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Post by JHA Durant on Jul 30, 2021 7:32:51 GMT
What are some comedic shows, or sit-coms, or generally light-hearted shows that ended on serious, not funny, or even sad notes that were definitely out of character for the show?
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Post by Vits on Jul 30, 2021 10:16:11 GMT
3RD ROCK FROM THE SUN immediately comes to mind.
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Post by JHA Durant on Jul 30, 2021 10:51:52 GMT
3RD ROCK FROM THE SUN immediately comes to mind. Yeah that's a good one. Dick assaults and incapacitates Mary after revealing he's an extra-terrestrial, and then they just leave her there. My pick would be Born and Bred. One of the main comic relief characters gets sent to jail after one of his hijinks goes awry.
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Post by jamesottosweetheart on Jul 30, 2021 17:50:03 GMT
The first show that comes to my mind is Roseanne. The original Full House sitcom ended in a serious way too.
God bless you always!!!
Holly
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paislene
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Post by paislene on Jul 31, 2021 2:15:49 GMT
Correct me if I'm wrong about the following . Most of these I've only seen the last season once .
Happy Days - Howard Cunningham had a heart attack and had to sell his hardware business . His wife , Marion , was a broken woman after his decline . Fonzie , didn't ride off into the sunset as a maverick lone biker , but settled down into a difficult relationship and teaching . Richie struggled with his marriage and work prospects . Joanie blossomed into a woman , and struggled with her teenage image and her adult identity .
That 70's Show - the teenage kids had serious adult problems from early drug use , and their parents marriages were in a critically depressive and damaged state .
Seinfield - the group ended their days in prison due to sentences for reprehensibly toxic social behaviour .
The Love Boat - ended on a blissful group meeting , but Merrill Stubing had struggled in the final seasons with his ageing , which led to depression and a drink problem . He feared losing his job and the loss of close work companions . In the final scenes , he smiled but in his eyes was such a wistful faraway look , that many viewers finished the series choked with emotion .
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Post by JHA Durant on Jul 31, 2021 13:16:58 GMT
Correct me if I'm wrong about the following . Most of these I've only seen the last season once .
Happy Days - Howard Cunningham had a heart attack and had to sell his hardware business . His wife , Marion , was a broken woman after his decline . Fonzie , didn't ride off into the sunset as a maverick lone biker , but settled down into a difficult relationship and teaching . Richie struggled with his marriage and work prospects . Joanie blossomed into a woman , and struggled with her teenage image and her adult identity .
That 70's Show - the teenage kids had serious adult problems from early drug use , and their parents marriages were in a critically depressive and damaged state .
Seinfield - the group ended their days in prison due to sentences for reprehensibly toxic social behaviour .
The Love Boat - ended on a blissful group meeting , but Merrill Stubing had struggled in the final seasons with his ageing , which led to depression and a drink problem . He feared losing his job and the loss of close work companions . In the final scenes , he smiled but in his eyes was such a wistful faraway look , that many viewers finished the series choked with emotion .
I knew the Seinfield one, I considered mentioning it but I chose a more obscure show's ending instead. But I didn't know The Love Boat's one, and I've seen a lot of episodes of that show.
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davidmt
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Post by davidmt on Jul 31, 2021 21:27:53 GMT
The BBC series Good Neighbors
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Post by Vits on Jul 31, 2021 22:42:41 GMT
Correct me if I'm wrong about the following . Most of these I've only seen the last season once .
That 70's Show - the teenage kids had serious adult problems from early drug use , and their parents marriages were in a critically depressive and damaged state . No, that didn't happen. Actually, the first season of that show had a good chunk of serious coming-of-age moments (I mean sweet, not tragic), but each season became more and more like a traditional sitcom.
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Post by Feologild Oakes on Jul 31, 2021 22:46:27 GMT
Blackadder Goes Forth
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paislene
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Post by paislene on Jul 31, 2021 23:24:31 GMT
The Love Boat - ended on a blissful group meeting , but Merrill Stubing had struggled in the final seasons with his ageing , which led to depression and a drink problem . He feared losing his job and the loss of close work companions . In the final scenes , he smiled but in his eyes was such a wistful faraway look , that many viewers finished the series choked with emotion . In the overview , the last episode had an upbeat finish . The Captain confided his problems with Doc , after the crew began noticing his grumpy and sometime drunk behaviour which ended in his heart attack . And the overall situation was much more complex , with some complaints about the crew by mean spirited passengers , which were investigated by the cruise line and directors . At the time , there were finance problems and word got around they were retiring some ships and cutting the oldest Captains . His best buddy on another ship was forced into early retirement , and he was next in line . But with a company takeover and new management , there was a a more positive outlook , and in the last episode , Merrill was promoted to Captain the Cruise Line's flagship .
Ps. The Love Boat is one of my all-time favorite shows . I also liked The Love Boat Sequel , even though it is the complete opposite of the warm family-friendly Original . I hope for the day when I can get the Remastered Collectors Edition of the Original . Maybe they could include the Sequel as an extra as well .
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paislene
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Post by paislene on Jul 31, 2021 23:37:35 GMT
Correct me if I'm wrong about the following . Most of these I've only seen the last season once .
That 70's Show - the teenage kids had serious adult problems from early drug use , and their parents marriages were in a critically depressive and damaged state . No, that didn't happen. Actually, the first season of that show had a good chunk of serious coming-of-age moments (I mean sweet, not tragic), but each season became more and more like a traditional sitcom. This may be a matter of perception , Vits . Everyone seemed to be in a bad way at the end of show .
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Post by CrepedCrusader on Aug 1, 2021 2:27:56 GMT
Dinosaurs. The show ended with the family sitting around the tv and waiting for death.
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Post by JHA Durant on Aug 1, 2021 4:55:38 GMT
Dinosaurs. The show ended with the family sitting around the tv and waiting for death. Wow, that was brutal.
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Post by Vits on Aug 1, 2021 6:45:49 GMT
This may be a matter of perception , Vits . Everyone seemed to be in a bad way at the end of show . No, not really.
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Post by Feologild Oakes on Aug 1, 2021 8:18:59 GMT
The show may not be that well know to people but The BBC show "Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps (2001-2011)" i would say ended on a serious note. The last scene is the characters of Donna and Gaz saying goodbye as Gaz is leaving to travel the world, and its not said but strongly implied that Donna has a terminal illness that she will die from and she does not tell Gaz so he can travel, So the show pretty much end with a dying woman saying goodbye to her boyfriend for the last time.
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Post by jamesottosweetheart on Aug 1, 2021 15:19:40 GMT
Dinosaurs. The show ended with the family sitting around the tv and waiting for death. I second this. God bless you always!!! Holly
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paislene
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Post by paislene on Aug 6, 2021 1:41:25 GMT
And here are some more that come to mind -
The Nanny - there was a reality check between Fran and Maxwell in the last episodes where they finally realised they weren't suited , but needed each other . Brilliant role playing by Fran Drescher and Charles Shaughnessy for the entire series , with strong support actors including the younger actors .
Glee - a powerful musical series that presented itself as a conscientious and hopeful panorama of talented performers , eventually confronted with career truths . (the series almost mirrored the misfortunes many of the real stars fell into)
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Post by Vits on Aug 6, 2021 4:36:19 GMT
And here are some more that come to mind -
The Nanny - there was a reality check between Fran and Maxwell in the last episodes where they finally realised they weren't suited , but needed each other . Brilliant role playing by Fran Drescher and Charles Shaughnessy for the entire series , with strong support actors including the younger actors .
Glee - a powerful musical series that presented itself as a conscientious and hopeful panorama of talented performers , eventually confronted with career truths . (the series almost mirrored the misfortunes many of the real stars fell into) All of that did happen, but not in the finales per se, both of which tried to tug at our heartstrings as much as possible. Heck, the GLEE one is literally titled DREAMS COME TRUE.
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Post by JHA Durant on Jan 31, 2023 3:25:36 GMT
I can't believe I didn't mention One Foot in the Grave! One of my favourite TV show endings of them all, and I completely forgot how dark it is.
In the final episode, Victor Meldrew is dead, killed in a hit-and-run. His long-suffering yet loving widow Margaret is frustrated at how nothing came of the investigation, so she vows to kill whoever did it herself. As the episode progresses, it soon becomes apparent that the "killer" was a woman Margaret had met in a therapy group, so when she finds out the truth, it is heavily implied that Margaret laced some orange juice with painkillers and gave it to her.
Despite everything, it turned out Victor's death was an accident, not intentional, and the woman had been seeking out Margaret due to guilt and remorse. Still, Margaret never warns her of the orange juice, and simply leaves upon seeing her drink it.
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