VTTW Board Index

Let's limit it to this current era of "prestige TV", which I would say roughly began with HBO's "Oz". My list:

Tier 1 (Nailed it)
1. Breaking Bad-I've said it before, but I think this show was perfect in every way. And while the final episode was great, I still view "Ozymandius" as the true finale, and the two that came after it as epilogue. To me, it remains the finest hour in TV history.

2. The Americans- a criminally underrated show, and wow- the finale really packed an emotional punch. If you've never watched it, get your kleenex ready when they start playing "With Or Without You".

3. The Office- yes, the last seasons without Michael were absolute garbage, but they really stuck the landing.

4. The Leftovers- another show that needs to be seen by more people. The final season was just wacky, in a good way. Any given episode would have you laughing and crying and laughing again within a 5 minute span. And finale paid it all off. This was Damon Lindelof atoning for the sins of "Lost".

5. Mad Men- I didn't enjoy this show as much as many, but it had its moments. The finale was one of them. Now I need a Coke.

Tier 2 (Meh)
1. Lost- I didn't hate the finale as much as most, but yeah, it was pretty unsatisfying. I give bonus points because I enjoyed the series so much up to that point.

2. The Sopranos- I mean, this was great episode right up until it all went black. That still remains one of the most questionable creative decisions of all time.

3. Sons of Anarchy- By the finale, the plot had become so convoluted that I really wasn't sure what was going on. But Jax's sendoff seemed true to the character.

Tier 3 (The Dexter Division)

The less said about these, the better, so I'll just list them without comment:
Dexter
House of Cards
Weeds
Game of Thrones (sorry)

Good list, though I haven't seen them all... I'll comment on the ones I did see..

100% agree on Breaking Bad.  This, to me, is the perfect example of a show that started great, the middle was great, and ended great.  Pretty much perfect the whole way through.

Agree on Americans too, loved that show.  And the ending was truly amazing.  "With or Without You", that ending couldn't have been much more perfect.

The Office, agree great ending.

My only disagreement would be I would put GOT in the "Meh" list.  I never watched Dexter, but my wife hated the ending.

I don't watch many series all the way through. They usually lose me somewhere along the way (like The Walking Dead). But Breaking Bad and Dexter were two rare exceptions. And they're great examples of how to write a series off into the sunset, and how not to. Breaking Bad was a very pleasing ending to a phenomenal show. Dexter was a terrible, disappointing, lazy, half-hearted ending to an otherwise great show. I've watched Dexter all the way through three times (about to start my fourth) and the ending gets worse every time.

The Supranos was the absolute best ending that I've ever hated to watch, I STILL want to know

In the Nailed It category you have to include MASH


Interestingly, of those on your list BDV, I only watched The Sopranos (and intermittently at the end)
Not much of a TV watcher for quite a bit
GOT, meh

The amazing thing about Breaking Bad was that it basically had two finales.

Recall that it never really held its own in the ratings until the final couple seasons (and then really blew up when it went to Netflix). They weren't sure it was coming back after season 4, so they wrote that season finale so that it could also serve as a series finale, just in case the show was cancelled. That episode, "Face Off" was incredible in its own right, and had the show ended right there, I don't think many would have been disappointed. I remember thinking, "Where can they possibly go from here? I don't think the stakes can get any higher". Was I ever wrong.  :wow:

Remember that they are young pups, Pirate. 

Heck, it was only 35 years ago ... :dunno:

Hey I Hawkeye you!

psst, I think HTV is Clinger ... :loco:

Interesting.  I always envisioned myself more as the Trapper John type. 

I only really paid attention to the Americans and the Sopranos from your list....and I did think the Americans finale was good, though I didn't need any kleenex.  Those commie bastards deserved every bit of what they got.   :naughty:

And the thing about Sopranos is that I was pretty "meh" on the whole series.  Like I have said in the past about the Godfather, any movie or series that tends to make scum mafioso sympathic characters I tend to look askance at.  Having said that, I was definitely okay with the blackout.  I like the tension between, you know, they could have been hit by a bomb or it could just mean life goes on.   

I see your caveat about "prestige series" whatever that means, but how can you leave out the troika of the three most famous finales in history, M*A*S*H, Cheers and Seinfield?   A clear order IMO:

1. Cheers
2. M*A*S*H
3. Seinfeld

Seinfeld finale probably the worst in history, just awful.  What do you expect from a show about nothing?   M*A*S*H was okay, I don't recall it as well, but was full of the usual simpering Alan Alda that unfortunately dominated the last couple of seasons of the show.   Cheers was a really good show, period.

And finally, how could you leave out Big Bang Theory?  Top sitcom for the last several seasons.  And yeah, they nailed it.  Not the greatest finale of all time, but pretty good.  But as the cast said on Colbert...better than Cheers for sure.   :naughty:

Seinfeld finale left a lot to be desired. MASH was meh....and it was about Alda for the last several seasons. After about 1977-78 the show went downhill for me. When Radar left and Clinger changed characters it just wasn't the same.....much like Barney leaving The Andy Griffith Show.

I thought the Big Bang finale was good. I was sorry to see it end. I was a fan of Friends but it had run it's course and it was time to end it. But I think Big Bang could have gone on another season or two. But, it's better to go out on top.

Justified is another that had a really good finale.

Yes. That was very good.  Great series also.  Some shows better than others but overall excellent.

Interesting... I hated seeing Hawkeye lose his mind....

I guess you folks didn't get into Longmire. Living in South Dakota it was neat to see a show about a sheriff from Wyoming. It was a good show with a great finale. Yellowstone is another. Kevin Costner leads the cast. The second season is coming soon. Did any of you watch the comedy Rules of Engagement? It was under rated and had a great cast. If you haven't, watch it. I think you will be surprised.

I am going to plead the Fifth on that conversation

One show that I always thought went out really great (and yes I have only seen this on video) is Perry Mason.  The show ended and it was just like they were preparing for another case.

I have a DVD of every TV episode of Perry Mason :dude:

i love Perry Mason. Looking back I always made a joke about the guy that played the prosecuting attorney in the original series....Didn't he get tired of getting his but kicked by Perry Mason. Did he ever win a case?

He never won a case. If I remember correctly, he even lost when he and Mason switched sides. He was the defense attorney and Mason was the prosecutor.

But Perry got his friend off - In one scene Hamilton mutters"oh shut up!"
The cast got along well - I swear some of the ending scenes were ad-libed , Like Trag saying "He missed by ][ much"

Loved Longmire.  Hard to keep up with where it was when it started switching networks, however. 

You've seen me.  Nobody would EVER want to see me in a dress, not even me. 

Netflix rules.

New day. 

BTW, is anyone else watching "Chernobyl" on HBO? It's really good so far.

I'm watching it. I think it's excellent. The tone even seems Russian.

It's pretty brutal to watch at times. Especially last night.

Gotta check that out.

We have each and every season on DVD of Perry Mason. 
Mason actually lost one of the trials in the case but eventually he reversed the Decision. Go Back and Watch the Episode "The Deadly Verdict"  and you will see Perry lose a case, but then he keeps fighting and eventually the defendant is exonerated of the crime.  Now that is a LAWYER!

Well ummm I don't know what with all these new gender neutral roles out there  :naughty: :naughty: :naughty:

There are two genders, period.  Male and female.  Biology and science say so. 

Don't forget reason and common sense say so, as well.   :nod:

Wait what about those droner Cat Gender Roles?   :dielaughing:

Funny thing about Mason is if you watch the intros Trag is still in the credits at the opening of the show even after he was not on the show and a new actor was functioning in his place until the very last season.  I always wondered if that was due to some contractual agreement or not.