10 TV Shows Where The Villain Kills The Hero
8. Lost
Though Lost was an undeniably ensemble-focused show, the sure protagonist was Jack Shephard (Matthew Fox), whose experiences the entire series is framed by, and who thoroughly proves his hero status in the series finale.
In the episode Jack gets mortally wounded by the Man in Black, who appears in the form of John Locke (Terry O'Quinn), but with some help from Kate (Evangeline Lilly) Jack manages to kill the Man in Black by kicking him off a cliff.
In his final minutes of life, Jack's purpose is clear, to restore the light of the heart of the island - that is, putting the giant stone cork back in. Jack successfully prevents the island's destruction, and in the show's final shot succumbs to his stab wounds.
This is a classic example of the villain causing the hero's death without actually winning, given that the Man in Black dies with his plan vanquished.
Though Jack also dies, he completes his mission while also finding the purpose he failed to after originally leaving the island, allowing him to "move on" to whatever is next.
Interestingly Jack was originally supposed to die in the pilot episode, back when Michael Keaton was circling he role, though it was ultimately decided that the audience might respond negatively to introducing a likeable hero only to immediately off them.