15 Show Character Deaths We Will Never Get Over (Spoiler Alert)
It's always hard when a character dies on a show we're really in to. When we've invested a ton of time in to a series, we get really attached to the characters. We get invested in their lives, their decisions, their loves, their hates, and their journey. They become almost like friends, and the pain when we have to watch them die is super real.
Some TV shows and show creators are infamous for killing off our favorite characters. I'm a giant Joss Whedon fan, but the joke my friends and I toss around all the time is that if you love a character on one of his shows you'd better be prepared to watch them die. "The Walking Dead," "Game of Thrones," and "Lost" are also repeat offenders. When we watch these shows or shows by these creators, we almost have to will ourselves not to get attached to any characters, for our sanity.
The screenwriters of our favorite television shows understand the impact of killing off a beloved character and use these plot devices to keep us invested in the show. But sometimes it just seems like a cruel move meant to emotionally destroy us. This is especially true if the character's death seems random and purposeless.
Sometimes a character we loved dies and it hurts, but we can see how their death moves the story forward and we can get over it pretty quickly. Other times though, the death of a character is totally traumatizing and it feels like we'll never recover.
Let's look at the character deaths that hurt us the most that we'll truly never get over.
Warning: Spoilers pretty much everywhere in this article.
15 Tara Maclay in "Buffy The Vampire Slayer"
Tara Maclay, played by Amber Benson, started out as an occasional character on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," and it didn't really seem like she'd be sticking around. But then Willow began to question her sexuality as she fell hard for Tara. When they began dating many viewers rejoiced. Up to that point, there had been very few shows depicting gay and lesbian relationships, and even fewer portraying them in honest and raw ways.
Viewers fell in love with Willow and Tara's love. Viewers fell in love with Tara as an individual character. When the couple went on a 'break,' many feared that Tara would be leaving the show, but she remained a central character. When Willow and Tara got back together viewers were overjoyed. Then, in true Joss Whedon fashion, it all went to hell.
One of the villains of season 6 showed up at Buffy's house intending to shoot Buffy. The bullet ricochets and ends hitting Tara. She dies in Willow's arms and a piece of our souls died with her. Tara's death was completely out of left field and it felt particularly painful that it came right after she and Willow had reconciled. Her death ended up being the driving force of the rest of the season, so it's obvious why Whedon chose to kill her, but it doesn't make it hurt any less.
14 Poussey Washington in "Orange is the New Black"
Poussey Washington was by far one of the best characters on "Orange is the New Black." Her character development was some of the best writing the show has done so far. Her story is complex, nuanced, and so much more than we usually see for a gay woman of color on TV.
Poussey was also a show favorite for her playful attitude and comic relief. She was one character who always seemed to make the best of the fact that she was in jail and she made it her mission to make others happy as well. Her character did go through some tough times, resorting to heavy drinking because she felt lonely, but it seemed like she was coming out it, right up until her character died.
During a confrontation with the guards in the prison, Poussey is thrown to the ground by a prison guard. The guard then puts his knee on her back to pin her to the ground. The camera stays on Poussey's face for a long time as she repeatedly chokes out, "I can't breathe." Eventually she suffocates under the pressure of the white guard's knee.
Poussey's death was particularly traumatic, not just because she was a beloved character, but because her death was a raw depiction of the violence law enforcement inflicts on black and brown bodies. The creators came under fire for making the scene so graphic, but they defended their choice saying that the violence that occurs in real life is graphic and they felt it was important to make that known.
13 Lawrence Kutner in "House"
Which made it even more painful when his character abruptly committed suicide. Kutner didn't leave a note, and from the perspective of the other characters, there was apparently no reason for his suicide. The episode where the team finds out focuses on everyone's struggle with one question: why? In fact, this question drives House nearly to madness. House is a man who always has to figure out the riddle, and Kutner's death is absolutely inexplicable to him.
The creators of the show say that the apparent senselessness of the suicide was the point. Their message was that it's very easy to miss the warning signs of suicide and that people who seem fine may be going through deep hidden troubles.
12 Lori Grimes in "The Walking Dead"
"The Walking Dead" is one of those shows where like, everyone dies. This is partially because of the premise of the show. They're a band of nomads living in a post-apocalyptic, zombie ridden world. Of course people are going to die. A lot of people are going to die.
At the same time, there are characters we always assume are 'safe,' just because they're so central to the story. Lori Grimes, Rick's wife, was one of these characters. Lori was a kick butt lady. She always held her own against the zombies. She managed to (mostly) take care of a young son while on the road searching for safety. Lori handled 90% of the emotional labor as the heart and glue of the group. She literally fought zombies while pregnant. Lori had survived so much.
So, when she died during childbirth viewers were torn up. In order to save her baby, Maggie has to perform a C-section with a hunting knife. The scene was brutal in every sense of the word. Unable to give her proper care, since you, know, they're stuck in a prison and zombies are invading, Lori bleeds out. It seemed like Lori would be able to make it through everything, but we learned, yet again, that no one is truly safe on "The Walking Dead."
11 Barbara Holland in "Stranger Things"
Rarely has the Internet gotten so bent out of shape by the death of a relatively insignificant character. The death of Barbara Holland in season one of the Netflix Original "Stranger Things" sent the Internet in to an absolute frenzy. Viewers really connected to Barbara, who was a really good friend and the constant voice of reason on the show. She was also an unapologetic nerd, struggling to connect with people at her high school, which is relatable for a lot of people.
While Barb is leaving a party that Nancy invited her to at Steve's, she hears the sounds that the audience has come to associate with the monster from the upside down. She creeps toward the pool to check it out (while we're all screaming NO at the TV), and she gets sucked in to the pool. Viewers made it clear that Barb didn't deserve the scary and brutal death she experienced. They wanted more of Barb and she was taken too soon.
Unfortunately the show's creators have confirmed that Barb is definitely dead for real and we won't be seeing her again in season two.
10 Jeff Atkins in "13 Reasons Why"
"13 Reasons Why" is a show about suicide, so we went in to it expecting to be wrecked by the death of a major character. What we didn't expect was to get wrecked by the death of a relatively minor character. Jeff's death in a car accident is heartbreaking, particularly because it could have been prevented if Sheri had been honest about hitting and knocking down a stop sign. The accident occurred at the same intersection. Hannah was in the car as well and though she reported the stop sign being knocked down, it wasn't in time.
The Internet is just about as torn up about Jeff's death as they were about Barb's. There are articles everywhere about how Jeff deserved better. People are grieving all over Twitter. The Jeff Atkins grief is super real.
Why such a strong reaction? Because Jeff was just generally a good guy. He was a jock, but he wasn't mean or a bully. He was working hard to get his grades up so he could play baseball and he wasn't pushing for special treatment just because he was an athlete. Jeff was a true friend to Clay even though they weren't really in the same social circles. He really wanted Clay and Hannah together and he encouraged Clay to go for it. Jeff was just a real good guy.
The choice to have Jeff be the character who died is a clear example of show creators wanting to make the biggest emotional impact in order
9 Adriana La Cerva in "The Sopranos"
"The Sopranos" is another one of those shows where the premise necessitates a lot of character deaths. The entire show is about the Italian mafia in New Jersey, so assassinations and accidents that aren't really accidents are par for the course. But the death of Adriana , the girlfriend of the mob boss' nephew, was different. Not many of the core characters died on "The Sopranos," but when they did it was for betraying the family, which Adriana unfortunately did.
The FBI was closing in on the Soprano crime syndicate, but they didn't have an informant who could confirm their suspicions seal their case. Then they found Adriana. The FBI threatened her and convinced her to share secrets in order to save herself. For about a year Adriana was able to control the situation. She only fed the FBI small details, bu those details added up and eventually the family found out.
Tony Soprano, the head of the family and Adriana's Uncle to be, couldn't kill her himself, but he gave the order. Adriana died the way that so many informants to, by the gun of someone she trusted. Her death was particularly upsetting because she and her fiance were close to getting married and the FBI had been promising that they would be done with her. It was looking like her dreams would finally come true, but dreams rarely come true when the mafia is involved.
8 Ned Stark in "Game of Thrones"
If "Game of Thrones" has taught us anything it's don't get too attached to anyone. Everyone we love dies. Like, literally everyone. And not all of them come back to life like Jon Snow (or should we say Targaryen?). This lesson was made clear in season one with the death of Ned Stark.
The show begins with the death of the Hand of the King. As the scheming behind this death and the awful ethics of King's Landing start to become apparent it's clear that this world is not a safe place to be. As the season progresses, it also becomes clear that Ned is not willing to deal with the dirty games everyone else plays. When Cersei tells him point blank, "When you play the Game of Thrones you win or die," we all pretty much knew what was going to happen to Ned. We just didn't want to believe it.
Ned was an honest, courageous warrior who represented everything good in Westeros. When Joffery made the decision to have him publicly beheaded for trying to expose his true parentage, we knew it was all downhill from there. Little did we know how bad it would get.
7 Rita Morgan in "Dexter"
"Dexter" is a show about a serial killer, so if you went in to it not being able to deal with character deaths, shame on you. But what we didn't expect was the death of a beloved main character, a woman who had helped a serial killer find his humanity.
Rita's character was there from the beginning. She started out as a way for Dexter to pretend to be normal. He knew that he should have a girlfriend, so he dated Rita. But to his surprise, Dexter actually began to fall in love with Rita. He didn't know he was capable of truly feeling for someone other than his father and Deb, so the fact that he actually cared for Rita was a shock.
After their picture perfect wedding and the birth of their son, it seemed like Dexter and Rita may actually have the happy life she'd always wanted. But the point of the whole season was essentially that serial killers can't have nice things, so of course, Rita had to pay the price. The 'big bad' of the season, a serial killer called Trinity who made all of his kills look like suicides, kills Rita by slitting her wrists in the bathtub.
Rita is another example of a character whose death seemed totally unfair. She'd had a tough life and Dexter wasn't great to her, so the glimpse of a happy future being torn away was tough for the viewers.
6 Winifred "Fred" Burkle in Angel
Joss Whedon strikes again! Fred, short for Winifred, was one of the most beloved characters on the "Buffy" spin-off "Angel." Her character was rescued by the Angel Investigations crew from a world where she was an abused slave. She became an essential part of the team and the love interest of both Gunn and Wesley. Because I'm so familiar with the emotional pain that is being a Whedon fan, as soon as Fred and Wesley finally got together, I knew one of them was going to die. Imagine my heartbreak when it was Fred and not Wesley.
Unbeknownst to the crew, one of their colleagues worships an ancient demon name Illyria and is working to raise her from the Hellmouth (there happens to be one right under LA). In order to do this, he needs a human body for her to possess. Unfortunately, he chooses Fred because he loves her and believes she's worthy of being a host.
While Fred is examining an ancient sarcophagus, she inhales an unidentified substance. At first she seems fine, but then she starts to get sick. Things escalate quickly and it becomes apparent that she will die and the demon will take over her body. The cruelest thing about Fred's death is that her body lives on, with the demon inside, so the likeness of Fred is walking, talking, and destroying things, but Fred is gone.
5 The Red Wedding in "Game of Thrones"
Again, death is common on "Game of Thrones." By the time the Red Wedding takes place dozens of characters have died and even some central characters have died. Ned is long gone, and we've become used to trauma. But nothing prepared us for this. There has never been and probably never will be a death scene that compares to the Red Wedding. Even those who read the books years ago and knew the Red Wedding was coming admit that they weren't prepared to see it play out on screen.
Catelyn Stark, Robb Stark, and his new bride Talisa have gone to The Twins to see the patriarch Walder Frey. Robb is there to beg forgiveness for reneging on his promise to marry Frey's daughter. Frey says it's all good, but something seems off. Catelyn begs for dinner, putting her faith in the ancient proverb that no harm may come to guests who have shared "bread and salt" with their hosts. They dine and everything seems like it might be okay, but we all know that's not how "Game of Thrones" rolls.
After dinner Walder Frey gives the order and the ambush commences. Catelyn, Robb, and Talisa are brutally murdered in succession. The added twist of the knife to the audience's soul, pun intended, is when Arya arrives at the Frey's right after the majority of her family has been murdered. Something breaks in young Arya then. As she watches her brother's body ride by with his direwolf as his head, she bursts out laughing.
4 Anne Boleyn in "The Tudors"
For a piece of historical fiction, "The Tudors" is actually pretty accurate. Part of the reason it was so hard to watch Anne Boleyn die on "The Tudors" was because you know she actually died in real life. Anne Boleyn was the second wife of Henry the Eighth. He actually split from the Catholic church and formed the Anglican church so he could divorce his first wife to marry her.
Anne was not a perfect woman, and the goddess Natalie Dormer did an amazing job of portraying the real and flawed woman that Anne was. Anne conspired with her father to seduce Henry so she could become Queen and her father could rise to power. She knew that she was sleeping with a married man and she really didn't care. But in the end, she really did love Henry and everything she did was to make him love her back.
When Henry falls for another woman, he needs to find a way to get rid of Anne, just as he got rid of his first wife. Afraid that another divorce will hurt his image with the people, Henry accuses Anne of cheating on him, and since the word of the King is infallible her fate was sealed. She was beheaded in front of an eager crowd. Her death is extra sad because it makes it clear that women mean nothing to Henry. As soon as he's done with them he discards them.
3 Charlie Pace in “Lost”
A lot of people died on "Lost." A lot of main characters died on "Lost." Unlike most shows where the central cast who've been there from the beginning seem safe, the show creators of "Lost" seemed not to care who they killed. This was never more apparent than when they killed Charlie.
Charlie's story was the ultimate redemption story. Before landing on the island Charlie was a heroin junkie who was getting on the last nerve of every one of his bandmates. He was pretty much a selfish brat who disregarded everyone's feelings. A typical addict. Once stranded on the island, Charlie is forced to get sober, but his behavior doesn't really improve. He's still a selfish brat. But as he develops relationships with the other characters, he starts to become a better person. He starts to want to be a better person.
Of course, every good redemption story requires sacrifice and Charlie made the ultimate sacrifice. He goes to investigate the boat that claims it's there to get everyone off the island and gets trapped in a sealed room as the boat goes down. His last act is to tell his friends that they aren't safe. He sacrifices himself for the greater good.
The tragedy of Charlie's death is directly tied to the future he lost. He was finally working to be a good guy and then he was gone.
2 Mrs. Landingham in "The West Wing"
Mrs. Landingham, the personal assistant to President Bartlet (the best President we've never had), was the heart and soul of the White House. In flashbacks we discover that she was the personal assistant to Bartlet's father, and that she was the one who encouraged Bartlet to stand up to his abusive father. This scene also taught us that she was an old school feminist, fighting for equal pay for women.
Her character was like the mother of everyone in the Bartlet White House. She got through to the President when no one else could. She was a kindly mentor to Charlie. She always had a sharp witted jab for Toby or Josh. She was a surrogate mother for C.J. Mrs. Landingham held the White House together, and to the viewers she was the mother or grandmother we wished we had.
When she was suddenly killed by a drunk driver, nothing in the world seemed right. It didn't seem like the show could go on without her there, but of course, it did. Her death caused a literal crisis of faith for President Bartlet, who, like the rest of us, had to learn that senseless deaths happen and we have to live our lives afterwards.
1 Finn Hudson in "Glee"
It's very rare that a character dies because the actor playing them dies, but that was the tragic case with Finn Hudson on "Glee," played by Cory Monteith. In the summer of 2013, Cory Monteith overdosed on alcohol and heroin, cutting his life tragically short. The actor had struggled with substance abuse for years, but put on a brave face. Few knew how bad it was, including his girlfriend Lea Michele.
"Glee" honored Monteith in the episode, "The Quarterback" in season five. The episode does not say how Finn died, insisting that it doesn't matter. The episode dealt only with the immeasurable grief felt by those who had lost him. And, of course, the grief of the actors themselves came through as well. They had lost a best friend and Lea Michele had lost the love of her life. The cast and show creators have talked many times about how difficult it was to shoot the episode. Though the show is complicated to film and each scene requires multiple shoots, "The Quarterback" was filmed in relatively few shoots because it was too hard for the actors.
Of all the television deaths I've seen, Finn's is the one I'll truly never get over. The tragedy of losing such a young talent like Cory Monteith is overwhelmingly painful, and the episode honoring him captures that almost too well.
It always hurts when a character we love dies, but these are some of the worst cases out there. Who knows if we'll ever get over these character deaths. Since I've been holding on to Tara's death for 15 years, the answer is likely no.