17 Finales That Really KILLED
Diana Keng
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SUPER, MASSIVE, OMG-DON'T-SAY-I-DIDN'T-WARN-YOU SPOILERS ALERT!
As shows close out for the season, we bid some fond (and not-so-fond) farewells to characters we have gotten to know. Finales see more than their fair share of final farewells, often involving the deaths of key characters.
Mind you, death isn't always an ending. For some characters, it isn't even permanent.
What follows is a list of some of the most recent season's finale fatalities. Some were expected while others were shocking. Some were long overdue. Some have a twist and a few are just twisted.
Whether they left you hanging or gave you closure, all of these departures were emotional even if that emotion wasn't exactly grief. Looking at you, Marcus Pierce.
1. Could Just Be Drunk - Mary Kills People
STATUS: Definitely unconscious, possibly dead by poisoning
TWIST: How he managed to live THIS long working as a cop astounds me.
In the two short seasons we've had of Mary Kills People, undercover police detective Ben Wesley has had sex with the woman he was investigating, tampered with evidence, burned a partner, shot a drug dealer, made several shady tit-for-tat deals, and lost a key witness who was then killed by the woman he was once again sleeping with.
So when the finale makes it pretty clear they want us to think a missing vial of pentobarbital has probably ended up in the liquor bottle he keeps in his less-than-secure trailer and then juxtaposes scenes of him slowly losing consciousness alone under the stars with scenes of an assisted suicide, who are we to dispute it?
2. Quentin Dies on the Table - Arrow
STATUS: Dead
TWIST: Both his daughters have returned from being "really dead" and with multiple Earths to choose from, dead doesn't necessarily mean we never see Quentin Lance up and about again.
Over his six seasons on Arrow, Quentin Lance went from being Oliver Queen's adversary and critic to being a reluctant accomplice to being a vital team member. Arguably, he knew Oliver better than anyone on the cast since Oliver had dated (and sort of caused the deaths of) both his daughters.
Oddly enough, both daughters (sort of) were present to hear the news that he didn't survive the surgery after being shot in the gut by Ricardo Diaz.
3. Coulson Exits While Fitz Defrosts? - Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
FATALITY: Leopold Fitz
STATUS: Really dead
TWIST: There's another non-time-traveling version of him floating in orbit in cryo-sleep. It's always nice to have a spare, I guess.
In some beautiful, heart-wrenching irony, Fitz, the mightiest defender of closed-loop time theory becomes the one to disprove it, saving known casualties Mack and Polly but dying in the act, crushed by building debris.
This was a brilliant move as his mental fragmentation had shown his potential for villainy but he gets to go out a hero and Simmons gets to restart with the non-dissociative version. Of course, she'll have to marry him again and introduce him to their grandson.
FATALITY: Phil Coulson
STATUS: Dying
TWIST: He's been actually dead before, killed by Loki in The Avengers, then revived by Project T.A.H.I.T.I. using Kree corpse extract. After hosting the Ghost Rider in the first act of this season, the Kree effect began to fail and his death caught up to him.
Coulson's exit is a bombshell for the team as they've been loyal to him from the beginning despite his various issues with the upper management. It's a magical farewell, with him and May looking to spend their last days together on the beaches of Tahiti.
There's even a memorial plaque on the Zephyr which reads "In remembrance of our fearless leader Phillip J. Coulson. He gave us his wisdom, his love, and his life (a couple of times)"
With Mack now in charge of S.H.I.E.L.D., the table is set for a very different team dynamic when the show returns in the fall of 2019.
4. Bound for Heaven AND Hell - Lucifer
FATALITY: Charlotte Richards
STATUS: Body dead and soul delivered directly to Heaven
TWIST: Charlotte Richards was actually murdered at the beginning of Season 2. Her body housed the Goddess of All Creation (aka the ex-Mrs. God) for the entirety of that season while her soul was trapped in Hell.
Human Charlotte has been a real revelation(!) in that we were able to watch her develop from a confused and troubled woman with a questionable moral compass into a team member (with a questionable moral compass).
While she started out trying to be a better person sheerly out of fear of her Hell loop, she truly got in touch with her inner angel by the time she jumps out in front of Cain's bullet meant for Amenadiel.
FATALITY: Lt. Marcus Pierce (aka Cain, the son of Adam and Eve forced to roam the Earth for eternity for killing his brother Abel)
STATUS: Dead, probably gone to Hell
TWIST: He's been TRYING to die for millennia. So, yay for him?
Ugh. The whole Cain story arc really annoyed me so it was a huge relief to see him go and, as Lucifer points out, his is the southbound train since accidentally killing Charlotte is a regret which mars his otherwise guilt-free conscience.
That he is killed by a knife wielded by his own hand (but guided by Lucifer's) is remarkably fitting. So long, dude. Don't let eternity hit you on the way down.
5. Putting the Family Back Together - black-ish
STATUS: Dead
TWIST: None
Although the death of Bow's father, Paul Johnson (Beau Bridges), a fairly peripheral character, that occurs off-screen may seem to be an odd thing to include here, it was an essential element to bringing Bow and Dre back from the brink of divorce. Whenever Paul appeared on the show, he was a clear-sighted, calm, and loving father to Bow, a rock of stability. His sudden death has her reaching out to Dre just as the two had begun to hit their stride as separate entities.
With his death as the catalyst, they are able to begin rebuilding their relationship with healthy truths. This rough patch was a hard arc to watch but the reconciliation was respectful of work it takes to keep a marriage (and a family) thriving.
6. Chase Gets Caught, Brother Gets No Love, Levon is Leavin' - iZombie
FATALITY: Levon
STATUS: Beheaded dead
TWIST: Not really unexpected. Liv's boyfriends have a shelf life like Spinal Tap's drummers.
Chase executes Levon for being a Renegade and planned on executing Liv next. However...
FATALITY: Chase
STATUS: Beheaded dead
TWIST: Major wanted to do it for Liv. Liv does it for herself, thanks very much.
Chase was a walking target from the moment he arrived. The fact that he and Liz hooked up last season notwithstanding, he was Jerk-In-Chief and his offing was pretty satisfying.
FATALITY: Brother Love
STATUS: Slaughtered with other rogue zombies by soldiers lying in wait
TWIST: The slaughter and the government's subsequent ending of the brain supply pushed Major to forgive Blaine's debts in exchange for some brain smuggling. Daddy Love's death served a purpose in the end.
