The 25 best TV series finales ever

After 10 years of coffee-house meetings, on-and-off romances, and memories both hilarious and heartwarming, the series finale left fans with a sense of closure. Ross and Rachel were in it for good, Monica and Chandler had twins, Phoebe was happily married to Mike, and Joey had a new chick and a duck. The characters seemed ready to move on with their lives, but the same couldn't be said for us. Much like Monica's purple-walled apartment in the final scene, we will always be a little empty without our Friends. —Sandra Gonzalez

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No matter how many docs came through County General’s ER over the 15 years the show aired, it was the storytelling that made us care so much. That said, the ending gave us what we wanted: a big-scale medical emergency and a chance to say goodbye to favorites we remembered so well. We got to reminisce about Dr. Mark Greene (Anthony Edwards) when his daughter Rachel (Hallee Hirsh) toured the hospital and ended up going out for drinks with some of the cast members who defined the show for us, including John Carter (Noah Wyle), Peter Benton (Eriq La Salle), Kerry Weaver (Laura Innes), Elizabeth Corday (Alex Kingston), and Susan Lewis (Sherry Stringfield). It was the poignant goodbye we wanted. —AW

Related: An oral history of ER

We knew there'd be no happy ending for Kiefer Sutherland's CTU agent, constant-savior-of-the-world Jack Bauer, but we did get to see him let loose as what he was trained to be and always tried to transcend: a remorseless killer. He became a true vigilante, claiming, ''I am judge and jury.'' (Not to mention that he went all Mike Tyson on Reed Diamond's Jason Pillar and bit off a chunk of his ear.) As Ken Tucker wrote at the time: ''Finally, in his greatest moments of grief and fury, he showed us the most vulnerable, despairing side of the man of action.'' And we got our touching Chloe/Jack moment when he told her, ''I never thought it would be you who would cover my back after all these years.''

But the satisfaction came from having 24 go out as a wonderfully self-contained record of a post-9/11 mood, ''a clever experiment that turned into something more searching, as it surfed the wave of national discourse about politics and policy, hanging ten on terrorism.''

And then, in 2014, we learned we hadn't seen the last of Jack Bauer after all when Fox brought him back for a limited series set six years later in 24: Live Another Day —AW

Related: 24 timeless moments from 24

With all its resolutions, new beginnings, and flash-forwards, the Six Feet Under finale really seemed to neatly wrap up the lives of the Fisher clan. It wasn't nearly the weep fest that the funeral for Nate (Peter Krause) was, but who could forget the haunting notes of Sia's ''Breathe Me'' playing throughout the final six minutes as Claire (Lauren Ambrose) drove away. —AW

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If The Sopranos finale was willfully oblique, refusing to tie up the 8-year saga of Tony and his goons into a tidy little package, HBO's other prestige drama ended on a far more conclusive note. Carcetti (Aidan Gillan) was elected governor, Carver (Seth Gilliam) was promoted to lieutenant, and McNulty (Dominic West) celebrated his forced early retirement from the po-lice with a traditional Irish wake — a perfect final instance of the troublemaker's macabre humor. While there were happy endings — Bubbles (Andre Royo), clean and redeemed at last! — they were the minority. Nothing was more tragic than the sight of poor, teenage Dukie (Jermaine Crawford) shooting up in an alleyway, well on his way to becoming the junkie Bubbles once was. Like every other moment of The Wire, the finale left us grappling with hope and despair — in other words, looking at real life and all its infuriating complexity straight in the eyes. —Missy Schwartz

Related: The bitter resonance of The Wire's fake news plotline

So much about the Seinfeld ender is great, but we're going to single out the parade of past favorites who filed into the courtroom to testify against Jerry and the gang — who are on trial for, well, being horrible people. Here's to you, Soup Nazi, Virgin, and Sidra (''They're real and they're spectacular!'') Holland. —Henry Goldblatt

Related: Remember the doomed yet wonderful Seinfeld finale 

Some questions were answered, while others were left up in the air, but as the survivors of the Cylon holocaust finally settled on a world they could call home — and the wounded Battlestar that carried them there flew into its cosmic funeral pyre — executive producer Ronald D. Moore's sci-fi reinvention concluded with the same intelligence, grace, and kick-ass space battles that Battlestar Galactica started with. —Marc Bernardin

Related: How the Battlestar Galactica plot to kill Starbuck 'spiraled completely out of control'

''All Good Things...'' brought this über-successful extension of the Star Trek franchise to an end, and it did so in high style. Capt. Picard (Patrick Stewart) found himself skipping through time, visiting his loyal Enterprise crew at the beginning of their voyages together and, poignantly, joining them for one last old-age adventure. —MC

Related: Star Trek: The Next Generation: An oral history

It only seemed fitting that the 11 seasons that Frasier and company spent analyzing their lives and loves to death would end in a veterinarian's office as the setting for dad Martin's wedding and the birth of Daphne and Niles' baby. And the fact that Frasier decided to head to Chicago following after his new love, Charlotte, was the icing on the cake. —AW

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As with all families, time marches on for TV families as the kids leave the nest and branch out on their own. The finale of The Cosby Show focused on the ever-expanding brood and trying to get enough tickets for the entire extended clan to attend Theo’s (Malcolm-Jamal Warner) college graduation. Even the free-spirited Denise (Lisa Bonet), who does not appear in the episode, calls to say she’s having a baby, making her the second of the Huxtable children after Sondra (Sabrina Le Beauf) to start her own family. Dad (Bill Cosby) spends the entire graduation ceremony daydreaming about when his kids were young and misses the moment, but when he reconnects with his wife (Phylicia Rashad) at the end of the show enjoying the afterglow of a full day with family, he proves he still knows how to make her happy: by fixing the doorbell and dancing off the set. —EW Staff 

Related: Malcolm-Jamal Warner on the legacy of The Cosby Show and his most iconic scene

Who needs resolution? Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini) lived so much of his life in the realm of ambiguity, we shouldn't have been surprised that David Chase chose to end his mob drama The Sopranos with an abrupt slam to black as Tony's nuclear family gathered for a meal in a diner while Journey's “Don't Stop Believin'” played in the background. —AW

Related: Early Sopranos or late Sopranos?

Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar) ended seven seasons of butt-kicking joy with Sunnydale sunken into a crater, Spike (James Marsters) paying for redemption with his life, and Angel (David Boreanaz) just a fond memory. Buffy the Vampire Slayer and her core Scoobies lived to fight another day — just somewhere else. —AW

Related: Sarah Michelle Gellar plays Shag, Marry, Kill with her Buffy men

Even with all the despicable things he's done, you can't deny that at least a part of you wanted Vic Mackey (Michael Chiklis) to get away scot-free on The Shield. And he did...sort of. Watching Vic sitting behind a desk, filling out reports, all alone under the thumb of the FBI, it seemed clear that he was paying for his crimes in a way that cut him deeper than prison ever could. —Abby West

Related: Creator Shawn Ryan on the possibility of a Shield revival

There was never going to be any way to wrap up every last hanging story line from six seasons of serialized Island mayhem, but Lost's two-and-a-half-hour finale proved to be a high-energy epic romp, even with plenty of questions left unanswered. The revelation that the Sideways world was a purgatory-ish afterlife led to a parade of tear-inducing reunions (Charlie and Claire, plus Aaron!), while the Island story line ended with a final showdown between Jack and Smokey. We dare you not to cry at the final moments, with their shot-for-shot callback to the very first scene of the series. —Darren Franich

Related: Lost: How a volcano would have changed the ending

After 11 seasons of hilarity and heartbreak, the Korean War comedy M*A*S*H ended with a two-and-a-half hour TV movie that aired Feb. 28, 1983 and is still the highest rated series finale ever. By the end of the episode, the war has drawn to an exhausted close, and the residents of the 4077th are scattering after many tearful farewells. The teariest is saved for last. As Hawkeye (Alan Alda) takes off in a chopper, he spies a message from his old pal B.J. (Mike Farrell): ''Goodbye'' spelled out in stones on the launch pad. —Kerrie Mitchell

Related: M*A*S*H star Alan Alda on life as Hawkeye

Was Sam (Ted Danson) really going to ditch the bar to move to L.A. with the reemerged Diane (Shelley Long)? Of course not. Sitting on the tarmac he realized his mistake and returned to his true love: his bar, and the lazy, lovable friends who would never leave it. —Josh Wolk

Related: Cheers farewell: The cast speaks

It was a weird bit of irony with The Mary Tyler Moore Show's notable finale: The new owner of WJM-TV fired everyone in the news operation — except, and inexplicably, the always-idiotic Ted Baxter (Ted Knight). (How's that for a final bit of comedy?) The tears flowed, though, as the cast gathered for the now-iconic group hug and, afterward, when the show's star Mary Tyler Moore introduced the series' seven regulars as ''the best cast ever.'' Awww. —Tanner Stransky

The finale was watched by 72 percent of American TV households — a record that still stands. The public was avid to see David Janssen's Dr. Richard Kimble finally catch up with the murderous ''one-armed man'' and reclaim his good name. —Ken Tucker

Related: The end of The Fugitive

The finale showed us the autistic son of hero Dr. Westphall (Ed Flanders) playing with a snow globe, lost in thought. The camera moves in closer, and we see it contains a replica of the hospital show's St. Eligius building. It was therefore assumed that all six seasons of St. Elsewhere took place in the son's imagination. Mind-blower! —KT

Related: St. Elsewhere: About that snow-globe ending

Bob Newhart's 1982-90 Newhart sitcom ended with ''The Final Newhart,'' in which Vermont innkeeper Bob goes to sleep and wakes up as Chicago therapist Bob, sleeping next to his original 1972-78 Bob Newhart Show wife, Suzanne Pleshette. Thus, the entire second series was but a dream. —KT

Related: Bob Newhart picks up the phone to talk about his first classic sitcom

After a phenomenal five-season run, Friday Night Lights ended with the sort of finale that brings the entire series to another level. (There’s a reason Jason Katims won an Emmy for writing it.) In its final hour, the beloved series managed to deliver meaningful endings to each of its many characters, from Buddy Garrity (Brad Leland) returning the “Clear Eyes, Full Hearts, Can’t Lose” sign to the Panthers locker room, to Coach Taylor (Kyle Chandler) taking the Lions to state and then putting his marriage first and relocating to Pennsylvania. And of course, there’s Tim Riggins (Taylor Kitsch), who started to build his dream house with his brother. Altogether, the finale cemented the show’s impact. As Tim always put it, “Texas forever.” —Samantha Highfill

Related: Here’s your ultimate Friday Night Lights binge guide

For most of its run, The Americans’ action set-pieces were all mostly emotional (give or take the occasional murder or hand-to-hand fight). That was especially true of its subdued yet powerful series finale, which contains two stunning sequences. First, there’s the parking garage scene during which Stan (Noah Emmerich) finally confronted Philip (Matthew Rhys), Elizabeth (Keri Russell), and Paige (Holly Taylor) about their double lives and lies; a scene six seasons in the making that didn’t disappoint, especially because of the way Philip uses the intimacy of his relationship with Stan against him. Then, there’s the emotional final montage, which followed the Jennings as they wordlessly escaped the country. Well, not all of them, because in a devastating move, Paige chose to hang back in the states rather than return to Russia with her parents. In the end, the Jennings’ marriage survived the series, but their family didn’t. A fittingly depressing (and perfect) ending for this series. —Chancellor Agard

Related: Margo Martindale's guide to The Americans essential episodes

Parenthood covered a lot during its six poignant seasons: Pregnancy, addiction, PTSD, cancer, adoption, and so much more. But it wasn’t until its final season that it dealt with the loss of a family member when Zeek (Craig T. Nelson) had heart problems that would result in his death. But, in typical Parenthood fashion, the Bravermans still managed to go out with joy, from Sarah’s (Lauren Graham) wedding — bringing her series journey full-circle — to one final family baseball game. Add in some uplifting flashforwards, and fans were able to leave this magical series feeling like the characters they’d come to love were going to be just fine. —SH

Related: 10 best episodes of Parenthood

The Leftovers remained true to itself to the very end. Season 2’s opening credits song urged viewers to “Let the mystery be,” which is exactly what its bittersweet series finale did. After years apart, an older Kevin (Justin Theroux) finally tracked Nora down in the backwoods of Australia. In an attempt to romance her, he pretends to have no memory of what happened between beyond meeting her once in Mapleton, but eventually he drops the façade. That’s when Nora tells him a curious story (andCarrie Coondelivers a tremendous performance) about journeying to a parallel world where the departed went, reuniting with her family, but ultimately choosing to return to this reality. Her story raises the question: Is she telling the truth? But, the episode makes the case, it doesn’t really matter. All that matters is that she’s here in the now and so is Kevin. —Chancellor Agard

Related: Justin Theroux shares his interpretation of The Leftovers series finale

There’s something to be said for a show that makes a promise and follows through on it. And from the beginning, Breaking Bad was pitched as Walter White’s (Bryan Cranston) evolution from “Mr. Chips to Scarface,” and when it came time to the end the show, they went full Scarface. Walter White took out Jack (Michael Bowen) and his band of Nazis with a machine gun he’d rigged to the trunk of his car, but not before he tackled Jesse (Aaron Paul) to the ground, ensuring his safety. The final moments of the series saw Jesse get away and a wounded Walt spend his final moments with his one true love: His baby blue (meth). —SH 

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