Kara Kovalchik
6 Shocking TV Deaths
by Kara Kovalchik - April 9, 2009 - 4:11 PM

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I’m hoping that everyone who TiVoed last Monday’s episode of House has already watched it, since the next sentence definitely contains a spoiler. The suicide of Dr. Kutner broadsided viewers, although in retrospect it wasn’t so surprising. Actor Kal Penn had been fairly underused during the two years he was on the show, and he recently revealed that he’d accepted the position of “liaison connecting the Obama administration with arts and entertainment groups, as well as with the Asian-American and Pacific Islander communities.” Since he was poised to leave the show anyway, one can postulate that the producers decided that a dramatic, unexpected exit (suicide) could make for a Very Special Episode, and maybe even an Emmy nomination.

Kutner’s shocking departure got me to thinking about other surprising TV deaths, particularly those that occurred in the days before the Internet was prevalent and one studio mole could leak sensitive script information to the whole world within minutes.

1. Henry Blake (M*A*S*H)

mclean.jpg
The most obvious candidate in this category is M*A*S*H’s Lt. Col. Henry Blake. It was known that McLean Stevenson was leaving the series for (supposedly) greener pastures. But not everyone on the show knew the producers killed his character until right before the scene where Gary Burghoff (Radar) walked into the OR and announced that Blake’s plane had been shot down over the Sea of Japan.

2. Dan Conner (Roseanne)

dan-conner.jpgEven the staunchest Roseanne fans hated the series’ over-the-top final season – the one where the Conners won the lottery and Jackie was courted by a prince while “Roseambo” battled terrorists. There was a moment in the series finale, however, that did manage to evoke some genuine emotion. As the camera honed in on each cast member, Roseanne’s voiceover told their “true” story. When the camera focused on Dan, it panned away for a moment and then turned back and his chair was empty. Roseanne then revealed that Dan had actually died after the heart attack he’d suffered at Darlene’s wedding. Most of Roseanne’s stream-of-consciousness ramblings during this segment strained the imagination, but the vacant seat and the echoing sound of Dan’s voice calling “Rosey?” was a sudden, harsh slap of reality – that big loveable lug – Roseanne’s “rock” – was gone forever.

3. Dennis Gant (ER)

Usually the death of a tertiary character doesn’t garner much sympathy from me (how many times has a lead character met, fell in love with, and then lost their intended via some bizarre accident all within the span of a few episodes?) But Omar Epps (who currently plays Dr. Eric Foreman on House) managed to hit us all in the gut with his dramatic exit on ER, even though he’d only been present for 10 episodes. During that time, however, it was made clear that as a surgical intern he was constantly bullied and belittled by Dr. Benton (Eriq LaSalle), whose philosophy was that black doctors had to set the bar higher in order to be taken seriously. In the “Night Shift” episode, Gant was clearly troubled and left the hospital in the middle of his shift. Later in the night, EMS brought in a horribly battered patient who’d been hit by an EL train. Witnesses were divided as to whether he’d jumped or stumbled. As the staff started lifesaving procedures, Benton barked out the order to page Dr. Gant. A nurse dialed the telephone, and suddenly the beeper clipped on the belt of their patient started chirping…

4. Maude Flanders (The Simpsons)

280px-Maude_Flanders.JPGWho would’ve pre-ditilly-dicted that the chaste, saintly Maude Flanders would’ve met a gruesome death right on the air? In front of kids and everyone? Sadly, Maude had the misfortune of returning from the refreshment stand at the Springfield Speedway with her hands full of hot dogs just at the moment when Homer Simpson had painted a target on his tummy for the cheerleaders who were using a T-shirt cannon. Poor Maude plunged to her death after a volley of high-velocity tees knocked her off the grandstand. Oddly enough, the management of Lowe’s Speedway in North Carolina felt that this episode cut too close to the bone, as an incident of flying tires in 1999 actually caused the deaths of three spectators, so the local Fox affiliate refused to show any commercials promoting that particular episode.

5. Rosalind Shays (L.A. Law)

shays.jpgDiana Muldaur joined the cast of L.A. Law in 1989 as the ruthless and ambitious attorney Rosalind Shays. Viewers loved to hate Roz; after all, she bedded the fatherly founding partner Leland McKenzie, took over as senior partner after his retirement, and eventually sued the firm for sexual discrimination. Shays exited the show with a splat, not a bang – while casually chatting with Leland in front of the elevator, the bell “dinged” and the doors opened. Roz wasn’t looking as she stepped inside, so she didn’t realize that the elevator car hadn’t arrived, and she plunged to her death down the empty shaft. Of course, modern elevators are designed to make this type of malfunction impossible, but why split hairs? It still made for a memorable exit.

6. Christine Chubbuck (Suncoast Digest)

suncoast.jpg“If it bleeds, it leads” is the rule of thumb in TV news. Christine Chubbuck, a Florida news anchor, often referred to this trend as “blood and guts TV.” She complained to her bosses whenever they cut into her public affairs program, Suncoast Digest, in order to show live footage of shoot-outs and gruesome accidents. None of Chubbuck’s co-workers knew that she’d struggled with depression for many years, so they simply thought it was a bad joke when, on the morning of July 15, 1974, eight minutes into her broadcast she calmly announced: “In keeping with Channel 40′s policy of bringing you the latest in blood and guts, and in living color, you are going to see another first — attempted suicide.” Chubbuck then pulled a revolver out from under her desk, pointed it behind her right ear and pulled the trigger.

Did you wince when Alex was literally blown in half on Third Watch? Were you expecting cancer patient Nancy to be the thirtysomething character who wouldn’t live to see forty? What TV deaths surprised, shocked and/or brought a tear to your eye?

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Comments (216)

  1. No Susan from Seinfeld? That was a TV classic for sure …

    posted by cincypete on 4-9-2009 at 3:15 pm

  2. I still cry every time I watch that episode of MASH :-(

    posted by Gayle on 4-9-2009 at 3:38 pm

  3. I was surprised when they killed Kate from NCIS. Everyone thought the shootout the team was involved with was over…then suddenly you hear a gunshot and she springs in front of Tony (I think?), taking the bullet between the eyes. She was Tony’s comedic foil on the show, and you couldn’t ignore the sexual tension between them. Everyone was hoping they would get together, when we really should have been hoping she would stay alive. So sad.
    Speaking of ER, while it was very sad when Gant fell/jumped, it was more shocking to me when the angry balding doctor (can’t remember his name; had a hand amputated, any help?) was decapitated by a helicopter blade. My mouth fell open on that one.

    posted by bas on 4-9-2009 at 3:43 pm

  4. I’m in the group that loathe the final season of Roseanne, but I did tune in for the final episode and bawled my face off when it was learned that Dan died and that’s why the storyline of the last season was wacky.

    It went out in style.

    posted by holly on 4-9-2009 at 3:47 pm

  5. While it wasn’t shocking, it was a long time coming Dr. Green’s death on ER had me in tears.

    Amber’s death on House last season was particularly heartbreaking and shocking too. I don’t think many people liked her character, but to see Wilson have to go through that was very sad for me.

    posted by Meaghan on 4-9-2009 at 3:49 pm

  6. I second Kate’s death on NCIS. One of the most shocking moments in TV for me.

    posted by melissa on 4-9-2009 at 4:00 pm

  7. I know it’s recent, but Derek Reese’s death on the recent “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles” was amazing and shocking. No real resolution to his story (he was still on the outs with Sarah), no dramatic saving the day, no slow motion, no “beauty shot”. In the first fifteen minutes of the episode, a Terminator rounds a corner and shoots him. Bam! Dead.

    Especially on an episode that wasn’t promoted at “a shocking new episode” or “one of these people will die”, or if it was I missed it, it came out of nowhere, and renewed the whole cold, unstoppable terminator feeling.

    posted by Thom Zahler on 4-9-2009 at 4:07 pm

  8. I agree with Bas about NCIS… I only watch the reruns on USA and was also shocked when Lauren Holly was killed (even though she already had a terminal disease or illness).

    I liked Kate alot but I like that Agent David can dish Tony’s shit right back at him, haha, while at the same time being feminine and it confuses him that he likes her because he’s definitely more the femme fetale type.

    posted by Sarah in CA on 4-9-2009 at 4:10 pm

  9. Duh, I also meant to comment on House… I hated Amber but I hate seeing Wilson going through the grief even more. I am sad that the whole thing has destroyed the friendship between him and House.

    I only watch these in reruns on USA also so I am rather behind and don’t know if Wilson really moved away and all that… don’t tell me! ;-D

    posted by Sarah in CA on 4-9-2009 at 4:13 pm

  10. Bas:

    The angry doctor on ER lost an arm by the helicopter blade but not his head. However, in an ironic twist several episodes later a medivac helicopter crashed and fell on his grumpy butt. Ahhh, the man could not win when it came to the helicopter!

    I still cry at the Henry Blake episode of MASH, too. Gets me every time!

    posted by Kristi on 4-9-2009 at 4:20 pm

  11. I was shocked when Carla (Benton’s ex and the mother of his son) died from a car accident. And Billy Thomas on Ally McBeal from a brain tumor.

    posted by Michigan mom on 4-9-2009 at 4:22 pm

  12. Charlie on Lost? i cried so hard even though it was already foreshadowed and expected

    posted by kaisharif on 4-9-2009 at 4:23 pm

  13. In the UK there is a soap opera called “Emmerdale” which set in a small Yorkshire village, so it’s mainly about sheep farming.

    I didn’t watch it much as a kid, but I do remember idly flipping onto that channel one evening just in time to see Sandy, one of the younger central characters, reach into his car to get his shot gun. He grabbed the gun by the barrel then pulled it towards him, the trigger caught on something and he was shot in the head.

    The camera just pulled back from the car with his body next to it, there was the sound of birds singing in the trees and then the credits rolled in silence.

    I was probably about 11 at the time, and I was just shocked that Sandy could be killed off like that!

    posted by Jen - The Alien Spouse on 4-9-2009 at 4:24 pm

  14. Charlie on Lost was good…

    but I didn’t see Eko’s death coming. That one was quite a shock, actually.

    posted by Josh on 4-9-2009 at 4:32 pm

  15. Bas- That was Dr. Romano.

    posted by Fruppi on 4-9-2009 at 4:34 pm

  16. Good list, Kara! I think these fit the bill of “shocking” more so than some of the suggestions. For example, by the time Charlie died on Lost, half of the Lostees had died, so losing one more wasn’t a surprise. That being said, I did cry my eyes out when it happened :)

    posted by Diana on 4-9-2009 at 4:39 pm

  17. I was pretty shocked when Francie was killed on Alias.

    posted by Patty on 4-9-2009 at 4:42 pm

  18. The one that blew me away was the murder of Warrick Brown by the sheriff on CSI.

    I’d have to say one of the memorable TV character deaths would be Bobby Ewing’s on Dallas. Not because of how it happened itself, but the fact that they had to turn into a dream when Patrick Duffy wanted to come back to the show.

    posted by gmsc on 4-9-2009 at 4:44 pm

  19. Callie from Battlestar Galactica is the only recent one to stick in my head. I really thought she was going to get a happily-ever-after moment at the end of the series, and then…

    Of course, you could add Starbuck to the list, or any of a dozen other characters. When Ron Moore kills someone off, he does it in a very memorable way!

    posted by Ryan on 4-9-2009 at 4:49 pm

  20. RE GMSC

    I only saw the CSI episode where Warrick dies (and the ones leading up to it) as repeats on Spike (are we sensing a pattern here with my TV viewing, hah).

    I think I heard something about it when it aired originally but by the time I saw it (earlier this year), I was SHOCKED!!!

    posted by Sarah in CA on 4-9-2009 at 4:51 pm

  21. I know she was only a minor character on a effin’ cartoon, but the death of Maude Flanders was heartbreaking!

    posted by Zach on 4-9-2009 at 4:58 pm

  22. Buffy’s Mom (Joyce) on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. When she had the aneurysm, it was so poignant. Buffy couldn’t do anything protect her; the sun was shining and kids were playing outside. There was no dramatic music in the background, just the two of them. It was really well-done–I bawled my eyes out! (Yes, I was very attached to that show. Shut up!)

    posted by JenPo on 4-9-2009 at 5:00 pm

  23. Bas – I agree with you about NCIS and Kate. I did not expect that to happen. What happened was that the gunfight between the terrorists was over and Gibbs and Tony were helping Kate (who had jumped in front of Gibbs to take a bullet in her vest) off the floor of the roof. A few moments after she stands up, out of nowhere, she is shot between the eyes.

    posted by Avery on 4-9-2009 at 5:02 pm

  24. It’s a small role, but I almost man-cried when Mark Harmon (playing a secret service agent assigned to protest Allison Janney) was shot and killed in a liquor store robbery… as he was buying her flowers!

    I’ve always had a man-crush on Mark Harmon, though.

    posted by dancemonkey on 4-9-2009 at 5:05 pm

  25. If memory serves correctly Eddie Labec, Carla’s second husband on Cheers, was run over by a Zamboni. He was playing a penguin in the Ice Capades when it happened.

    posted by Bill on 4-9-2009 at 5:13 pm

  26. Not sure how many people watched Discovery Channel’s reality show, American Casino, but the death of Michael Tata during the 1st season was pretty shocking. He was prominent feature of the show as the VP of Hotel Operations. He died due to alcohol and drug overdose.

    posted by Jay on 4-9-2009 at 5:22 pm

  27. JenPo, no reason to feel defensive of your love for Buffy. I think most sane people, even if they never got into the show, have some kind of respect for it (if they know anything about tv). I hope they do, anyway. The episode you are referring to, “The Body,” is a case in point. There was nothing supernatural about it. Just a group of people dealing with the shock and pain of a sudden death. Anyone who loves his or her mother would be moved by that episode.

    posted by Shasta on 4-9-2009 at 5:26 pm

  28. Another shocking TV death: Chuckles the Clown.

    ;)

    posted by gmsc on 4-9-2009 at 5:36 pm

  29. By the by, using a title like “6 Shocking TV Deaths” and then immediately following it up with a picture of an actor whose character just died, did in fact spoil the ending for this “House” fan who has not yet seen the episode and was able to put two and two together.

    posted by Noelle on 4-9-2009 at 5:40 pm

  30. Mr. Eko’s death on Lost killed me. I started watching the DVDs this summer and he was my favorite character. I figured since he survived longer than Ana Lucia and Libby (who I also liked) that he would stick around.

    I was so mad at Lost for taking one of the great characters. Plus I loved his prayer stick.

    posted by Chris on 4-9-2009 at 5:41 pm

  31. It goes back a long way, but how about Edith Bunker?

    posted by Betsy on 4-9-2009 at 5:47 pm

  32. I was pretty shocked when Hilde’s boyfriend Santos was killed during an armed robbery on Ugly Betty. Despite imperfections, he was just coming into his own as a partner and father figure for Hilde and Justin, as well as becoming an extremely likable character. What made this death even worse, is the first episode of the next season flirted with the idea that he was still alive. Alas, it was all fantasy and denial on Hilde’s part, and the pain of his death was made all the more crushing for the viewer. THE best episode of Ugly Better ever.

    posted by dagnabbit on 4-9-2009 at 5:49 pm

  33. The most shocking for me are from “24″. First and foremost was Jack’s wife at the end of season 1, then when ex-president Palmer was shot in the first episode of season 5. TOTALLY didn’t see either of those coming.

    posted by Dave on 4-9-2009 at 5:57 pm

  34. Very good call on Dr. Gant from ER. I was not even a fan of the show and still am not but I watched that episode with my girlfriend and I remember it vividly. Well done.

    posted by Jackson on 4-9-2009 at 5:58 pm

  35. TVGuide.com had a great article listing some of the most memorable character deaths on TV. Here’s a few I’d like to contribute:

    - Cherry on China Beach; who’dve thunk the innocent candy striper would buy it?

    - Sam Beckett on Quantum Leap; what’s even more poignant is that outside of Sam never going home, we don’t know exactly what happened to him.

    - Mr. Hooper on Sesame Street; even though I was all of six years old when this episode aired, I can still remember it.

    posted by Steve on 4-9-2009 at 6:02 pm

  36. I agree about Buffy’s mom — but the one that got me, even more than that, was Tara. Things had finally gotten good between the two of them again, and her absolutely meaningless death was so horrifying to me.

    posted by Dia on 4-9-2009 at 6:22 pm

  37. 1. Tara on Buffy the Vampire Slayer! Just as unexpected as Buffy’s mom.
    2. In the Hill Street Blues pilot, Renko (and maybe Hill?) were gunned down. It was shocking. When the series was signed up, it was decided to have them recover and they were made permanent cast members.
    3. Same thing with Nurse Hathaway on the ER pilot. She was to have died of a deliberate overdose over her on-again, off-again romance with George Clooney’s character, but when the series was signed up, they decided to have her recover.
    4. Kyle Chandler’s character’s death on Grey’s Anatomy was very upsetting, although he was not a regular cast member. Thank goodness he moved to Friday Night Lights or I’d have had to see a grief counselor.
    5. The young female doctor who was attacked with John Carter on ER – that was not only a real shocker, but an astonishingly well-made episode. It still haunts many people today. You didn’t even know she’d been hurt until he saw her from his vantage point, lying on the floor.

    Nancy’s non-death on Thirty Something was totally arbitrary. The writers decided to play to the audience and kill off another cast member instead, even though it made no medical sense. Nobody recovers from terminal ovarian cancer. I found her so annoying that I wished they had let her go, except that then she’d be a martyr.

    posted by Holly Grieve on 4-9-2009 at 6:53 pm

  38. Mr. Eko was killed off because the actor portraying him did not like living in Hawaii.

    posted by Rathbone on 4-9-2009 at 7:05 pm

  39. According to Snopes, the cast did know that Henry Blake would die before the final scene, just not very long beforehand.

    posted by Beirne on 4-9-2009 at 7:25 pm

  40. Claire Kinkaid on Law and Order. It just seemed so senseless at the time.

    posted by Emily on 4-9-2009 at 7:33 pm

  41. From the very beginning the writers on Lost cautioned us not to get too close to the characters, as there would be deaths among the castaways. Still, Charlie’s death was shocking not because we didn’t see it coming (though Des sure did for almost the whole season)–it was more shocking for me that they actually went through with it–the killing of an original Lostie.

    I cried my eyes out during both “Greatest Hits” (when he finds out that he must die in order to save Claire, Aaron and the rest of the survivors; when he’s writing his love letter to Claire throughout; and his scene in the canoe with Des) and the actual death in “Through the Looking Glass.” Great acting by Dominic Monaghan that should have gotten some award recognition from the Emmy people.

    posted by Jamie on 4-9-2009 at 7:36 pm

  42. Mrs. Landingham, the president’s secretary on West Wing. I did NOT see that one coming… she had just bought her first new car, and then got hit by a drunk driver! That episode of WW was jaw-droppingly awesome.

    posted by Leigh on 4-9-2009 at 7:41 pm

  43. I was shocked when ADA Claire Kincaid was killed by a drunk driver in Law & Order. I was equally surprised when another ADA, Alexandra Borgia, was brutally killed several seasons later. And there was also the murder of Sgt. Max Greevey in the very first episode of season 2!

    I

    posted by Danny on 4-9-2009 at 7:46 pm

  44. A lot people say Charlie dying on Lost, but they foreshadowed that a lot w/ Desmond. I was more shocked by Shannon (Maggie Grace) getting shot as 2 groups of friendly Lostaways stumbled into each other in the jungle.

    Also, loved the ep The Body on Buffy, but I could never watch it again (in synd.), way too depressing.

    Derek Reese dying was another huge shocker.

    I was glad Callie got offed on BSG, but I thought Billy dying was more of a shocker.

    One of my faves from the way back was on Magnum PI, Magnum’s ex-wife Michelle, as well as his presumptive daughter Lily, were blown-up in a car and a videotape (ahh, how quaint) of it was sent to Magnum. It was called back to several times in the last few yrs, and it never got any easier, although Lily did survive, and led to TM learning she was his daughter.

    posted by Jonny on 4-9-2009 at 8:49 pm

  45. I have to add Kaffey(?) on Hill St Blues. he was buying cigars for a poker game and walked into a robbery. Also Tim Speedle (Speed) on CSI Miami How about when Popeye shot Shorty in “Happy Birthdaze”??

    posted by sparky on 4-9-2009 at 9:06 pm

  46. Nate on Six Feet Under? That one really tore me up.

    Noelle-
    Have you been living under a rock for the past week? I don’t even watch the show, but I’ve heard dozens of people talking about it. Also, didn’t you hear about Kal Penn accepting that position in the Obama administration? The stories were reported together. Come on.

    posted by hilly on 4-9-2009 at 9:22 pm

  47. Wow… thanks *ever so* for putting the recent House spoiler in the sentence directly after and in the same paragraph where you mention there is, in fact, a spoiler. Your choice of placement made it extremely difficult to avoid reading.

    Some of us hadn’t actually had a chance to watch the episode from *two* days ago yet so, if I haven’t made it obvious already, I really appreciate you spoiling it for me. (Not that it wasn’t totally obvious with the picture you chose for the article, that was a poor decision, too.)

    Maybe something a little less recent next time? (Or even further down the page without the picture of the well-known character… anything?)

    posted by Kathryn on 4-9-2009 at 9:40 pm

  48. Great article, but I have to agree with Noelle, there had to be a better way to spoiler alert..

    Buffy’s mom was the one that had me in tears, and I still have to skip that episode when I re-watch.

    Hilly – actually, yes. Some of us only watch TV once a week, and TiVo is my friend.

    posted by Kijeren on 4-9-2009 at 9:47 pm

  49. @ Mrs. Landingham, indeed. I cried so hard for her.

    @ hilly-
    Seriously? Don’t be a brat. Regardless of whether or not she heard the stories it was a poor choice of image and content placement for the article.

    And personally? I don’t think she’s out of line for a second for being irritated that a show she enjoyed was spoiled for her (and me) because the author decided to put the sentence warning about the spoiler and the sentence with the spoiler in it right next to each other, along with the character who died all together at the top of the page.

    It was unavoidable conclusion if you have half a brain.

    Have a nice day.

    posted by Kate E. on 4-9-2009 at 9:52 pm

  50. if you really care about a tv show and the characters, you would have already known i think.

    i miss him already, next episode is gonna be so weird.

    posted by karina on 4-9-2009 at 9:53 pm

  51. omg i think when alex died on 3rd watch i simultaneously started crying,threw up,and crapped myself lol.that was so dramatic!

    posted by nikky on 4-9-2009 at 10:42 pm

  52. The one that still makes me sob is Gus McRae in Lonesome Dove. And then Call takes his body back to Texas to be buried in the spot where Gus & Clara used to picnic (sigh)…

    posted by Joan on 4-9-2009 at 11:37 pm

  53. No Mrs. Landingham on “The West Wing”? (Thank you leigh for posting that one in the comments.)
    Then Laverne on “Scrubs”. Her death made even more poignant by the fact that she had just said “everything is god’s plan.” Of course the actress returned as a different character which tamped down the depression, but still.
    I would also add Issace Mendez from “Heroes”. He was only in 16 episodes but since the entire first season plotline (the best plotline) revolved around his predictive paintings, and his character was built up so much and so well that his death by Silar’s hands left me surprised.
    Chef’s death on “South Park” after his brain washing at the hands of a child-molesting adventure cult. Enough said.
    Grant Imehara’s death on “Mythbusters too…oh wait…that didn’t happen… yet.

    Anyway there are plenty of surprising on-screen deaths. And i don’t foresee an emmy win (possible nomination) for Kal Penn seeing as how he wasnt even in the episode in which he dies.

    posted by Jake on 4-9-2009 at 11:55 pm

  54. Simon Donovan on the West Wing – CJ’s secret service love interest.

    Probably the first character death I’d ever seen on TV. Still chokes me up.

    And Leo, but I think we all heard about the actor’s death long before the character’s.

    posted by Andrew on 4-10-2009 at 12:19 am

  55. How about one from a cartoon? The character Dinobot from the Beast Wars: Transformers was pretty shocking and unexpected since it’s not what you normally find in a “kids” show.

    posted by Genaro on 4-10-2009 at 12:28 am

  56. I think Lucy’s death on ER – season 3? Early on in the series anyhow, was way more shocking and emotional than Gant’s. That was the episode where the schizophrenic patient stabbed Lucy and Carter and no one found them until the very end of the show.

    Oh – and Carnival (the HBO series) when the girl is raped and murdered in Babylon and her ghost watches everyone pack up and leave…ewwww!!!!

    posted by Jen on 4-10-2009 at 12:36 am

  57. I’ve got a couple here… How about the final episode of The Wonder Years where Kevin Arnold (similar to the Roseanne episode) told the fates of his family and friends. Not only did he and Winnie NOT get together, but his father, Jack, the hardnosed rock of the family, passed away from a heart attack 7 years later. It didn’t happen on-screen, but as an eleven year old kid, that always stuck with me.

    Also, how about John Evans, that patriarch of Good Times? It was before my time, but I just caught this on TV Land this week, and if not accidentally coming across the info on the IMDB, would have been TOTALLY shocked. My wife was, and was in tears by the end of the episode.

    posted by Jody from NY on 4-10-2009 at 2:06 am

  58. Guys and gals–I just watched it for the first time via Netflix. Rescue Me’s Chief! Had no idea he was going to kill himself.

    Buffy’s mom–CLASSIC episode. No music score at all for the entire episode. Well done!

    posted by Marty on 4-10-2009 at 2:34 am

  59. Does the Christine Chubbuck thing really belong on this list? Really? She was an actual real-life person. And I can’t believe you ranked her death below a cartoon characters. I’m sorry, but thats just messed up.

    posted by C.I. on 4-10-2009 at 3:53 am

  60. Strangly, I was informed about the upcoming death of Maude Flanders two or three years before it happened. My Soc. Studies teacher at the time was a big Simpsons fan and had heard that the producers were going to fire the voice actress that did Maude’s voice due to contracts disputes.

    posted by Justin on 4-10-2009 at 7:23 am

  61. Rescue Me-Tommy Gavin’s brother Johnny getting shot on a stakeout. I started crying when they showed the funeral.

    posted by Jonathan Jordan on 4-10-2009 at 9:19 am

  62. The one that stuck out the most for me was Dualla from Battlestar Galactica. Of all the deaths on BSG, it was the most random, most unexpected. When I saw it, I actually thought it was part of a weird sequence or projection. Dee’s death was the most shocking in all of BSG, IMHO. (Even more than Starbuck, because I knew she had to be coming back.)

    As for the L&O deaths, Borgia’s death was FAR more shocking than Kinkaid’s. People die at the hands of drunk drivers all the time (Nick Adenhart most recently) yet not a lot of people end up suffocated in trunks.

    Recaptcha: GLOOM Forest

    posted by Jim on 4-10-2009 at 10:17 am

  63. I agree with so many of these comments, but I do think ‘Rescue Me’ does it best…Johnny Gavin, Connor Gavin, the Chief.

    posted by Kacey on 4-10-2009 at 10:30 am

  64. firstly, i love that this is not only a list of memorable TV deaths, but also a great spoilers list.

    i cried for a while when buffy’s mom died, and i still don’t like to watch that episode. also, i was bummed out by boone and charlie’s deaths on LOST. and i cried again when they replayed charlie’s death at the beginning of the next season – i was really hoping it was going to be a “just kidding! he’s really ok after all!”. but it wasn’t. :(
    but i think the absolute worst to watch was dr greene. it doesn’t help that the last time i saw it in reruns i was watching it with my roommate who was not yet diagnosed with the mono that she had at the time, adn spent the whole hour crying about having a tumor in her brain and that she was going to die.

    posted by jessica on 4-10-2009 at 10:34 am

  65. i take that back about dr greene, while that was super sad i just remembered the most upsetting deaths/final episode ever. Six Feet Under.

    posted by jessica on 4-10-2009 at 10:36 am

  66. Brenden Fraiser’s character, Ben Sullivan, on Scrubs. Even though he was only on for a few episodes, he was such a great guy I got choked up when they revealed his death.

    posted by Cody on 4-10-2009 at 10:46 am

  67. Regarding cartoon deaths – years before Dinobot’s in Transformers: Beast Wars, Roy Fokker way back in Robotech: The Macross Saga was shocking for this then eleven-year-old that saw it. Considering how people would bail out of their vehicles when they were shot down in G.I. Joe, this was a new one.

    Of course, the granddaddy of cartoon deaths had to be Optimus Prime in Transformers: The Movie.

    posted by Steve on 4-10-2009 at 11:01 am

  68. He wasn’t a main character, but I loved Ben on Scrubs, played by Brenden Fraser. I hadn’t caught the clues and was totally shocked at the end of the episode.

    Lucy on ER broke my heart. The scene where Carter sees her dying under the bed was very difficult to watch, even more so when Bensen told him she had died.

    posted by Tricia on 4-10-2009 at 11:13 am

  69. The Lost death that shocked me the most was Ben’s daughter Alex. (The deaths of her mom Rousseau and her boyfriend Karl just an episode or two earlier came out of nowhere as well.)

    When there’s a gun to someone’s head on television for a prolonged time, nobody pulls the trigger. It was the first time on Lost something didn’t go as Ben planned. (Terrific acting by Michael Emerson in that scene by the way.)

    posted by erak on 4-10-2009 at 12:05 pm

  70. As another commenter mentioned, according to Snopes, the cast of M*A*S*H DID know ahead of time about the death of Col Blake. Click on my name to see the article.

    posted by Jaclyn on 4-10-2009 at 12:07 pm

  71. The two already mentioned from West Wing were really spectacular- I felt SO bad for CJ after that episode.

    The one that really got me though was Amber on House. My fiance and I are huge fans of the show and we couldn’t get the episode out of our head for a few hours. Talk about holding your loved ones tight.

    BTW-I’m totally with those of you who are complaining about the picture of Kal Penn, but in fairness I did see several articles about his new real-life position on cnn.com and news.yahoo.com shortly after the episode aired.

    posted by Kate on 4-10-2009 at 2:08 pm

  72. Actually bas, Kate dies when a terrorist sniper its her between the eyes after a shootout. It left room for Ziva David to come in and in my opinion she’s an even better counter to Tony. I was iffy about her but I still cry at that episode.

    I was really surprised when they killed off Jenny Shepard from the show. She was Gibbs’ conscience in many cases and was one of the few really great leaders as far as TV bosses go.

    You scared me a little with the Grant Imehara joke, Jake. Meanie :P

    posted by heather on 4-10-2009 at 2:27 pm

  73. Mine is from a show I bet hardly anyone remembers. Beauty and the Beast, 1987. It ran for three seasons. Linda Hamilton (Sarah Connor of Terminator) played Cathy Chandler (Beauty) and Ron Perlman (Hellboy) played Vincent (the Beast). I certainly did not expect them to kill off Cathy’s character in the first episode of season 3!! That was a bizarre episode.

    posted by Hastings on 4-10-2009 at 2:27 pm

  74. How about The Wire? Clearly there were tons of deaths, but when Stringer went down, I was so angry.

    posted by Ryan on 4-10-2009 at 2:58 pm

  75. Speaking of cartoon deaths, and I think maybe the first non-human death mentioned on here, I nearly cried at the end of the “Jurassic Bark” episode of Futurama when Fry’s faithful dog lays down and dies waiting for him outside the pizzaria.

    posted by Ben on 4-10-2009 at 3:51 pm

  76. I agree with Ben, although I actually did cry when he died

    posted by Scott on 4-10-2009 at 5:42 pm

  77. I agree with whoever said Kate/the Director on NCIS…

    posted by leggy on 4-10-2009 at 5:56 pm

  78. The Korean baby on the last episode of MASH.

    posted by Anne on 4-10-2009 at 6:23 pm

  79. who could forget nathan in six feet under?!!
    i lied to my girlfried that i didn’t cry for that.
    my god.

    posted by mario on 4-10-2009 at 6:43 pm

  80. @Mario — Young Nate or old Nate?

    posted by Meg on 4-11-2009 at 7:08 pm

  81. Season 9 premiere of CSI. I think you guys knew who died: CSI Warrick Brown, shot by a–hole McKeen.

    Poor guy. But I did hear Gary Dourdan had a bit of problem with the producers.

    Still, poor Warrick. He was my fave CSI!

    posted by Jen Pen on 4-12-2009 at 5:00 am

  82. All good picks so far, but my pick has to be Omar from The Wire. Never saw that coming!

    posted by Dan on 4-13-2009 at 4:18 pm

  83. how about an article about celebrities who died mid-series and had to be written out of a show? i kept waiting for someone to say john ritter on 8 simple rules, or phil hartman on news radio, or that guy from suddenly susan. those were certainly shocking.

    oh, and a kind of predictable, but still a pretty surprising one was the mother of tom’s child on desperate housewives (killed by jackie from roseanne).

    posted by tiffany on 4-13-2009 at 7:27 pm

  84. how about claire kincaid on law and order? i was so stunned. i still can’t watch that episode – when lenny (jerry orbach) gets out of the car and realizes that she’s dead, the look on his face just breaks my heart.

    posted by emily on 4-14-2009 at 2:12 am

  85. The Sopranos had some memorable deaths too. Adriana’s murder and Bobby Baccalieri’s murder were shocking. Adriana had been circling the drain for a while as an informant. You knew that wasnt going to end well. Bobby was the “sensitive” gangster who you believed had some kindness in him. Seeing him shot about 20 times was hard

    posted by Will on 4-14-2009 at 10:14 pm

  86. Vanessa Ferlito’s character on CSI:NY. Her character had already been kicked from the forensic team for considering tampering with evidence and figured that could be the end of it.. so I was completely shocked when she turned up dead.

    posted by Dazee on 4-15-2009 at 5:46 pm

  87. Yeah. You spoiled House for me as well. I had heard there was a death, but I always watch the episode when it comes online a week later. I had successfully avoided hearing who it was until it was on the front page of my favorite website-MENTAL FLOSS! All I saw was the picture for a split second and boom. Over. It made our relationship strained, Mental Floss. It did.

    But I bawled when Amber on House died-less for Amber, more for Wilson and House.

    When Buffy’s mom died I was SHOCKED! It was even more shocking because of the absolutely normal way she died. No monsters, no demons, just an aneurysm.

    posted by Kieran on 4-15-2009 at 9:16 pm

  88. That episode of MASH kills me every time. Even though I know how it’s going to end now!

    What about Denny from Grey’s Anatomy? He survived the surgery, got his heart, Izzy’s coming up the elevator and BAM! No more Denny.

    Oh, and Dawson’s dad on Dawson’s Creek.

    posted by Jess on 4-16-2009 at 11:00 am

  89. I have to agree with C.J. it is weird that you end your list with a real person so did in fact commit suicide on-air (as opposed to TV CHARACTERS which aren’t real). It’s just an odd choice.

    posted by barb on 4-16-2009 at 2:28 pm

  90. I’m inclined to agree with hilly and karina…it’s understandable that you tivo and then watch later, sure, but the news about Kal Penn working for Obama was a huge story on most major news sites/ channels, etc. It’s just surprising that everyone hadn’t heard about it. I am sorry, though, that it was spoiled for you.

    posted by Delaney on 4-16-2009 at 2:42 pm

  91. Anyone here ever watch Australian TV show Love my Way? The death of the main character’s daughter in that was heartbreaking, and very well acted. Touching and sad without being over the top…

    posted by Lee on 4-17-2009 at 7:49 am

  92. I agree with the Futurama “Jurassic Bark” episode. I am not much of a dog person, but that sequence got me depressed for a week.

    Also, the death of Mayor Howard Buss from the TV show Picket Fences was very shocking, and his funeral service where all of the citizens of Rome knocked on his casket is one of the best and saddest funeral scenes on the small screen.

    posted by Derek on 4-19-2009 at 2:01 pm

  93. Alex Borgia on Law & Order really shocked me. What a shitty way to go…

    Futurama episodes “The Sting” (Fry “dies” while saving Leela) and “Jurassic Bark” (Seymour) made me very, very sad. Oh, and Kif in The Beast With a Billion Backs, right after he and Amy got married. He got brought back, but still… The episode where Fry goes looking for his seven-leaf clover, though not really involving character death, was very sad. I thought that how Yancy dealt with Fry’s disappearance (in sharp contrast to their parents’ nonchalance) was very touching.

    Tosh from Torchwood. She was my favorite. And Donna from Doctor Who may as well be dead. Poor girls.

    Roseanne’s monologue at the end of the series is my favorite part of the whole thing, especially when she says that Dan died of his heart attack.

    posted by Sinthe on 4-20-2009 at 9:37 pm

  94. How about Christopher in the last season of the Sopranos? On a show with that many deaths it takes a big one to really move you, and that was the one.

    posted by Bert on 4-22-2009 at 11:35 am

  95. Warrick Brown- CSI- did not see that coming….

    AND I have to give a big thumbs up to the special effects team- that hole in his neck was waaaaaay too real. The whole scene was freaky.

    posted by lizhot on 4-28-2009 at 11:22 am

  96. Sheriff Lamb on Veronica Mars … I hated the guy for two seasons, then was totally wrecked (and shocked) when he died.

    posted by KarenInJapan on 4-29-2009 at 12:10 am

  97. everyone forgetting the lawyer on Chicago Hope?

    posted by Jim on 4-29-2009 at 10:25 pm

  98. Already mentioned:
    Nate Fisher, Six Feet Under
    Conor Gavin, Rescue Me
    Lucy Knight, ER

    Also:
    Steve Crosetti, Homicide: Life on the Street. Goes missing and turns up dead, no explanation, just like Kutner.

    Larry Moss, 24: Just happened recently, and this was only his first season, but I was stunned when Tony suffocated him after he was shot. They had really built up his character and I thought he would be around in seasons to come.

    posted by Sean on 4-30-2009 at 12:44 am

  99. What about Coach (Nicholas Colasanto) on “Cheers”?

    posted by Marty on 5-1-2009 at 11:35 pm

  100. Claire Kincaid on Law and Order. When I saw it, it was a time when I was working nights and saw the reruns everyday on A&E. So being engrossed with it everyday her death was a real slap.

    posted by Patrick Scott on 5-3-2009 at 12:51 am

  101. When I was about 4 or 5 years old I remember my parents being so shocked when Mrs. Huffnagel was killed by a motorized adjustable bed on “St. Elsewhere”.

    posted by PhineusQButterfat on 5-4-2009 at 8:47 am

  102. Did anyone see the episode of scrubs My Last Words? George was only in one episode and you knew he was going to die but it was still so sad when he did. I almost cried the second time I watched it.

    posted by Haaki on 5-12-2009 at 2:20 pm

  103. How about Laverne & Shirley, Laverne’s fireman boyfriend was about to propose when he had to respond to a call and got killed.

    posted by gimli on 5-12-2009 at 6:23 pm

  104. What about Nate on Six Feet Under? Gotta love a show that has the balls to kill off the protagonist three episodes before the end.

    posted by Emma M. on 5-26-2009 at 3:02 pm

  105. First season of the Highlander tv series, when Duncan McLeod’s girlfriend is shot and killed on the street during a robbery, AFTER McLeod had rescued her from the episode’s villain and had sent her outside to be safe while he finished the villain off.

    Oh I am a geek.

    posted by pegasaurus on 5-27-2009 at 8:17 pm

  106. How about the racist old lady that choked on Buster’s thumb on Arrested Development.

    posted by mike on 5-29-2009 at 6:01 pm

  107. I had no idea you were a House fan! I am a House FANATIC – Hugh Laurie can perform a pelvic on me any day! Wait, he’s not a gyne….
    LOVE your TV Holic series! Keep up the good work!

    posted by Lisa Skaggs on 5-30-2009 at 6:32 pm

  108. Todd Styles (David Strickland) from Suddenly Susan.
    Chico Rodriguez (Freddie Prinze) from Chico and the Man.
    Tragic loss both on and off camera.

    posted by Matt Smrdelj on 6-3-2009 at 8:13 pm

  109. John Ritter – Rules for Dating my daughter (or whatever that series was). Shocking death to begin with.

    posted by Hannah on 6-8-2009 at 4:15 pm

  110. BJ, Tony and Bobbie Jones’s daughter on General Hospital. The very memory of that story still brings tears to my eyes and it was years ago. A small child, BJ just went off to school one day, and the bus crashed. She died. No one saw that coming. Like life, it was a surprise. No one planned for it, no long goodbyes, no drawn out storyline. It hit the viewers like me in the pit of our stomachs.

    posted by Melanie on 6-14-2009 at 5:25 am

  111. I was a huge Commish fan (I know, remember that one?), and when Stan (loved him!) got in his car and it exploded I was heartbroken!

    posted by Megan on 6-22-2009 at 11:53 pm

  112. I remember that episode of The Commish (great show, btw!)… Stan had just been promoted, and was on his way to tell his dad when the car bomb went off.

    On a related note, Michael DeLorenzo’s character in New York Undercover also was killed by a car bomb during one of their season finales.

    posted by Steve from San Diego on 7-14-2009 at 5:34 pm

  113. On the Shield, lots of people got offed, but I think the most shocking one was the way Lem went out. Then in the final episode, even though it was kind of foreshadowed, when they found what Shane did to his wife and kid my heart dropped.

    Add Mr Hooper from Sesame Street, and Dr Weaver’s lover from ER to the ones that really got me.

    posted by JG on 7-19-2009 at 2:58 am

  114. Marissa on the O.C. still gets me every time. I sobbed in the shower the night I saw it happen.

    posted by ms on 7-19-2009 at 9:08 pm

  115. I think 24 has the most surprising deaths. Jack’s wife, Teri, the first season – who would have guessed? Michelle is exposed to a deadly virus and dies. Tony is killed off only to be brought back several seasons later. Larry Moss killed by Tony this season was shocking. I keep waiting for Jack’s daughter, Kim, to be killed. She runs into more psychos than he does!

    posted by Kelly on 7-21-2009 at 1:23 pm

  116. The death of Tasha Yar in the first season of Star Trek the Next Generation was a major eye-opener compared to the usual “red shirts” of the original.

    Random selection and no motive other than the antagonist’s desire to show it could kill.

    posted by Toad on 8-10-2009 at 12:21 am

  117. Carnivale (HBO) had a lot of death, but I agree about the Babylon episode. What made me sad was when they were packing up and moving on, the girl’s mother dumped the basin of water used to wash the body. They focused on the blood spilled on he ground for a couple of beats. It said a thousand words.
    I sure miss that show. When they canceled Carnivale and Deadwood in rapid succession, I canceled my subscription.

    posted by Senhor Tambor on 8-10-2009 at 3:57 am

  118. A few geeky shows made it in the comments, but for me I cried my eyes out when Dr. Janet Fraiser died on Stargate SG-1.

    posted by Alex on 8-13-2009 at 10:07 am

  119. Absolutely need to have Mr. Hooper on this list. When Big Bird said, “He’s… not coming back?” I mean, I’m crying thinking of it now.

    posted by Andy on 8-15-2009 at 3:35 am

  120. Wash in Serenity [okay, it was a film but did follow from Firefly] and Cordelia in Angel, so unexpected and sad.

    posted by Craig on 8-15-2009 at 2:53 pm

  121. Nothing from NYPD Blue? Andy’s son? Andy’s wife? Simone? Sorenson? The list goes on and on.

    I think his son’s death was the most heart-wrenching, although his wife’s last words were pretty sad… “take care of the baby.”

    posted by Gary on 8-15-2009 at 5:12 pm

  122. All the love for Buffy’s mom, and no mention of Jenny Calendar? That one shocked the hell out of my wife and I. Characters with that much screen time and plot involvement just *didn’t* die that easily. They died in season finales, or sweeps week, with big build-ups. The sudden and almost casual death really set the tone that this was a different kind of show with very different rules.

    posted by Lugh on 8-19-2009 at 7:34 am

  123. Captain John Sheridan’s death in the last episode of Babylon 5, “Sleeping In Light”. I watched it with twelve friends when it first aired, and the room was silent for ten minutes after the end of the episode — followed by one of my friends saying softly, “And that, your Honor, is why I had to kill Mr Straczynski.”

    Two other divergent deaths from Babylon 5, though they both followed a path of self-sacrifice to save another. Marcus Cole and Neroon of the Mimbari.

    And the death of Londo Mollari, from the same series. Rarely does it hurt that much to see someone who deserves it THAT MUCH get killed.

    posted by Duke E on 8-21-2009 at 4:34 pm

  124. “The Shield” had some INCREDIBLY shocking and even disturbing deaths. First off, when Shane killed Lem… I couldn’t even speak. I was so shocked that I just sat there with crying my mouth hanging open. Then in the series finale when Shane kills his wife and son then kills himself… I mean, we all had a feeling he would off himself, but his pregnant wife and young son? Shocking.

    I gotta bring up “24″ just because of the sheer number of deaths that were shocking. President Palmer for one. And why hasn’t someone mentioned Edgar yet? That scene where he looked at Chloe before he died was SO sad. And when Tony “died”, that really hit me hard since he was my favorite.

    “Lost” has shocked me, but I’m surprised by the number of people who mentioned Charlie. We all knew it was going to go down, even if was sad all the same. Ana Lucia’s and Libby’s deaths were more shocking in my opinion. But I’d love to see Kate get killed. Anyone else agree?

    posted by Katie R on 8-21-2009 at 5:22 pm

  125. Joyce and Tara in BtVS.

    Their deaths were unexpected….

    posted by Alexandra on 8-22-2009 at 4:15 pm

  126. People still watch Lost?

    posted by That Jeff on 8-26-2009 at 8:45 pm

  127. Anybody else remember James Garner’s series Nichols? As a kid it just never occurred to me they could kill off the hero…. of course, they did re-introduce Garner as his identical twin brother later that epidode. :-)

    posted by Bruce L on 8-31-2009 at 9:42 pm

  128. Lucy’s face…when John Cartwer fell still haunts me. I think the stabber guy is now the genious guy on “Numbers”

    posted by Honk on 9-19-2009 at 9:11 pm

  129. i was 18 when the mash episode aired and i was babysitting that night. i sat and cried my eyes out. but another tv death that had a major impact on me was when real life actor john ritter died. the circumstances surrounding the tv character he played were eerily similiar to my situation. when i was 15, my mother received a phone call just like john’s tv wife, went to the hospital and was told her husband was dead. there were two girls and a boy, the same as my family. it just hit me so hard.

    posted by eydie on 9-20-2009 at 7:25 pm

  130. Sinthe: not a Torchwood fan, but I was a bit shocked to hear Tosh had been killed off. Donna, however, I disagree on – she can still come back (and I’ve heard rumors about her coming back for the Christmas/New Year specials). Although my sister and I were crushed about that. We liked Donna quite a bit (the pantomine in “Partners In Crime” just set the stage for the rest of a great series).

    Alex: I totally agree, I had heard she’d died (I didn’t watch it until several months after it had aired) but I didn’t know the circumstances. When Janet was killed I sat there and bawled. They never satisfactorily covered what happened to Cassie, either.

    Shocking deaths for me…

    – Daniel Jackson on “Stargate: SG-1″ (okay, I know he died pretty often, but I’m talking about “Meridian,” when he died of radiation poisoning and ascended and no one knew if he was going to be back or not)

    – Jadzia Dax on “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine” – one minute things are fine, she’s happy, the next minute Dukat appears and shoots her, and then she’s in the infirmary and she dies.

    I also agree with all the people about “NCIS” – the first episode I ever saw was “Kill Ari” so I knew Kate died, but it wasn’t until a couple years later I actually became a fan of the show. I watched it from the beginning to the most recent episode, and Kate’s death really shocked me – I’d been preparing myself for it, but when it actually came – WOW. There she is, joking with Tony and Gibbs, and then she’s dead. Jenny’s death got me too – you knew something was wrong with her, so you were expecting something to happen, but a firefight in Nevada? But for me, one of the most surprising was Agent Lee’s.

    posted by Kate on 9-30-2009 at 3:52 pm

  131. Did i miss a mention Torchwood’s Ianto?

    Still haven’t forgiven Russell T. Davies for that one. No rhyme nor reason in it.

    After Tosh and Owen, I should have known to watch out for that kind of thing.

    posted by Jeannie on 10-12-2009 at 10:43 pm

  132. Jeez, I cried just reading this and remembering the final episode of Roseanne. How pathetic is that?

    posted by Nicole on 10-15-2009 at 5:25 pm

  133. Not sudden but shocking, the death of Edith Bunker on “All in the Family”

    posted by Rah55 on 10-16-2009 at 4:50 pm

  134. Losing Jim Henson was hard, being a muppet and sesame street fan.
    Clifford the big red dog was never the same without John Ritter.
    Video game note: Aerith from FFVII, still gets me..

    posted by Traci on 10-25-2009 at 12:23 am

  135. Maude Flanders death was a shock I never expected the Simpsons creaters to kill off a character.
    Oh another cartoon death was Kevin on Family Guy that was sad to hear.

    posted by Kari on 11-2-2009 at 6:29 am

  136. Most unexpected deaths…

    Kutner on House
    Francie on Alias
    Kate on NCIS
    Col. Blake on M*A*S*H

    Ones that tore me up and made me cry…

    Kate on NCIS
    Lucy on ER
    Dawson’s dad on Dawson’s Creek
    Denny on Grey’s Anatomy
    Ben Sullivan on Scrubs
    Janet on Stargate SG-1

    I am not really a crier when it comes to TV or movies, but boy howdy, the tears just wouldn’t stop for Janet’s death (especially).

    posted by Kristen on 11-2-2009 at 4:19 pm

  137. My mum and I used to watch “Sisters” whenI was a kid, and I still remember when George Clooney’s character Faulkner was blown up in his car.

    And for any of my fellow Canadian readers out there, who else cried when Wheels’s parents died on Degrassi?

    posted by Stef on 11-4-2009 at 3:03 am

  138. Pegasaurus — it was indeed shocking when they killed her off, because it was so pointless. Just a random mugging, right when it seemed she was safe. Also the death of Richie Ryan at the end of Season Five. That came out of the blue, though it was more integrated with the story.

    End of Season Four, of course, they made it look like they’d killed Joe Dawson, and then made us wait until the next season to find out that he was only injured. Bastards!

    On Babylon 5, there were a number of character deaths, but the one that shocked me the most was Kosh Naranek. The Vorlon ambassador. It fit perfectly into the storyline, but JMS had gone out of his way to write it so the viewer wouldn’t expect it in the least. Including titling the episode something innocuous: “Interludes and Examinations”.

    Every character had an “exit clause” written in, so JMS could dispose of them if the actors became unavailable. The way he got rid of the telepath, Talia Winters, was pretty drastic. Quite an ugly fate, really.

    On “Doctor Who”, the death of Adric was quite a shock. The character wasn’t well liked; in many respects, this was because it hadn’t been fully developed from the beginning, leaving Matthew Waterhouse with little to work with. But smashing him into the Earth while attempting to save it was kinda harsh. In mourning, the final episode ran without the theme song over the credits (which were overlaid over a still image of his shattered badge, rather than the usual starfield).

    posted by Calli Arcale on 11-11-2009 at 1:59 pm

  139. In the world of daytime soap operas, several years ago “Days of our Lives” had a series of deaths of many major cast members, one after another. These were random shootings, stabbings, etc. that ended up not being actual deaths and turning into something else, but for many of the cast members, it was bye bye. After getting the axe, several took other acting jobs and signed contracts with other shows before being revealed it was all a hoax. Interviews of the cast, found that none of them knew who would be killed off next until just before the day of shooting.

    posted by Stephen on 11-17-2009 at 10:22 am

  140. I was about 8 or 9 when grandpa Walton died (the actor died ) couldn’t understand why he died I cried so hard

    posted by kim on 11-21-2009 at 12:41 pm

  141. I have to mention Gai Daigouji from Martian Successor Nadesico. He had quickly become a fan-favorite, and his murder early in the series just came out of nowhere. Having it occur at the same time that Akito was watching Joe’s death on the show-within-a-show Gekiganger was an oddly fitting tribute to the short-lived character.

    posted by amaneaux on 11-23-2009 at 9:51 am

  142. no!!!! has everyone forgotten Warrick from CSI:Las Vegas!??!?!?!
    i swear i was this close to crying he didnt deserve to die and i still hate the guy who shot him D:
    Warrick rest in peace wherever you are

    posted by cassy on 11-28-2009 at 6:44 pm

  143. In the same vein as Christine Chubbuck is Bud Dwyer, who I’m sure most Pennsylvanians won’t forget as the public official who called a press conference, pulled a revolver out of a manilla folder and killed himself with it.

    Unlike Chubbuck, the video can actually be found online if you feel gruesome enough to look for it.

    posted by Bill on 12-3-2009 at 1:14 am

  144. When they killed the Incerdible Hulk.

    posted by DW on 12-4-2009 at 6:41 pm

  145. Just reading the bit about Dan dying made me cry. Roseanne related, Glenn Quinn’s death and that of his character on Angel maybe not shocking but sad.

    A part of me needs to mention Scott on 90210.

    posted by Jamie on 12-5-2009 at 8:13 am

  146. Yeah the Dan on Roseanne thing always gets me choked up, even just reading about it right now. I bet that if I go look it up on youtube right now, ill start bawling. It really tears me up. Even watching the heart attack episode where he survives it makes me feel horrible cause I’m going “God he actually DIED! She’s [Roseanne] making it all up right now!”

    posted by Barbara on 12-9-2009 at 3:39 pm

  147. re: captcha… Atlanta’s ghastly? Really….

    Col. Blake always gets to me, as well as the Korean woman who smothered her baby on the Series’ finale…

    Adric on Classic Dr Who
    Blake on Blake’s 7 (and the Liberator…)
    Spock (although he died in a movie, I still consider him a TV character)

    posted by EarthBug on 12-12-2009 at 1:51 pm

  148. Lee Harvey Oswald on live TV.

    posted by Todd on 12-14-2009 at 8:43 am

  149. Adrianna from the Sopranos was top 6 easily.

    posted by Caseyf10886 on 12-18-2009 at 2:21 pm

  150. The stabbing death of JT Yorke from Degrassi TNG was pretty shocking, too.

    Okay, so I’ll just LEAP out of the “Watches Shows Aimed At Much Younger Viewers” here.

    posted by clint on 12-21-2009 at 9:35 pm

  151. The stabbing death of JT Yorke from Degrassi TNG was pretty shocking, too.

    Okay, so I’ll just LEAP out of the “Watches Shows Aimed At Much Younger Viewers” closet here.

    posted by clint on 12-21-2009 at 9:35 pm

  152. I was shocked each and every time Kenny was killed on South Park.

    posted by Dan on 12-31-2009 at 11:29 am

  153. @Holly Grieve. In my opinion, that episode of Grey’s anatomy has been the best one in the entire serie

    Also, when the actor/actress dies in real life and they have to kill the character, god.. those episodes are extremely sad :( I think the sadder episode i have seen with this situation was the one from 8 simple rules. That episode was just so devastating

    posted by ann on 1-6-2010 at 11:07 am

  154. I’m voting for Special Agent Al Gough’s suicide on Flash Forward. I did not see that one coming!

    I would like to say George’s death on Grey’s, but true fans knew it was coming sooner or later. It was more shocking that they DIDN’T kill off Dr. Burke. (I miss him…)

    posted by Jaded on 1-7-2010 at 6:03 am

  155. Have to agree about several of these:

    JT on “Degrassi” … I love the show and try to catch episodes when they’re on (rarely) but I followed as closely as I could. One day, watching it for the first time in a year or so, I get excited because JT is going to get back with Liberty and then BAM, he gets stabbed. WTF, i was shocked!!!

    also, Denny on “Grey’s” … I sob after most episodes of GA, but that one I cried for days… so unexpected, and Izzie was so excited to see him… so sad.

    and finally, Dan on “Roseanne” was devastating — I remember thinking how that could happen to my dad at my wedding… cried all over again :(

    posted by amber on 1-7-2010 at 2:06 pm

  156. It was in poor taste to list the death of Christine Chubbuck along with the ‘deaths’ of five fictional characters. Christine Chubbuck was a real person with real family and friends whom I am sure do not consider her death trivial.

    posted by Lori on 1-8-2010 at 2:13 am

  157. George O’mally from Grays, that was sad.

    posted by Jon on 1-12-2010 at 8:22 pm

  158. What about 8 Simple Rules. The fact that all of the emotions you’re seeing on screen were actual real, raw emotions has prohibited me from actually seeing the whole episode all the way through.

    posted by bored_at_work on 1-15-2010 at 2:24 pm

  159. Rita from “Dexter”. It’s been over a month and I still can’t believe that she’s dead.

    posted by Kristin on 1-20-2010 at 3:42 am

  160. Curtis Jackson on “The White Shadow.”

    Assumpta on “Ballykissangel.”

    Nate on “Six Feet Under.”

    Rita on “Dexter.”

    posted by gg on 1-21-2010 at 1:13 am

  161. Seymour the dog from Futurama has been mentioned, but that death stayed with me. It was a very sad scene.

    The Sons of Anarchy had an incredible finale to end their second season.

    -A.J. Weston wasn’t a shocking death, but he was played by Henry Rollins and his final scene was incredible.

    -Half-Sack was a prospective member of the Sons of Anarchy motorcycle club. He was killed trying to save the Vice-President/main character’s girlfriend and baby. I couldn’t think about anything else the next day at work. Apparently Johnny Lewis, the actor, wanted out of the show and Kurt Sutter, the show’s creator, gave Half-Sack a noble death.

    posted by David on 1-22-2010 at 2:55 pm

  162. While this is not technically a TV death, I cried (I am a tough Australian man) when Data died in Star Trek: Nemesis. In the seven seasons of Star Trek: The Next Generation every fan of the show came to love Data for his gentleness and his death in the movie was so suddenly shocking.

    posted by tasmanian devil on 1-29-2010 at 9:42 pm

  163. Wow! Great list!

    I’d like to add Joan, the mother on Eight is Enough. Although it had been a while since her death, the episode where someone finds a Christmas present she hid for Tommy years before makes me weep.

    Several people have already mentioned Ben on Scrubs. That episode was brilliant!

    posted by elizabutt on 2-1-2010 at 6:23 pm

  164. Penny from Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog. Another unnecessary person killed by Joss Whedon.

    posted by Jonesy on 2-2-2010 at 1:30 am

  165. embarrassingly, i must admit that george’s death on grey’s anatomy made my cry sooo much. and izzy almost dying. ah god bless the cheesy guilty pleasure that grey’s anatomy is…

    posted by germone on 2-5-2010 at 12:50 pm

  166. oh, and how could i forget about doctor who? but that’s not reeeaally deaths… still. during season 4 (i think) when david tennant almost regenerated i walked around for a week muttering “no no no… he can’t die… i would have known about this… no it’s not happening… mumble mumble”

    posted by germone on 2-5-2010 at 2:12 pm

  167. i only scanned through the comments but i was shocked not to see Rita from Dexter. anyone who has seen the last season of Dexter was completely blown away by that end. not only was her death completely surprising, but it was shot amazingly. also she was a really important character who’s death will have a major impact on the show. in my book, she is at the top of this list.

    posted by James on 3-1-2010 at 12:22 pm

  168. OK, the thing that bothers me about Charlie’s death is that he technically should not have died. The hole in the window would only cause water to fill up to the top of the hole, not all the way up. Even if he left the door open, it would only fill up the whole Looking Glass to the same level, and they would be able to swim to safety.

    But that’s certainly off-subject. Charlie’s death made me sad, but I was not as surprised as I was when Libby died.

    posted by Ron on 3-3-2010 at 8:59 pm

  169. I’d like to throw in Det. Crosetti on the sublime NBC series Homicide:Life on the Street. I’m not familiar with the circumstances which led the actor (Jon Polito?) to leave the show, but the loss of his character was shocking and lead to some brilliant acting on the part of Clark Johnson, who played his partner, and the entire cast. This also set up one of the most memorable moments of the series when Det. Pembleton (Andre Braugher) salutes his funeral procession in his dress blues. Talk about a tear jerker!

    posted by Schnugoose on 3-9-2010 at 1:51 am

  170. James, I completely agree with you on the Rita from “Dexter” thing, although Kristen and gg did both mention it. Major. Shocker. I kept thinking that it had to be some kind of dream sequence or something, since so very much of the show, and his motivations(!), revolved around her! Although I have to say that she had gotten progressively more nagging and annoying as time went on; I kinda wanted to off her myself! But I have no idea how he’s supposed to raise three kids by himself, especially whilst continuing his own reign of retributive justice. Very psyched for new season!

    And while any true Futurama fan will undoubted name “Jurassic Bark” as Saddest Futurama Episode Ever, y’all are missing the saddest part of it: Fry’s dog was ALIVE when it was frozen, and Still Waiting for him to return! So all Fry had to do was defrost him, and everyone would have been happy, but instead he decides to leave Seymour frozen, thus ensuring that his dog will be lonely FOREVER! When the dog lies down on the sidewalk at the end, it’s because he’s Still Waiting! And because Fry decided to leave him frozen, now he always will =( Now THAT is some tragic stuff. Sigh. I hate that episode. I truly do.

    posted by Leigh on 3-23-2010 at 3:32 am

  171. I wasn’t shocked by Rita’s death on “Dexter.” I’d been hoping she’d die for a long time- I couldn’t stand the poorly written character, or the terrible actress. But the show went down the toilet after season two anyway, and needs to be cancelled. I was much more upset when Lundy died. He and John Lithgow were the only watchable parts of that season. Season three had nothing.

    Speaking of Keith Carradine, even though I knew the history and knew how he did die, I was still torn up when Wild Bill Hickock was murdered on “Deadwood.” Holy crap, I was screaming “NO!!!!” when I was watching it.

    Ray Fiske’s suicide on “Damages” made me sick. His character was so amazing, and when he put that gun in his mouth, I screamed. I did the same thing when we found Dale’s hanging body in his and Alby’s love nest on “Big Love”. The fourth season was mostly dreadful, but I loved that relationship.

    When Walt watched Jane as she choked to death on her own vomit and did nothing to help on “Breaking Bad”, in the second to last episode of the second season. I did not like her character at all, and actually saw his action as more about saving Jesse than saving his own ass, but it was still very difficult to watch.

    posted by Mindymoo on 3-24-2010 at 7:47 pm

  172. Rita on Dexter was by far the most shocking for me. I knew a major character was gonna die but with Dexter just becoming a father I never imagined it would be Rita. Although her character was somewhat annoying, I felt she grounded Dexter and maybe even kept him breaking rule #1 of harry’s code (don’t get caught) when she would always call in the middle of Dexter’s ritualistic evisceration (sic?) of living people.

    posted by Johnny Appleseed on 3-29-2010 at 3:45 pm

  173. I am puzzled by the inclusion of a REAL LIFE death in this light-hearted recap of unexpected fictional demises. This shows no respect for the late Ms. Chubbuck and her surviving family, and trivializes her existence. She really lived, she was talented but also obviously an unhappy, angry individual, and she traumatized a lot of people back in the day. But that’s modern life– can no longer distinguish between
    fiction, reality, or “reality” shows.

    posted by Linnie on 3-31-2010 at 1:13 am

  174. Opie’s wife on Sons of Anarchy

    posted by Creature on 4-7-2010 at 2:43 pm

  175. Pru on “Charmed.”

    posted by Poo on 4-30-2010 at 1:59 pm

  176. I was always under the impression that Mary Hart, Mary Hart pretty much set the bar on shocking and surprising deaths. Certainly set the bar on weird deaths, that much is sure.

    posted by CSR on 5-1-2010 at 8:38 pm

  177. I nominate the character “Ben” on Scrubs, who was Jordan’s brother and Dr. Cox’s best friend (played by Brendan Fraser). The specific episode seems to be about a birthday party, but the reveal at the end always brings on the waterworks for me. Scrubs, for being such an outlandish comedy most of the time, certainly demonstrated plenty of heart during its NBC run.

    posted by VitaminD on 5-3-2010 at 6:09 pm

  178. @Leigh: I forgot about that episode, as I’m a fan but not a huge fan. Reading your description made me remember the last sequence of the dog, waiting for his master, and brought tears to my eyes. In fact, I’m fighting the tears as I type this and my pup is sitting at my feet.

    posted by VitaminD on 5-3-2010 at 6:12 pm

  179. Can’t believe I read all the way through the comments!

    I agree with lots of these (I’ll never forget Henry’s death on M*A*S*H, I saw it in syndication but have never heard that it happened and was utterly shocked).

    Three that haven’t been mentioned:

    The season finale of the first season of St. Elsewhere, one of the first years, who was always shown as very together on the show, but little was seen of her private life, was shown in the last episode having a severe bulimic episode. Then on with the other stories and at the very end of the episode, she is brought in on a stretcher, can’t be resuscitated–suicide.

    On Magnum P.I. his friend Mac (the little chubby Navy guy he always went to for inside info) finally got to try driving the Ferrari after they had all been out all night, I remember he said something about seeing the sunrise and gets cut off in mid-sentence by the car blowing up. Second shock: classic style of ending where Magnum confronts the guy who killed Mac and wants to shoot him, but can’t do it in cold blood, starts to walk away and the killer mocks him for it, Magnum asks if he saw the sunrise that day, killer says yes, Magnum turns around and shoots him dead. Whoa!

    And the first episode of the Shield. Was stunned when the ostensible hero of a cop show gunned down another cop. Let’s you know right there that this is going to be something different.

    posted by cmm on 5-11-2010 at 6:37 pm

  180. I was SHOCKED in a recent rerun of Criminal Minds when the killer actually killed Hotchner’s ex-wife. I know the killer had been after Hotchner for a while, but when he told his son to “go work the case” and then the Reaper just up and shoots her. Wow. Totally unexpected.

    posted by Robbie on 5-14-2010 at 6:10 pm

  181. I was totally unprepared for the death of the Lone Gunmen on X-Files. That really hit me hard. So did the final episode of Forever Knight when Natalie and Nick both die. Another death that upset me was Billy from Battlestar Galactica. Killing off John Winchester on Supernatural was bad, but killing Gabriel was a big shock. A lot of people die on that show (sometimes more than once!) but most come back one way or another.

    posted by Lynda on 5-15-2010 at 8:23 pm

  182. When Omar got killed on THE WIRE I was shocked

    posted by Nate on 5-26-2010 at 4:17 pm

  183. Wow, I can’t believe someone else mentioned Dinobot! I totally cried a few man-tears for the fallen warrior.

    posted by jakabok on 6-10-2010 at 4:02 pm

  184. Laverne from scrubs. I cried over that and the Dan thing from Roseanne

    posted by Autumn on 6-10-2010 at 4:32 pm

  185. When Barbarino from “Welcome Back, Kotter” died of an overdose in the last episode, my mother dropped a tray of lasagna she was about to serve.

    posted by Mike on 7-30-2010 at 11:05 am

  186. 1. Col. Blake dying on MASH–such a shock, yet it made the reality of war that much more real to us.
    2. The suicide of Apollo’s wife on “Battlestar Galactica” –so unexpected, and so hard to understand.
    3. Fred on “Angel”–I cried for an hour.
    4. Warrick Brown on CSI. Even though I knew the actor was leaving the series, I don’t think anybody expected that.
    5. Amber on “House” –poor Wilson!
    6. And finally–when they had the episode on “News Radio” where Phil Hartman’s character dies, but we all knew that Phil was really dead (and tragically so), and the cast was all crying so hard they couldn’t even say all their lines. I am crying now just thinking about it.

    posted by AlphaD on 8-2-2010 at 3:30 pm

  187. I have two:

    When Syaid Kills Little Ben in season 5 I lost. I was not expecting it and screamed out loud in shock.

    Rene Walker on 24. I was so mad that she actually died when other Characters had worse wounds and survived. I am a die hard fan, never missed a single episode all 8 seasons.. this made me seriously consider never to watch another again. I still cant bring myself to watch that part again.

    posted by English on 8-8-2010 at 3:43 pm

  188. I have three:

    When Sayid Kills Little Ben in season 5 of lost. I was not expecting it and screamed out loud in shock.

    Rene Walker on 24. I was so mad that she actually died when other Characters had worse wounds and survived. I am a die hard fan, never missed a single episode all 8 seasons.. this made me seriously consider never to watch another again. I still cant bring myself to watch that part again.

    On Grey’s when the bomb squad guy blew up. (for some reason I cannot think of his name) I had been on the edge of my seat for two hours. I was completely absorbed in the story and then he exploded… that on merited a scream of shock as well.

    posted by English on 8-8-2010 at 3:49 pm

  189. OMG! Rita’s death on Dexter was single-handedly the most shocking TV death i never saw coming!!!

    posted by Crysss on 8-11-2010 at 2:32 pm

  190. How about when George O’Malley died in Greys Anatomy? That one really messed me up… I’m still not over it.

    And when Dana died on the L word.

    posted by Jo on 8-22-2010 at 4:57 am

  191. George O’Malley on Greys
    Steven Segal in Air Force one I think
    Interesting that none of the cast except Alda knew of Henrys’ death which made it work so well. I’ve also heard that Gary Berghoff had to do the scene twice and nailed it each time.

    posted by bobbo on 8-27-2010 at 12:50 pm

  192. I know I’m late to the party, but although it was on the big screen, Serenity still felt like a continuation of Firefly and Wash’s surprise death — so sudden and without fanfare — always gets me. It was great to see in theaters, the audience is mid laugh when it changes to a gasp followed by a sob.

    posted by Kaitlyn on 9-30-2010 at 1:27 pm

  193. The Korean baby smothered to death by her mother to keep quiet so the other people could hide.

    George from Grey’s Anatomy because he was the hybrid of the little brother, first boyfriend type. we could all love the character in different ways.

    Mr.Hooper from Sesame Street. Who didn’t want Mr. Hooper on their street.

    posted by LakeLover on 10-1-2010 at 2:31 pm

  194. What about dee on bsg? That was really shocking or when Starbuck died and came back.

    posted by Amanda on 10-14-2010 at 12:16 pm

  195. Catherine Chandler on Beauty and the Beast. When Linda Hamilton decided to leave the show due to her pregnancy it was the death of this show. Without the Beauty no one wanted to see the Beast possibly fall in love with Diana. I still cry when Catherine dies in Vincent’s arms.

    posted by Joyce on 10-14-2010 at 6:22 pm

  196. Edie on Desperate Housewives… show has been boring ever since.

    posted by ori on 10-30-2010 at 11:10 pm

  197. How come no one said the death of Hotch’s wife on criminal minds? That was so sad, imgn having to anticipate ur own death! I cried soo much for over an hour .

    posted by Nimoe on 11-4-2010 at 12:30 pm

  198. I agree with kate’s death on NCIS. The director’s death hit me hard,too. The blow didn’t really strike me until the scene where Gibbs calls Ducky and tells him to let the team know what happened. You can see the color drain from his face. When he tells the team that the director is dead, and Abby throws her arms around ducky and starts crying…..that’s when it got me.

    I also hated when they killed off Laverne on Scrubs. She was Carla’s gossip buddy.

    posted by Mr. Bond on 11-9-2010 at 10:43 am

  199. I’d submit Richie’s death in Season 2 of The Sopranos. He had dug himself a hole throughout most of the season, but I remember hearing plenty of gasps at our Soprano-watching party when his end was not met by Tony’s henchmen, but his wife (Janice – Tony’s sister) after Richie unwisely punched her in the face.

    posted by Sean on 11-9-2010 at 12:23 pm

  200. A couple of people mentioned characters on St. Elsewhere. No one has mentioned Stephen Furst’s character Dr. Alexrod. He was a basically an incompetent doctor and made a lot of mistakes but he had a big heart and liked people. On the final episode all the other interns were going off to grand jobs at important hospitals or into private practice, but he had nothing. We find out near the end of the episode that he killed himself. I thought this was wrong, just poor or lazy writing. There were many things he could have done, such as research or working with elderly in a non-doctor role, but it was a crime to kill him off, especially since the character had a lot to offer humanity. Even though I loved the show I never forgave the writers for the ending.

    posted by Dave on 11-12-2010 at 1:32 pm

  201. The Korean baby on Mash haunts me to this day. Every time I hear a baby cry in an inappropriate setting, I think of that poor little baby. Why didn’t the mother just suckle that baby – does anyone know?

    The Sopranos lost what little warmth it had when Adriana got bumped off.

    posted by chm on 11-12-2010 at 6:49 pm

  202. Xena the Warrior Princess. She had come back from death before, so what – in the finale she can’t get it together? That was cold, man. Audience deserved better.

    posted by Hercules on 11-16-2010 at 4:03 am

  203. Um…No one’s mention Ilana on Lost. She was literally in mid-sentence when the dynamite exploded in her hand. It happened so suddenly there was absolutely no time to react.

    posted by Jo Reader on 12-1-2010 at 1:14 am

  204. I’ll sound crazy, but stevie on Wizards of Waverly Place got me. She suddenly died and the characters just brushed off one of the main character’s friend’s death.

    posted by pkh on 12-6-2010 at 8:30 pm

  205. Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Joyce and Tara, nothing supernatural about their deaths made it even more shocking

    Prisonbreak: Michael, made me cry

    posted by ANG on 12-22-2010 at 12:50 am

  206. Am I too late for this conversation?

    Buffy hit me three times over.

    I’m glad at least one other person was blown away by Jenny Calender’s murder at Angel’s hands in season 2. We have long since learned that Joss Whedon won’t hesitate to kill off a character, but back then it was terrifying and harsh. You just didn’t DO that!

    The death of Joyce Summers was semi-autobiographical. Whedon’s own mother had died that way, and he wanted to show death as it really is, without the rose-colored glasses so many TV shows applied to the subject. That episode is easily one of the best hours of television ever produced.

    Tara’s death was especially nasty, because that episode marked the first (and only) time that actress Amber Benson had appeared in the opening credits. We were all so pleased; those of us who loved her (and who didn’t?) were vindicated. And then…bang. NO ONE saw it coming.

    Now I watch every episode of every show he creates in mortal terror.

    posted by brian on 1-11-2011 at 7:00 am

  207. Caution- SPOILER-

    Definitely Penny on Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog. That one came out of nowhere for me.

    posted by Ben on 2-4-2011 at 4:36 pm

  208. The biggest shock to me was when Shane Vendrell dropped a grenade into the lap of Curtis Lemanski on “The Shield.”

    Followed by Shane offing himself, wife and son a couple of seasons later.

    posted by Tony F on 3-14-2011 at 8:19 am

  209. You’re right, Ben.

    posted by Sara in Al on 3-19-2011 at 7:35 pm

  210. I call BS on this:

    When Barbarino from “Welcome Back, Kotter” died of an overdose in the last episode, my mother dropped a tray of lasagna she was about to serve.

    posted by Mike on 7-30-2010 at 11:05 am

    Anybody? I don’t remember this happening.

    posted by Carole on 3-23-2011 at 3:34 pm

  211. My mother was a pretty conservative woman, but she loved watching LA Law.

    I vividly remember watching the infamous Rosalind Shays episode with her and being a little floored by her reaction:

    “HA!,” Mom said. “She got actually got the shaft!”

    posted by Ego Nemo on 3-31-2011 at 1:51 pm

  212. @Dave:

    Regarding the off-screen death of Stephen Furst’s character on St. Elsewhere.

    I didn’t like it either — not because it seemed implausible. The character clearly had a hard time coping.

    What cheesed me off, is that at the top of the episode the residents learn where they are going for their fellowships.

    Axelrod gets sent to Millard Fillmore Hospital in Buffalo.

    I cheered because that was where, a few months earlier, they had taken out my tonsils.

    My Axelrod and his buddies took it like it was a death sentence.

    There’s lazy writing for you — Pick on poor Buffalo and poor ol’ President Fillmore.

    posted by Buffalo Bob on 3-31-2011 at 1:56 pm

  213. The murder/suicide on the final episode of The Shield was a heartbreaker; I kept wondering why, with all the money that Shane had stolen, he and his family didn’t just leave the city.
    Another death that has not yet been discussed is that of the detective (whose name escapes me at the moment) during the final minutes of an episode of Southland. His attack and murder was really shocking.

    posted by DaveK on 4-5-2011 at 2:22 pm

  214. Don’t know if this one has been mentioned, but the character Pilar in Weeds at the end of Season 5. Not so much her death, but HOW she dies and who is responsible for it. If you watch the show, then you know what I’m talking about.

    posted by indotexan on 4-7-2011 at 3:28 pm

  215. I just thought of another death from Weeds that was unexpected: U-Turn, back in Season 3 or so.

    posted by indotexan on 4-7-2011 at 3:29 pm

  216. pegasaurus:
    “First season of the Highlander tv series, when Duncan McLeod’s girlfriend is shot and killed on the street during a robbery, AFTER McLeod had rescued her from the episode’s villain and had sent her outside to be safe while he finished the villain off.”

    It seemed so cruel, to kill her off so randomly just after she’d been saved — but it gets worse. Also shot was Richie Ryan, but he came back to life, revealing that though he didn’t know it, he was Immortal. That only lasted another couple of seasons though, because the producers pulled out another shocker at the end of Season Five, when he gets accidentally beheaded by none other than Duncan MacLeod. It never really recovered from the darkness of that episode, either; Richie’s death overshadowed everything even worse than Tessa’s death had, perhaps because he was the only other regular left who’d known Tessa well.

    Killing Hugh Fitzcairn was a shock, though since it was only his second appearance, not too unexpected. (Also, not bad for his career on the show; he appeared more times *after* his character was killed than before, through the magic of flashbacks.)

    Adric on the Doctor Who serial “Earthshock” has been mentioned. Doctor Who seldom kills off its principals. (Well, except the Doctor, but he regenerates, so that doesn’t really count.) Everybody knew he was leaving the show, but nobody knew *how* — being blown up trying to save Earth from an event which, as it turned out, was not only not going to destroy it but was actually vital for creating the human reason. Completely pointless death. For the only time in the series’ long history, the ending credits ran without the signature tune — there was just a still image of Adric’s shattered badge on a black background, with complete silence.

    When they killed Rory in Season Five, in the Silurian two-parter, I was stunned. I had been completely not expecting that. Of course, they brought him back to life a few episodes later anyway, but it didn’t really erase that shock.

    posted by Calli Arcale on 6-17-2011 at 4:51 pm

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