Creating a satisfying ending to a story is perhaps one of the most difficult tasks a writer will face. A good story can still end in a way that leaves audiences feeling as though their viewing experience is incomplete, and tying up all loose ends can be quite challenging.
Over the past 10 years, television has thrived in a wave of fantastic storytelling, ranging from sitcoms to drama and everything in between. The following shows have reached their ending and truly stuck the landing, giving fans a proper sendoff for the characters they came to love (or hate).
Parks And Recreation
The series finale of Parks and Recreation alternates between the present and the future. The parks department employees embark on one last job: fixing a swing at a local park.
The jumps ahead in time show where each character will find themselves in the future: Garry is the mayor of Pawnee, Donna is a Seattle real estate agent, Tom has become a motivational speaker, Andy and April have kids, Ron runs the Pawnee National Park, and Leslie is running for governor. The finale honors where the show began, while giving each beloved regular (and even many reoccurring characters) a satisfying ending.
The Office
The Office series finale brings back its best character, Michael Scott. Dwight and Angela finally get married, and everyone is starting to go their separate ways.
Pam is ready to support Jim's dream and move to Philadelphia, Dwight is the manager of Dunder Mifflin Scranton, Stanley finally retires, and Kelly and Ryan run off together one last time. It's a sweet ending to one of the most popular shows of all time.
Community
Self-awareness is ingrained in the DNA of Community, a show that mixes extreme cynicism with genuine sincerity. The series final finally has the Greendale study group leave the community college they'd spent so much time at. It's a bittersweet ending that acknowledges the reality the characters are faced with.
Annie and Abed will go on to pursue their dreams, while Jeff and Britta stay behind. Jeff and Annie acknowledge their feelings for each other, but whether or not they'll have a future together is unclear. Each character pitches a scenario in which the study group can continue to be together indefinitely, resulting in ideas that range from gritty political dramas to everyone becoming Greendale staff.
The Good Place
The Good Place is a lovely, succinct show about what happens when we die, and what it means to be a good person. It's also a charming comedy about flawed people trying to make themselves better.
Many shows taper off in quality as a result of not knowing when to end, but The Good Place provides audiences with four well-written seasons that culminate in a near-perfect finale.
Crashing
Crashing shows early signs of Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s genius she’d bring to Fleabag. The show is similarly sharp, hilarious, and tender.
The short-lived series only aired for one season, but the finale left its mark. Rather than tie up everything in a neat bow, the series ends on something of a cliffhanger, with Kate walking in on Anthony and Lulu and discovering their affair.
The Legend of Korra
The finale of The Legend of Korra capped things off on a high note for the series. Korra’s efforts to defend the Earth kingdom are failing, but the avatar refuses to give up. Asami is able to make amends with her father before he dies. After finally stopping Kuvira, Korra is unsure of what’s next.
Korra and Asami take a vacation to the Spirit World together, and the two characters with the greatest character development of the show are in good hands with each other.
Dark
By the end of season 3, Dark had woven a complicated web of time travel and family drama in the small town of Winden. With the reveal at the end of season 2 that Jonas' reality was not the only one, he began to piece together that Adam and Eva's separate dimensions were just cycles of pain and truly twisted family trees. No matter how much the various characters tried to untangle things, their actions only made the wheel continue to spin the way it always had.
Jonas and Marta find out that their realities never should have existed, and that they can go back and make sure that they never do. The erasure of time travel takes Jonas, Marta, and any other characters whose lineage can be traced back to time travel out of the picture. It's a beautiful, bittersweet ending to a fantastic show.
The Clone Wars
The Clone Wars returned on Disney+ for one last season. The final four episodes, otherwise known as The Siege of Mandalore, take place during the events of Revenge of the Sith.
The finale follows the events of Order 66, which Ahsoka just barely managed to survive by removing the inhibitor chip implanted in Rex's brain. The two battle their way to the surface as their ship crashes, with many clones dying in the crash. Ahsoka and Rex must disappear, as the reign of the Emperor has begun.
Fleabag
Fleabag season 1 seems like the show can't possibly get any better, until you watch season 2. Every episode is hilarious, heartbreaking, and nearly perfect.
The finale has Fleabag dealing with the fact that she finally hooked up with the Hot Priest, and the two now have to deal with their feelings for each other. There are also sweet moments shared with Fleabag's father and sister, but the show leaves you in tears by the end. "I love you." "It'll pass."
The Americans
The series finale of The Americans has the Jennings on the run after they've finally had their cover blown. They move quickly to get Paige and decide to leave Henry behind. Stan is waiting for them, and in one of the best scenes of the series, he and Phillip have a discussion about how Phillip is a Russian spy.
Despite finding the people he's been looking for for years, Stan lets the Jennings go. They escape to Russia, but Paige elects to stay behind. Phillip and Elizabeth find themselves childless in a country they haven't been to in years, resigned to their new normal.