Here are the best showtime original series of all time. Neither the subject matter or strategy hurt them, and the roots finale is still ranked the 3rd highest rated programepisode of all time. The series follows the title character, dexter, who lives a double life as a blood analyst and a killer who only targets other killers. So to honor the best in television, we present to you the 20 greatest tv finales of all time. Looking at nielsen ratings, the primary source of tv audience measurement since 1950, weve compiled the top 25 mostwatched series finales. The game of thrones series finale on sunday delivered the shows biggest audience of all time, capping a record final season in the ratings for the hbo show. Also read time s list of the best movies, movie performances.
With once upon a time set come to an end, it is the perfect time to take a look back at the series and rank the seasons from worst to best. Walter white bryan cranston had good motivations, but for five seasons he did some very bad things. After 11 seasons of hilarity and heartbreak, the korean war comedy ended with a twoand a half hour tv movie that aired feb. Here are time s picks for the best tv shows of the 2010s, presented chronologically based on the year of their series debuts.
The highest rated episode of sons of anarchy is the season 3 finale, sitting at 9. Were taking a look at popular tv shows that failed to stick the landing w. Some of them had died on the island early on in the show. Game of thrones series finale sets alltime hbo ratings. Showtime shows have a reputation for starting strong and the fizzling out. Game of thrones ratings hit alltime viewership high. The best tv series finales in history include those of er, the wire, breaking bad, and more.
Most controversial tv finales of all time best and worst. The series finale of six feet under inverted the classic format of the show. According to nielsens measurements of the top network telecasts of all time, the top 20 mostwatched tv episodes ever all date back at least a decade for example, the seinfeld series finale. The network cancelled five of them and renewed just four. By the end of the episode, the war has drawn to an exhausted close, and the residents.
These are not the top 100 with the greatest viewership, but the top 100 ratings. In honor of the americans, new girl and the middle signing off for good, weve ranked the 10 best and five worst tv finales of all time, from. Its a tricky needle to thread, and some series have undoubtedly done it better than others. The 1990 series finale of alien comedy alf brought 21. The 25 mostwatched tv series finales of all time newsweek. If fans wanted to get closure for their favorite characters, they had to be there when it happened. Nearly 40 years after the series went off the air, mashs final episode still holds the record for the most watched television finale of all time. For a writer to say it was all a dream at the end of a story an audience invested a lot of time and emotion in is. The 10 best ever episodes of tv according to imdb joe is. Tv writers have a tough enough job keeping demanding audiences interested in an increasingly competitive landscape, and creating a great series finale is perhaps the most difficult task of all. Game of thrones finale hits alltime high and edges. Spock, and the rest of the original series for the best star trek show to date. The highest rated series finale to air in the 21st century is still.
Its not easy to close out a tv show thats meant so many different things to so many people. In honor of the americans, new girl and the middle signing off for good, weve ranked the 10 best and five worst tv finales of all time, from six feet under to how i met your mother. Your favorite tv couple, your favorite villain, and even your favorite television businesses will all close up shop at some point, and. The americans quietly became one of the best shows on tv before finally winning a bunch of awards for its final season, and with good reason. However, mashs final episode remains the alltime most watched u. Unsure the mini series would work with white viewers based on the topic. The 20 mostwatched tv show finales of all time, ranked business.
Mashs series finale pulled in more than 125 million viewers in 1983. Check out the top 250 tv shows as rated by imdb users. It may also refer to a final theatrical sequel, the last part of a television miniseries, the last installment of a literary series, or any final episode. With hbos game of thrones being the most recent show to deliver a controversial coda, nows a good time to look at some of the worst tv series finales of all time. The real reason the lost series finale was so controversial. In household ratings, which measures how many households tuned into the show, bang averaged a 12. In a poignant, emotional and still toprated finale, the 11year run ofmasheight years longer than the korean war it depicted came to an end ashawkeye pierce alan alda and most of the. These tv show finales remain among the most watched ever, with one being the highestrated episode of any television series in u. The highest rated broadcast of alltime is the final episode of mash in 1983, with 60. However, mashs final episode remains the alltime mostwatched u. This list of the best series finales in television is a somber reminder that no matter how much you love a tv character or a show, in time, they all will end. The wire anyone whos watched hbos the wire knows its an addicting series, and its finale has fittingly been universally lauded as one of the best of its era. A series finale refers to the last installment of an episodic entertainment series, most often the.
What actually happened in the finale was that the inhabitants of the island reunited in purgatory. They started out strong, but these shows ended with the worst series finales ever. How do the big bang theory series finale ratings rank. The best tv shows of all time, according to fans insider. The highest rated broadcast of all time is the final episode of. Below are some of the best and worst tv series finales that have graced viewers tv. Read more the best and worst tv series finales of all time.
List of most watched television broadcasts in the united. According to nielsens measurements of the top network telecasts of all time, the top 20 mostwatched tv episodes ever all date back at least a decade. Check out photos from tvline s list of the best tv series finales of all time, ranked. A series finale refers to the last installment of an episodic entertainment series, most often the final episode of a television series. While we can bid farewell to characters who have consumed our lives for hourseven yearsnot all final episodes succeed in tying up loose storylines, settling longheld questions or showing us a glimpse of what the.
Shows with the best freakin series finales of all time. By the end of the episode, the war has drawn to an exhausted close, and. The best series finales of the 21st century, ranked. The 15 best tv series finales of all time mental floss. The 10 mostwatched tv series finales ever mental floss. The 20 mostwatched tv show finales of all time, ranked. The first episode of that season is titled so, and the finale is ns, spelling out sons. Showtimes dexter is the next highest rated nonhbo premium cable show, with the last season averaging 2. The following table shows the all time highest rating television shows in mega manila as. The 15 most controversial tv series finales of all time. Its only appropriate that a show set in space landed stellar ratings for its series finale, which aired on may 23, 1994, after seven.
List of mostwatched television broadcasts wikipedia. Looking at nielsen ratings, the primary source of tv audience measurement since 1950, weve compiled the top 25 mostwatched series finales of all time. Made in america is, infamously, the episode of television that made millions of viewers briefly. Its far from the mostviewed series finale of all time. Best series finales of tv shows of the 21st century. The best and worst tv series finales of all time ranked.
In honor of both series saying goodbye, we ranked the 10 best and five worst finales of all time, from golden classics mash to recent travesties how i met your mother, and yes, thrones. That is, those with the highest percentage of the us tv households at the time that watched them. The title to the wire s series finale is a reference to a journalist term often used as shorthand to signify the end of a press release. Ratings game of thrones series finale viewership burns hbo records with all time high. The fourth season finale of wkrp wasnt supposed to be the series finale, but cbs canceled the show, so. From lost to the sopranos, here are the best and worst tv series finales of all time. Top 100 rated tv shows of all time tv by the numbers by. With the finale on the horizon, it appeared that don was all but deconstructed, and yet the series final moments suggest that the antihero bounces back, turning his near breakdown into.
Its hard to watch friends go, especially when they stop by weekly. The 20 mostwatched tv episodes of all time the independent. For the previous season, cbs introduced nine new scripted shows during the regular 201819 season. Most watched tv series finales of all time stacker. To see which series had the biggest turnout, stacker took a look back at the top 50 mostwatched tv series finales, ranked by nielsen ratings. We asked tv fans, what do you think is the best tv show of the past 20 years. Not only is the last one one of the mostviewed series finales of all time, but when it aired, it was the most viewed. The shows later seasons dropped in ratings on metacritic. The first season of dexter is among the top rated seasons of television of all time.
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