8 Cheapest Season Finale Cliffhangers In TV History

2. Game Of Thrones - For The Watch

Jon Snow Death
HBO

The ending of For the Watch inspired one of the most emotional responses I've ever felt towards a TV show. Though Game of Thrones was no stranger to death, Jon Snow always seemed off limits; he was the closest thing to a hero the series had, and the writers wouldn't kill him off, would they? Of course, they did, and Jon is killed in this episode, stabbed by his own men no less.

It was completely devastating, but it made so much sense; Game of Thrones has always been committed to eschewing conventional fantasy storytelling tropes, so killing off Jon affirmed that classic "heroes" didn't belong in this world. Sadly, that reading was completely undermined when everyone realised - about an hour after For the Watch aired - that he was absolutely coming back.

Once the creators started demanding that he was definitely dead - messaging they doubled down on so much in the following months - it became apparent that of course Jon was coming back. Instead of the cliffhanger making everyone ponder its consequences, how it would affect other characters, it only got them thinking about how and when he was returning - and everyone figured out the first part of that equation pretty quickly.

[Josh]

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Josh has over 11 years of experience as a published writer, having worked nine of those years as a full-time content producer at WhatCulture. In that period he has created hundreds of articles, videos and podcast episodes for multiple WhatCulture channels, specialising in gaming, horror and film & TV. He now primarily works as a senior content producer and presenter on WhatCulture Gaming where he co-hosts the WhatCulture Gaming Podcast, a top 3 UK most listened to gaming podcast that he co-created in 2018. Over the years he has reviewed several high-profile gaming releases, covered industry events with on-site reporting, opined on breaking news, and even kicked off his interviewing career by chatting to childhood hero, Tommy Wiseau.

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NCTJ-qualified journalist. Most definitely not a racing driver. Drink too much tea; eat too much peanut butter; watch too much TV. Sadly only the latter paying off so far. A mix of wise-old man in a young man's body with a child-like wonder about him and a great otherworldly sensibility.