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BuzzFeed

27 Sitcom Moments That Were Shockingly Dark

BuzzFeed
6 min read

We asked the BuzzFeed Community to tell us about the unexpectedly dark sitcom moments that shocked them. Here are some of the best responses:

?? Warning: Spoilers ahead!!! ??

Note: Some of the following contain mentions of suicide, sexual assault, pedophilia, racism, and other sensitive topics.

1.First, on 8 Simple Rules, when Paul unexpectedly died.

character getting a phone call with the news of Paul's death

(The character's death was written into the show after the actor, John Ritter, died in real life.)

"That episode broke me."

—katerumtruffle

ABC

Here's the full scene:

2.On Scrubs, when Dr. Cox realized that Ben had actually died.

two characters at a cemetery

"'Where do you think we are?' gets me every time."

—hermannjingo

ABC

Here's the full scene:

3.On The Golden Girls, when Rose found out she might have HIV/AIDS.

Blanche telling Rose that AIDS is. not a bad person's disease

"It showed how terrified Rose was and the stigma around it. Also, Blanche gave an amazing speech about how it isn't a 'bad person's disease.'"

—nattyiscool

NBC

Here's the full scene:

4.On Black-ish, when Rainbow experienced a life-threatening pregnancy complication, leading to her giving birth prematurely.

The nurse telling Rainbow that they might have to induce the pregnancy already

"The episode means a lot to me. Everything about the way the show handles the whole thing is so, so right, and so gut-wrenching. It's painful to watch, but I am so grateful that they made the episode."

—fennip

ABC

Here's the trailer for the episode ("Sprinkles," Season 3, Episode 24):

5.On Boy Meets World, when Shawn nearly joined a cult, and then Mr. Turner got into a motorcycle accident — all in the same episode.

<div><p>"That scene in the hospital with Shawn begging Mr. Turner to stay makes me ugly cry every single time."</p><p>—<a href="https://www.buzzfeed.com/rebelyell98" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:rebelyell98;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">rebelyell98</a></p></div><span> ABC</span>

"That scene in the hospital with Shawn begging Mr. Turner to stay makes me ugly cry every single time."

—rebelyell98

ABC

Here's the full scene:

6.When Marshall's dad died of a heart attack on How I Met Your Mother.

Marshall crying and saying he&#39;s not ready for his dead to be dead

"Marshall’s dad dying on How I Met Your Mother destroyed me."

—getupkitten

CBS

Here's the full scene:

7.On All in the Family, when a man pretending to be a police officer snuck into the house and assaulted Edith, leaving her traumatized.

Edith telling Archie she&#39;s still scared while they sit together in bed

Here's the full scene:

8.On Modern Family, when Claire went to all of Alex's classes and finally understood why she was so overwhelmed.

Claire finally understanding Alex&#39;s stress so Alex gives her a hug and cries

"It made me so happy to see that they didn't treat her anxiety as the butt of a joke, and that they showed that it's important for parents to try and understand what their kids are going through!"

—fillionfan4002

ABC

Here's the full scene:

9.On Mom, when Jodi overdosed and died.

someone getting a phone call with the news that Jodi is dead

"That show tackled a lot of hard topics, but that episode is very sad."

—kelseyr494ca6f4d

CBS

Here's the full scene:

10.On Boy Meets World, when Shawn's dad died.

a nurse telling Shawn that his dad didn&#39;t make it

"The ‘life lessons’ were rough, and I skip those episodes now."

—sf4581

ABC

Here's the full scene:

11.On The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, when Will's dad left him again.

Will says he&#39;ll be a better father than his dad ever was, breaks down

"It was gut-wrenching when Will asked, 'how come he don't want me?' Just heartbreaking."

—visionaryghost74

"That was one of the first moments on a sitcom that made me cry. I was really young, but had a biological father who wasn’t in my life. I spent a year sending him letters and hand-drawn pictures several days a week, and got nothing in response. I was devastated and hated him for a long time. The first time this episode aired, I cried. I cried because I felt what Will was saying, and I understood those feelings and emotions, and how disappointing it is for a nine-year-old who just wanted a relationship with someone who should have been there from the start."

—imbatmom2

ABC

Here's the full scene:

12.On Superstore, when Mateo was arrested and then deported.

Mateo says, &quot;it&#39;s okay, it&#39;s over&quot; and leaves with ICE while everyone watches

"Not only was that whole episode hard to watch, but it was so well written — from Dina realizing she failed him, to Cheyenne and Amy doing anything to help him, to the ICE truck driving away from the store. It was crushing."

—g_bernie

NBC

Here's the full scene:

13.On Smart Guy, when T.J. and Melissa met a guy on the internet who turned out to be a pedophile.

guy tells T.J. and Melissa they can come back to his basement any time they want, just not to tell their parents
The WB

Here's the full scene:

14.On The Golden Girls, when Sophia's friend Martha revealed that she was planning on killing herself.

Martha: &quot;I guess it&#39;s time to go, you&#39;ll hold my hand?&quot;

"The episode really makes you wonder how many older people, who feel helpless and not in control of their own bodies, feel this way."

—goldengirlsfan

NBC

Here's the full scene:

15.On Brooklyn Nine-Nine, when Terry was a victim of racial profiling in his own neighborhood.

Terry says he wasn&#39;t a cop when he was stopped the other day, he was a Black man a &quot;dangerous&quot; Black man
NBC

Here's the full scene:

16.On Diff'rent Strokes, when a bike store owner tried to take advantage of Arnold and his friends, who were literal children.

bike store owner offers them wine and has them undress

Here's the full scene:

17.On Boy Meets World, when Cory's mom gave birth prematurely and it was unknown if the baby would survive.

Cory&#39;s dad says they don&#39;t know if the baby will survive
ABC

Here's the full scene:

18.On Brooklyn Nine-Nine, when Rosa had to respond to an active shooter situation.

Captain Holt hears Rosa on dispatch

"I was on the verge of tears and practically held my breath for the entire episode."

—sophie_molly

NBC

Here's the full scene:

19.On The Facts of Life, when one of Blair's classmates killed herself.

the girls hear the news of Cynthia&#39;s death

"The speech Mrs. Garret gave at the end was heartbreaking."

—stephanih4345b5dfd

NBC

Here's the full scene:

20.On All in the Family, when Gloria had a miscarriage.

Gloria says she &quot;didn&#39;t do a very good job&quot;

"It’s still somewhat taboo to talk about that on a sitcom even now, but it was unprecedented in the '70s. It didn’t shy away from exploring all the feelings of grief and guilt that the Bunkers were feeling."

—hailcthulhu

CBS

Here's the full scene:

21.On Boy Meets World, when Topanga's professor made inappropriate sexual advances toward her.

Stuart tells Topanaga he finds her attractive and they&#39;re &quot;going to get to know each other better&quot;

22.On Full House, when D.J. tried to starve herself to lose weight for a pool party.

D.J. says she wants to look like models and then collapses in the gym

"That episode aired in 1990 and is still relevant today."

—egc26

ABC

Here's the full scene:

23.On Growing Pains, when Carol's boyfriend drove drunk and died.

Carol finds out Sandy died, she says that&#39;s &quot;impossible&quot;
ABC

Here's the full scene:

24.On Friends, when Monica and Chandler found out that they were unable to have kids.

&#x002014;msjsa
NBC

Here's the full scene:

25.On That's So Raven, when Raven had a vision that the store owner wouldn't hire her because she's Black.

&quot;The truth is, I don&#39;t hire Black people&quot;

"It was the most powerful TV episode I ever saw as a child."

—cherylzimberg

Disney

I can't find the scene on YouTube, but you can stream the full episode, "True Colors" (Season 3, Episode 10), on Disney+.

26.On Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, when Rebecca attempted suicide on the plane.

Rebecca sees the &quot;help&quot; sign flashing on the plane as she overdoses, &quot;I need help&quot;

"The show dealt with a lot of mental health issues, that episode was so heavy compared to the show's usually upbeat tone."

—p46bf3ddf0

The CW

Here's the full scene:

27.And finally, that utterly devastating M*A*S*H* finale:

a man in grief after another character breaks the news &quot;i didn&#39;t mean for her to kill it! It was a baby&quot;
CBS

Here's the full scene:

Which one of these shocked you the most? Got a moment that deserves to be on this list? Tell us in the comments.

Note: Submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.

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