http://youtu.be/4jOu-5ebDpc When Doyle sacrificed himself halfway through season 1 of Angel, it hit me like a tonne of bricks I had to tune in next week to find out the repercussions for the rest of the characters. And when he heartlessly killed off Wash in the climax of Serenity, I had half a mind to write Whedon a letter simply saying How could you, man? How could you You cant underestimate the powerful resonance that the death of a fan-favourite character stirs up in the audience. Art imitates life (or is it the other way around?), and in life, people we love die. I always give the necessary respect to a writer that accepts this and incorporates it into their fiction.