5 Series That Jumped the Shark After Best Character's Death Like The Last of Us
These characters were what held the entire project together, but the creators only realized this after killing them off.
Killing off a beloved character can be a bold storytelling move. However, sometimes a show never fully recovers from the loss. That's what happened with The Last of Us – now, the second season of the show has only 39% on Rotten Tomatoes.
And it's not just because of Joel's death – it's because there was a void left by his absence that the writers were never able to fill. We've recalled five more series that suffered the same fate.
1. 'The Wire' (2002-2008) – Stringer Bell
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The Wire took a major downturn when the writers killed off Stringer Bell, the criminal mastermind played by Idris Elba. Bell was one of the crime drama's main antagonists for three seasons.
His arrest was supposed to be the most important event in the plot of The Wire. However, Stringer was killed by another iconic character: a street vigilante named Omar Little.
Bell's death in Season 3 was shocking, but the rest of the show never quite recovered, as if something important had been lost.
2. 'House of Cards' (2013-2018) – Zoe Barnes
The plot of House of Cards lost its soul and went downhill in the first episode of Season 2 when Frank killed the show's shadow protagonist, journalist Zoe Barnes.
Her character, played by Kate Mara, was always in danger, balancing her career with her desire to uncover the truth. Through her eyes, we saw the events of House of Cards in a way that we couldn't through Frank's.
After her death, the show went from being a complex drama to a straight-forward story about one villain.
3. 'Misfits' (2009-2013) – The Entire Main Cast
Misfits wasn't shy about being rude, offered a fresh perspective on superpowers and explored the idea that the main characters could be unpleasant people.
Misfits was The Boys of its time. It introduced the world to the talents of Robert Sheehan, future Game of Thrones star Iwan Rheon, and Joseph Gilgun.
By Season 5, all of the original main characters had either died or left the story, which viewers did not like. Misfits literally became a completely different series with different characters.
4. 'Westworld' (2016-2022) – Dr. Robert Ford
Westworld began as one of the most promising projects of the 2010s. Park creator Robert Ford did an excellent job of manipulating everyone around him.
His death at the hands of Dolores would have been a fitting conclusion if the show had ended there. However, Westworld moved on without him, leaving a huge void.
Westworld Season 4 makes it clear how important the character was and how much he is missed. And it was not only about the fact that Ford was played by the great Anthony Hopkins – the show also never offered a more sinister and powerful figure to replace him.
5. 'Sherlock' (2010-2017) – Jim Moriarty
What should a hero do after defeating the main villain? This is a question that the BBC series Sherlock certainly couldn't answer. Professor Moriarty, played by Andrew Scott, was Sherlock's only equal opponent throughout the series.
The second season finale became the true ending of Sherlock because, after that, the writers replaced Moriarty with faceless villains.
The worst of these was Charles Magnussen – the absurd concept of the "mind palace" turned Sherlock from a brilliant detective show into low-quality fantasy.
