Did anyone watch the final episode of ER last night? As Chelley pointed out, it was on for three hours!
I didn’t watch any of it, but I’ve never been an ER fan. I remember trying to watch it years ago and saying that, no matter how cute I thought Noah Wyle was, it was just too gory and too overly dramatic. Specifically, I said, “Why would I want to watch a show that makes me cry every week?”
Oh, the wisdom of teenagers.
Flash forward a decade or so to me, sitting alone on my couch every Thursday night, wiping tears as I watch Grey’s Anatomy. (Is anyone else still watching? Now that they got rid of – again – Denny, it’s getting good again. Of course, by “good,” I mean slightly more plausible and even more gut-wrenching. Goooood.)
Anyway, the big to-do over ER has made me think about other TV finales that I’ve watched.
And there are many. Because – and I have no real explanation for this – I have a sick addiction to goodbyes. They tear me up and break me down…but I can’t look away.
Example 1: Watching – and bawling during – the first several episodes of 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter after John Ritter died.
Example 2: Turning on Michael J. Fox’s final episode of Spin City, despite the fact that I’d never watched it on a regular basis. And then sobbing. Like a baby.
Example 3: Watching the last two seasons of Friends, even though I hadn’t been a faithful viewer ever before, because I’d heard it was going off the air. Can I just say…that moment in the finale where they all pull out their keys to the apartment? Killed. Me.
And most recently, Example 4: Tuning in to watch Scrubs, a show I’ve always saved for reruns on cable, because I read that this is its last season.
I’m not sure what’s wrong with me. (And please, that is not the question I’m asking here, so keep all guesses and diagnoses to yourself!) But I do love a good finale.
What about you? Do you have a love/hate relationship with TV finales? Any favorites? (For ideas, TV Guide picks a few good ones.)
i have no clue which show played that song… but that might be b/c i often Don’t watch series finales. unless they’re of shows i watched regularly anyway — like, i’m guessing i’ll make a point to watch the last episode of ‘the office’ when that time comes. not sure why i don’t watch them — maybe it’s the same reason you didn’t want to watch ER — too emotional! ;)
Was it Scrubs??? Don’t know…just looked it up :-D.
I have the same strange attraction to show finales etc…maybe it’s because we know we’ll see real emotion, and that’s something we can connect to…sorry I know you didn’t want an analysis:) I love when people can relate to each others idiosyncrasies.
Good thing there wasn’t a real prize for my question! :) Spin City played the Macy Gray song from my title during Michael J. Fox’s last episode. I think of it every time I hear the song.
I just tried to find it on Youtube and couldn’t. I was thinking it was at the end, but they played Glory Days by Springsteen at the end. I Try must’ve been sometime during the episode.
aha! Found it! Here it is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0O-_zYuEJ88&feature=related
Scrubs needs to go off the air because, sadly, it has jumped the shark. The Stallion and I have been faithful viewers since the start and it is just time to say good-bye.
And I cried when Santa Barabara was cancelled, but I was 16, in the hospital and on heavy steroids that made me emotional, so please cut me some slack;D
Wow! I love that someone brought up Santa Barbara, that was my show when I was a kid!I remember when it ended…it was a sad day…(sigh).
when i saw the friends picture i almost started to cry! it was so sad that it had to end… but hey, she got off the plane so it’s all good, huh!
did you ever see the finale of seinfeld? that one drove me nuts. i didn’t like it so much!
yeah, spin city was a good finale. and yes, i did watch it when i could. even with the ronchiness and the continual gay comments. *ahem*… i’ll see you at BIBLE study tonight mary! :-)
I felt compelled to watch the ER finale, because I was a fan for many years … many years ago. But, I didn’t watch it.
you know what gets me more than the finales themselves are those montages they do – you know, scenes from the previous 7 years or whatever, set to music? And if the cast comes out for a final bow – a final curtain call gets me everytime. I remember the Family Ties one, and I remember the Cheers finale. *sniff*
I’ve never watched an episode of ER. I don’t do blood and guts. But oh, sniff! I watched the last episode of Friends with my friends at our senior year beach week (college). Also remember the last episodes of The Wonder Years, Full House, and Growing Pains! Oh, how I cried at the end of the Wonder Years. They didn’t end up together!! WAHHHH!