With over 80 shows having ended this year, we definitely said goodbye to many, many comedies and dramas in 2021. But not every single one of them was intended to be a farewell, and even those that were didn’t always hit the mark.
Below, TVLine has gathered more than a dozen planned series enders that stood out — for better or for worse — from the past 12 months. Among our selections, you’ll find several broadcast faves like NBC’s Superstore and CBS’ Mom, a pair of CW superheroes, and critical darlings Pose and PEN15. We’ve also singled out the final hours of Shameless, The Bold Type, Lucifer and Wynonna Earp — but is that a good thing? You’ll just have to read on to find out!
NOTE: THE FOLLOWING FINALES ARE NOT RANKED. Rather, the grades chosen reflect how each TV show did (or did not) stick the landing based on their respective runs. Also, as stated above, we did not grade every single series finale from the past year, but instead chose a select few series that ended on their own terms.
Scroll down to see which finales made their mark on Team TVLine, then share your opinions on the best (and worst) series sign-offs of 2021.
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Black Lightning
Image Credit: Courtesy of The CW 
Justice and closure were served in the Black Lightning series finale, which included the titular character besting (and killing) Tobias once and for all. Meanwhile, China Anne McClain returned to play Jennifer, a reprisal that allowed her character to reveal JJ as the imposter she truly was. Jennifer also did away with Chief Lopez, and that was a sweet defeat, too. Jeff/Black Lightning announced his retirement by passing the torch to his daughters, but said he would always be around. The only disappointing part of the CW drama’s closer was that Painkiller lost his memory when TC cured him of his “kill order” against the Pierces — and Jordan Calloway, who played the character, lost his proposed spinoff. -
The Bold Type
Image Credit: Courtesy of Freeform The Freeform series wrapped up with warm-and-fuzzy happy endings for Jane, Kat and Sutton — but the rushed six-episode final season and some of its storytelling choices required quite a bit of suspension of disbelief. Kat’s rise to editor-in-chief of Scarlet felt meteoric, and while we loved Richard and Sutton, his sudden change of heart about not having children didn’t quite sit right. -
Bosch
Image Credit: Courtesy of Prime Video 
The Prime Video crime drama’s final hour had a bit of everything that it had come to be known for, including the solving of a riveting case and some father/daughter bonding. Throw in a big win for Billets, an utterly tragic twist, and a fed-up Harry then getting in Chief Irving’s face, and you have a satisfying conclusion… to at least part of Bosch’s story. -
Brooklyn Nine-Nine
Image Credit: Courtesy of NBC 
Though we could’ve done without another heist — let’s be honest: no NBC-era heist came close to topping the final Fox heist in Season 5, which culminated in Jake’s marriage proposal to Amy — the framing device allowed the cop comedy to bring together current and former members of the squad, as well as several recurring characters from seasons past who wouldn’t have had another reason to make an encore. And the hour culminated in one of our absolute favorite TV moments of the year: a heart-to-heart between Jake and Holt, during which the onetime “robot captain” attempted his own “title of your sex tape” joke. -
Insecure
Image Credit: HBO screenshot 
Rarely do shows go out on their own terms, but the HBO comedy did just that in an hour-long series finale that saw Issa, Molly and the rest of the gang make important decisions that solidified their different paths in life. We saw their hardships (Tiffany struggling to settle in Denver, Molly’s mother passing away, Issa unsure of her future) and their triumphs (Kelli expecting a baby, Molly and Taurean getting married, Issa finding bigger success with the Blocc and being engaged to Lawrence), as well as lovely callbacks sprinkled in, like the Best Buy worker leaving a Rite Aid (where Issa bought that six-pack of panties). More importantly, the show honored its greatest love story, aka Molly and Issa, who closed out the series cutting it up on the phone and referencing Molly’s “broken p–y” from Season 1. Well done. -
Last Man Standing
Image Credit: Courtesy of Fox 
Had we been among Last Man‘s extremely loyal legion of fans, who stuck by this poor man’s Home Improvement through nine seasons and several unwelcome waves of cast turnover, we would have considered this decidedly understated farewell — a half-hour that tied up nary a loose end and instead focused on a memorial service for a truck (a truck!) — a total slap in the face. -
Lost in Space
Image Credit: Courtesy of Netflix 
Every major character — from Mom and Dad to Don West and Dr. Smith — enjoyed a big moment in the adventure series’ final hour, as the Robinsons & Co. endeavored to thwart SAR’s attack on Alpha Centauri. And while we “get” what the show was going for, the somewhat-retconned notion that all of Robot’s kind can easily be taught to play well with humans felt just a bit too pat. -
Lucifer
Image Credit: Courtesy of Netflix File this one under “Be careful what you wish for”? Many a Lucifan surely hoped that Deckerstar would be together forever, and maybe have a child of their own. But you apparently needed to be specific with the order of those things! The final season introduced Lucifer and Chloe’s grown daughter (from the future), Rory, who came bearing a prophecy that ultimately was fulfilled when Dad decided to spend many decades doing good in, yes, Hell, while Mom finished living a fulfilling life topside. As happy endings go, this one tasted just a bit too bittersweet. -
Mom
Image Credit: Courtesy of CBS 
While no finale was going to feel complete without a return appearance by Anna Faris, we can’t imagine how the writers would have found room for Christy in this overstuffed (but well-meaning) finale. In an attempt to be as much about endings as it was about new beginnings, it bit off more than it could chew. Introducing fellow addict Sharon and her drug-addled mom Jolene in the final half-hour took precious time away from other storylines, including Jill’s spur-of-the-moment wedding to Andy. And we sure would have appreciated some more clarity on Adam’s prognosis! -
Money Heist
Image Credit: Courtesy of Netflix From the standoff over stolen gold between Rafael, Tatiana and Sierra to the truck full of gold-coated brass bars the Professor got the Spanish government to accept while giving him and his crew immunity, this series finale was full of twists and winks. Some fans loved the way the show’s loose ends were tidied up, while others felt things were just a little too neat and clean. Regardless of which camp viewers fell under, no one could call the show’s conclusion dull. -
NCIS: New Orleans
Image Credit: Courtesy of CBS The Sasha/Connor storyline took up precious screen time and ultimately ended with a whimper, and long-running characters such as Sebastian and Tammy didn’t get big, final moments. The Hannah/Carter developments were nice, though, and Pride’s wedding to Rita — and the series’ fitting send-off via Second Line — left us grinning and confident that the good times will, in fact, keep rolling for this crew. -
PEN15
Image Credit: Courtesy of Hulu 
As it did for two too-short seasons, the final episode of Hulu’s middle-school cringe comedy perfectly balanced the horrifying (Maya’s unfortunate first sexual encounter) with the hilarious (her friends helping her pelt her ex’s house with smelly squid). And will we ever hear Rob Thomas and Santana’s “Smooth” the same way again? But it was the poignant final scene, with Anna and Maya musing about what the future holds for their friendship, that truly plucked our heartstrings and summed up the show’s nostalgic appeal. Anna and Maya may not miss seventh grade, but we’ll definitely miss them. -
Pose
Image Credit: Courtesy of FX Yes, the final episodes of FX’s trailblazing LGBTQ drama felt at times like a whirlwind of wish fulfillment — but the House of Evangelista certainly earned their happy ending. The finale did serve up a bittersweet dose of tragedy as Pray Tell finally succumbed to AIDS, but at least he went out on a high note (literally), lip-syncing to Diana Ross in a show-stopping duet with his best pal Blanca. Plus, it was beautiful to see Blanca’s kids grow up and move out before she took a fresh crop of aspiring ballroom divas under her wing. The show must go on, after all. -
Shameless
Image Credit: Courtesy of Showtime 
While we’re all for series finales with some ambiguity, the Showtime dramedy left nearly every single one of its storylines unresolved, leaving frustrated fans with little closure after 11 seasons. And even though we understand that unprecedented pandemic circumstances prevented Emmy Rossum from returning to the series, Fiona’s absence still hurt. (Couldn’t we have at least have gotten a mention of her?) -
Supergirl
Image Credit: Courtesy of The CW The Arrowverse show’s final battle was a bit rushed and all over the place, but it didn’t take away from the rest of the hour, which was a lovely celebration of our heroes. Alex and Kelly’s beautiful wedding gave our heroes a chance to breathe after a high-stakes fight, and we could think of no better way to end the hour than with Cat Grant making her long-awaited return to reveal Kara’s superhero identity to the world. Overall, it was a nice sendoff for longtime fans. -
Superstore
Image Credit: Courtesy of NBC Despite rushing to the finish line, the NBC comedy’s farewell managed to give fans everything they wanted and then some. No sooner had Jonah and Amy reconciled than we were treated to a series of flash-forwards which revealed that those two eventually tied the knot, Glenn had reopened Sturgis & Sons (and employed Cheyenne and Mateo) and all the former Cloud 9 associates — well, except for Elias — remained the best of friends. -
The Walking Dead: World Beyond
Image Credit: Courtesy of AMC The last episode of the Walking Dead spinoff’s two-season run left so many loose ends untied up that it felt as much like a pilot as a finale — and not necessarily a pilot that would get picked up, either. But the series’ ender did resolve the big threat to Portland, at least for the time being. And it did make us realize, however reluctantly, just how much we’d come to care for its teenage protagonists. (Where were your corduroys, Elton?!?) It even made us misty-eyed as Silas insisted that he wouldn’t kill dying father figure Dennis to save his own skin. -
Wynonna Earp
Image Credit: Courtesy of Syfy Yes, there was one last curse (a wedding dress, no less) with which to hilariously contend. And yes, there was TVLine’s No. 1 Wedding of 2021, between a very deserving Waverly and Nicole. But to see Wynonna and Doc literally ride off into the sunset, and embrace life beyond Purgatory? Tell that Devil… that this swan song was a beaut. -
Younger
Image Credit: Courtesy of Paramount+ Younger‘s entire final season was a little rocky, but we were really hoping that the once-phenomenal comedy would stick the landing with its series finale. But after drawing out so many storylines for so long, everything suddenly felt so rushed at the end — from Liza and Charles’ short-lived reunion to an obvious set-up for a Kelsey-focused spinoff that was never going to happen. And don’t even get us started on that ambiguous ending with Josh! Honestly, a Diana Trout cameo would have made up for everything.
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