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RSSNo big surprise . . . TV's least shocking plot twists
After months of hints that someone will die and pictures of grieving characters in magazines, it certainly seems like it is Bart (Robert John Burke) who will meet his maker on Gossip Girl. No big surprise here. Although I was kind of holding out hope that Serena would pull a Marissa Cooper, I kind of assumed that Bart was the most expendable character (please see Alan Dale's character in both The O.C. and Ugly Betty) and that his death would provide good dramatic fodder for our favorite mother Chucker.
We've talked about TV's best surprises but what about TV's biggest non surprises? Here are a few that I came up with:
Tony kills Christopher in the final season of The Sopranos: How he did it was a surprise but the fact that Tony's nephew didn't live to see the series finale wasn't. In every episode that year,I kept waiting for Tony to put an end to Christopher. There was great suspense of when the moment would come but that it happened seemed inevitable.
Carrie doesn't end up with Aleksandr Petrovsky on Sex and the City: Really did anyone think Carrie would actually stay with this White Night? Clearly he wasn't the man for her.
Ross and Rachel end up together in the series finale of Friends: Was there any other choice? The entire series had been leading up to that moment.
Shannon dies on Lost: The show is full of shockers but this wasn't one of them. It was easy to know that the only person who would miss Shannon was Sayid.
What was a time you were least surprised by a plot twist? Talk about it below.
Quotes of the Week
"We're actors if we don't exist, how will people know who to vote for?" Jenna to Tracy on 30 Rock.
"No basic demolition is what we do to each other at dinner after we've had copious amounts of wine." Saul to Nora on Brothers & Sisters. True that Uncle Saul. True that.
"Nothing screams Skynet like baby wipes and ice cream." John on Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. Thanks to Barry for the quote.
"I hate disappointing just one person. And I really hate disappointing everyone. But I love Burlington Coat Factory." Michael deciding to keep the bonus instead of buying something for the staff on The Office.
"You know what no one tells you about cooking with the dark side? The food is really good." Olive on Pushing Daisies. Thanks to Caroline for the quote.
Exchange of the Week
"I agree with her, you're too involved." Sarah to Casey on Chuck.
"This from an agent who can't keep her chocolate out of Bartowski's peanut butter." Casey's response. Thanks to Barry for the exchange.
That's all for today. I'm back next week to talk about Laurence Fishburne joining the cast of CSI (it's a great episode), the series finale of Boston Legal and more. Have a question? Seen a familiar face? Want to nominate a quote of the week? Write me at amytvgal@zap2it.com. Talk to you on Monday.
Amy Amatangelo, TV Gal ®
"It was easy to know , that with the exception of Sayid, Shannon was the character we would miss the least."
I'm ***uming you meant that Sayid was the only one who would miss Shannon, not that Sayid was the least likeable character on Lost. Cuz Sayid rocks.
I wish the promo departments didn't have to tell us "Next episode: One of these people... WILL... DIE!" because then you can often figure it out. Shannon's death might have been shocking if we didn't know the episode would end with a death.
In the season 2 ep of Lost where both Ana Lucia and Libby were murdered, had the promos said someone would die? Because I at least had no idea that there would be a death when I watched it, and that is part of the reason that I still consider it the biggest shock of any TV show that I've seen. I sat with my mouth open staring at the screen when the episode ended.
I was the same way, Billiam. I had my mouth wide open staring a the TV when it was happening myself. I hadn't seen any of the promos and it was an amazing.
I second Abby. I like Sayid on Lost, and I like him much better than Shannon. I also like him better than I liked Ana Lucia, Libby, or Mr. Eko. Or Michael (I could go on....) So I, too, Amy hope you didn't mean Sayid was the least likable character on Lost.
Oh, least surprising twist recently is that Rebecca isn't a Walker on Brothers and Sisters. I saw that one coming a mile away - all the way back to when Justin went to a bar with Rebecca and Lena and he hooked up with Lena. By the time Rebecca went to get the DNA test it just seemed like a formality to me to make everyone feel better. Too bad they didn't got ahead and do a DNA test when Kevin pulled her hair at her first official family dinner!
Not only is Sayid one of the best characters on Lost he's also the MVP. Killing him in the second season would have meant certain doom for the Losties because Lord knows they had no one else with the capability to whip some serious a$$ like Sayid.
I love Sayid too -- I meant only Sayid would miss Shannon. I'll change my text so that's clear. Thanks!
One of my least shocking moments may come as a surprise to most:
Carol Hathaway's last appearance on ER when she met George Clooney on the dock in Seattle. How is that not a twist you ask? Well, since in Jan of that year I remember seeing an interview with Julianna Marguiles (sp) on a show like ET (may not have been ET itself, but one of those entertainment news shows), she talked about having George do a scene with her when she was leaving the show. The producers and Julianna herself may have denied it later, but I remember the interview, hence it was anything but a shock/surprise to me when it occured.
That Jack Bauer didn't die any of the numerous times it appeared he could have. Particularly the time (in Season 2?) that he was tortured and his heart stopped, which I believe was the very end of an episode.
Ms. Calendar on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer". I missed the character when she died, but you saw it coming several miles away.