TV series with the most disappointing ending?

[ABrown]

I'm one of the few people that was ok with the How I Met Your Mother finale. I thought it made sense.

To answer the question though, the tv series that I was probably most disappointed with its finale is Buffy the Vampire Slayer's spinoff Angel. Literally no resolution to the story at all.

[CyberCubed]

Originally Posted by ABrown

I
To answer the question though, the tv series that I was probably most disappointed with its finale is Buffy the Vampire Slayer's spinoff Angel. Literally no resolution to the story at all.

That was done purposely though. The ending of Angel was supposed to be, "the eternal fight that never ends." That's why Buffy ending on an uplifting note and Angel ended with him, Spike, and Illya fighting a horde of demons.

Anyway if you count the comics you know they all survived that encounter.

[ZariusTwo]

Originally Posted by CyberCubed

That was done purposely though. The ending of Angel was supposed to be, "the eternal fight that never ends." That's why Buffy ending on an uplifting note and Angel ended with him, Spike, and Illya fighting a horde of demons.

Anyway if you count the comics you know they all survived that encounter.

The comics have conflicting accounts of what happened afterwards...in the Buffy continuation, Angel was a well-intentioned big bad who got Giles killed.

[oldmanwinters]

I didn't think anybody ever complained about the M.A.S.H. ending being a disappointment. It made television history, and I think it has a very memorable final scene, so why is it even on this poll?

Originally Posted by mrmaczaps

and add, Quantum Leap. Sam leaps into himself as an adult at the exact moment of his birth and basically revisits actors who played different characters all through the series & then gets a fade to black with text that Al gets the good life while Sam is stuck leaping alone through time, never coming home. One of the few series that could restart with a female lead (Sammie Jo, Sam's daughter) leaping to find her dad and for some reason hasn't... Oh well.

I never really found the episode itself to be bad, the hastily added text overlay about "Dr. Beckett never returned home" doesn't really gel with the message the episode is trying to say (i.e. take a Sabbatical now and then). I read somewhere it was just a studio/network decision to make it fell more like a series finale even though the show's creative team had plans to keep doing episodes and building off that last season.

I suppose it would be as ridiculous of any show that just cancelled/non-renewed and the TV execs decided to throw a message onto the end that says "This was the last one, folks. Nobody ever got what they really wanted. Thanks for watching."

[mrmaczaps]

Originally Posted by oldmanwinters

I didn't think anybody ever complained about the M.A.S.H. ending being a disappointment. It made television history, and I think it has a very memorable final scene, so why is it even on this poll?



I never really found the episode itself to be bad, the hastily added text overlay about "Dr. Beckett never returned home" doesn't really gel with the message the episode is trying to say (i.e. take a Sabbatical now and then). I read somewhere it was just a studio/network decision to make it fell more like a series finale even though the show's creative team had plans to keep doing episodes and building off that last season.

I suppose it would be as ridiculous of any show that just cancelled/non-renewed and the TV execs decided to throw a message onto the end that says "This was the last one, folks. Nobody ever got what they really wanted. Thanks for watching."

Yeah, pretty much all I read of it over the years since was that it was last minute cancelled and thats why as the writers intended to go more crazy sci fi with aliens or something & go to the future (which would be weird, cuz Sam could technically go anywhere if he is leaping through time to the future because he lifetime would not then be linear..) and there was an alternate ending (or two) out there but never filmed (that I've been able to find anyways). Al's Place (website) had a ton of fanfic done to wrap storyline plots & continue with other untouched things. They continued with Alia's story too and Zoey leaping... With NCIS NO ending, they could get Scott to do a bit part intro & film his finale scene (if he doesn't want to stay on) and get a new cast to start a new Quantum Leap series. Maybe call up Dean Stockwell for a bit part too since he doesn't look so well these days, before its too late.

And the MASH ending was perfect. The show outlasted the war by a few years... Used to watch that with my dad. The finale actually made him tear up a bit.

[neatoman]

Wouldn't just about any show that wasn't renewed despite clearly leaving plot threads open for another season count?

[Prowler]

Originally Posted by ABrown

I'm one of the few people that was ok with the How I Met Your Mother finale. I thought it made sense.

To answer the question though, the tv series that I was probably most disappointed with its finale is Buffy the Vampire Slayer's spinoff Angel. Literally no resolution to the story at all.

I've watched some of the earlier How I Met Your Mother episodes and I don't get why the series was so popular and went in for several years. It's not particularly funny. The only character that's somewhat funny is Barney.

Also, why such a long comedy show with thelat kind of premise? Did they just reveal who the mother was in the final episode?

Also, I dunno if thr writers kept doing that in later seasons but they seemed to not be able to make up their kinds whether Ted liked Robin or not. It became annoying. Might as well have made her the mother.

Originally Posted by neatoman

Wouldn't just about any show that wasn't renewed despite clearly leaving plot threads open for another season count?

I suppose. I'm still mad at Tru Calling getting cancelled lmao.

I think a show like Seinfeld should have ended on a random episode. Or maybe at the end of season 7 where Susan, George's fiance, dies. That would have been fitting for a final episode.

[ZariusTwo]

Originally Posted by oldmanwinters

I read somewhere it was just a studio/network decision to make it fell more like a series finale even though the show's creative team had plans to keep doing episodes and building off that last season.

[mrmaczaps]

Originally Posted by ZariusTwo

That ending would have been better than just the fade to black and text... but the Sam talking to Beth also changes the ending of the MIA episode's ending because he was technically already there and outside & Beth was dancing unknowingly with Al as a hologram... The other thing that would work is that Al had 4 girls, so the show could have 2 women leads and it would actually make sense in a way if both Dean & Scott can't or won't come back full time... Course it would be fun with all four of them leading the show, which also fits making it a team thing.

We get a lost Sam Beckett, Al leaps looking for him since he listened to Sam at the end of Mirror Image when Sam basically says he himself is leaping him life to life... so Al leaps thinking "find Sam!!" and off he goes... first episode around that, ends with Al leaping & Sammy Jo & one of Al's daughter going "oooooh shhhh¡t!" And the wives can be in it too... give Ziggy an upgrade so he can support two leapers and if need be, 2 holograms.

Plus you have like 21 years of fanfic to borrow from for story ideas. Can throw in some real world events from the last 2 decades if they stay within his lifetime... if Dean & Scott don't want to stay on forever, just have them film finding each other and/or returning home but the shoe can keep going with the girls.

[Andrew NDB]

Originally Posted by neatoman

Wouldn't just about any show that wasn't renewed despite clearly leaving plot threads open for another season count?

No, I intentionally didn't include those because that isn't fair. Those are "bad series finales" by no fault of their own, because they intended to do more. I only included Stargate Atlantis, for example, because they did have time to quickly create some kind of a series finale.

[joe-eyeball]

Might as well add Shameless to the list. It sucked!

[ChosenOne]

Originally Posted by ZariusTwo

The comics have conflicting accounts of what happened afterwards...in the Buffy continuation, Angel was a well-intentioned big bad who got Giles killed.

So the Twilight arc and After the Fall can't co-exist in canon? Genuinely curious, I have no idea.

Originally Posted by joe-eyeball

Might as well add Shameless to the list. It sucked!

Definitely Shameless! The Sopranos hurt like hell when it ended, but I have no qualms with the finale other than the fact that one had to happen. Seinfeld... Eh. It was weak, but not entirely inappropriate. Now Shameless, though... **** that noise.