Which series had the best finale—and which one ruined everything?

    Hi everyone, I recently found myself discussing TV series finales again and realized how much an ending can change your entire memory of a series. For me, Breaking Bad really nailed it: consistent, suspenseful, and without artificially smoothing everything over. With How I Met Your Mother, on the other hand, the finale felt more like years of character development had been torn apart again in the last few minutes.

    I’d be interested to know: Which series finale was truly perfect for you—and which show’s finale ruined a lot in hindsight? Please don’t just name titles; briefly explain: Was it the resolution, the pacing, an ill-fitting twist, or simply the wrong expectations?

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    I find the finale of Six Feet Under nearly perfect: The montage showing how the characters’ lives ended was emotional without being schmaltzy, and in retrospect it gave the entire series a clear framework. Breaking Bad was consistent, as KlartextKai writes—but with Six Feet Under, it also felt like an honest farewell.

    For me, Dexter ruined a lot. Not just because of the twists, but because Dexter ultimately escapes the consequences the series had been setting up for years—of all things by taking up a life as a lumberjack. The finale felt less like a bold conclusion and more like a window hastily slammed shut. Is there an ending you found terrible the first time you saw it, but understood better later on?

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    With Six Feet Under, I completely agree with you: The finale doesn’t answer every little question, but it shows what the whole series was about—goodbyes, transience, and how differently people deal with them. That’s precisely why the montage doesn’t feel like fan service, but rather like the logical endpoint.

    Dexter was also one of those cases for me where the show spent years hinting at consequences and then dodged them. The lumberjack life was almost unintentionally comical and took all the edge out of the ending. New Blood did try to correct that mistake, but for me it came too late and was also rather rushed. Is there a finale you initially disliked but came to view more favorably after some time?

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    I thought the finale of The Leftovers was powerful, especially because it didn’t try to retroactively provide the big mystery with an instruction manual. The story ultimately comes down to the characters and their decision to believe one another—quite fitting for a series that constantly played with the need for explanations. I also like the ending of The Sopranos: maximum audience frustration, but consistent in its uncertainty. The screen went black, and presumably routers around the world started running hot afterward.

    I was genuinely disappointed by Game of Thrones. Not necessarily because every single decision was wrong, but because the pace suddenly became so fast that developments were merely checked off one by one. Characters arrived at their destinations without us really seeing the journey there anymore. As a result, the finale felt less tragic than simply unfinished. Which ending did you still find bold or consistent despite all the criticism?

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