10 TV Characters Nobody Expected To Survive
These characters SOMEHOW made it to the end in one piece.
No matter how much we as viewers might like or even love a TV character, there's no denying that feeling in your bones when you just know they're not long for this world.
For one reason or another, they just seem destined to be killed off sooner or later - perhaps they're a likeable supporting player ripe for a devastating demise, or a brilliantly detestable villain whose death will prove enormously satisfying for audiences.
Sometimes you just see a character and immediately peg them to die, yet in the case of these 10 death-marked TV characters, each actually made it to the end of the show very much alive.
No matter how cowardly, duplicitous, out-of-their-depth, or self-destructive they were, each impressively eluded death right to the very end. Even as other, more badass and cunning characters fell to the wayside, these characters somehow clung to life and managed to slip away with their hides in tact.
And so, the next time you watch a TV show and are absolutely convinced that the annoying character or in-over-their-head hero is heading for a dirt nap, consider that fate - or rather, the writers' room - might have other plans...
10. Samwell Tarly - Game Of Thrones
For those who hadn't read George R. R. Martin's novels, Game of Thrones quickly established itself as a ruthlessly blood-thirsty show where basically any major character could die.
And as likeable as Samwell Tarly (John Bradley) was throughout the show's run, the guy just wasn't cut out for fighting, and it seemed like just a matter of time before some n'er-do-well would put a knife to his throat just to prove a point.
Despite his lack of physical prowess and generally retiring demeanour, Sam inexplicably survived all of the show's eight seasons, even with a number of close calls which had some fans screaming "plot armour!"
Sam survived a barrage of wights during the Battle of Winterfell, and has generally scraped his way through a number of combat encounters which have killed men considerably more adept than he.
Sam's death would've been hugely devastating to fans, which seemingly made it all the more likely that it'd actually happen in Thrones' final season. But Sam instead made it out alive and ended the series as Grand Maester to King Bran the Broken (Isaac Hempstead-Wright). Who saw any of that coming?