The other night I watched the 101st episode of Glee called "New Directions (http://forums.televisionwithoutpity.com/topic/3220563-5-13-new-directions-20140325/)". For a lack of a better word, this for all intents and purposes if you ask me, really felt like it should've been the series finale (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/SeriesFauxNale). I really don't know what's the actual endgame for Glee at this point. Anything that comes after this (you can even make the argument that from a narrative standpoint, Glee should've ended after the third season), feels rather anti-climatic and superfluous.

Gilligan's Island: the final season's "Gilligan the Goddess" episode was that show's unofficial series finale episode.

Please note that I'm not referring to season finales that just happened to be the series finale even though it wasn't intended that way (i.e. provide some closure to the storyline).

Okay here's one...

The "Gimmie A Break" episode where Chief's daughters and Nell go their separate ways. The daughters remember Nell being as tough as the Chief, but talked about girl problems. Nell grounds Samantha until her 18th B-Day (Chief would've grounded her for life...child or not) and Nell goes into Chief's Room one last time and thinks about how well the Chief gave her hospitality despite the harder moments.

"The Stivics Go West", the final episode of season eight of "All In The Family".
Gloria and Mike moving to California pretty much ended the series' point in existing, and the final scene was so perfect. Instead they drag out another season and a spinoff. By the time "Archie Bunker's Place" ended, CBS was so tired of the Bunker franchise it never got a series finale.
Does "One Day at a Time" count? Ann leaves for London in the next to last episode, with Schnieder the only regular in the final episode. The next to last episode was obviously meant to be the final episode, with the failed spinoff just shoehorned at the end.

Murphy Brown - The episode where Murphy finally gives birth to her baby and at the end she's holding him in her hospital bed and sings "You Make Me Feel Like a Natural Woman." I think the series could have ended right there on a very happy and sweet moment.

The Incredible Hulk - It really never got a proper finale and the TV movie "The Death of the Incredible Hulk" almost twenty years later did try to end David Banner's story, but I think the fourth season two-parter "The First" could have made a good ending to the series, with David battling a man who was changed into a Hulk creature thirty years before him, only his Hulk was evil and killed people, sort of the TV version of The Abomination.

quanta leap it kind of had ending to it but I didn't like the ending

early edition it just went off air no warning when the last episodes wasn't even a season finale it was just an episode

I agree with the The Incredible Hulk t v series I enjoyed death of The Incredible Hulk movie but they didn't show if jack McGee found out who killed dr David banner my favorite is mystery men were david and jack McGee were in the woods running form bad guys but david hurt his head and lost his memory had a mask cause he got hurt its awesome episode.

I thought the season four finale of "Ellen" would have been a great last episode. I like some of season five but it was a bit of a mess.

The season 7 finale of The Waltons with the Founder's Day celebration and Jason's senior project would have been a great series finale. It jumped the shark in seasons 8 and 9 with adding Rose, Jeffrey, and Serena. Also had some of my least favorite episodes. John-Boy shouldn't have been recast, Curt should have stayed dead (hated how they dragged his character through the mud in that two-part episode). I also hated the episode where it was revealed Ike had committed adultery.

Knight Rider never had a proper series finale but the episode "Scent Of Roses" aired in the middle of the 4th season seemed like an appropriate finale that even David Hassellhoff has said so.

In that episode Michael Knight decides to leave the Foundation after being shot on a case at the Government Data Center. Accepting the young loners resignation, Devon Miles tracks down the one person who can make a difference in Michael's life: his one true love, Stevie Mason and gets the two of them together again.

Unfortunately during the wedding Stevie gets killed by a bullet meant for Michael and so he relentlessly tracks down the culprit but once he nabs him KITT brings Michael down to his senses.

The Silver Spoons episode "Let It Snow, Let It Snow," which aired at the end of the 1986-87 season, the show's fifth season. The episode had the Strattons, plus Dexter, Brad, and Alfonso going on a skiing vacation only to get stuck in a blizzard. Of course, they all survive, and the last scene has Rick, Edward, and Kate returning to the comfort of their home and relaxing happily on the sofa.

Whether the cast and crew had known (or even suspected) that Silver Spoons was going to be canceled for good in 1987 is anyone's guess. However, considering the fact that the show was canceled by NBC in the spring of 1986 and brought back for first-run syndication that fall, I wouldn't be surprised if any of them had seen the handwriting on the wall. Although "Let It Snow, Let It Snow" was not a spectacular way to end the show's five-year run, the final scene, from my point of view, was enough make the episode work as a series ender.

I Dream of Jeannie "Hurricane Jeannie" This was supposed to be the series finallie, but was preempted. Dr. Bellows, Jeannie, Tony and Roger are stranded at the Nelson's house during a Hurricane. Tony is talking on the phone to two astronauts who are in orbit. Jeannie blinks them into the Nelson's house and Dr. Bellows sees what is happening. Tony tells Dr. Bellows that his wife is a Genie. They have to show him that he was not really crazy and the strange things he saw really happened. Tony resigns from the Astronaut program to devote his life to Jeannie, but then Tony wakes up. It was just a dream. They had "My Master the Chili King" as the series finallie instead.

I Dream of Jeannie "Hurricane Jeannie" This was supposed to be the series finallie, but was preempted. Dr. Bellows, Jeannie, Tony and Roger are stranded at the Nelson's house during a Hurricane. Tony is talking on the phone to two astronauts who are in orbit. Jeannie blinks them into the Nelson's house and Dr. Bellows sees what is happening. Tony tells Dr. Bellows that his wife is a Genie. They have to show him that he was not really crazy and the strange things he saw really happened. Tony resigns from the Astronaut program to devote his life to Jeannie, but then Tony wakes up. It was just a dream. They had "My Master the Chili King" as the series finallie instead.

That episode had one of my favorite scenes in it. When Tony confesses to Dr. Bellows and tells him that he and Jeannie will start a new life somewhere where they are not known, Dr. Bellows says to Tony very sincerely (I may be paraphrasing), "Major Nelson, all things considered, and I mean all things considered, it's been an honor and pleasure to have known you."


Trivia question:

What were the names of the astronauts Tony "talked" down?
(From his living room couch no less!)







Mattingly and Forbes

Early edition they didn't even give it an ending last episode had something to do with isher people then now & aging they left you on cliff hanger another season finale was alf they left you in cliff hanger on the show. you can also add journey man john doe and Kayla xy

quanta leap it kind of had ending to it but I didn't like the ending

early edition it just went off air no warning when the last episodes wasn't even a season finale it was just an episode

I agree with the The Incredible Hulk t v series I enjoyed death of The Incredible Hulk movie but they didn't show if jack McGee found out who killed dr David banner my favorite is mystery men were david and jack McGee were in the woods running form bad guys but david hurt his head and lost his memory had a mask cause he got hurt its awesome episode.a lot of people didn't like the ending of QUANTUM LEAP.

The episode was never intended as the series finale, it was written as the season-ending cliffhanger. But after it was filmed NBC canceled the show so they had to re-edit it and make it the finale.

I think if be awesome if they rebooted the QL or make a movie they were going to make a movie on sci fi channel couple years ago or something their was speculation that DR.SAM Beckett had daughter she was going through time finding Sam becket but they decide to go with reboot of Battlestar Galactica instead still hoping a movie will come up I hope they can do it while Scott Bakula and have dean stock are still alive well come back as al I m still hoping im kind of surprised that a holly wood hasn't made a QL Movie yet. here's hoping and keeping my finger's crossed long as they get scott bakula and dean stock well coming back I be happy.

The Incredible Hulk - It really never got a proper finale and the TV movie "The Death of the Incredible Hulk" almost twenty years later did try to end David Banner's story, but I think the fourth season two-parter "The First" could have made a good ending to the series, with David battling a man who was changed into a Hulk creature thirty years before him, only his Hulk was evil and killed people, sort of the TV version of The Abomination.

That's a great point- "The First" is probably the closest The Incredible Hulk series gets to doing a comic book villian- I like that. It's not exactly Abomination, but probably as close as the show would get to the character- cool.:)

And as to the comments about Early Edition and Quantum Leap- I would love to see a reunion movie for both!
(Though I'm probably one of the few QL fans who likes the series finale as it is.) And release Seasons 3 and 4 of Early Edition to DVD soon, please!

To the original point of the thread though, Quantum Leap did have a series finale- "Mirror Image".
The last episode to air for Early Edition- "Luck o' the Irish"- was not intended as the series (or season) finale. That episode would be "Time"- which was definitely a fitting season (and series) finale. (Though I was definitely hoping for a 5th. season instead, as there was certainly room for that too.)

The TV shows that lived on after their finales (http://www.denofgeek.us/tv/tv-finales/245417/the-tv-shows-that-lived-on-after-their-finales)

Did King of the Hill had a proper ending?

I agree about Early edition I was just reading some one said the only reason they canceled early edition was when the reality shows was getting popular I knew quantum leap had an ending but I didn't like it. I wish they would have given Quantum leap another season. another good show was called marital law it was about this chines they did a cross over with early edition one of the guys was chine's guy he played lots of movies with Jackie chan he was kind of fat guy it was called martial law it came on after Early Edition it didn't last long.

Community and Parks and Rec are probably the king of these, since they were both on the bubble so often that they had tons of episodes meant to serve as de facto series finales if the show didn't return.

Community
Introduction to Finality (Season 3 finale)
Advanced Introduction to Finality (Season 4 finale)
Basic Sandwich (Season 5 finale)

^all intended to serve as series finales (and the S5 finale actually did until the show was resurrected by Yahoo Screen). To me, "Introduction to Finality" still serves as a pretty great finale, especially considering the show would go through a lot of cast/writer changes in Seasons 4+.

Parks and Rec
Rock Show
Lil Sebastian
Win, Lose or Draw
Leslie and Ben
Are You Better Off?

^also all intended to serve as series finales. Also, the S6 finale felt a lot like a series finale, especially since S7 was very different than previous seasons with the big time jump.