31 TV Characters Whose Deaths Were Super Unnecessary And Kind Of Ruined The Whole Show
We recently asked the BuzzFeed Community to tell us which TV character deaths totally didn't have to happen. Here are some of the best reponses:
?? There are MASSIVE spoilers ahead and mentions of sexual assault and suicide. ??
1.First, on 13 Reasons Why, when Justin Foley finally got his life together, but in the series finale, it was revealed he was diagnosed with HIV/AIDS and he died.
"He was just trying to get his life back on track. Quitting drugs, getting into uni, opening up about his sexual assault, and things were great with Jessica. Then his mom died and a few months later he also died. I remember I was so devastated when I watched the last episode."
2.On The 100, when Lexa and Clarke finally slept together, but then, Lexa was killed by a stray bullet moments later.
"Lexa being killed off was some bullshit."
3.On The 100, when Jasper decided he didn't want to survive the death wave heading towards them and he poisoned himself before dying in Monty's arms.
"He was a happy teen that developed depression and PTSD due to everything he went through and witnessed. He was clearly suffering, and no one other than his best friend seemed to care or help him. The show could've explored his mental health, due to him being the only 'realistic' character who showed how their journey on Earth negatively impacted their mental health. But instead the writers decided to have him kill himself."
4.On The 100, when Clarke shockingly shot and killed Bellamy while she was trying to protect Madi and the rest of their friends.
"I will NEVER forgive this one. I refuse to even acknowledge the final season exists because to have such an incredible character arc for this guy, from criminal to soldier to protector to leader, only for him to be written off for most of the season and then kill him five minutes after he comes back?! And for him to be killed by Clarke, who went on most of that journey with him, who was his platonic — and romantic, in my opinion — soulmate, over something so trivial?! The worst written and unnecessary ending for a character ever."
5.On Veronica Mars, when the revival season ended with Logan getting blown up right when he and Veronica were finally happy.
"100000000% devastated by Logan Echolls. I don’t care if they needed to get back to more mystery and less romance. He didn’t have to die for them to do that. And then, they never made more of the show to top it all off!"
6.On Killing Eve, when Villanelle was shot and killed during the series finale while protecting Eve, and only moments after she and Eve finally kissed for the first time.
"I’m heartbroken, TBH. SHE DIDN'T HAVE TO DIE AT ALL. Villanelle and Eve finally got their happy ending. They understood each other and I think they could've been really good together. I get that the show needed to end but this wasn’t the way. I WANT ONE FUCKING HAPPY ENDING FOR THE GAYS. STOP KILLING US."
7.On Orange Is the New Black, when Poussey died after CO Bayley restrained her while she was trying to calm Suzanne down during a protest in the cafeteria.
"Poussey from OITNB doesn’t need to be said because it has been said enough but I’m gonna say her anyway."
8.On Orange Is the New Black, when Pennsatucky died of a drug overdose after she wasn't allowed extra time while taking the GED exam she spent the entire final season studying for. Worst of all? She had passed.
"Just as she was growing into the person she should be, she was killed off. And what she'd feared didn't happen anyway! She passed the test!"
9.On Buffy the Vampire Slayer, when Tara was killed by a stray bullet while Warren Mears was trying to hurt Buffy.
"It's been 20 years and I’m still not over it. The set up of the episode, the shock of it happening! For her entire time on the show, Amber Benson was always billed as a guest star. And when she finally got her own title sequence in the opening credits, she was killed off that very episode. It was such a shock that she got killed, and even though the Dark Willow storyline was great, Tara didn't need to die in that way."
10.On Buffy the Vampire Slayer, when Anya was stabbed during the final battle in the series finale.
"I'm still sad over it. It happened so randomly at the very end."
11.On The Walking Dead, when Carl was bitten by a walker after saving a new survivor, and Rick and Michonne just had to sit back and watch him die.
"It was done purely for shock value and made no sense. He meant more (to me, at least) to the series than Judith because we actually got to see Carl grow up. RIP Carl, you deserved better."
12.On Supernatural, when Dean died during the series finale while on a pretty typical hunting job with Sam.
"After 15 years of character development, the writers tore it all down in the series finale by killing him off in a stupid hunt. He deserved to live and find a shred of happiness, because that was the legacy of Castiel's sacrifice (and don't EVEN get me started on that)!"
13.On Supernatural, when Castiel saved Dean's life by finally experiencing true happiness and saying that he loved him, only to die when he was consumed by the Empty seconds later.
"Castiel sacrificed himself to save Dean from death, and then Dean died an episode later, making Castiel's death all for nothing."
14.On Criminal Minds, when Maeve was abducted by Diane, and just when Reid thought he had convinced Diane to spare Maeve, she killed herself and then Maeve.
"Spencer Reid finally found the love of his life, and she was killed off before they could even have a date. He didn't even get to hug her or anything. Why couldn't the writers just let Spencer be happy?"
15.On Once Upon a Time, when Hades was about to kill Regina using an Olympian Crystal, but Robin jumped in front of her at the last second and died.
"There were so many deaths on that show (way, WAY more than you would think), but most of them were justifiable for the storylines. But I don’t think this one was. It was simply sad, and the show went severely downhill afterwards."
16.On Chicago Fire, when Shay was suddenly killed after being struck by a collapsing pipe during an explosion inside a building.
"She was such an icon on Chicago Fire. When the show started 10 years ago, she was just this main character who was a lesbian and it was never some tragic story, which you often get with LGBTQ+ characters and storylines. She was always just herself. And her and Severide’s friendship was, to this day, one of the best written platonic relationships I’ve ever seen. I miss her so much, man."
17.On The Originals, when Hayley went missing for a majority of the final season, only to die while protecting Hope when she finally returned.
"For me, Hayley Marshall is one character on a very LONG list of characters that didn't deserve to die."
18.On The Originals, when Elijah decided to die alongside his brother Klaus during the series finale.
"It always made sense to me why Klaus had to die — he did it to save the world and his daughter Hope. But Elijah...like...what?! It was such a letdown to see him go after he struggled to be honorable to protect the people he loved in TWO different series. It was such a spur of the moment, impulsive decision which was so out of character for him. I'll honestly never get over it."
19.On Money Heist/La Casa de Papel, when Tokyo sacrificed herself so Denver, Rio, and the rest of the team could escape Gandia and his men.
"I’m still not over Money Heist completely unnecessarily killing off Tokyo during the Season 5: Part 1 finale. While previous deaths on the show were extremely painful, at least it felt like there was a narrative reason for why they happened, and the deaths propelled the other characters forward. Tokyo’s death was ENTIRELY for the shock factor of a 'finale' moment and she deserved the happy ending that the rest of the team got. It wasn’t the saddest death on the show (that would be Nairobi!!) but it was the most pointless one for sure."
20.On On My Block, when Oscar, aka Spooky, was about to leave and start a new life with his family, only for him to be shot and killed while moving out of town.
"In the last season he was so hopeful and had such a beautiful redemption arc. Although it might not have been completely realistic, I would have loved for him to have escaped from his past."
21.On The Last Kingdom, when Thyra realized that she was going to die in a fire set by Tidman, so she stabbed herself with her own blade.
"She had suffered and gone through so much and was finally able to find some peace and happiness with Beocca, only to die in such a shocking, cruel, and devastatingly unnecessary death that mirrored the traumatic death of her family, which she was forced to witness years earlier."
22.On South of Nowhere, when Clay was unnecessarily killed during a drive-by shooting at King High's prom.
"He was the best character on the show. I was devastated when it was revealed he was killed at the shooting at the prom."
23.On Bones, when Sweets suffered massive internal trauma while fighting off his attackers, and Booth and Bones couldn't save him.
"I know John Francis Daley was leaving to direct a film and couldn't film the series more, but Sweets could have easily temporarily left and then returned to the show. Sweets was just about to have a baby, for goodness sake."
24.On Grey's Anatomy, when George was hit by a bus while trying to save someone's life, and he never got the chance to realize his dream of becoming a surgeon in the army.
"He could have said his goodbyes to his friends at Seattle Grace and just left, but no, he was hit by a bus for shock value. George was one of the good ones and deserved better, and we should have let him join the army and kick ass saving lives over there! I'm still pissed and I don’t care how much time goes by."
25.On Grey's Anatomy, when Lexie was crushed underneath a plane during the plane crash that stranded Meredith, Derek, Mark, Cristina, and Arizona in the wilderness.
"It was SO heartbreaking!! To kill off such a wonderful, likable character like Lexie, only for the writer to make Meredith have ANOTHER secret sister who is also a doctor was just a slap in the face for me who’d watched it religiously since Episode 1. Lexie and Mark should have lived and been together, but just left Seattle. I can’t bring myself to rewatch the plane crash episodes, once was enough."
26.On Downton Abbey, when Sybil suddenly died right after giving birth to her and Tom's daughter.
"Controversial opinion but Julian Fellowes should have stuck to his original plan to have only three seasons so the actors wouldn't have felt trapped and they wouldn’t have had to be killed off. Sybil's — and Matthew's — death was the product of actors wanting to leave and the show not finding a better way to write them off."
27.On Girl From Nowhere, when Nanno was stabbed numerous times by Waan right at the end of the Season 2 finale.
"I don't know when Season 3 is coming out, and she could somehow be okay, but I still found it cheap to have her brutalized and murdered by that narcissistic sociopath Yuri, especially after showing more of her powers this season. It made me hate Yuri even more because she crossed a huge line. So unless they rectify that, I am putting it out there."
28.On The Vampire Diaries, when Stefan brutally ripped Enzo's heart out, just when he was finally going to get his happy ending with Bonnie.
"After everything she went through over the course of the series, Bonnie Bennett deserved a happy ending with Enzo, and the show couldn't even give her that. Enzo's death during the final season was so not necessary to the overall plot and it was just used to add more heartbreak for Bonnie. Also, Bonnie could've still stabbed Stefan with the cure without Enzo dying, too."
29.On The Vampire Diaries, when Tyler begged Damon, who was being controlled by Sybil, to not kill him because no one would ever forgive him if he did, and just when Tyler thought he was escaping, Damon ripped into his throat.
"I know everyone will say Enzo, but Tyler was legit not necessary. It did nothing for the plot! They didn't even bring him back for a full episode or explain anything. It was a small quick scene and it was pointless. They would have been better off not even bringing him back."
30.On Teen Wolf, when Allison died in Scott's arms after being stabbed by an Oni and saving Lydia.
Suggested by: beesandqueens
And now she's coming back for the movie?! What was the point of this death then?
31.And finally, on Game of Thrones, when Daenerys was stabbed by Jon Snow shortly after burning King's Landing to the ground and trying to take the Iron Throne.
"They built up her character for years only to have her go mad in a couple episodes. She should have lived and there should have been some major conflict concerning the rightful heir to the throne. We learn that Jon Snow is a Targaryen but absolutely nothing happens with that. Everything was too rushed, so her death felt so unnecessary."
We can't fit everyone into one post, so which other TV character deaths do you think were totally unnecessary? Tell us in the comments below!
Note: Some submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.