It’s a major gamble to make such a drastic change to a show — like killing your main character. Whether at the beginning, middle, or even end of the show, it is always a tough subject to get right. Oftentimes these characters are what’s keeping the audience coming back week to week (or season to season). We find them compelling and closely relate to them or at least understand them. In their absence, the show can change too much and as a result, people will stop watching. But when this is done right, when it makes sense for the show and the character’s journey, it can heighten the story overall. When done right, killing off the main character is sometimes the best decision a TV show can make.
RELATED:How the Original ‘Charmed’ Lost Its Charm Without Prue
However, shows can fumble this, hard, and have in the past. Perhaps the most egregious example isThe Walking Dead. Rick (Andrew Lincoln) was in most of the show, in every season except the tenth to a varying degree. In the ninth season, Rick is effectively “killed off” in the show, but he’s taken out of the equation rather than taken out on-screen.Hence, the untitled Rick and Michonne (Danai Gurira) spin-off coming soon. But after that, Rick was goneuntil the series finale, and there only for a short scene.
What makes this a problem is that normally the supporting cast would take over the role that was previously inhabited by the lead — characters like Carl (Chandler Riggs), Glenn (Steven Yeun), Andrea (Laurie Holden), Daryl (Norman Reedus) Carol (Melisssa McBride), and Maggie (Lauren Cohan). Unfortunately, half of those people listed are also killed off within the show before Rick was even written out. It left the show aimless, with audiences watching the few remaining characters they care about sharing too much time with new ones. Whether planned or not, a main character’s death needs to be earned. It is the writers' job to make that death feel earned in the face of things. It can’t be for shock value, and it needs to have a lasting impact on the show and the characters within.
While it’s a classic (and one of my personal favorite shows),Charmed, unfortunately, suffers from an abrupt main character death that was never dealt with in a long-lasting, meaningful way. At the end of Season 3, each of the Charmed Ones is at risk of death, with their fates all hanging in the balance — something that was considered a major cliffhanger at the time. Later on, Season 4 opens with Piper (Holly Marie Combs) trying to find a way to bring Prue (Shannen Doherty) back. There’s a brief funeral with the family, and then soon Piper and Phoebe (Alyssa Milano) focus their attention on a new mysterious character that eventually is revealed to be a long-lost sister, Paige (Rose McGowan). There were reasons for Prue’s departure that had nothing to do with the story itself, and behind-the-scenes drama that ultimatelyprompted Doherty to leave the show. However,Charmednever addressed the impact of Prue’s death in any satisfactory manner — her face is never shown again beyond Season 3, even in the series finale when various photographs and memories are being revisited. It has always been a major disservice to the integrity of the show.
When Done Well, Killing Off a Main Character Can Have a Lasting Impact on a Series
When a TV show loses a major character, another (or more than one) has to step into their place, but it’s a massive gamble to do this. There is a big risk it won’t work. If the replacement character doesn’t connect, then the show will not connect either.Game of Thronesis perhaps known best for doing this so well, at least within its first season. Ned Stark (Sean Bean) seems to be the epic fantasy lead of old. He’s selfless, sacrificing for the greater good, and going against everything for his morality. He also gets himself killed in the penultimate episode of the first season.
Game of Thronesis based on the acclaimed book series written byGeorge R. R. Martin, so there was precedent for Ned’s death in the source material — and although TV is a different genre, the decision paid off. The shock is what spread among audiences like wildfire, but it also set up so much for the rest of the series down the line. It might have worked a little too well, as the series began to be known as the one where almost every character was killed off for no reason, but there is no denying that Ned’s death was a major catalyst for the show in terms of foreshadowing what to expect in future seasons.
Some shows, on the other hand, have the choice to kill off their main characters thrust upon them.InThe Magicians, actorJason Ralphdecided to move on from the show for personal reasons, so at the end of Season 4, the rest of the cast and the audience said goodbye to Quentin in a heartbreaking beautiful finale. The show continued on for one more season without Ralph, allowing both the viewer and the characters, his friends, to grieve Quentin’s death and move on. Despite not being a planned creative decision, the show takes this in stride. How his death is dealt with is so moving; it’s sad, but there’s a lot of beauty, especially given that the remaining group continues to deal with it. They don’t forget about him as soon as he is no longer a physical presence; they speak about him quite frequently. By losing Quentin, both the characters and the viewers lose a large part of the show. What is important here is thatThe Magiciansdidn’t try and continue on as if nothing had happened. Quentin’s absence is baked inextricably into the show, never to be forgotten.
Death at the end of a series can be just as impactful or detrimental. Even in the end, it has to be done right.The Good Placemanages to give a fitting end to all major characters, most of which die — but even more noteworthy considering that most of said characters are already dead. Despite this small hurdle,The Good Placefinds finality even in death. It gives the four characters a chance of peace in returning to the universe in the face of eternal consciousness. For already deceased characters, this final death they walk through is a massive gut punch, but it’s beautiful. It serves a fantastic lesson: Perfection isn’t for us. We lose our humanity in the face of it. We need mess. A perfect “good place” will get old.
Shows will always be trying to make dramatic choices for shock value, up to and including offing a main character. Some fail, and some excel in their execution, so to speak. It can change a show, much of the time for the better. It introduces so many more different routes for the other characters to go. Without getting into too many spoilers, HBO’sThe Last of Usis going to have to juggle a major character death in a future season. The second game sparked a bit of loud outrage with its initial release but has since beenhailed as one of the greatest sequels ever. How will this translate to the TV adaptation? Will there be a better reaction or the same? The best television will always be challenging barriers. It may not always work, but taking these sorts of risks is what gets us the amazing shows we deserve.
