9 TV Shows That Survived Death Of The Main Character

by James Hunt

1. The Wire - Stringer Bell

Brother Mouzone Omar Little Stringer Bell Death Scene The Wire Middle Ground
HBO

While Game of Thrones, especially in Season 1, was compared more frequently to HBO's other 'greatest show of all time' The Sopranos, Ned's death hits upon similar ideas to that in The Wire, and namely the death of Stringer Bell (Idris Elba).

Although The Wire centred on a number of different characters - and if there was any one main character, it was the city of Baltimore itself - String represented the very core of the city's dichotomy: a man caught up in its underbelly, but with the smarts to get out of the game, or at least change it to suit his own ends. He was very much a man with a foot in each world, but the game is the game.

Bell's death came towards the end of Season 3, when Brother Mouzone and Omar Little eventually catch-up to him, leading to the heart-stopping moment before, well, his heart stops. What that represented, though, was a key idea of the show: that the life of Baltimore is more powerful than even the show's most powerful characters.

The Wire changed course in Season 4 with a move away from Stringer and Avon, focusing more on the next generation, and in doing so delivered the most powerful, heart-wrenching season of the entire series, before going out on a high in Season 5.

Which other TV shows survived the death of a main character? Let us know down in the comments.

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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.