20 Unforgettable TV Show Finales You Need to Watch Before You Die [Ranked, Reviewed & Rated]

Television has given us some of the most powerful storytelling of the modern era. But not every great show earns a great ending. A truly unforgettable TV show finales must do something incredibly difficult: honor every character, pay off every theme, and leave the audience with something to carry long after the screen goes dark.

The 20 shows listed below didn’t just end—they concluded. Each one represents the pinnacle of what television can achieve as an art form. Whether you’re a lifelong TV enthusiast or just beginning to explore prestige television, these are the finales that define the medium.

Unforgettable TV Show Finales of All Time

These 20 unforgettable TV show finales made us cry, cheer & question everything. Full details on cast, awards, IMDb & RT scores included. Don’t miss this list! IMDb ratings and Rotten Tomatoes scores are based on available data at time of writing. Awards listed include major recognitions across the full series run.

#1. Breaking Bad (2008–2013)

Finale Episode: Felina (Season 5, Episode 16)

Breaking Bad is widely considered the greatest TV drama ever made. Walter White’s transformation from a mild-mannered chemistry teacher to ruthless drug kingpin remains unmatched in television storytelling. The finale “Felina” gave viewers a masterfully crafted conclusion — Walter reclaims his agency, says goodbye to his family, saves Jesse, eliminates his enemies, and dies on his own terms in the meth lab where he felt most alive.

Every loose end was tied up with surgical precision. Vince Gilligan’s writing throughout the series built to this perfect ending. The finale drew 10.3 million viewers — the highest in the show’s history — and received universal critical acclaim for giving both Walter White and the audience the satisfying yet heartbreaking closure they deserved.

#2. The Sopranos (1999–2007)

Finale Episode: Made in America (Season 6, Episode 21)

The Sopranos is the show that changed television forever and made HBO synonymous with prestige drama. Tony Soprano is the most complex antihero in TV history, and David Chase’s bold, controversial finale remains one of the most discussed endings in pop culture.

The infamous cut-to-black ending divided audiences but rewarded careful viewers — Tony’s paranoid perspective shown throughout the diner scene, the symbolic journey of the final minutes, and the abrupt ending mirroring the idea that Tony could be killed at any moment (or is already dead) is a masterclass in ambiguity. Whether you loved or hated the ending, it proved television could be as daring and artistic as any film.

#3. Game of Thrones (2011–2019)

Finale Episode: The Iron Throne (Season 8, Episode 6)

Game of Thrones is one of the most ambitious television productions ever made — a sprawling fantasy epic that captivated over 44 million viewers per episode at its peak. Its finale remains unforgettable — not always for the right reasons. While earlier seasons were near-perfect adaptations of George R.R. Martin’s novels, the final season’s rushed pacing was criticized by fans and critics alike.

Despite controversy, the finale is undeniably a significant TV moment — Daenerys’ descent into madness, Bran becoming king, Jon’s exile, and Arya sailing west all delivered emotional closure. The finale broke records with 13.6 million same-night viewers and remains a cultural touchstone about the danger of subverting audience expectations too aggressively.

#4. Succession (2018–2023)

Finale Episode: With Open Eyes (Season 4, Episode 10)

Succession is the defining prestige drama of the 2020s — a Shakespearean family saga disguised as a corporate satire. Jesse Armstrong’s writing is razor-sharp, and the performances from Jeremy Strong, Sarah Snook, Kieran Culkin, and Brian Cox are the finest ensemble work in recent memory.

The finale is devastating in its perfection: Logan Roy is dead, the children battle over his legacy, and the cruel irony of the Roy children’s lives — that they were never truly capable of running the empire they craved — becomes undeniably clear. Shiv’s betrayal of Kendall, Roman’s self-destruction, and the hollow victory that follows makes this one of the most thematically complete finales in television history.

#5. The Wire (2002–2008)

Finale Episode: -30- (Season 5, Episode 10)

Often cited by critics as the greatest television series ever made, The Wire is a sprawling, deeply humanistic portrait of Baltimore, Maryland — exploring the drug trade, police, politics, education, and media across five extraordinary seasons. David Simon’s magnum opus treats its characters — from drug dealers to cops to politicians — with equal complexity and compassion.

The finale “-30-” wraps up each character’s arc in a montage that beautifully captures the cyclical nature of systemic failure. New faces take old roles. The city continues. It is not a happy ending, but it is an honest one, and that honesty is what makes The Wire timeless.

#6. Better Call Saul (2015–2022)

Finale Episode: Saul Gone (Season 6, Episode 13)

Better Call Saul defied all expectations for a Breaking Bad spinoff and arguably surpassed its parent series in emotional depth. The story of Jimmy McGill’s transformation into morally bankrupt Saul Goodman is a tragedy of Shakespearean proportions. The finale “Saul Gone” is extraordinary — Jimmy finally confronts the consequences of every choice he made, gives Kim the testimony that could free her, and accepts a lengthy prison sentence.

It is a redemption arc that earns every emotional beat. Bob Odenkirk and Rhea Seehorn deliver career-defining performances throughout the series, and the finale rewards every viewer who stuck through six magnificent seasons.

#7. Friends (1994–2004)

Finale Episode: The Last One (Season 10, Episodes 17 & 18)

Friends is one of the most beloved sitcoms in television history, and its two-part finale remains one of the most-watched TV events ever — drawing 52.5 million viewers in the United States alone. Ross and Rachel’s love story finally reaches its long-awaited conclusion, Monica and Chandler prepare for their big move to the suburbs, and the six friends say goodbye to the iconic Central Perk apartment.

The finale beautifully captures the bittersweet end of a chapter — the sadness of growing up and moving on, balanced with the warmth of lasting friendship. Even twenty years later, “The Last One” makes viewers reach for tissues.

#8. M*A*S*H (1972–1983)

Finale Episode: Goodbye, Farewell and Amen (Season 11, February 28, 1983)

For decades, M*A*S*H’s finale “Goodbye, Farewell and Amen” held the record as the most-watched television episode in American history — drawing 106 million viewers (approximately 77% of all American households with a TV). That record stood for 27 years. The Korean War medical dramedy was beloved for blending sharp humor with genuine emotional depth and anti-war sentiment.

The finale gave each character a powerful ending, with Hawkeye Pierce’s psychological breakdown and Corporal Klinger’s decision to stay in Korea among the most memorable moments. It remains the gold standard of how to end a long-running series with dignity and emotional resonance.

#9. Six Feet Under (2001–2005)

Finale Episode: Everyone’s Waiting (Season 5, Episode 12)

Six Feet Under was a groundbreaking drama about the Fisher family who run a funeral home — a series that used death as a lens to examine how we live. Its finale “Everyone’s Waiting” features what is universally considered the greatest final sequence in television history.

In a heartbreaking flash-forward montage set to Sia’s “Breathe Me,” we see the future deaths of every major character — Claire’s long life as an artist, Nate’s ghost watching over his daughter, Ruth’s peaceful passing. It is profoundly moving, beautifully crafted, and a fitting tribute to a series that taught us to appreciate every moment of life. No other finale has matched this sequence’s emotional power.

#10. The Americans (2013–2018)

Finale Episode: Start (Season 6, Episode 10)

The Americans is arguably the most underrated prestige drama of the 2010s — a Cold War spy thriller about two KGB agents living undercover as an American family in suburban Washington D.C. The series is a devastating meditation on identity, loyalty, marriage, and the cost of ideology. The finale “Start” is a masterpiece of restrained emotional devastation.

Philip and Elizabeth Jennings must flee to the Soviet Union — but their daughter Paige refuses to go, choosing America over her parents. The garage scene farewell between father and daughter, Paige stepping off the train, and the parents’ arrival in a grey, unfamiliar Moscow they once called home is profoundly moving and perfectly executed.

#11. Fleabag (2016–2019)

Finale Episode: Episode 6 (Season 2, Episode 6)

Fleabag is a comedic and emotional revelation — Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s semi-autobiographical series about grief, love, and self-destruction is told through a brilliant fourth-wall-breaking device that creates an intimate bond between Fleabag and the audience. The second series introduced Andrew Scott’s The Priest — one of TV’s greatest love interests — and their impossible relationship forms the emotional core of the finale.

The ending, in which Fleabag breaks her fourth wall habit and walks away from the audience — symbolizing that she no longer needs us to process her life — is an act of storytelling genius. It is a farewell that respects both character and viewer. Phoebe Waller-Bridge won three Emmy Awards in one night for this series.

#12. Mad Men (2007–2015)

Finale Episode: Person to Person (Season 7, Episode 14)

Mad Men is a meticulously crafted period drama about the advertising industry in 1960s New York — but at its heart, it is the story of Don Draper’s desperate search for identity and meaning. The finale’s ending is one of the most hotly debated in television history: Don meditates at a retreat and smiles — cutting to the famous “I’d Like to Buy the World a Coke” Coca-Cola commercial from 1971.

Did Don find peace and create the ad? Did he commodify his spiritual awakening? Did he return to his old cynical ways? Matthew Weiner deliberately left it ambiguous, but every interpretation is satisfying because it fits Don Draper’s character perfectly. It is the most beautifully constructed final image in drama television.

#13. The Good Place (2016–2020)

Finale Episode: Whenever You’re Ready (Season 4, Episodes 13 & 14)

The Good Place is the most philosophically ambitious sitcom ever made — a show about ethics, the afterlife, and what it means to be a good person. Michael Schur’s brilliant comedy used comedy as a vehicle to explore genuine moral philosophy, and the finale delivers an emotionally complete meditation on the nature of existence.

Each character chooses, on their own terms, when to pass through the final door into nothingness. It is a show about learning to be better, and its ending is about accepting impermanence with grace. Chidi and Eleanor’s goodbye, Jason’s surfer realization, and Tahani’s choice to become an architect are all deeply satisfying. The Good Place finale made millions of viewers cry — in the best possible way.

#14. Schitt’s Creek (2015–2020)

Finale Episode: Happy Ending (Season 6, Episode 14)

Schitt’s Creek is a comedy miracle — a show that started modestly but ended as a cultural phenomenon. The story of the formerly wealthy Rose family being forced to live in the small town of Schitt’s Creek is a warmhearted celebration of community, acceptance, and found family. In 2020, the show made Emmy history by becoming the first comedy series to sweep all major comedy categories in a single year.

The finale is pure joy — David and Patrick’s beautiful wedding, the family’s heartfelt farewells, and Alexis choosing her career over her love life all feel earned after six seasons of genuine character growth. Schitt’s Creek finale proves that television can end on pure, uncomplicated happiness.

#15. The Shield (2002–2008)

Finale Episode: Family Meeting (Season 7, Episode 13)

The Shield launched the FX network’s prestige drama era and introduced one of television’s most compelling antiheroes in Vic Mackey — a corrupt detective who is simultaneously charming, monstrous, and pitiable. The finale “Family Meeting” delivers one of the most satisfying villain resolutions in TV history.

Vic confesses to all his crimes in exchange for immunity, only to discover that his entire world has been destroyed — his wife turned against him, his best friend Shane murdered his own family, and Vic must spend three years doing mundane desk work under constant surveillance. He is alive but utterly alone — a fate worse than prison. The final shot of Vic checking his gun and walking into an empty future is haunting and perfect.

#16. Lost (2004–2010)

Finale Episode: The End (Season 6, Episodes 17 & 18)

Lost was the most ambitious network drama of the 2000s — a genre-blending mystery that combined survivalist drama, science fiction, time travel, and spiritual philosophy on a mysterious island. At its peak, Lost attracted 23 million viewers and sparked obsessive fan theorizing worldwide. The finale remains controversial — the revelation that the flash-sideways was a “waiting room” afterlife divided audiences who wanted mythological answers over emotional closure.

But “The End” is an undeniably moving experience: Jack’s death protecting the island, Hurley becoming its new guardian, and the reunion in the church of all the characters we loved is genuinely beautiful. Lost’s finale is unforgettable precisely because it was so divisive.

#17. Justified (2010–2015)

Finale Episode: The Promise (Season 6, Episode 13)

Justified is one of television’s most underappreciated masterpieces — a Southern neo-noir built on the crackling chemistry between U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens (Timothy Olyphant) and his childhood friend turned criminal Boyd Crowder (Walton Goggins). Every episode sparkles with Elmore Leonard’s signature wit and moral complexity.

The finale “The Promise” delivers a deeply satisfying duel of words between Raylan and Boyd that is more electric than any gunfight — and the final scene, mirroring their conversation from the pilot, is a callback that rewards every loyal viewer. Justified proves that entertainment and intelligence are not mutually exclusive — it is endlessly rewatchable and criminally underrated.

#18. Battlestar Galactica (2004 Reboot) (2004–2009)

Finale Episode: Daybreak (Season 4, Episodes 19, 20 & 21)

Ronald D. Moore’s reimagining of Battlestar Galactica is one of the finest science fiction series ever made — a political allegory disguised as a space opera that grappled with questions of identity, democracy, religion, and what it means to be human. The three-part finale “Daybreak” is epic in every sense — an all-out assault on the Cylon colony, the revelation of Starbuck’s true nature, and a decision to abandon technology entirely and start over on prehistoric Earth.

The choice to forgo civilization and integrate with humanity’s earliest ancestors is a bold, divisive, but thematically coherent ending. Edward James Olmos and Mary McDonnell’s final scenes together are among the most emotionally resonant in science fiction television.

#19. Cheers (1982–1993)

Finale Episode: One for the Road (Season 11, Episodes 25, 26 & 27)

Cheers is one of the greatest sitcoms in television history — a bar in Boston where “everybody knows your name” became a metaphor for community, belonging, and the simple joy of human connection. The finale “One for the Road” drew 80.4 million viewers in 1993, making it the second most-watched finale in television history at that time.

Diane Chambers returns one final time for Sam Malone, the gang says goodbye in their own way, and Sam Malone’s final iconic walk to the back of the bar as the lights go out is TV perfection. The finale worked because it understood that Cheers wasn’t about romance or adventure — it was about people showing up for each other, every day.

#20. Seinfeld (1989–1998)

Finale Episode: The Finale (Season 9, Episodes 23 & 24)

Seinfeld redefined American comedy — a “show about nothing” that was really a show about the hilarious banality of self-absorption, social norms, and New York City life. The finale drew 76.3 million viewers, making it one of the most-watched entertainment broadcasts in TV history. When Jerry, George, Elaine and Kramer are arrested in a small Massachusetts town under a Good Samaritan law and put on trial, characters from nine seasons return to testify against them.

The gang ends up in prison — finally facing consequences for years of petty selfishness. Divisive at the time, the finale has been reappraised as a perfect moral punchline to the entire series: a show about people who never learned to care is ended by their inability to care.

Final Thoughts

A great finale is one of the rarest achievements in storytelling. It must carry the weight of everything that came before while delivering something fresh, honest, and emotionally complete. The 20 shows on this list achieved exactly that — each in their own unique way. Some ended with joy (Schitt’s Creek, The Good Place), some with devastation (Six Feet Under, The Americans), some with ambiguity (The Sopranos, Mad Men), and some with controversy (Game of Thrones, Lost). But all of them left us changed.

If you haven’t watched these shows — start today. Not just for the finales, but for the extraordinary journeys that lead to them. Because the best TV endings don’t just conclude a story. They stay with you for the rest of your life.