6. D.L. Hawkins- Heroes
In retrospect we all probably should have seen this horribly handled death as a sign of what was to come from Heroes. The show had burst onto the scene with a brilliant first season, which setup what we thought would be a long and fruitful run. However, in between seasons the 2007 WGA strike occurred and preparations for the second season suffered as a result, it is the opinion of many that the show never recovered. D.L. had the ability to make his body intangible and in the first few episodes of the series it appeared that he was going to be an antagonist. However, it turned out that he was an honourable man who simply wanted to look after his wife and child. By the end of the first season D.L. was one of the most likable characters in the cast- he did the right thing because it was the right thing to do and because he wanted his son to be proud of him. This guy was one of the most heroic characters in the show. Which makes it all the more ridiculous that in the second season premiere we discover that D.L has died, and a few episodes later there is a flashback episode which actually depicts his death. For some absurd reason, D.L. who has the ability to phase through objects, is shot and killed by a random one-off character that we never see again. Not only is it terrible that the characters death completely defies the powers that he has, but it also does irrevocable damage to the characters around him. D.L., Niki and their son Micah were something different in the main cast of Heroes- they were a family. By the next season of the show Nikki was also killed off and Micah was quietly cut from the cast. This was an absolute waste of a likeable guy, as well as a pointless decimation of a family that provided a unique dimension to the Heroes roster of characters.