15 Devastating TV Moments That Ruined The Show

Have you ever watched a television show and been so utterly horrified by what had just happened to your favorite characters? Well, welcome to modern television! It seems that all of our favorite shows basically torture us. What happened to I Love Lucy and The Dick Van Dyke Show? You know, the good ol' days when you didn't have to worry about your favorite character dying.

The tragic character deaths of modern television are heartbreaking to watch. Sometimes, however, the death fits into the scheme of the show just fine. Sure, the death totally sucks, but it makes sense for that particular show. As an audience member, we have to accept these inevitable deaths for storytelling and all of that fun stuff. However, some character deaths do not fit into the show. These deaths only break our hearts but also totally ruin our favorite show. Yes, sometimes when a show kills off a character, it also kills the show.

The below shows were absolutely ruined with a devastating death. Some of these deaths ruined the show because it was the final straw. Shows can only go so far before they are no longer believable, right? In other cases, the death ruined the premise of the show. If the show was focused on the relationship between two characters (*cough* Meredith and Derek *cough*) killing off a character can push the series into uncharted material that fans may not love.

Below are 15 devastating scenes that killed off character and totally killed the show too.

15 The O.C.

Admittedly, The O.C. was starting to falter even before Marissa Cooper's death, but even still, Mischa Barton's exit is what finally killed the show.

With season one, the show skyrocketed into pop culture relevance. Between the clothes, the music and the unapologetic way the teens behaved, it was a fresh spin to which audiences flocked. While there some larger than life drama, the heart of the show - Ryan Atwood, Seth Cohen, Summer Roberts and Marissa Cooper - kept it from feeling too soap opera-ish. But, like many dramas, this show started to slip further and further into being unbelievable. I mean, how many deaths can we plausibly believe that this group of teens has to deal with? Well, unfortunately, they had to deal with one more death.

In the season three finale, Marissa Cooper is in a car accident and dies, afterwards, in Ryan Atwood's arms. Ugh, just try not to cry during that scene. Season four's lackluster return really proved that the show was nothing without all four - Marissa included - of the main characters. The show ended shortly after. But hey, at least we'll always have the epic scene in which Ryan and Marissa first met.

14 Charmed

Charmed was a show about three sisters, who just so happened to also be witches. It was ahead of its time in terms of the positive, feminist themes. It was also wildly entertaining to watch the three sisters juggle the magic stuff and real life stuff, y'know like dating. The sisters' magic was based on the power of three, meaning they could really only defeat demons and whatnot when all three of them worked as a team. Unfortunately, not all three sisters would be on the show throughout the entire course of the series.

Shannen Doherty was not down with playing the sister-witch anymore and wanted off the show, thus resulting in Prue's death in season three. The untimely death really messed up the power of three thing, but then the two remaining witches found out they had a secret other sister! Rose McGowan joined the cast as the sister they apparently never knew they had, and rounded out the power of three. The show never quite felt the same after this slightly unbelievable plot. The whole secret sibling thing just felt like an easy out.

13 Dexter

The death of Rita was the most tragic death in the entire series of Dexter, and this is a show with a lot of tragic death.

Dexter is about a guy who really likes killing… really, really likes killing. Dexter is totally into killing, but in order to still be a "good" guy, he only kills the bad guys. The internal battle between Dexter good and bad sides was at the heart of the show. His relationship with Rita, the kind hearted woman he was dating, was another factor is Dexter's internal struggle. Rita represented a normal life, a life Dexter didn't think was possible for him. And, apparently, Dexter may have been right.

In season four, Rita and Dexter have become a normal little family. It seems Dexter may be able to be a happy family man after all. Meanwhile, Dexter hunts the Trinity Killer, perhaps his most difficult foe. In the season four finale, Dexter finally kills the Trinity Killer… but goes home to find that the Trinity Killer had already killed Rita. It was absolutely heartbreaking. While Rita's upsetting death was inevitable in many ways, it came a bit too early. Dexter went on for four more seasons, and without Rita, the show lost a lot of it's initial heart.

12 The Sopranos

The Sopranos was on the forefront of the type of television that is popular today - a male antihero and the ability to kill off any and all characters. That being said, in the six seasons of The Sopranos, there was a lot of death. I mean, it was a show about mobsters so it makes sense. No death may have been quite as hard to watch as Adriana's.

While Adriana was initially interested in the materialistic goods that the gangster money could afford her, she grew into a well-developed character. She was a successful businesswoman and independent. However, she was identified as the weakest/most likely to flip, so the FBI made her a mole. After revealing what she was a mole to Christopher, her mobster boyfriend, she was taken out in a slightly sentimental scene. This order came from Tony.

It was especially sad to see a strong female character killed off the show, but the real reasons Adriana's death was a turning point in the show was because it highlighted Tony's descent into being a full-on villain. The less relatable Tony became, the less likable the show became. And, killing Adriana was the least relatable and least likable moment in the show.

11 How I Met Your Mother

Disclaimer: Technically this entry happened at the end of the show, but some fans thought it completely ruined the entire series so we thought we'd include it.

How I Met Your Mother ran for a whopping 208 episodes. The premise of the show is that a father is telling his children how he met their mother… for all 208 episodes. This style of television storytelling was revolutionary and a really cool way to tell a romantic comedy. It lead fans on with the mystery of who mother is for 208 friggin' episodes. That is a long time to audience members, who were dying to find out who the mother was. When they finally did found out who the mother was, she died. Yep, they actually did that.

In the series finale, Ted (the father/narrator) meets Tracy, who is the mother. Yes!!! This is what fans have been waiting for. Oh, then Tracy gets sick and dies. This is all in the same episode, by the way. Then, Ted is pushed by his children to date Robin, a female character who had been on the show all along. It just seemed so… wrong. For many people, they felt that the finale betrayed the entire series and thus ruined it.

10 8 Simple Rules

John Ritter was considered to be one of the greatest physical comedians in the world. This comedic ability made him a television legend. I mean, he was on Three's Company. That was some iconic television. 8 Simple Rules was a vehicle for Ritter's comedy. In the show, his character deals with raising two teenager daughters and the problems that ensue. It was all very Three's Company in a way.

While filming the second season, John Ritter unexpectedly died of aortic dissection. They had to deal with his passing on the show, so the matriarch of the family received a phone call informing her of Ritter's character's passing. His character's death wasn't onscreen so it lacked that devastating visual element, but it was still sad nonetheless.

The passing of John Ritter and his character ruined the show. It was hard to watch and not think about the comedy legend who had just recently died. I mean, this was a comedy show that was supposed to bring people up, not make them bummed out about John Ritter's death. The show was cancelled the next season.

9 The Walking Dead

In the seven seasons The Walking Dead has been on, there has been a lot of death. It's a show about the zombie apocalypse so death, of course, comes with the territory.

One of the worst deaths came in season three, when Lori (Rick's pregnant wife) receives a C-section knowing she'll die. It's equally as tragic as it is hopeful, but it wasn't enough to really ruin the show. Fans of the comics weren't even surprised over this death, since Lori also dies in the source material. Plus, a pregnant woman in the zombie apocalypse has about a 4% chance of surviving.

In season five, Beth Green, the teen daughter of Hershel, arced into a strong, independent character. She was braver than she had ever been before, and then she died from an accidental trigger finger. Fans were up in arms about her death, as they felt that the writers killed Beth for pure shock value. While this was a truly traumatic death, the show-ruining death belongs to Glenn.

The most devastating death on the show thus far seems to be Glenn's death. The expectant father was beaten to a literal pulp in the season seven premiere. It was a gruesome turning point in the show. While it the brutality of the death shocked fans, the long-term issue is that Glenn was the everyman. Before zombies, he simply delivered pizzas. His ability to survive made audience members connect to the show. Without him, it seems that the only remaining survivors are people were particularly trained for survival before the apocalypse. If you weren't a sheriff, hunter, farmer, or something of that nature, you'll die - or so they show seems to now be telling us now. The death of Glenn meant the death of the everyman and that's pretty sad.

8 Buffy The Vampire Slayer

Like The Walking Dead, Dexter and The Sopranos, death is part of the package with Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The show follows a teenage girl, Buffy, who is the chosen vampire slayer… so, yeah, death. And, like Charmed, the appeal of the show came from the feminist themes and the mixture of the real world and supernatural world.

In the show, almost everyone died… then came back. Angel, Buffy's hunky vampire lover, dies and comes back. Even Buffy herself dies and comes back. Buffy's mother, however, dies of natural causes and pretty much stays dead. The realistic storyline was especially tragic in the way it was subdued and not supernatural.

Buffy's mother died in season five, which was followed by Buffy's death in the season five finale. The showrunners has planned for this to be the ending of the series, but due to popularity the show ran for two more seasons. The final two seasons did not measure up to the previous quality of the show - perhaps because Buffy came back from the dead, or because Buffy had to take on more responsibility after her mother's death. Whatever the reason, the combination of Buffy's death and her mother's death definitely marked a turning point in the show.

7 Revenge

If you were a character on Revenge, there was about a 90% chance you were going to die. But, in the true soap opera style, many of the deceased characters come back for a second round. However, Daniel Grayson's death was a death that stuck and, ultimately, hurt the show.

The show followed Emily Thorne, a rich socialite with a dark past. She is at the Hamptons with only one goal - to destroy the Graysons, the family who ruined her father's life. In order to get close to the family, Emily seduces Daniel Grayson, who was certainly not a typical "good guy" by any means. After being tricked into a marriage and finding out her true identity, Daniel is hurt but still feels something for Emily. So, they had a pretty complicated relationship to say the very least. Then, after being through all of that together, Daniel sees Emily in danger (because she was always in danger) and rescues Emily by taking the bullet. And, he dies.

This death comes after A LOT of other deaths. Amanda Clarke, a stripper and Emily's long-term friend, died. Most of the Porter family died. Adien Mathis, the other guy who was in love with Emily Thorne (because there were a lot of guys in love with Emily), died. Like we said, everyone was constantly dying. Daniel's untimely death came after a long line of deaths, and it was the final straw. The show became completely unbelievable at this point and ended shortly after. Too much death can totally kill a show.

6 Mad Men

It's hard to really categorize Mad Men into one genre or the other. It was a slow moving drama, but also had elements of slapstick comedy. While many of the elements of the show worked, no matter how opposing they seemed, the major deaths on the show never quite seemed to fit.

In season five, Lane Pryce's story comes to a tragic end when he is caught embezzling money by Don Draper. Lane then hangs himself in the office. With the tomfoolery that generally takes place in the office, the dead body was off-putting, especially because when Don's secretary died at her desk in season four it was one of the funniest plots of the show. To use an in-office death for both comedy and tragedy made Lane Pryce's death just feel… off. However, Bert Cooper's death was even weirder. His death timely, as he was mega old throughout the entire show. However, when he passed there was a music number. Yes, a musical number.

Mad Men seemed to do death in weird and unexpected ways. We have to give the show props for being inventive, but sometimes it changed the tone of the show for the worse.

5 Boardwalk Empire

You'll notice that many HBO shows made this list, and that's because HBO is totally okay with ruining our lives. We kid, HBO. The truth is that HBO puts out amazing content and is all about the storytelling. Sometimes a tragic character death services the storytelling, even if it totally breaks the hearts of the audience members. And, our hearts really broke when Jimmy Darmody died in season two of Boardwalk Empire. Jimmy Darmody was one of the most interesting characters on the show and super close with Nucky. Yes, Jimmy's death was the result of the twisted decisions he made behind Nucky's back, but watching him die - at the hands of Nucky no less - was tough.

After Jimmy's detah, the show lost both an interesting character and the relationship between Jimmy and Nucky. The following seasons fell flat. It was like watching Breaking Bad with just Walter White and no Jesse Pinkman. If it's a two-man dynamic, you can't go killing off one of the men so soon.

4 Game Of Thrones

Where does one begin when it comes to death on Game of Thrones? I mean, there's just been so much death. This is a show that, I think, truly loves torturing the audience. The first majorly heartbreaking death was that of Ned Stark. If you didn't shriek when Ned Stark was decapitated, you have no soul. Then, there was the Red Wedding, during which nearly half the Stark family was gruesomely murdered. Oh, and remember the time the Mountain literally crushed Oberyn Martell's skull? Walking down the Game of Thrones memory lane is so much… well, it's not fun actually.

Now, I wouldn't actually say a death has particularly ruined Game of Thrones, but Jon Snow's “death” came close. The thing about Jon Snow's death was that it felt very gimmicky. It was the type of thing that was done for shock factor and to get people talking. And, in the end, his “death” was inconsequential because he came right back. For a show that is so highly regarded by critics and fans alike, this was a weak move. It was something we'd expect from Scandal or The Walking Dead, but not Game of Thrones. Thankfully, this was the only time Game of Thrones teased the audience in this lame way.

3 The Office

I know what you're thinking. You're wondering who died on The Office and ruined the show, right? Well, no one technically died on the show, but Michael Scott's exit certainly felt like a death, so we included it.

In season seven, Michael Scott finds true love and moves to Colorado. Yay for Michael Scott, but bummer for the rest of us. Michael Scott, the equally lovable and intolerable boss, was the heart of the show. Without Michael at the center of the show, it sort of fell apart. The characters no longer had Michael Scott to react to and, despite the guest stars who brought in flavor, it was never as funny as it once was.

Yes, we know Steve Carell was becoming too big for the show, but his departure left the audience missing Michael Scott. Also, Michael Scott's final scene with Pam is about as heartbreaking as it gets. I mean, COME ON.

2 The Good Wife

The Good Wife was a show ground down into reality, or at least much more so than many of the other shows on this list. There were no witches, vampires, dragons, or insane plane crashes. No, this was realistic and it wasn't until the fifth season that a main character was killed off. And, it was brutal, like so brutal.

In The Good Wife, Alicia Florrick was the wife of a disgraced politician, with whom she was no longer really in love. She was 100% in love with Will Gardner, the charming and immature partner at her law firm. Alicia and Will engaged in a short-lived affair, that fizzled out but never gave either of them closure. There was still totally something there between them. Then, Will was shot in court and died. YES, just BAM and Will was gone. It was shocking and tragic.

The Good Wife's ability to slowly build drama in a realistic way made this death that much harder. After Will Gardner's death, the show lost the heart of the show and the main love interest. While it's a beautiful and sad reminder that, in real life, people do just die without warning, it was harsh and difficult to deal with in terms of the show.

1 Grey's Anatomy

There is not enough time in the day to list all of the Grey's Anatomy deaths that ruined our lives. There has been so much tragic loss, starting with the charming Denny Duquette. Denny proposed to Izzie then died shortly after, leaving Izzie wearing a ball gown and lying on a bathroom floor. It was tragic. However, that is not where the death toll stopped. Oh no, Shonda Rhimes was just getting started ruining our lives by killing people off Grey's Anatomy.

There was George O'Malley's death, which was extremely sad, as it was one of the original interns passing. Then Lexie Grey, Meredith's sister, and Mark Sloan (aka McSteamy) died. The worst of the worst was obviously Derek “McDreamy” Shepherd's death. Derek and Meredith were the central relationship of the show and they were epic. Between the romantic monologues, the Post It wedding vows and the overall McDreaminess, the show took a huge hit after losing Derek. Fans even swore that they would stop watching.

The show still has plenty of people tuning in, but it's definitely a different show. Meredith is living in a new world without a McDreamy. Actually, we're all living in a new world without a McDreamy and it's much less… dreamy.

Ah, modern TV. Don't we just love how brutal it all is?