Granted, with this ending, we would never have had the surprisingly excellent Clerks 2 to marvel over, but this alternate ending to Kevin Smith's breakthrough indie is nevertheless a tragically ironic way to end Dante's day, in line with the "two middle fingers to the audience" endings that European cinema is better known for. Smith did admit that he wrote this ending originally because he couldn't think of another way to end it impactfully, though a few key remnants remain in the film that would have made the ending even more thematically resonant. Not only does this ending remind us of Dante's assertion that Empire is the best Star Wars film because of its downbeat ending, but the fact that Randall unplugs the security camera earlier on in the film means that, on the most devastating note of all, the killer will probably get away with it, too. Still, changing the ending meant that we got a hilarious, resonant sequel, so we're not to be too hard on Smith for it, and when you're trying to crack the film business, why wouldn't you give the studio a happy ending?