10 Shocking TV Finales That Changed Everything
4. The Prisoner
Maybe the most famous and certainly the earliest example on this list, The Prisoner confounded British audiences when its finale aired way back in 1968. Writer/director Patrick McGoohan would go on to say he was thrilled with the way the show’s trippy, answer-free ending was received, though at the time he was forced to abscond to the mountains to escape hounding from furious and deeply curious fans.
That’s not an exaggeration, either—McGoohan literally went on holidays in the hills in order to escape the demands of the braying public. So, what had whipped them into such a frenzy?
Well, it’s more a question of what hadn’t. The finale hadn’t provided any answers to the myriad mysteries set up the series. Where did the Village come from? What was it planning with Number Six, and why release him when it did? Where did the heroes find the weapons used in their escape attempt? Did they even escape at all? Is there any escape from the Village, or is London merely an extension of its strange machinations? And what was with that gorilla mask?
We’d love to say this all makes sense in context, but that would miss the point.