The exit of a main character from TV shows is often sad, but it can be made even worse when the character deserves so much more than what they got. Of course, TV shows constantly need to evolve and adapt as they often happen over many years and actors come and go. But that doesn’t make it any easier when fan favorites bite the dust or meet their ending in some other incredibly disappointing way.
To be clear, a sudden and undeserved ending for a beloved character isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Glenn in The Walking Dead, for example, has an untimely ending that is deeply emotional and upsetting, but that also adds to the intensity of the moment and quality of the series overall. Other shows may change the way a character behaves or leave their endings ambiguous and unhappy, all of which can be disappointing fates for the characters.
10 Michael Cordero
Jane The Virgin (2014 – 2019)
Michael had a rough road to winning Jane’s heart in Jane the Virgin. Jane had a long-term interest in both Michael and Rafael, which sparked an intense rivalry between the two, as Michael did all he could to protect Jane. After finally securing her love, Michael and Jane get married, but, in the true nature of a telenovela, Michael dies of a heart attack a short time later. As it turns out, the evil mastermind Sin Rostro faked his death and wiped his memories, and after four years pass, Michael is reunited with Jane, but he doesn’t have his memories.
The rollercoaster relationship ends with Michael finally regaining his memories, but Jane chooses Rafael anyway. Michael ends up engaged to a new girl, but it doesn’t change the fact that, after so many years and shed tears, he and Jane part ways, because Sin Rostro took four years of his life and all of his previous memories from him. Michael deserved to have his happy ending earlier, with his family, instead of being targeted and violated in so many ways.
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9 Glenn Rhee
The Walking Dead (2010 – 2022)
Glenn is one of the absolute best characters to appear in The Walking Dead. From his first appearance in episode 1, when he helps Rick get out of a tight spot, until his brutal demise in season 7, episode 1, Glenn was always looking out for the group. Glenn finally found someone to make a life with, Maggie, and they were blessed to fall pregnant and bring in a new generation to carry the world past the apocalypse. However, despite evading death on several occasions, he was brutally murdered to make a point by Negan.
8 Andy Bernard
The Office (2005 – 2013)
Andy undergoes a huge transition from his debut in The Office in season 3 through the following seasons. He goes from being a smug and insecure man to someone considerate and thoughtful while dating Angela. However, when he learns that Angela and Dwight are having an affair, he struggles to bounce back. He then pines over Erin for some time before they briefly date, but his role in the later seasons of the show sees him descend into becoming a caricature of himself.
Andy becomes the manager at the Scranton branch, but he spends all of his time and energy chasing a career as a performer, musician, and actor. He behaves erratically and does many things which result in him becoming the butt of many jokes around the office. The series finale gives him a redemption arc with a job at Cornell and significant popularity following the release of the documentary that was filmed over the course of the show. Andy’s reconciliation is sweet, but it was a difficult journey to get there thanks to Andy’s weird arc bringing him to extreme lows.
7 Eddie Munson
Stranger Things (2016 – 2025)
Eddie Munson was introduced in Stranger Things season 4 and quickly became a fan favorite. The actor Joseph Quinn also became incredibly popular thanks to this performance, launching his career. However, Eddie Munson’s character is dragged through the dirt in season 4 as the town of Hawkins blames him for a series of strange deaths and a group of jocks at school chase him on a witch hunt. Munson goes out as a hero when he draws the attention of an army of creatures in the Upside Down and sacrifices himself, so the others can confront Vecna.
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6 Dean Winchester
Supernatural (2005 – 2020)
Dean Winchester fought demons and monsters his whole life throughout Supernatural and before. He even died several times, narrowly being saved by his brother or angels, and he saved the world on countless occasions. So when he was finally laid to rest in the series finale, it makes sense that something spectacular would have been required to take him out. But, in reality, his death came at the hands of a rogue vampire who got a lucky shot. Dean and Sam finally save the world for good and get rid of evil monsters, so Dean narrowly missing out on the chance to enjoy that new world makes his death even more upsetting.
5 Regina Mills
Once Upon A Time (2011 – 2018)
Regina Mills was the Evil Queen who took control of Storybrooke for much of the series Once Upon a Time. However, by the end of the series, she had changed her ways and become known to all as the Good Queen. While many of the other characters in Once Upon a Time get their happily ever afters with their one true love, Regina loses her true love, Robin Hood, late in season 5. Being a fairytale story and considering Regina’s conversion to being good, she deserved her happy ending.
4 Daenerys Targaryen
Game of Thrones (2011 – 2019)
Daenerys was initially a patient and careful woman who sought to unite the Seven Kingdoms under her influence, but as the show progressed, she changed from her original nature to something much darker. Suffering from the characteristic madness that had infected her family for generations, Daenerys moved to commit horrific atrocities and kill numerous people with little thought or regard. After claiming King’s Landing for herself, she planned to take over the rest of the world by force, but she was cut down by her lover Jon Snow with a kiss and a dagger.
3 Oliver Queen
Arrow (2012 – 2020)
Oliver Queen was given a hero’s death in Arrow, but he deserved to have more time alive. Oliver fought the Monitor on Earth-38 and shadow demons to secure as much time as possible and save who he could. When he is transported to Star City on Earth-1, he is barely alive, but he is assured that his sacrifice personally saved another billion lives. With friends, The Flash and Supergirl nearby, and his daughter Mia, he says his goodbyes and dies. However, he doesn’t get to see Felicity before his death, and had he survived, they could have enjoyed a future together.
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2 Tracy McConnell
How I Met Your Mother (2005 – 2014)
How I Met Your Mother spent years building up the epic romance between Ted Mosby and his wife-to-be. However, almost as soon as Tracy McConnell was introduced, she was killed off by a tragic and devastating illness. The series decides to conclude with Ted returning to Robin, but it feels incredibly anticlimactic after so many years of building up the romance between Ted and the mother of his children. Tracy deserves to survive and grow old with her husband and children.
1 Penny
The Big Bang Theory (2007 – 2019)
Penny has what appears to be a happy ending at the conclusion of The Big Bang Theory, but one glaring issue makes it bittersweet. The final season of the show put a large focus on how Penny did not want to have kids. She loves Leonard and the two want to marry, but she sets a clear boundary around kids. Despite this, the series finale flippantly erases her desires and sees Penny reveal that she and Leonard accidentally got pregnant. The idea of a happy family is sweet, but it’s just a little uncomfortable that the show made such a big deal about her not wanting kids only to go back on that at the last minute.
