The 10 Most Cliffhanger TV Season Finales Of All Time, Ranked – Screen Rant

While many shows use cliched cliffhangers to entice the viewers back, these shows came up with some original concepts that took everyone by surprise.

Sometimes, television shows write episodes with shocking cliffhangers to keep viewers enticed and eager to watch what happens next. These cliffhangers can happen at any time. However, most writers decide to employ them in the season finales to build up suspense. During these finales, audiences are on the edge of their seats as a major plot twist is revealed. It might change the course of the show, and then viewers have to wait several months before the next season airs.

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There have been many shocking, cliffhanger season finales throughout television history, including these ten memorable, unforgettable episodes. They frustrated viewers with the suspense until the next season aired.

Anytime a television show ends with a potential character death, its a memorable episode. In the sixth season finale of The Walking Dead, Last Day on Earth, Morgan Jones (Lennie James) is continuing his desperate search for Carol Peletier (Melissa McBride), who doesnt really want any help.

Meanwhile, Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) and the team are having a hard time navigating around the Saviors blocking their path as they try to help the ailing Maggie Rhee (Lauren Cohan). This leads to many life-changing situations, and the Saviors leader, Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) suddenly appears and says that one character has to die in recompense of the ones he lost. The episodeends with audiences seeing Negan beating someone to death, but who was it? Who was the chosen one?

Its always heartbreaking when a fan-favorite character might die. In the third season finale of Gossip Girl, Last Tango, Then Paris, tensions rise when Blair Waldorf (Leighton Meester) has to decide if she wants to have a future with Chuck Bass (Ed Westwick). The episode escalates until the heartbroken Chuck, thinking Blair doesnt love him, gets drunk in Prague.

While stumbling outside, two men suddenly grab Chuck and mug him. Hes willing to give them all the money they want, but when they find a small box in his pocket, Chuck fights back. He ends up getting shot, and the muggers open the box, revealing an engagement ring. Viewers were not only shocked that Chuck was shot, but also that he was planning to propose.

In the first season finale of The West Wing, What Kind of Day Has It Been, a fighter is unexpectedly shot down over Iraq, causing President Josiah Bartlet (Martin Sheen) to order a military rescue. Meanwhile, Press Secretary C.J. Cregg (Allison Janney) deals with the aftermath after misleading the press, and the presidential staff prepares for a town hall meeting.

Everything goes well until President Bartlet leaves the meeting. It surprises everyone when white supremacists start shooting at the president, and the screen fades to black. Audiences didnt know what happened and it was an agonizing wait.

Comedies usually dont have shocking cliffhangers, but the season four finale of Friends was an exception. The episode, The One with Rosss Wedding: Part 2, focuses on the quick wedding between Ross Geller (David Schwimmer) and Emily Waltham (Helen Baxendale). Rachel Greene(Jennifer Aniston) flies to London after realizing that she still loves him. She wants to stop the wedding, but after seeing Ross appear so happy, she doesnt confess her feelings.

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During the wedding ceremony, everything seems to be fine. However, Ross shocks everyone when he says Rachels name instead of Emilys. The officiant asks if he should continue the wedding, and thats how the episode ends. Thats a wedding no one could forget.

In the ninth season finale of Supernatural, Do You Believe in Miracles, the action gets more intense for the Winchester brothers. Metatron (Curtis Armstrong) reveals himself to humanity, and Crowley (Mark Sheppard) says the human Cain has been transformed into a demon. He places the First Blade in Deans (Jensen Ackles) hand, killing him. Fans were already shocked by his death, but when Dean opens his eyes, theyre black. Hes now a demon.

Fans couldnt believe what they watched. They didnt think it could get any worse, and it was agonizing to wait to find out what happened next to Dean.

There were many cliffhangers on Star Trek: The Next Generation, but the third season finale, The Best of Both Worlds, is considered the best one. In the episode, the starship Enterprises enemy, The Borg, returns with a race of cyborgs. Surprising viewers, the cyborgs capture Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart).

The Enterprise crew works hard to reach The Borg in order to save Picard. However, Picard shocks everyone when he announces himself as Locutus of Borg. Everyones favorite character is now the biggest enemy of all.

In the fifth season finale of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The Gift, Glory (Clare Kramer) is preparing to sacrifice Dawn Summers (Michelle Trachtenberg) for a bloodletting ritual that would cause an apocalypse. Hoping to save her sister, Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar) ends up sacrificing herself instead.

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Fans are shocked by Buffys supposed death. Shes the main character of the show. She couldnt possibly die, could she? To make things even worse, the episode ends with the camera panning over Buffys tombstone and an epitaph reading, She saved the world. A lot. Imagine waiting several months to find out if everyones favorite vampire slayer actually died or not.

No one can defeat the one and only Sherlock Holmes. Hes the best detective of all time. But in the second season finale of Sherlock, The Reichenbach Fall, viewers watch as Sherlock Holmes (Benedict Cumberbatch) throws himself off the roof of St. Bartholomews Hospital. The unexpected event was witnessed by John Watson (Martin Freeman). Viewers later see Watson at Sherlocks grave, convincing them that Sherlock is dead.

But is he? The episode cleverly ends with Sherlock lurking in the shadows, making audiences speculate about what happened. Did he fake his death? Did something else happen? Is the person really Sherlock? Fans also had to wait two long years before the next season aired to find out what happened.

The show Lost is very complex with many unexpected twists and turns. The third season finale, Through the Looking Glass, has one of the most intense finales of any television show. Lost relies on flashback sequences to show audiences the lives of the passengers before the plane crash.

In Through the Looking Glass, a sequence shows when Jack Shephard (Matthew Fox) and Kate Austen (Evangeline Lilly) discuss the island after being rescued. At first, it seems like this is another flashback scene, but its actually revealed to be a flash-forward. Audiences were confused about what happened and what theyre supposed to think of the plot twist. When will the people on the island be rescued? Will they all make it?

Who shot J.R.? That was the pop culture question of 1980 following the third season finale of Dallas, A House Divided. J.R. Ewing (Larry Hagman) was a villain everyone loved to hate. So, it was shocking when he was shot twice and collapsed at the end of the finale. What happened? Who shot him? Was he dead?

While waiting for the next season to air, fans and the media speculated about what happened. It turned into a pop culture phenomenon. Everyone wanted to know who shot J.R. Television was never the same and the finale remains the most shocking cliffhanger of all time.

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Kasy Long is a full-time freelance writer and editor based in Indiana, USA. She specializes in entertainment news, feature stories, lifestyle articles, and more. She covers entertainment news on Screen Rant for Valnet, Inc. She has a passion for everything Old Hollywood, particularly her favorite show of all time--"I Love Lucy." In her spare time, Kasy can be found reading, writing, painting, and attempting new recipes.

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The 10 Most Cliffhanger TV Season Finales Of All Time, Ranked - Screen Rant