Female characters have been notorious gotten the short end of the stick throughout television history. Even though this issue has been brought to attention, it still happens more often than most fans would like, and it is incredibly discouraging to watch a show for seasons, investing one's time and energy, only for a beloved female character to get killed off or suffer an otherwise undeserved ending.
Some of these characters aren't universally loved, but as some of the lead characters or important parts of ensemble shows, they deserved better from their creators.
Rory Gilmore (Gilmore Girls)
In an attempt to create a circular storyline in A Year In The Life, the creators of Gilmore Girls concluded Rory's storyline in the same way Lorelai's began years ago, alone and pregnant. Which would be alright, if she hadn't grown up in Gilmore residence, watching her mom struggling to give her the best life she could as a single mom.
Knowing the consequences of a mistake like that, Rory should and would have known better than to get pregnant when she wasn't in a serious relationship. Even though she was never the most liked character, the entire new series shows Rory in an extremely negative light, with all her character development from the initial series gone. She deserved better. They all did.
Erin Lindsay (Chicago PD)
Despite Sophia Bush's decision to leave Chicago PD, the writers knew it was coming for a whole season, and they still decided to give the beloved character such a horrible ending.
In a downward spiral of her career, the fans see Erin struggle with a decision. Either she stays and likely loses a job as a detective, or she goes to New York to work for the FBI, which consequently also helps her mother. Instead of giving her a send-off worthy of four seasons of character development, they have her leave her entire life, Jay, her friends at work without a word of goodbye. Erin and her fans deserved a better ending.
Robin Scherbatsky (How I Met Your Mother)
Robin spent most of How I Met Your Mother putting ambition before love, doesn't want kids, and has no problem with being single. But the show made her ending all about who she ends up with and emphasized the thesis that a woman cannot have both - career and love.
Her ending was not at all in tune with who Robin was as a character. She wanted her life to be an adventure, and she is not at all a good match for Ted to end up with. That aside, if they were insistent on having Robin end her marriage with Barney, they could have left her as an accomplished career woman, who got what she worked for so hard, comfortable with being alone, and not a damsel who needs to be rescued. It was a disservice to her character.
Serena Van Der Woodsen (Gossip Girl)
Serena wasn't always the best character on Gossip Girl, but she deserved a better ending. Seemingly the happiest during her relationship with Nate, the show forced this rich girl/poor guy romance down the viewer's throats, and even after it was revealed that Dan was Gossip Girl, Serena is seemingly fine with it, not showing the least bit of anger.
Gossip Girl was very often downright cruel to them as they struggled with their problems, and Serena ending up with her abuser did not sit well with the fans of the show.
Hayley Marshall (The Originals)
Many fans never expected to love Hayley as much when they started watching The Originals, but with the idea of a daughter, Hayley went through a change and she ended up being a beloved fierce character.
All she cared about was protecting and caring for her daughter, and she would do anything to ensure her happiness. Eventually, she does. Happy-ever-after was what she deserved, and instead, she sacrificed her life for her daughter Hope. It was a noble death, but she still deserved to be happy.
Daenerys Targaryen (Game Of Thrones)
Daenerys' character was one of the strongest and most complex on Game Of Thrones. It's not just the fact that she didn't ascend the throne, which fans were rooting for, but she didn't deserve such a cruel ending.
The final season painted her character in a very uncharacteristic light, letting the fandom in shock by ruining a beloved character's principles. It only got worse in the finale, where she was killed by Jon Snow, essentially enforcing the sexist agenda that the throne should go to a man.
Rachel Green (Friends)
Rachel starts Friends as this shallow person who only seems to care about shoes and purses. She leaves her husband-to-be at the altar and ends up moving in with Monica for a while. But throughout the show, Rachel finds her professional aspirations and her passion in life. As it turns out, she's really great at it too.
This is why, after several failed attempts at being happy with Ross, it's so disappointing when she chooses him over the career opportunity of a lifetime, even though most fans were rooting for them.
Marisa Cooper (The O.C.)
Marissa's character on The O.C. might have been disliked by many, but despite the fact that she made an overload of poor decisions, she was finally getting her life back in order when they brutally and abruptly killed her off.
After everything she went through in life - her dad abandoning her, her drinking problem, Johnny dying, getting kicked out of school, almost being raped by Ryan's brother Trey and in defending him, having to shoot Trey, all before the age of 18. She deserved a better send-off than dying just when she was making all the positive changes. It made her story feel unfinished.
Carla Rosón Caleruega (Elite)
Carla did some truly horrible things, especially in season one of Elite where she helped cover up her friend's murder, but her character development was amazing. As a character, she got pressured into things she didn't feel comfortable with by her boyfriend and her family, and in the end, she finally found her voice.
Far be it that the only happy ending for a woman is to be with a guy, but being happy with Samuel was something she deserved after everything, and having that taken away was painful for the fans, and for Carla herself.
Ellie Bishop (NCIS)
The opinion on the character of Ellie Bishop is divided among NCIS fans, with some fans feeling she became less intelligent towards the end but some fans loved her, and consider the season 18 finale to be a slap in the face.
After seasons of building up her character, they firstly dropped all the things that made her unique and then wrote her off in hopes nobody would care. They rushed her departure, even though she was a part of the team and deserved much better than having her reputation as an NCIS agent tarnished before leaving.