Ranking the 10 Most Iconic TV Finales, From 'Six Feet Under' to 'Game of Thrones'
A recent ranking has assessed ten unforgettable TV show finales, considering how they wrapped up, how audiences reacted, and their lasting impact. Spanning from CBS in the early '80s to HBO in 2019, the list features notable entries. At number ten, we have "Game of Thrones" with its finale, "The Iron Throne," which aired on May 19, 2019, and pulled in 19.3 million viewers, even leading to a petition for a re-do signed by over a million fans. "How I Met Your Mother's" finale, "Last Forever," comes in at nine, revealing the Mother’s fate on March 31, 2014. Other key finales include "Seinfeld," "Lost," "The Sopranos," and "Friends," while "M*A*S*H" holds the record for most viewers ever. "Six Feet Under" takes the top spot with its memorable ending on August 21, 2005.
Key facts
- The ranking judges 10 finales on payoff of their own storylines, viewer reception at airtime, and lasting reputation
- Game of Thrones' 'The Iron Throne' aired on HBO on May 19, 2019, drawing 19.3 million viewers across TV and streaming
- A Change.org petition asking HBO to remake Game of Thrones season eight with new writers passed a million signatures
- Seinfeld's 'The Finale' aired on NBC on May 14, 1998, before an estimated 76 million viewers
- M*A*S*H's 'Goodbye, Farewell and Amen' aired on CBS on Feb. 28, 1983, drawing an estimated 106 million viewers and a 60.2 rating with a 77 share
- The Sopranos' 'Made in America' aired on HBO on June 10, 2007, and won David Chase the 2007 Emmy for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series
- Breaking Bad's 'Felina' aired on AMC on Sept. 29, 2013, drawing 10.3 million viewers, the largest audience in the show's history
- Six Feet Under's 'Everyone's Waiting' aired on HBO on Aug. 21, 2005, ending with a flash-forward montage set to Sia's 'Breathe Me'
Entities
Artists
- Jerry Seinfeld
- Larry David
- David Chase
- Matthew Weiner
- Vince Gilligan
- Alan Ball
- J.J. Abrams
- Damon Lindelof
- Jeffrey Lieber
- Carlton Cuse
- Carter Bays
- Craig Thomas
- David Crane
- Marta Kauffman
- George R.R. Martin
- Bob Saget
- Josh Radnor
- Cristin Milioti
- Hilary Duff
- Alan Alda
- Jon Hamm
- Peter Dinklage
- Richard Hooker
- Robert Altman
- Marty Robbins
- Sia
- Journey
- Badfinger
- Michael Corleone
- Tony Soprano
- Carmela Soprano
- Meadow Soprano
- A.J. Soprano
- Phil Leotardo
- Corrado 'Junior' Soprano
- Bobby Baccalieri
- Jon Snow
- Daenerys Targaryen
- Bran Stark
- Sansa Stark
- Arya Stark
- Tyrion Lannister
- Ted Mosby
- Robin Scherbatsky
- Barney Stinson
- Tracy McConnell
- Jerry Seinfeld's character Jerry
- George Costanza
- Elaine Benes
- Cosmo Kramer
- Jackie Chiles
- Judge Arthur Vandelay
- Soup Nazi
- Babu Bhatt
- Bubble Boy
- Jack Shephard
- Man in Black
- Hugo 'Hurley' Reyes
- Christian Shephard
- Walter White
- Skyler White
- Jesse Pinkman
- Gretchen Schwartz
- Elliott Schwartz
- Lydia Rodarte-Quayle
- Hank Schrader
- Jack Welker
- Todd Alquist
- Don Draper
- Peggy Olson
- Stan Rizzo
- Joan Holloway
- Pete Campbell
- Trudy Campbell
- Betty Francis
- Leonard
- Rachel Green
- Ross Geller
- Monica Geller
- Chandler Bing
- Phoebe Buffay
- Joey Tribbiani
- Hawkeye Pierce
- Sidney Freedman
- Charles Winchester
- Max Klinger
- Soon-Lee
- B.J. Hunnicutt
- Nate Fisher
- Claire Fisher
- Ruth Fisher
- Keith Charles
- David Fisher
- Feleena
Institutions
- HBO
- CBS
- NBC
- ABC
- AMC
- Netflix
- Television Academy
- Change.org
- Hulu
- Louis Vuitton
- McCann Erickson
- Coca-Cola
- Learjet
- DEA
- Bad Robot
- A Song of Ice and Fire
- House of the Dragon
- How I Met Your Father
- Curb Your Enthusiasm
- The Leftovers
- The Many Saints of Newark
- Better Call Saul
- Friends: The Reunion
- HBO Max
- Super Bowl XLIV
- Nielsen
- The Godfather
- American Beauty
- El Camino
- The Sopranos
- Mad Men
- Breaking Bad
- Six Feet Under
- Lost
- Friends
- Seinfeld
- M*A*S*H
- Game of Thrones
- How I Met Your Mother
- Joey
- The Bells
- The Iron Throne
- Last Forever
- The Finale
- The End
- Made in America
- The Last One
- Goodbye, Farewell and Amen
- Person to Person
- Felina
- Everyone's Waiting
Locations
- United States
- Latham
- Massachusetts
- Bloomfield
- New Jersey
- New York
- Los Angeles
- California
- Paris
- France
- Westeros
- King's Landing
- North
- The Wall
- Manhattan
- Wichita
- New Mexico
- New Hampshire
- Korea
- Pacific
- North Jersey
- Hollywood
Sources
- Quartz —