Best and Worst Series Finales

[AstroManLuca]

wasn't TNG finale just a masturbatory clip show? I remember little about that final episode and I watched it fairly recently.

No.

The last episode of TNG season 2 was a clip show (there was a writer's strike that year).

 

[GagHalfrunt]

Buffy had probably the best because despite the show running for so long it tied up the loose ends and the hero actually escaped her destiny.

Except for the deus ex machina of the magic axe that turned them all to slayers.

In a show about vampires, werewolves, demons, slayers, evil gods and magic spells powerful enough to resurrect the dead there is no such thing as deus ex machina.

 

[darkewaffle]

I don't know if I count Twin Peaks or not. It wasn't so much the ending but rather the show was discontinued before so much was cleared up. Though in a town like Twin Peaks, "cleared up" might have never happened anyway lol.

House finale was a little contrived/crazy and I wish that

Spoiler

Cuddy had returned, if only for a funeral appearance. She needed to be there imo.

 

[TridenT]

Lost was difficult. It was even more so if you were really invested in the sci-fi/fantasy aspects of it (Which is what made a lot of it really interesting). Also, the writers lied and jerked people around a lot. (They publicly said it wasn't X but it was that completely... Just lots of bullshit like that.)

There were a lot of good things with the show but they couldn't ever explain any of the shit going on... I think they never explained it because they simply couldn't. They didn't know how to. They were just like, "Let's throw in this magical plot device without any explanation."

 

[Gooberlx2]

You can place Jericho in the "awful" category, though you can chalk that up to the writers strike, which also killed a number of other good shows.

 

[Gooberlx2]

6. Battlestar Galactica (new series)

Definitely a controversial one. I've seen it in two bests and one worst in this thread already.

I call it satisfactory. I'm not a big fan of the spiritual angle they went with in the last season, but at least the finale wrapped things up (for the most part anyway) and kept with the theme.

 

[tokie]

Dexter finale is surely the worst of all time.

 

[Printer Bandit]

LOST was the best of all time.

it took a while and some deep soul searching to realize this.

 

[GagHalfrunt]

Dexter finale is surely the worst of all time.

I just finished watching the Dexter finale that recorded last night. It instantly jumps into the top 5 worst all-time and has a legit claim to being #1. What a pathetic cop-out. Dexter should have ended at least 2 years ago with Deb finding out who Dexter was and either killing or arresting him. The last couple of seasons have been silly and have tarnished the legacy of what used to be a truly brilliant show.

 

[Aikouka]

Best:
Six Feet Under

That series was starting to get really bad at the end, but damn... it's hard not to tear up during the finale (really the last few minutes). :'(

Worst:
BSG

Hmm I still haven't finished season 4 of BSG, because I just grew somewhat disinterested. Although, the opinion on the ending seems to be rather divided, so I'm tempted to pick it back up.

One of the most disappointing shows for me in recent memory is Burn Notice. What started as a fun show about a spy using his talents to help people (think modern A-Team) turned into a dark boring mess in the final two seasons. The series finale was complete crap, and the only saving grace is a possible spin-off (going back to the roots of helping people ) with Bruce Campbell.

I think I stopped watching Burn Notice last season, which was a bummer because I really enjoyed the show before that. I also enjoyed the episodic nature of it, but I tend to enjoy that more than long, sweeping arcs. I was the same way with Fringe as I think I was one of the few that preferred the Science Oddity of the Week format that season one relied heavily on.

 

[Karl Agathon]

Worst:

Forever Knight - I still have such a soft spot in my heart for that show.

Stargate Atlantis - I feel that it was way to rushed.

Stargate Atlantis - it should have been given a chance to make a proper ending.

Star Trek Voyager: Admiral Paris should have been told he had a granddaughter before the show faded to black.

Best:

Battlestar Galactica (new version) I know some people didn't like the ending. I have a few nit picks with it too (especially them destroying all their tech) Overall though, I though it was decent enough. Watching the last half an hour or so, with Bear McCreary's emotional score playing in the background really effected me. Those poor people, starting over on a savage predator laced Earth.

 

[MotionMan]

I think the best had to have been Newhart. All other shows wished they could pull off such a great ending.

I also liked the finales of MASH (my favorite show of all time), St. Elsewhere and ST:Voyager

The worst has to be Lost - I was very into Lost for a first three seasons, but then "lost" interest. Last year I watched the rest of the show on Netflix and found the ending a complete rip-off. In fact, the last season, if not more, was crap.

Seinfeld, Friends, Quantum Leap and Cheers also are near the top of my "worst finale" list.

The ST:Next Generation finale was OK, but, since I HATED every Q episode, it was a little spoiled for me from the start.

MotionMan

 

[Murloc]

I saw the dexter finale today.
I think it was too anticlimactic, nothing memorable about it, they basically killed/sent away all people and resetted him to the usual lonely killer situation like they did every time an arch story finished.

 

[SolMiester]

Obscure best choice: Quantum Leap.

I remember that show, what was the ending?, did he make it home?

 

[Imp]

Lost is on my "best" list. Can't think of any other show with that much closure. Not kidding.

 

[Whisper]

I remember that show, what was the ending?, did he make it home?

If I'm remembering correctly (which is a stretch, considering it's been over a decade since I've watched it):

Spoiler

I think the last episode had him essentially realizing and/or being told that he could control his own leaps, although I believe there might've been some text saying he never got back home.

 

[SheHateMe]

Best: LOST
Worst: The Sopranos

... lol TBH, the ending to Sopranos pissed me off more than Dexter.

But, Dexter has been a shit show for the past 4 seasons anyway.

 

[UglyCasanova]

I put the Lost ending in the middle, not worst or best. Just was.

I liked the ending of Generation Kill if that counts as a series.

 

[BUTCH1]

Seinfeld x1000000000

My favorite show but what a retarded ending

You aint kidding, it sucked but I forgive Jerry and the gang for so many awesome years they gave us. The best, Cheers, hands down..

 

[darkxshade]

Six Feet Under and The Wire both had very artistic and stylistic ending sequences that stuck with me that no other show have been able to accomplish... unless of course Band of Brothers count than I know of three though BoB was a different kind of ending that just gave me closure.

 

[Childs]

Obscure best choice: Quantum Leap.

Thats a good choice. If I remember it correctly, it explained why he was leaping, why he would continue to leap, and why we don't need to watch it anymore.

Good: I like SG1 and Voyager's series finales. Life was pretty damn cool...surprised we never get to see such a simple yet effective solution to an antagonist. If there are no more Luther episodes, it went out well. The Shield was pretty good, although I wish he got his comeuppance. Friday Night Lights was pretty good. I liked how they brought the original cast back over the last few episodes.

Bad: Highlander TV series had a somewhat disappointing finale. They had such great villains over the years, and the finale was basically a rehash of the Kalas story that they did a few years earlier. BSG was a let down as well. Lost's finale just sucked ass. Its rare that a series gets a good finale, cause if you're been watching it for years its almost impossible to satisfy everyone. And usually the creators are making it up as they go along, so they write themselves in a corner with no good way out.

 

[Insomniator]

Star Trek Voyager: Admiral Paris should have been told he had a granddaughter before the show faded to black.

What do you mean? I just don't remember much of that series anymore...

The ST:Next Generation finale was OK, but, since I HATED every Q episode, it was a little spoiled for me from the start.
MotionMan

Wow... after the Borg, Q is probably my favorite aspect of ST until Voyager ruined both.

 

[MotionMan]

Wow... after the Borg, Q is probably my favorite aspect of ST until Voyager ruined both.

Q became as cheap as a gimmick as time travel. Ironically, the finale had both.

MotionMan

 

[Pardus]

Dexter finale is surely the worst of all time.

Dexter's ending was a complete insult to what was a pretty good drama series. Showtime seems to have forgotten it's the fans/viewers who pay a monthly fee to watch there programming

I personally only watched Season 1,3 and 4 and 6 but it did seem like they were importing serial murders and that Miami Metro was run by complete morons.

The fact that Dexter was able to remove his sister from life support and take her dead body out of the hospital without anyone knowing is complete non-sense.

Then after Dexter fakes his own death, his killer girlfriend Hanna will now have to raise Harrison who most likely will grow up to be a killer as well.

Then Showtime wants us to believe Dexter winds up as a lumberjack leaving behind everyone he knows including his son.

From what I read Showtime ended it like this so they could either have Dexter to return in another series or do movies later on.

After the Sopranos fading to black, i'm not expecting much from tv drama series anymore. I hope everyone cancels there Showtime subscription, the best way to voice your option is to hit these morons in there pocket.

 

[Cuda1447]

I really liked the ending to Spartacus.