooooooved Six Feet Under. I cried through the whole finale too...perfect ending. Makes me wanna Netflix the whole series again just thinking about it!
Freaks and Geeks-I'm still bitter.
I was sad to see SATC go, but I felt it was time.
Oh yeah and Wonder Years...that was a great finale as well.
36Veronica Mars
37Arrested Development
Undeclared
veronica mars - i feel so ripped off with the "ending" they gave us!! come on, give us a few more years...but then, i think there might be a movie in the works?!
battlestar galactica is ending this year, and although I LOVE it, i think it is time. Sci-fi shows should really only last so long before they get repetative and boring.
Firefly - They could have done so much with it and kept it going for another 2 or 3 years i think just based on storylines they already started. I' mglad there's a movie which shows a bit more of the characters, at least.
Seinfeld - i think the ending could have been better. I don't know how much longer they should/could have dragged that show on for, though...
sex and the city i think had a great ending. i am sad that it was only on for 6 years but the storylines are full and of course there is the movie coming out soon (yay!).
six feet under - i really liked the cheesy ending of the series, and think it ended at the right time, but somehow i still wish there were more episodes... oh, and buckley9383 - my roommie and i went through the discs about that quickly, too! what a delightfully addictive show!
i loved gilmore girls (apart from that season when Rory dropped out of school. it seemed like a different (sucky) show) - and i think the ending came at a good time.
38Six Feet Under has the most beautiful finale i've never seen!
39• Arrested Development
40• My So Called Life
• Popular
• American Dreams
dead like me
41Veronica Mars just about killed me. Although the last episode wasn't meant to be a series finale, I've heard it said that it was appropiately fitting for the dark show. And after a few months, I was able to convince myself that that was true. But man, when I think about how amazing it could have been if Rob Thomas was just given the opportunity to wrap it up, the way he envisioned... Maybe someday?!
42Six Feet Under... although I'm content to watch my SFU boxset DVDs over and over and over again.
43Also I miss Daria!!! And they, for some stupid reason, STILL don't have a Daria DVD set.
I'm not TV person (been w/out for 3 years now) but I LOVE Netflix.
The show I find myself wishing *Gee, I wish I could see something new with these characters* is without a doubt Firefly. The movie was great, but the show! Oh that show was amazing! And I usually don't like sci-fi! This is the first TV show I actually purchased because it was so wonderful.
You know a show shouldn't have ended when even the ACTORS don't want it to end, and not just because they'll be out a job. I can't believe they didn't even air the final episodes and never gave it a proper send-off, because the movie didn't really accomplish that (not that it intended to).
I want to see the Serenity crew again! And I want Inara's dresses!!!
44Freaks and Geeks was a great show.
The show I miss to this day, though, is Northern Exposure. The song "Our Town" by Iris Dement, played during the finale, is still one of my favorites.
45All of my favorite shows didn't end necessarily the way I wanted it to - Friends, Gilmore Girls - but I liked the finales to Charmed and Sex and the City.
46For the two above who mentioned Conviction... yes! I was so saddened when it didn't get renewed. It was nice to see the different side of the whole L&O train. Plus, Peluso and Finn were just realizing that they're perfect for each other. *le sigh*
47i cried and bawled when i saw the finale of friends....its like i was gonna miss hanging with them HAHAHAHA pathetic
i still watch it everyday, never siezes to CRACK ME UP!!!
and Sex and the City was fun, cant wait for the movie =)
48Dead Like Me, My So Called Life, Undeclared all ended waaaay too soon. I wish Felicity was still on though even though I think it ended well. I just miss it so much
49Arrested Development should have gone on WAY more than three seasons!!! I really hope they make the movie!
Friends needed to end, it couldnt go on that much longer, but it was still SOO sad to see it end!
the Gilmore Girls finale could have been WAYYYY better!!!
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