Month-long TV meme, day 30
Saddest character death
Allan a Dale, Robin Hood: I'm a sucker for pathos - I really like it when a show makes me cry. So there are quite a lot of character death scenes that have affected me over the years, but for the very saddest I think I'm going to have to go for poor Allan.
Why was Allan's death so much sadder than many other character deaths? Well, three things:
1) He was a wonderful character - cheeky, funny, attractive, and complex because of his history of betrayal.
2) I wasn't expecting him to die - for once I was completely spoiler-free, and this came as a terrible shock, especially considering that his death happened in the penultimate episode of the series when I wasn't expecting any character death at all.
3) It was entirely unnecessary, and was caused by his friends - Isabella made it look as though he had betrayed the gang, they believed it because he had betrayed them before, they left him tied up in the camp, angry and alone, but he still went after them when he found out about the danger they were in... and got himself killed. In a way it was a pleasantly complex end for a character whose motivations were never simple, so over time I've reconciled myself with it. But when I first saw it I wasn't prepared for that big chasm of sadness that opened up. A lot of character deaths leave you feeling a bit upset or moved. This one left me feeling angry, lost, tearful and rather numb.
If you're curious, the other ones I was considering posting were:
Matthew King, Emmerdale - I just loved him. It wasn't a great death scene, but I'd watched him almost every day for four and a half years, and I loved him, and then he was gone, and I felt so lost. Soap characters aren't like characters from other shows - they're less internally consistent over time, but they change with you and you change with them and they're always there at the end of a long day at work. Except that then he wasn't. I stuck with Emmerdale a bit longer after he went, but my heart was no longer in it, and I've stopped watching compeletely now.
The Ninth Doctor, Dr Who - I knew it was coming, but when it happened I cried and cried and kept crying every time I thought about it for the next week or so. (This actually isn't an exaggeration, sadly!)
Buffy's mum, Buffy s5 (IIRC) - Buffy comes home, and her mother is lying there dead on the floor (of natural causes, which in many ways makes it harder for Buffy to take). Buffy watches as paramedics try to revive her, and she has visions of her mum waking up and responding to their treatment... but then we realise these are just visions, and there is nothing they can do for her. I found this very painful to watch - I've only ever seen it once, but it's haunting.
Sam Tyler, Life on Mars - Sam's death, by which I mean when he chooses to jump off a building and return to 1973, is such a strange thing. It's very sad that at last he's got what he wanted, a return to 2006, and yet he just can't live in the modern world any more. He tells him mum he made a promise, referring to the last scene of his stay in 1973, so all we understand by way of motivation is that he's choosing 1973 over 2006. But for a viewer, this isn't sad at all, because you've come to feel that 1973 is exactly where he belongs. He stands on a rooftop, and Life on Mars plays, and he's smiling, and he runs and jumps. It makes your hair stand on end, but it's not sad. It made me cry, and it took a long time before I could bear to watch it again, and it's pathos-heavy, but it's just not sad. So I could hardly use it for today, could I?
The Days:
Day 01 - A show that should have never been canceled (Demons)
Day 02 - A show that you wish more people were watching (FlashForward)
Day 03 - Your favorite new show ( aired this t.v season) (Dr Who, season 5)
Day 04 - Your favorite show ever (Life on Mars)
Day 05 - A show you hate (The Prisoner - new US version)
Day 06 - Favorite episode of your favorite t.v show (Robin Hood 2x10 Walkabout)
Day 07 - Least favorite episode of your favorite t.v show (Robin Hood 3x04 Sins of the Father)
Day 08 - A show everyone should watch (Spooks)
Day 09 - Best scene ever (The Professionals, The Purging of CI5, Telephone Scene)
Day 10 - A show you thought you wouldn’t like but ended up loving (Dr Who, season 1 / Robin Hood)
Day 11 - A show that disappointed you (Heroes)
Day 12 - An episode you’ve watched more than 5 times (Spooks 7x02)
Day 13 - Favorite childhood show (Thomas the Tank Engine)
Day 14 - Favorite male character (whole list!)
Day 15 - Favorite female character (Ros Myers, Spooks)
Day 16 - Your guilty pleasure show (Timmy Time)
Day 17 - Favorite mini series (The Devil's Whore)
Day 18 - Favorite title sequence (The Professionals)
Day 19 - Best t.v show cast (Rome)
Day 20 - Favorite kiss (list)
Day 21 - Favorite ship (Robin/Vaizey or Guy/Allan or Bodie/Doyle)
Day 22 - Favorite series finale (LoM s2)
Day 23 - Most annoying character (Kate from Robin Hood)
Day 24 - Best quote (from Life on Mars)
Day 25 - A show you plan on watching (old or new) (Spooks season 3)
Day 26 - OMG WTF? Season finale (Ashes to Ashes season 3)
Day 27 - Best pilot episode (FlashForward)
Day 28 - First t.v show obsession (Sharpe)
Day 29 - Current t.v show obsession (Spooks)
Day 30 - Saddest character death (Allan a Dale, Robin Hood)
Allan a Dale, Robin Hood: I'm a sucker for pathos - I really like it when a show makes me cry. So there are quite a lot of character death scenes that have affected me over the years, but for the very saddest I think I'm going to have to go for poor Allan.
Why was Allan's death so much sadder than many other character deaths? Well, three things:
1) He was a wonderful character - cheeky, funny, attractive, and complex because of his history of betrayal.
2) I wasn't expecting him to die - for once I was completely spoiler-free, and this came as a terrible shock, especially considering that his death happened in the penultimate episode of the series when I wasn't expecting any character death at all.
3) It was entirely unnecessary, and was caused by his friends - Isabella made it look as though he had betrayed the gang, they believed it because he had betrayed them before, they left him tied up in the camp, angry and alone, but he still went after them when he found out about the danger they were in... and got himself killed. In a way it was a pleasantly complex end for a character whose motivations were never simple, so over time I've reconciled myself with it. But when I first saw it I wasn't prepared for that big chasm of sadness that opened up. A lot of character deaths leave you feeling a bit upset or moved. This one left me feeling angry, lost, tearful and rather numb.
If you're curious, the other ones I was considering posting were:
Matthew King, Emmerdale - I just loved him. It wasn't a great death scene, but I'd watched him almost every day for four and a half years, and I loved him, and then he was gone, and I felt so lost. Soap characters aren't like characters from other shows - they're less internally consistent over time, but they change with you and you change with them and they're always there at the end of a long day at work. Except that then he wasn't. I stuck with Emmerdale a bit longer after he went, but my heart was no longer in it, and I've stopped watching compeletely now.
The Ninth Doctor, Dr Who - I knew it was coming, but when it happened I cried and cried and kept crying every time I thought about it for the next week or so. (This actually isn't an exaggeration, sadly!)
Buffy's mum, Buffy s5 (IIRC) - Buffy comes home, and her mother is lying there dead on the floor (of natural causes, which in many ways makes it harder for Buffy to take). Buffy watches as paramedics try to revive her, and she has visions of her mum waking up and responding to their treatment... but then we realise these are just visions, and there is nothing they can do for her. I found this very painful to watch - I've only ever seen it once, but it's haunting.
Sam Tyler, Life on Mars - Sam's death, by which I mean when he chooses to jump off a building and return to 1973, is such a strange thing. It's very sad that at last he's got what he wanted, a return to 2006, and yet he just can't live in the modern world any more. He tells him mum he made a promise, referring to the last scene of his stay in 1973, so all we understand by way of motivation is that he's choosing 1973 over 2006. But for a viewer, this isn't sad at all, because you've come to feel that 1973 is exactly where he belongs. He stands on a rooftop, and Life on Mars plays, and he's smiling, and he runs and jumps. It makes your hair stand on end, but it's not sad. It made me cry, and it took a long time before I could bear to watch it again, and it's pathos-heavy, but it's just not sad. So I could hardly use it for today, could I?
The Days:
Day 01 - A show that should have never been canceled (Demons)
Day 02 - A show that you wish more people were watching (FlashForward)
Day 03 - Your favorite new show ( aired this t.v season) (Dr Who, season 5)
Day 04 - Your favorite show ever (Life on Mars)
Day 05 - A show you hate (The Prisoner - new US version)
Day 06 - Favorite episode of your favorite t.v show (Robin Hood 2x10 Walkabout)
Day 07 - Least favorite episode of your favorite t.v show (Robin Hood 3x04 Sins of the Father)
Day 08 - A show everyone should watch (Spooks)
Day 09 - Best scene ever (The Professionals, The Purging of CI5, Telephone Scene)
Day 10 - A show you thought you wouldn’t like but ended up loving (Dr Who, season 1 / Robin Hood)
Day 11 - A show that disappointed you (Heroes)
Day 12 - An episode you’ve watched more than 5 times (Spooks 7x02)
Day 13 - Favorite childhood show (Thomas the Tank Engine)
Day 14 - Favorite male character (whole list!)
Day 15 - Favorite female character (Ros Myers, Spooks)
Day 16 - Your guilty pleasure show (Timmy Time)
Day 17 - Favorite mini series (The Devil's Whore)
Day 18 - Favorite title sequence (The Professionals)
Day 19 - Best t.v show cast (Rome)
Day 20 - Favorite kiss (list)
Day 21 - Favorite ship (Robin/Vaizey or Guy/Allan or Bodie/Doyle)
Day 22 - Favorite series finale (LoM s2)
Day 23 - Most annoying character (Kate from Robin Hood)
Day 24 - Best quote (from Life on Mars)
Day 25 - A show you plan on watching (old or new) (Spooks season 3)
Day 26 - OMG WTF? Season finale (Ashes to Ashes season 3)
Day 27 - Best pilot episode (FlashForward)
Day 28 - First t.v show obsession (Sharpe)
Day 29 - Current t.v show obsession (Spooks)
Day 30 - Saddest character death (Allan a Dale, Robin Hood)