Really? LOST was just fine.
A luxury of a 13 episode season? Wrong. A show like LOST needed more than the cable average number of episodes because of how huge the atmosphere of the show was and how many character stories they incorporated into the series. I think the cash cow thing is a little bit overstated on IMDB seemingly all the time now and the majority of the story lines went on as long as they needed to.

i havent read the responses yet, so forgive me if im repeating, but its 2 things, IMO.
the most important is the show runner. you need to have the same person from start to finish. and that person has to have a vision. and they need to have a good idea of what the story will be from beginning to middle to end.
that is why six feet under, breaking bad, and mad men were so successful.
the next is a proper network. the above shows all had a proper network that let the showrunner do their thing.
this is where lost suffered. had lost been on HBO, had the luxury of a 13 episode season, and wasnt beholden to just being a cash cow and stretching the story to stupid story lines, it would have been better than it already is.
the americans is soon going to be added to the list of the greats. they have a vision, and, more importantly, they know when they need to stop.

very, very well said. i just finished binging the series over the last three days. i can't believe i missed this authentically superb show the first time around. i was caught off guard by the endings deeply emotional impact. it's stayed with me all day, and i think that's a true testament to the high caliber writing/acting, especially for a show that's 15 years old. the most appropriate actors comprised the family and i think that's why they seem so real to me.
If it ain't on the page, it ain't on the stage.

I just watched the series all the way through for the second time and was just as emotionally slammed by the finale. More than grieving for the characters, I think I'm still grieving for how much I miss all of them 11 years later. I know it sounds a little ridiculous, but I could never get into "Dexter" or "Parenthood" because I'm still not over the grief of the end of SFU. No other show has developed characters so magnificently to make them feel like people you actually know and love, through all their changes and complexities.

Totally agree. The finale of SFU set the bar so high for all other finales. I can watch it again and again. It was a perfect way to honor the love we had for all the characters.

Never say never

My Goddid this finale wreck me in those last few minutes. I could not fall asleep after it. Just the various thoughts bombarding my mind kept me awake. This has got to be the most poignant way to end the series. I would even say the series itself is one of the most poignant there is about everyday, ordinary life and the environment and people that shape it. This spoke to me on so many levels. It cut so deep. I would go as far as call it a real 'wake up call'. Alan Ball, the creators, the cast did the world a pretty great favor with the series. Unforgettable.

I haven't watched the finale since I first watched the show about 5 years back, but I do remember being emotionally wrecked on the inside from Nate's death until the close of the finale. I'm getting ready to rewatch the series and thankfully I remember only the closing moments from the show. My favorite scene has always been when Claire is saying goodbye to her family, goes to take the picture and Nate says "You can't take a picture of this, it's already gone." Love that scene.
I'm currently rewatching all of my favorite shows and this one is next. So far these are my favorite finales
SFU - Everyone's Waiting
The Shield - Family Meeting - This one as of now is likely my personal favorite, it couldn't have ended any better.
Justified - The Promise - One of the more satisfying endings I've seen, everything about it was excellent.
Cowboy Bebop - Real Folk Blues - Ignore the fact that it's anime. It transcends the genre. This show is hands down one of the greatest pieces of fiction ever made, regardless of the medium or genre.
I didn't care for Breaking Bad's ending, they played it way too safe in the finale, not terrible but I wouldn't exactly call it great. How I Met You Mother and Dexters are up there for the worst I've seen.

Just rewatching the series and the finale hit home even more so because look how fast it's been since it aired! I remember the first episode. And thinking about that - I can't help but think about Nate's line "they're already gone" when she snaps the picture. Gosh time flies by. Scary.

It was definitely the most wonderful and satisfying finale I have ever watched - the team behind it did such an excellent job.

IMHO it's such a great finale because it captured the message and essence of the premise of the series so accurately and emotionally. Without any added on nonsense or lingering questions about the fate of some character - because there is only one true fate. So they had that going for then up I guess! But still it was a great finale.
While you have to realize it's hard to please everyone is a series Finale, they are more often than not stinkers. I put Seinfeld right up thereI thought Breaking Bad's was pretty good! I don't get all the hate

They owe us fans, big time. I don't know a single person who liked the ending of Dexter. There are three types of endings: Happy, Sad, or Ironic. The ending of Dexter left everyone scratching their heads.

Never say never

Yeah that's exactly what I'm hoping for, I'm really intrigued to see Dexter as a lumberjack and how he's killing of serial killers.
Sticking feathers up your butt does not make you a chicken -Tyler Durden

As you are probably aware there's lots of rumors of a re-boot/spin-off possibly in the works. Supposedly, it would be another series about Dexter onlynothing with Miami, etc.. I'd rather see them fix the crappy ending!

probably waiting for spin off !
Sticking feathers up your butt does not make you a chicken -Tyler Durden

I wonder how his lumber jacking career is working out

totally, they could have made that much better.
Sticking feathers up your butt does not make you a chicken -Tyler Durden

Ugh Dexter worst finaleEVER.

Never say never

The only way the finale could have been different would have been if David would have driven a boat into a hurricane and ended up a lumberjack.
"There is no reason to bring every cotton pickin book you own into this dadburn gym!"-Fall 1987

Watching parts of this weekends marathon on HBO, I was reminded of how much Id liked the ending of
Six Feet Under
. Among TV shows Ive watched often, its up there with the endings of
MAS*H, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, St. Elsewhere, Newhart, Cheers, Breaking Bad, The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson
and
Late Night with David Letterman
.
It also reminded me of how disappointed I was in the endings of
Seinfeld
and
The Sopranos
, despite how memorable and controversial they were.
If it is what it is, what is it?

I personally felt that Ecotone was the show's true conclusion, and that the subsequent 3 episodes that followed it served as the show's epilogue.
Agree with that.
It was really interesting to see too.
Breaking Bad sort of did a similar thing. Ozymandias was the true finale with the next episodes being the epilogue.

I'm often disappointed with series finales. I find them predictable, rushed or uninspired. It's like the writers don't know how to wrap it up. This was not the case with Six Feet Under.
Yes. I feel that Six Feet Under's final season was more linear and streamlined than its previous 2 seasons. They kept it crisp, and didn't encumber it with fifty different subplots, or shoehorning new characters into the mix. Maggie and Ted were basically the only new additions to speak of, and their inclusion into the story didn't come at the expense of the main cast. Thus, a very crisp and and confident final season. They concluded most of the storylines from the previous season early on so that they were able to press forward with their concluding story arc of Nate's death and aftermath.
In alot of finales, it's almost like showrunners try to resolve everything they should have resolved earlier in the season
in their final episode
. Dexter and Lost are prime examples.
Few shows are given the chance to bow out on their terms, and for whatever reason they can't seem to hit that mark. I would say Six Feet Under and Breaking Bad are the few exceptions to the rule.
I personally felt that Ecotone was the show's true conclusion, and that the subsequent 3 episodes that followed it served as the show's epilogue.

Six Feet Under's finale is the best of all the series programs I've seen. First of all, the series was brilliantly written, the characters were always interesting and the acting was superb. I remember my first viewing of the finale. Not only was I moved to tears, I bawled my eyes out for at least fifteen minutes. I think everyone who has lost a loved one could relate to it. Seeing one by one, all the main characters take their last breathe in chronological order starting with who died first to the haunting song "Breathe Me" by Sia, was simply stunning. It was intriguing to take a look into the future, and the symbolism, cinematography and editing were beautiful. From day one, an episode started with a subplot character losing their life, at times because of a freak accident or for whatever reason, and then their name would appear with the years they lived like a grave marker. During the final minutes, the supers appearing like markers after viewing the main characters who just passed away was a great way to continue this common theme. It tied everything up into a neat package which was one of the most emotional and memorable endings of a series I can remember. Since the family business involved people dying, it made perfect sense to approach the ending this way. It reminded you that death is everyone's finale. I'm often disappointed with series finales. I find them predictable, rushed or uninspired. It's like the writers don't know how to wrap it up. This was not the case with Six Feet Under.

well said

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