A[quote name=“MrSaxon” url=“/community/t/148117/the-saddest-television-deaths#post_3523735”]Well-crafted imaginary characters often resonate deeply with people. In the case of a television show, these are characters who you have invited into your home for weeks or months or, often, years. You’ve joined them on their adventures, listened to their hopes and secrets, and you’ve shared both their happiness and their pain. And their loss hurts in a way that people who don’t watch those shows can ever know. People react to these final scenes in different ways but, whatever outrage and despair they may inspire, character deaths are often some of the most memorable on television - and they can feature some of the best writing and performances as well. Sure, there’s no shortage of poorly thought out bullshit deaths but they’re for another list. Get those hankies out and join me as we prepare to have our hearts kicked in the balls all over again, discussing “The Saddest Television Deaths”.
Spoilers, most certainly follow!
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THE DEATH OF THE TENTH DOCTOR
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DOCTOR WHO - “THE END OF TIME, PART 2”
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Okay, so it’s not a real death but fuck you I don’t care. I know there are some who take umbrage at certain aspects of this particular scene and I fully understand that. This episode has many flaws and I don’t dispute any of them but I can only speak from personal experience here, and I was a big fan of the Tenth Doctor when he regenerated. This death was a big event in the show, not only because arguably the most successful actor since Tom Baker was departing, but we were also losing an entire era. Showrunner Russell T Davies, who had done the impossible and brought a dead show back to life, was departing along with Tennant, in order to make way for Steven Moffat and a new team, Though undeniably too long, it’s still nice to see the Tenth Doctor, who is now dying from radiation after saving the life of a companion’s grandfather, visit all of the characters who became important during the Davies era and bid them a farewell.
When I watch this scene at the end of “The End Of Time”, I may find myself wishing that perhaps those final words had been different but I certainly can’t deny that they devastated me at the time. As The Doctor sadly calls out to the audience that he doesn’t want to go, tears streaming down his eyes and his TARDIS breaking apart around him, I’m transported back to that original airing when I found myself mourning a version of The Doctor whom I had come to treasure. I had travelled far and wide with him, seen him save entire planets from darkness, and witnessed him win all but this final battle. Matt Smith’s subsequent performance as the Eleventh Doctor would allay my fears that nobody could live up to Tennant, but I still sometimes find myself missing that odd man in the suit and trainers who would declare “Allons-y!” before launching into the unknown.
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That’s a good one but if I’m picking a regeneration from Doctor Who I’d go with Pertwee’s. Sladen’s performance was so good and really sold her sadness over thinking the Doctor was dead. Courtney really played the subtle comic relief really well and Pertwee really acted the hell of that scene very powerful, my favorite regeneration.
[VIDEO]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nL-tSQvYGP8[/VIDEO]
But honestly the saddest tv death in my head, maybe because it just happened is the Red Wedding in Game of Thrones. Nothing I’ve seen has devastated me like that. Fuck it’s just so sad and hopeless. Everyone was so great in this but the MVP honors go to Michelle Fairly and David Bradley, oh and the actor who plays Roose Bolton was great too. That was just brutal, maybe the most brutal thing I’ve ever seen even counting movies.