# good riddens friends or AWFUL series closers **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 7, 2004, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950 "2004-05-07T02:38:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2004, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950/41 "2004-05-07T15:41:38Z")
> [@jeevwoman](#): > > It was all about how god was directing Sam’s leaps and how Sam never returned home. It was pretty disappointing that it turned out to be so religious. But then they also wanted to ‘prove’ that Lee harvey Oswald Jr acted alone, so I suppose it wasn’t too out of place for them. Wha-_huuuh?_ So, St. Peter was on the Grassy Knoll, and Jesus had a carbine on the overpass? ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2004, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950/42 "2004-05-07T15:43:25Z")
> [@BrotherCadfael](#): > > The finale was OK. Not great, but OK. > > I would have had Rachel fly to Paris, and the next day go to the airport to meet her mother with Emma. Of course, instead of her mother, Ross brings Emma, tells her he loves her, tells her he’s arranged a year’s sabatical at a French university, and gets down on one knee and proposes. > > But then I’m a hopeless romantic. I wanted the same thing. Still, I wasn’t horribly disappointed by the finale, it was an average episode of Friends, not a great episode, but not an awful one. **CCL** I was also wondering about getting the stroller so fast. My only real problem was the birth mother. That woman looks 30-something. (Which isn’t surprising because she’s in her late 20s). But all the way through every time she says something that’s supposed to make her seem like a teenager “My boyfriend went to college” or “I’m going to church camp” how can anyone help but think “why? shouldn’t you be done with that? you’re 30!” or maybe it’s just me. And the most horrid series finale ever was Quantam Leap, and this didn’t even come close to that level of awfulness. ---
**Author:** ![Snooooopy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Snooooopy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snooooopy)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2004, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950/43 "2004-05-07T15:56:06Z")
A truly awful Series closer? Mitch “Wild Thing” Williams. 😛 I kill me, I do! 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Dignan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f07891/32.png) [@Dignan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dignan)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2004, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950/44 "2004-05-07T16:36:50Z")
> [@Eve](#): > > OK, I was going to start a thread about my pet-peeve about series finales, but I’ll mention it here (despite the two typos in the thread title!). Howcum all the women have to wind up married, engaged and/or with kids? Oh come on, Eve! _Everyone_ knows that the only way to true happiness is to pair off and have babies. This is doubly true for women, who _can’t_ be successful without a man and eventually a child. [sub]Does this need a rolleyes, or is it clear?[/sub] ---
**Author:** ![plnnr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@plnnr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/plnnr)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2004, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950/45 "2004-05-07T16:37:44Z")
> [@FriarTed](#): > > Since Seinfeld & Xena finales have both been criticized, that is the sign for me to propose my alternate versions- > > Seinfeld finally pretty much stays as shown until the end- as the Jury announces their conviction, we see Newman munching on snacks & laughing- I would then have had him start choking on his mouthful of chips- as Newman chokes, the four main characters have their moment- > Kramer thinks “Newman’s choking! I gotta save my friend!” & rushes over to help. > George thinks “Newman’s choking! If I try to help, maybe the judge will go easy on me!” & rushes over… > Elaine thinks “Newman’s choking!..I, I’ve always loved him! I’m coming, Newman!” & rushes over… > Jerry looks askance at all of them & thinks “Let the fat bastard choke.” > > Xena- I’d have gone back to the proto-C’tian theme they started about Xena’s daughter Eve heralding the twilight of the Greek gods & the coming of the One God of Love- the remaining malevolent deities are out after an expectant couple making their way to a small village during the census, Xena & Gabby & Eve fight hostile gods & the troops of a paranoid king to deliver the couple safely to where they have their baby- in a stable, and as shepherds & Magi & Ares & Aphrodite & Xena & Gabby & Eve look adoringly at the Holy Family, Xena & Gabby look adoringly at each other & move in for… > and the credits roll. (I’ve never been sure whether to include the kiss or not.) > > Call me a heretic but I did not care for the MASH finale. > > The Newhart finale was wonderful! My alternate ending to Seinfeld was that at the very end, each would be shown waking up in their respective beds with the following people beside them: Elaine - Bob Newhart Jerry - Jay Leno Kramer - Cindy Crawford George - his mother Each would say, “I just had the weirdest dream about the most awful bunch of people.” ---
**Author:** ![jeevwoman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@jeevwoman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jeevwoman)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2004, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950/46 "2004-05-07T16:41:56Z")
> [@Eve](#): > > Wha-_huuuh?_ So, St. Peter was on the Grassy Knoll, and Jesus had a carbine on the overpass? Yup! You guessed it! 🙂 Actually, these were two separate episodes. My point was that the producers were always a bit of the conservative/non-popular opinion, as demonstrated in the JFK episode, so it wasn’t a total surprise when they went with the whole “god is directing your leaps” ending. ---
**Author:** ![jeevwoman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@jeevwoman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jeevwoman)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2004, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950/47 "2004-05-07T16:43:48Z")
> [@Dignan](#): > > Oh come on, Eve! _Everyone_ knows that the only way to true happiness is to pair off and have babies. This is doubly true for women, who _can’t_ be successful without a man and eventually a child. > > [sub]Does this need a rolleyes, or is it clear?[/sub] Well, you can have the child first AND THEN get the man. Times have changed, you know! :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Hunter\_Hawk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/50afbb/32.png) [@Hunter\_Hawk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hunter_Hawk)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2004, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950/48 "2004-05-07T16:53:35Z")
My first thought after watching the _Friends_ finale: “NBC gets two million bucks a pop for commercials during this tripe, and _Firefly_ gets cancelled???” ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2004, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950/49 "2004-05-07T17:00:28Z")
> [@jeevwoman](#): > > My point was that the producers were always a bit of the conservative/non-popular opinion, as demonstrated in the JFK episode, so it wasn’t a total surprise when they went with the whole “god is directing your leaps” ending. Hmmm . . . I’m an atheist who thinks Oswald acted alone. Does that make me conservative/non-popular, liberal/non-popular, conservative/popular or liberal/popular? ---
**Author:** ![jeevwoman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@jeevwoman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jeevwoman)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2004, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950/50 "2004-05-07T17:19:06Z")
> [@Eve](#): > > Hmmm . . . I’m an atheist who thinks Oswald acted alone. Does that make me conservative/non-popular, liberal/non-popular, conservative/popular or liberal/popular? It makes you . . .uh . . .Eve? 🙂 Keep in mind that this was time when _JFK_ (the movie) came out and the producers offered their response to Stone’s theories. It was a great episode, actually, b/c Sam leaps into Oswald’s body. At the end he says, “Why did I bother to leap, as I didn’t change history” and Al says, “Well, actually you did. The first time, Jackie was killed, too.” It was cool–but very opposite all the hype that Stone was getting. ---
**Author:** ![RikWriter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/49beb7/32.png) [@RikWriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RikWriter)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2004, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950/51 "2004-05-07T17:35:31Z")
> [@Squee](#): > > Refresh my memory… I swear I watched this finale, but I can’t remember what happened! 🙂 Sam leaps into a bar where the bartender is, I guess, supposed to be God, who tells him that he is leaping for a purpose or some such BS, and gives him a leap to do whatever he wants. Sam chooses to leap to the time of Al’s wife while Al is captive in Vietnam, and tell her to wait for him. Then he leaps out to who knows where. Fine, if that were the end. But then they say “Sam Beckett never returned home.” WHY put that in? It was nothing but a spit in the face to the fans of the show, frankly. ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2004, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950/52 "2004-05-07T18:17:45Z")
> [@plnnr](#): > > My alternate ending to Seinfeld was that at the very end, each would be shown waking up in their respective beds with the following people beside them: > > Elaine - Bob Newhart > Jerry - Jay Leno > Kramer - Cindy Crawford > George - his mother > > Each would say, “I just had the weirdest dream about the most awful bunch of people.” I wish you could hear my wild cheers and applause! That’s wonderful! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2004, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950/53 "2004-05-07T18:27:51Z")
> [@RikWriter](#): > > It was nothing but a spit in the face to the fans of the show, frankly. The final episode of _Moonlighting_ was a spit in the viewers’ faces, too—especially after we stuck with them through the godawful pregnant Maddie/Burt and Agnes crappy episodes. ---
**Author:** ![Dignan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f07891/32.png) [@Dignan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dignan)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2004, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950/54 "2004-05-07T18:36:09Z")
> [@RikWriter](#): > > Sam leaps into a bar where the bartender is, I guess, supposed to be God, who tells him that he is leaping for a purpose or some such BS, and gives him a leap to do whatever he wants. Sam chooses to leap to the time of Al’s wife while Al is captive in Vietnam, and tell her to wait for him. Then he leaps out to who knows where. Fine, if that were the end. But then they say “Sam Beckett never returned home.” > WHY put that in? It was nothing but a spit in the face to the fans of the show, frankly. I don’t think I’ve seen the final QL episode more than once since the original time it aired. I was pretty young when the show was on, but just looking at the description, I don’t think it was that bad of an ending. Sam could make one jump to do whatever he wanted, he could have gone to be with his family (right?), but instead he decides to help out a friend. Why do you think it was a “spit in the face”? Personally I think more endings that defied convention a little more would be better, so that the formulaic ending like the one in “Friends” wouldn’t be so predictable. ---
**Author:** ![Darkhold](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@Darkhold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darkhold)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2004, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950/55 "2004-05-07T19:02:37Z")
The reason **Quantum Leap** ended like that was they were trying to sell the show to other networks and didn’t want a contrived series reboot. So instead they have a contrived series finale. It was depressing when it showed Sam’s face when the bartender was telling him his leaps so far were just a sabbatical “You mean the leaps are going to get harder?” ☹ The real offense of that show was the fact there were ghosts leaping and saving people. WTF?!?!? ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2004, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950/56 "2004-05-07T19:30:19Z")
I didn’t watch it but did see the group being interviewed this week and thought to myself “Holy cow, the cast of The Big Chill looked younger.” ---
**Author:** ![badbadrubberpiggy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/57b2e6/32.png) [@badbadrubberpiggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/badbadrubberpiggy)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2004, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950/57 "2004-05-07T19:35:21Z")
I haven’t seen Friends in years, and I also missed the last episode. However, I used to watch it avidly, and I’d really like to know exactly what happened. Anybody want to give me the Readers’ Digest condensed version of the Last Episode? I have no idea what people are talking about when they say how good / bad / ok / contrived, etc. it was… ---
**Author:** ![tracer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tracer/32/20578_2.png) [@tracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tracer)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2004, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950/58 "2004-05-07T19:52:03Z")
> [@kingpengvin](#): > > **good riddens friends or AWFUL series closers** It’s RIDDANCE. Good RIDDANCE. “Good riddens” would be high-quality used bicycles. ---
**Author:** ![Darkhold](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@Darkhold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darkhold)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2004, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950/59 "2004-05-07T19:59:54Z")
> [@](#): > > the Readers’ Digest condensed version of the Last Episode? The begining is just a set up for the other things (Ross and Racheal wake up together, shot of the hostpital with the girl in labor and joey buying a chick and duck for Monica and Chandler) [spoiler]Ross gets ready to tell Rachael that he loves her but she says sex was a perfect way to say ‘goodbye’ before he can. The baby is born (boy) and then there’s a claim that there’s twins (man this show loves twins) and it’s completely contrived. I know there’s dumb people out there but what mother being told there’s two heart beats doesn’t know what that means? Or a doctor that wouldn’t say ‘oh you’re having twins’ at some point. The second twin is a girl Chandler doesn’t really want the second twin but then changes his mind Ross gets ready to tell Rachael (again) that he loves her but Gunther does it first so Ross backs off again. Ross has ANOTHER chance when he sees Rachael at the moment where they bring the babies home (wow that was quick did they just walk off from the hospital or what?) but he doesn’t. He then decides to confront her at the airport and beg her to say. In spite of the fact she left 2 mins ago he can’t just yell down the stairs instead there’s a frantic cab ride with Phoebe driving. The chick and the duck get caught in the Foos (sp?) ball table prompting it’s eventual destruction by Monica because Joey and Chandler don’t have the heart to do it. He gets the wrong airport and it’s DOOMED! He’ll never make it! However Phoebe calls Rachael and someone overhearing the conversation (Phoebe saying the plane is going to crash) believes it prompting everyone to get off the plane. Ross makes it to the airport confesses his love but Rachael leaves anyway. He goes home. There’s a few brief scenes in the now packed apartment. Ross checks his messages and there’s a message from Rachael calling from the plane explaining. She suddenly realizes she does love him. She then tries to get off the plane but the message cuts off before you find out if she does. Then just as Ross is freaking out she shows up in the doorway. They kiss. Then my recorder shuts off so I don’t know what happens the last few mins.[/spoiler] ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2004, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950/60 "2004-05-07T20:00:05Z")
> [@tracer](#): > > It’s RIDDANCE. > > Good RIDDANCE. > “Good riddens” would be high-quality used bicycles. —And while we’re at it, “Friends” should be initial-cap. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950.md?page=4)