Tricks & advice for moving on once your favorite TV series is over. After your favorite show has ended, it might feel like nothing else will do the trick. Thankfully, there are many other great shows to explore once one has finished. This article will guide you in coping with the grief that comes after the finale of your favorite TV show.
Saying goodbye to a beloved TV show can be bittersweet. While it's hard to let go, there are ways to cope and find new favorites. The key is to explore new shows, join online communities, and dive into behind-the-scenes content to deepen your appreciation for the series.
Table of Contents
Method 1: Easing the Loss
1: Take a break from TV
Once your favorite show ends, nothing else you watch is going to feel like it fills the void. Considering the sort of time investment that's usually incurred with watching a show, it may be time to take a break from TV. Do other things; read books, play video games, see friends, and focus on hobbies.
2: Vent online
If you have just finished a series on its first run, there will be a lot of other people in the same position as you. A great show ending doesn't feel great, but the empty feeling can be alleviated by sharing your thoughts with others.
Make a post outlining your opinions on the show wrap-up. Online posts can spark an engaging conversation about what you just saw. Sharing the loss with other people will make it feel better.
3: Make friends with other fans of the show
If your existing friends aren't huge into the show you're interested in, take to the internet and befriend fans of the show. If only so you have people to geek out over your favorite parts with, fellow fans are a great way to intensify your appreciation for parts of a show.
- A show's first run comes with the social aspect of being able to discuss it the morning after an episode airs. The same should be true when the show ends.
- You can connect with others on social media, such as X (Twitter), Instagram, or even TikTok. Even if a show doesn't seem too popular, there's almost always a fanbase for it. Try searching using #hashtags with the series' name, or even characters from the show.
4: Write fanfiction based on the show
Fanfiction refers to a genre of fiction (prose, play, or poetry) written by fans about their favorite fictional characters. If you can't bear the thought of your favorite show ending, why not continue writing the show yourself? Pick up where the characters were in the final episode and start their story anew from there. If you're passionate and knowledgeable about the show, you should have at least some idea of where the characters would go next.
- If a show's fandom is big enough, it's quite likely that other writers have penned their fanfictions about the show already. Go to sites like FanFiction.net, Wattpad.com, or ArchiveofOurOwn.org, and read some work about your favorite characters.
- Remember to give credit to the creator of a TV show or the author of a book.
5: Host a farewell party for the show
If you know people who are also mourning the loss of the show, you should get them together for dinner and drinks. Sit around and discuss your favorite parts of the show. If footage is available, watch some of your favorite clips.
- Get into friendly debates over aspects of the series finale. A bit of friendly argument is a great way to get your mind off the loss.
- If you want to get theatrical with your farewell, you can hold a mock funeral for the show and its characters. You can go around in a circle and reflect on your favorite characters and scenes.
6: Send complaint letters to the network
Not all shows are lost forever. If a network cancels a show and realizes there is a significant following they've alienated, they may be convinced to bring the show back on air. Find out who canceled or ended the show and send a letter expressing your love for the show.
- If it was canceled, make sure to emphasize that you would like to see the show returned to television. If a network gets enough feedback for one show, it almost certainly affects whether it decides to bring it back or not.
- You even can organize a petition on Change.org to save the canceled show. This is a great way to show how many other fans want the same as you.
- Don't get your hopes up about a revival. Shows like Firefly received a zealous backlash when they were canceled, but never got the TV revival fans were looking for.
Method 2:Rewatching Episodes
1: Watch the series again on DVD or Blu-ray
After some time, all the seasons of your favorite show will be available for home purchase. The most conventional way of this is to buy the DVD box sets. Having a concrete copy of your favorite show at home is great if you watch the show a lot and don't want to rely on a channel for it.
- Streaming services like Netflix also showcase entire shows. This makes streaming services perfectly suited for the "binge-watching" that usually comes with watching a great show.
- Check online to see if your show is available as a free download. Some of the channel's websites will feature old episodes so people can catch up on their own time.
2: Watch the show again from start to finish
If you were watching a show as it aired the first time, rewatching it will allow you to experience it without the year-long wait between seasons. You can watch a few episodes per night, or marathon entire seasons in a day if you want.
- As always, the most enjoyable way to do this is to do it in pairs or as a group. Watching a whole show together requires some common scheduling, but it will feel a lot less lonely.
- You can host an online watch party using Netflix and a web browser. Some streaming services, such as Hulu, have a built-in "watch party" feature.
3: Digest the special features
If you went ahead and purchased the show box set on DVD or Blu-ray, you'll most likely have special features to dive into. Special features show the behind-the-scenes stuff in a TV show. Things like interviews, on-set documentaries, and marketing spots all help to enrich your knowledge and appreciation of the show.
If you look at everything that went into the making of a particular scene, you'll almost certainly have a greater appreciation for it the next time you put it on.
4: Look at the TV tropes page for your show
TV Tropes is a wonderful website for cataloging tropes in TV and media. If you look up your favorite show on it, you can look for all of the listed plot devices that the show used, and see how it ties in with the rest of pop culture. All of it can seem overwhelming at first to a newcomer, but the associations between your show and the rest of pop culture can be a ton of fun to research.
5: Convince new friends to rewatch it with you
There are few things as satisfying as getting a good friend into a show you're passionate about. This way, you'll be able to live vicariously through someone's fresh excitement over a show you've grown familiar with.
6: Consider how your opinions on the show have evolved
After you watch a show for the second time, you should think about the ways your opinion has changed towards it. Watching a show a second time means you'll know what happens at the end even on the first episodes. This will frame character arcs and dialogue in a fresh new light, now that you know what the writers were leading up to.
Method 3: Finding New Shows
1: Hunt the web for recommendations
Sites like IMDb are perfectly suited for hunting down TV recommendations. There are lists of "best ever" TV shows you can use as a reference for finding new shows when you feel you're ready to move on.
Recommendations are easy to find online. It shouldn't take long to find a few potential prospects that might be worth looking into for your next show.
2: Check shows with common crew and cast members
Each of the people who worked on your favorite shows had careers that kept going once that show ended. Likely, each of those people (from the cast or crew) has worked on other shows. If you have a favorite actor, check to see what his or her other credits are.
Did you love the witty scripts in a show? Check to see what the screenwriter or showrunner has been up to since your favorite show ended.
3: Talk to friends about what they're watching
Friends are a perfect source of recommendations. If you're not sure what you want to watch, it's a good idea to talk to them. See what they've been into lately. Ask if there's a show they think you might be into. Friends are a useful source of eyes and ears when it comes to new media. There are way too many shows to look into yourself, so getting others to do the legwork for you will save you loads of time.
It's preferable to ask friends who have cultural tastes you agree with or respect.
4: Get an automatic recommendation
There are websites online that offer recommendations based on algorithms. These can be very helpful, as they'll give you recommendations that your friends might not have heard of before.
Sites like IMDb and RateYourMusic will offer you their best guesses as to stuff you might be into, based on the ratings and interests you input in their system.
5: Give a few shows a test run
Once you start a show, nothing is forcing you to keep up with it. Watch the pilot episode of a few shows. Give them each a fair chance, and move on if you're not finding it grabs you. You may have to go through a few shows before you find one that seems like it'll be truly worth your time.
Keep the time investment of a new show in mind. Shows take dozens of hours out of your life. That is valuable time that should only be invested if the show is something that inspires you.
6: Join a new fandom
When all is said, it may eventually come time to jump ship and join a new fandom with a show that's still happening. Go online and make posts about this new show. Look at the fanfiction. Lurk on fan forums and read up on fan theories for this new show.
The more you immerse yourself in a new show, the less you'll miss the old one.
This post was originally published on Wikihow.