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Best TV twists/cliffhangers?


LaGoosh

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Was just thinking about TV cliffhangers/twists and I think undoubtedly my personal favorite and one of the biggest what the fuck moments for me ever was the flash-forward twist ending of Lost season 3. One of the most insane and genius twists in TV history, managing to raise the stakes of the show tremendously, turn the whole show on it's head and no one could have possibly guessed it was the direction the show would take.

 

What are you guys personal faves?

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In that case, I have a couple.

 

24 - Nina Myers actually being one of the terrorists in Season One. There's been lots of similar twists in that show and most of them predictable, but this one got me.

 

Buffy - Angel turning around in the middle of Season Two. "The pain is gone."... sinks the teeth in, and we find that he's Angelus.

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24 - Nina Myers actually being one of the terrorists in Season One. There's been lots of similar twists in that show and most of them predictable, but this one got me.

 

That came straight to my mind aswell. Just that shot of here eyes while she's on the phone always reminds me of my chorus of NO FUCKING WAY!

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In that case, I have a couple.

 

24 - Nina Myers actually being one of the terrorists in Season One. There's been lots of similar twists in that show and most of them predictable, but this one got me.

 

Buffy - Angel turning around in the middle of Season Two. "The pain is gone."... sinks the teeth in, and we find that he's Angelus.

Two excellent calls there, another 24 one I loved from Season five was the reveal of President Logan being behind the assassination on David Palmer. The first episode of Buffy Season five has to be up there too, throwing Dawn into the show in episode one with no real explanation until a few episodes in was genius.

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I called the Ben/Glory one actually. I was racking my brains as to how Glory couldn't hurt Ben and that was the only real answer I could come up with. The Dawn one was a cracker though. Good call on that.

 

Angel trying to kill Wesley when we thought he was forgiving him was a good twist, and really set the tone for the rest of Season 3.

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I'm being nice and putting this in spoiler tags just in case anyone's gay enough to have not seen the Shield yet...

 

 

SPOILER - Highlight the black box to read

Shane dropping a grenade on Lems lap. I sat in silence for a good 20 minutes after it happened, I can't see anything else on tv coming close to topping it, shocking.

 

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Dexter Series 1 when the Ice Truck Killer turns out to be related to him, and Series 2 when Doakes finds out about Dexter and gets captured.

 

Or even better... the excellent end to Season 4 of Dexter where he comes home to find Rita slaughtered in the bath tub.

 

Boy this thread really could get messy spoiler wise... Im getting out of here.

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24 - Nina Myers actually being one of the terrorists in Season One. There's been lots of similar twists in that show and most of them predictable, but this one got me.

 

Bethed. (A big ditto.) It's not just what's being revealed, but the fact the revelation is through her suddenly speaking Serbian.

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For me, it's got to be the cliffhanger at the end of Season 2 of The West Wing. So stop reading if you want to avoid spoilers.

 

It's a weird cliffhanger because you already know what's about to happen. It's the fact that the actual moment is denied that's the killer. Earlier in the episode, we've seen a flashback to the moment the Chief of Staff knew that Bartlett would make it to be President. It was when he was asked a tough question, and just before answering, he put his hand in his pocket, looked to the left, and then gave the perfect answer.

 

Bartlett's had a shitty time. News of his illness has leaked, his wife has been disbarred, he's steeped in scandal and his secretary, one of the people he's closest to, has just died in a car crash. On his way to the press conference, he stops at a church, and (a committed Catholic) walks up to the alter and renounces God, even stubbing out his cigarette on the alter. A storm hits as he goes to the press conference, and nobody has any idea what's going on.

 

Bartlett walks into the press conference, drenched and pissed off, but apparently feeling a little better about himself. He's promised his wife he won't run for a second term, but he doesn't know if he wants to or not.

 

He's asked the one question he's avoided for ages.

 

"Mr President, will you run for a second term?".

 

He puts his hand in his pocket. He looks to the left. We cut to the Chief of Staff, grabbing a colleagues arm and whispering 'watch THIS!'.

 

Bartlett opens his mouth -

 

TO BE CONTINUED.

 

 

 

It doesn't matter that everybody knew how he would answer. That moment is denied to us, and every person watches goes 'Son of a BITCH, NO! Don't end there!'.

 

Brilliant, brilliant television.

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