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Made in us
Hangin' with Gork & Mork






So I was watching The Collector* (2009) and while I enjoyed it for the most part the ending kind of ruined the overall experience. No spoilers but it didn't know when to stop and just had to do sequel bait. They could have stopped it earlier and still had a continuation if a sequel did end up happening. It was annoying but got me to thinking of other bits of media that had trouble sticking the landing. What film/book/TV have you taken part of in which the ending soured the experience leading up to it?



*I saw something about good moments in bad movies and the sequel (The Collection) was mentioned for its intro sequence then I saw a video talking about unreleased films about the fact there was a third film, tentatively titled The Col3ction, was made and shelved. I had the impression that the original film, while not spectacular, was a fun film that was a bit of a surprise at the time. Not really a spoiler but it starts out like it is going to be a crime film with a burglary but things go very sideways halfway though. Reminded me of the Saw franchise in that the first was different than what came after.

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2022/11/24 05:35:06


Amidst the mists and coldest frosts he thrusts his fists against the posts and still insists he sees the ghosts.
 
   
Made in us
Legendary Master of the Chapter





SoCal

The Black Hole.

It’s a solid film, except that they never figured out how to end it…which ends up making it a bad film.

   
Made in us
Fixture of Dakka




NE Ohio, USA

Star Wars, Episodes 7 - 9
Even taking into account episodes 1- 3, the story as told movie-wise had a perfectly good ending with Return of the Jedi.
They just couldn't resist making those last 3 episodes & blowing it though....
   
Made in gb
Ridin' on a Snotling Pump Wagon






Well let’s get Game of Thrones out the way. No need to say more.

And I very much agree on The Black Hole. Interesting concept which just…sort of ended. Possibly ended following a lot of naughty drugs being consumed.

   
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Southeastern PA, USA

Event Horizon. It’s a classic, somewhat psychological ghost story that’s all about mood and dread and not a corporeal monster. And then “the ship brought me back” for no in-story logical reason so that we can see a confrontation and FISTFIGHT with the captain. It then tries to redeem itself with a dark ending but the damage is done.

“The ship brought me back” can be directly translated into writer-speak for “this makes no sense but we need you to roll with it so we can have a tired, stereotypical showdown Hollywood ending.”

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As was mentioned in the film review thread, Battle Los Angeles. A brilliant alien invasion war film spoiled by the heroes inexplicably becoming super soldiers for the last 20 minutes or so, where every bullet kills a bad guy a lnd they shrug off the return fire.

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MN (Currently in WY)

Honestly, there are too many to count; because endings are hard!

They are hard because the viewer/customer has all ready created an end scenario in their head, before you get there in the story. If and when that ending does not match or exceed the head canon the viewer/reader has all ready created..... it leads to a certain dissatisfaction from them which can make it hard for any product to recover from.

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Bad endings is also a major failure of modern Simpsons. The stories are alright, but most just…end. No particular resolution or punchline worth a damn.

   
Made in de
Dakka Veteran





 Easy E wrote:
Honestly, there are too many to count; because endings are hard!

They are hard because the viewer/customer has all ready created an end scenario in their head, before you get there in the story. If and when that ending does not match or exceed the head canon the viewer/reader has all ready created..... it leads to a certain dissatisfaction from them which can make it hard for any product to recover from.


You may be right but I tend to think that for me anyway it is a case of not needing an ending I want so much as just getting an actual resolution, even if partial, that leaves a little room for potentially more but does not demand more. I am thinking for example the end of the first season of Shadow & Bone. I was satisfied with what I got but had an appetite for more if it ever came. And that was without really liking per se the end of the season very much.

I would not criticize the end of the Black Hole for the same reason. I did not particularly like it but it felt like enough of a resolution that I could end there or watch a sequel if one came along.

Rick, the Grumpy Gnome

https://thegrumpygnome.home.blog/ 
   
Made in us
Paramount Plague Censer Bearer





"It didn't end the way they want" sounds correct, but that's not generally true. Most people are fine with an ending that is conclusive and makes sense. A common criticism for a lot of endings are how predictable they are. The predictability generally comes from mediocre writing, thus people aren't satisfied with it. How many people expected Ghost Busters to end with the Stay Puffed Marshmallow Man instead of a spooky ghost?

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Made in us
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Florence, KY

 Grumpy Gnome wrote:
I would not criticize the end of the Black Hole for the same reason. I did not particularly like it but it felt like enough of a resolution that I could end there or watch a sequel if one came along.

Give this a read about the novelization of The Black Hole and how it differs from the film:

https://medium.com/the-novelization-station/the-black-hole-by-alan-dean-foster-373a35acd6bd

Most interesting was this...

A contemporary interview with Nelson reveals why this is: during production, The Black Hole’s conclusion was so top secret that it didn’t even exist. “There is not, and never was, a definitive ending written,” Nelson told Mediascene’s Jim Steranko in 1979. “Even the credited screenwriters did not write the actual ending we have on the film. They took the story up to the last seven minutes and stopped.”

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Made in de
Dakka Veteran





 Ghaz wrote:
 Grumpy Gnome wrote:
I would not criticize the end of the Black Hole for the same reason. I did not particularly like it but it felt like enough of a resolution that I could end there or watch a sequel if one came along.

Give this a read about the novelization of The Black Hole and how it differs from the film:

https://medium.com/the-novelization-station/the-black-hole-by-alan-dean-foster-373a35acd6bd

Most interesting was this...

A contemporary interview with Nelson reveals why this is: during production, The Black Hole’s conclusion was so top secret that it didn’t even exist. “There is not, and never was, a definitive ending written,” Nelson told Mediascene’s Jim Steranko in 1979. “Even the credited screenwriters did not write the actual ending we have on the film. They took the story up to the last seven minutes and stopped.”


Thanks for the link, it was an interesting read. I prefer the movie end to that of the novelization. Both are… admittedly unusual but I just prefer the movie end. Milton works for me.

Rick, the Grumpy Gnome

https://thegrumpygnome.home.blog/ 
   
Made in us
Hangin' with Gork & Mork






 Easy E wrote:
Honestly, there are too many to count; because endings are hard!


Sure but in this case there are two other criteria:

1) The lead up to the ending had to be engaging. If it was just ok to bad before then it doesn't really count.

and

2) Being unsatisfying doesn't necessarily ruin the rest of the experience whereas here we are looking for ending so poorly executed it did ruin the rest of it.

Amidst the mists and coldest frosts he thrusts his fists against the posts and still insists he sees the ghosts.
 
   
Made in us
Secret Force Behind the Rise of the Tau




USA

Mass Effect.

I will go to my grave proclaiming the utter gak show that was the final act of the ME trilogy and that all attempts at trying and make sense of it are nothing but pure concentrated copium. The ending was awful. I challenge that it effectively killed the franchise as a pop culture icon. Even before Andromeda dropped and nailed the coffin shut, no one was all that hyped for more Mass Effect. The ending was that bad.

Also Naruto.

I actually like Naruto well enough, but the ending of Naruto became a fever dream, especially the 'final boss' who literally came out of nowhere. Never any hint that figure existed until she literally popped onto the page and the history she was given was so over the top it was pretty obvious she was invented at the last second to set up Boruto or some continuation of the setting. I don't even hate Boruto, but the end of Naruto was bad.

Same complaint I'd level against Gideon the Ninth, a book I otherwise rather enjoyed until the ending threw an out of left field twist that is only a twist because it was utterly unpredictable and had zero context for how or why it would even happen.

The TLDR here is; random bs endings that try to wrap up a good story with nonsense are all bad. If you have to invent new plot elements to end the series, you fethed up.

This message was edited 3 times. Last update was at 2022/11/26 14:47:08


   
Made in ca
Gargantuan Gargant






Star vs the Forces of Evil. It had promise but the story really gave away to shipping wars and that more or less forced its ending to be rushed and all over the place on where magic and mewmans came from. Also pretty anticlimatic for when it came to how it ended.

   
Made in us
Terrifying Doombull




Bioware has my disrespect for their repeated urge to create a new setting and immediately kicking it over with EpIc CoNFiCtS!!! rather than exploring it and creating narrative and character threads that endure.

Andromeda stands out for being interesting but immediately ruined by not being the exploration game they promised, but another world ending nothing repeating the dragon age themes of forced mutation and mental conversion. Just more not!orcs.

This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 2022/11/26 18:59:49


Efficiency is the highest virtue. 
   
Made in us
Legendary Master of the Chapter





SoCal

 LordofHats wrote:
Mass Effect.

I will go to my grave proclaiming the utter gak show that was the final act of the ME trilogy and that all attempts at trying and make sense of it are nothing but pure concentrated copium. The ending was awful. I challenge that it effectively killed the franchise as a pop culture icon. Even before Andromeda dropped and nailed the coffin shut, no one was all that hyped for more Mass Effect. The ending was that bad.

Also Naruto.

I actually like Naruto well enough, but the ending of Naruto became a fever dream, especially the 'final boss' who literally came out of nowhere. Never any hint that figure existed until she literally popped onto the page and the history she was given was so over the top it was pretty obvious she was invented at the last second to set up Boruto or some continuation of the setting. I don't even hate Boruto, but the end of Naruto was bad.

Same complaint I'd level against Gideon the Ninth, a book I otherwise rather enjoyed until the ending threw an out of left field twist that is only a twist because it was utterly unpredictable and had zero context for how or why it would even happen.

The TLDR here is; random bs endings that try to wrap up a good story with nonsense are all bad. If you have to invent new plot elements to end the series, you fethed up.


Reminds me of the ending to Buffy (the series). What a complete let down.

   
Made in us
Terrifying Doombull




Buffy's ending was great. She stopped a hellgod, saved her sister, could finally rest.

Efficiency is the highest virtue. 
   
Made in us
Fixture of Dakka





 Flinty wrote:
As was mentioned in the film review thread, Battle Los Angeles. A brilliant alien invasion war film spoiled by the heroes inexplicably becoming super soldiers for the last 20 minutes or so, where every bullet kills a bad guy a lnd they shrug off the return fire.


IDK. The whole movie is basically a film version of a videogame. The finale plays all the final boss tropes of the era, including holding a laser until a timer expires and a "this isn't even my final form" moment.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
 LordofHats wrote:
Mass Effect.

I will go to my grave proclaiming the utter gak show that was the final act of the ME trilogy and that all attempts at trying and make sense of it are nothing but pure concentrated copium. The ending was awful. I challenge that it effectively killed the franchise as a pop culture icon. Even before Andromeda dropped and nailed the coffin shut, no one was all that hyped for more Mass Effect. The ending was that bad.

Also Naruto.

I actually like Naruto well enough, but the ending of Naruto became a fever dream, especially the 'final boss' who literally came out of nowhere. Never any hint that figure existed until she literally popped onto the page and the history she was given was so over the top it was pretty obvious she was invented at the last second to set up Boruto or some continuation of the setting. I don't even hate Boruto, but the end of Naruto was bad.

Same complaint I'd level against Gideon the Ninth, a book I otherwise rather enjoyed until the ending threw an out of left field twist that is only a twist because it was utterly unpredictable and had zero context for how or why it would even happen.

The TLDR here is; random bs endings that try to wrap up a good story with nonsense are all bad. If you have to invent new plot elements to end the series, you fethed up.


I pretty much always look to the bright side, but ME3's ending is one of the few times I will descend into full nerd rage. The worst part is 99% of the game is actually phenomenal, including the final assault that leads to the ending. Everything is perfect right up until the Starchild appears and just... honestly there are few worse endings to anything.

I quite love Naruto but its very clear that too many elements had been added over the run to resolve cleanly. This was the era of trying to keep the wheels on the big three rolling for as long as possible and a lot of Naruto's plot gets compromised in the process. Even Sasuke wasn't part of the original vision and I don't think Kishimoto really knew how to get the series to the final duel. It's also pretty clear that he was caught off guard with how quick the internet would solve and distribute the Tobi reveal and the revolving door of hilarious attempts at misdirection just dragged things on further. I don't hate what we got,even Kaguya, but the best finale is Kakashi and Naruto's dual plane battle to break the mask. That feels like the end of the stuff that had been well plotted.

It's worth noting that both of these are kind of a result of trying to keep milking a cash cow beyond its creative limits. Good examples of why its better to let things come to their natural conclusion, though at least in Naruto's case I'm guessing there's millions of dollars that say otherwise.

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2022/11/28 15:00:36


 
   
Made in us
Secret Force Behind the Rise of the Tau




USA

I to this day celebrate Battle LA for what it truly is; a comedy.

I also recognize that much of what I find to be absolute absurd and mockery worthy of the film and it's characters are also the things other people liked about it.

Even then though, I agree the ending is bad.

They had a great movie that beautifully mocked the casual movie-going audience's love affair with dumb brick murder junkies who fantasize about defending the country but are actually wholly incompetent and just want to imagine in a way to die that gives their "I could have been a war hero cause I'm a real man (TM)" meaningless lives meaning and how does it end?

The dumbasses who need to conduct an autopsy to figure center of mass is a good place to shoot win in the end. 0/10. This whole genre is basically nothing but the uncritical murder junkies fantasizing about how glorious their deaths could be and the movie doesn't kill everyone.

Hilarious movie. Terrible ending. /sort-of-sarcasm I never took this movie seriously it's so bad it's good to me XD

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2022/11/28 21:38:41


   
Made in gb
Executing Exarch





Voss wrote:
Buffy's ending was great. She stopped a hellgod, saved her sister, could finally rest.


This is the correct answer as if you ignore the final season that adorkable vengeance demon survives ! And she was nearly as lovely as Giles (never confused!)


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Monticello, IN

Big O. Possibly my favorite anime, but the worst ending every committed to cinema. And that's taking Lieberstraum into account...

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 CthuluIsSpy wrote:
Its AoS, it doesn't have to make sense.
 
   
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REDACTED.

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This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 2022/11/29 14:57:26


Rick, the Grumpy Gnome

https://thegrumpygnome.home.blog/ 
   
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Denison, Iowa

Dude Where's My Car.

I liked the first 45 minutes when it was hopeless guys trying to figure out what happened after getting blackout drunk. It was almost like The Hangover, but made years prior.

Then they added aliens, and a cult, and it just went down the toilet.
   
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The Abyss (1989) - pretty good claustrophobic psychological thriller (at least to me), ruined with inexplicable undersea aliens... I loved it up until the last 20 minutes...

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Denison, Iowa

 Cruentus wrote:
The Abyss (1989) - pretty good claustrophobic psychological thriller (at least to me), ruined with inexplicable undersea aliens... I loved it up until the last 20 minutes...


If you're ever able to see the Extended cut, DO IT. The extra 15 minutes they cut from the movie, mostly near the end, makes the movie so much better.
   
Made in au
Owns Whole Set of Skullz Techpriests






Versteckt in den Schatten deines Geistes.

LOST.

Now you can make arguments about the show's quality as it got towards the end, but the actual ending was unforgivable.

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NE Ohio, USA

 H.B.M.C. wrote:
LOST.

Now you can make arguments about the show's quality as it got towards the end, but the actual ending was unforgivable.


I managed to make it part way into S3 on that one.
I can't imagine slogging through 3.5 more seasons of that crap. That it ends poorly doesn't surprise me.
   
Made in gb
Ridin' on a Snotling Pump Wagon






Possibly bending the intent…

Terminator the Sarah Conner Chronicles

The show itself is great, particularly the second season.

Then….on a helluva cliffhanger? Cancelled.

You cannot leave us like that. It’s inhumane.

   
Made in ca
Rampaging Carnifex





Toronto, Ontario

 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:
Possibly bending the intent…

Terminator the Sarah Conner Chronicles

The show itself is great, particularly the second season.

Then….on a helluva cliffhanger? Cancelled.

You cannot leave us like that. It’s inhumane.


Sigh. I loved that show. Thank you for picking at old wounds
   
 
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