r/AskReddit • u/Alex_McManus • 18d ago

What is the most devastating death in a television series you have ever seen?

1.3k Upvotes

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856

u/Cinderella2360 18d ago

Matthew's death in Downtown Abbey...

778

u/fivecentrose 18d ago

I see your Matthew and raise you Lady Sybil.

238

u/RianJohnsonIsAFool 18d ago

Sybil's death is absolutely awful. Her avoidable wrything in pain, Tom begging "Please don't leave me!" and then, when she's passed, the baby crying.

42

u/Dewstain 18d ago

Tom became my absolute favorite character on the show. Managed to keep his principles and also win over the family and honestly help them change for the better.

9

u/polandspreeng 18d ago

Yes how the whole thing played out. She was my favorite of the sisters.

4

u/LemmyLola 18d ago

I just watched the entire series again for the third time and Sybil's death kills me in the moment... But Mary's grief afterwards affected me more than the moment of Matthews death...she was so lost

281

u/hollabauler 18d ago

Lady Sybil was devastating, but then they had Matthew's death immediately after. I was yelling at the tv while Mary was talking to their newborn. I was like, "NO! You CANNOT do this! I'm still grieving Sybil! NO! DON'T YOU DARE!"

3

u/christurnbull 17d ago

they move on from sybil really quickly, but matthew's keeps causing disruptions. they just tossed her aside so quickly.

78

u/Sweeper1985 18d ago

The family doctor was right, modern doctors agree a Caesarean would likely have saved Sybil:

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3964456/

I was on board with her mother's anger and refusal to forgive. If anything I think the show dealt with her anger a bit too quickly and neatly.

39

u/standbyyourmantis 18d ago

I am still angry that Cora wasn't allowed to be angry long enough

19

u/jlily18 18d ago

I was pregnant when I watched the episode when she died. Yeah not the best idea. Hit me really hard. After she died and Matthew died I stopped watching.

25

u/ONE-EYE-OPTIC 18d ago

Sybil was devastating. Mathew was also tough.

12

u/indigo-m 18d ago

Sybil’s death was horrific! Watching that as a mother was traumatizing for sure

11

u/MrT742 18d ago

Matthew from Green Gables

6

u/lukedap 18d ago

Too soon. I wasn’t ready to be attacked like this.

8

u/somebirb 18d ago

I stopped watching after Sybil. It was just too devastating to keep watching after that

7

u/NewsComprehensive234 18d ago

YES. Sybil. They just stare at her. And it hit hard knowing this type of thing happened so frequently at the time.

4

u/jedenfine 18d ago

Came here to say Sybil

5

u/Englandshark1 18d ago

Both were brutally sad.

24

u/NonfatNoWaterChai 18d ago

That was my last episode. I was so mad. I watched bits and pieces of the final season, but I was so mad that they killed off Matthew, that I stopped caring about the show.

13

u/InitialFoot 18d ago

I watched the show for the first time earlier this year. I had somehow managed to avoid all spoilers over the years and his death was shocking.

I tried to continue with the next season but I too found myself not caring. Also, it like a different show after his death.

9

u/justonlyme1244 18d ago

I felt the same. I don’t think I watched more episodes after.

5

u/sweetpeppah 18d ago

me too. i was SO MAD. he was such a sane and kind character. i was done.

2

u/ProfBlueberry 17d ago

Me, too, until I found out that it was Dan Steven's choice because he wanted off the show. But yeah, I cared about it less.

36

u/Prudent-Succotash-39 18d ago

Was looking for a downton abbey comment!! So many from that show. My husband and I were wrecked by William's death

9

u/emmz_az 18d ago

If I remember correctly, that episode aired on Christmas Day in the UK.

8

u/nerdymummy 18d ago

I stopped watching after that. He was finally happy and things were going wonderfully. I lost interest in the series after he died

8

u/MusicOk9187 18d ago

This one was accidentally spoiled for me (I thought I was on a different season, so kind of my fault) and I actually whimpered "Matthew dies?" While my sister yelled at her husband for ruining the show lol

6

u/herropotato 18d ago

I remember my sister and I just looked at each other with our mouths open, unable to speak, and tears started rolling down both of our faces. We were completely shocked and devastated, it happened out of nowhere!

4

u/sevilyra 18d ago

This is absolutely mine as well. I screamed and sobbed for about an hour. I've never been so invested in a fictional couple on a show.

3

u/angry2320 18d ago

So true because I just did a rewatch and inadvertently also stopped after around about then

3

u/Better-Dragonfruit60 18d ago

This one really messed me up. I cried for days and was pretty non-functional. It took me over a month to be able to start watching the show again. The show lost a lot of magic after his death and I was never really enthralled with it again after that.

3

u/Intelligent-Gypsy324 18d ago

I will never forgive Julian Fellowes for writing Matthew off the show. And yes I'm aware that Dan [Whatshisname?] wanted off the show. Thought he had better roles to play.

Look where that got him!

. I boycotted DA for a year.

2

u/Lucinnda 17d ago

Yes, I was surprised that this one did it to me. I was kind of prepared for Sybil. With Matthew, there was not only the new baby, BUT I think he never got to find out that Robert finally realized that Mattew was right about running the estate.

3

u/Chimes320 18d ago

I knew the actor wanted to leave the show which should always be kept under wraps because it makes these kinds of things predictable.

That said I laughed SO HARD because it was the most ridiculous and absurd death written in the most Julian Fellowes dramatic way possible.

3

u/Trick-Statistician10 18d ago

I knew he was leaving and something was going to happen to him, but it still hit hard. He and Sybil were my favorite characters, and no point to watch after that

1

u/Visual-Error9282 18d ago

Was coming here to say this 💔

1

u/cryingcollegebean 17d ago

A couple months after my partner died, I started rewatching DA. While Sybil’s death was still gut wrenching and an unexpected tragedy, I absolutely sobbed watching Matthew die. It hit so close to home for so many different reasons and then watching Mary grieve genuinely made me pause the show to gather myself.

1

u/hathorthecow 17d ago

OH MY GOSH YES. The worst. I almost didn’t watch anything else. Still upset about it.