Written by Eliza Mohan. Published: January 17 2026

(Photo:
Hulu)

 

Television
characters come and go, some fade out, and some are struck down
on-screen. There are a variety of reasons why characters are killed
off, and even more ways that the deed is done, but some character
deaths really stick with you. Some character deaths hurt like hell,
but you know they had to happen for the show to go on and for the
characters to grow. The ones that you just can’t shake, though, are
the ones that feel unnecessary within the context of the show and
disconnected from the plot, whether it’s because the actor left or
the writers made a poor decision. Here are 5 TV character deaths
that feel completely unnecessary.

 

*Spoilers for
The 100, Veronica Mars, The Vampire Diaries, Killing Eve, and Buffy
the Vampire Slayer.

 

1.
Lexa from “The 100”

No list of
undeserved character deaths would be complete without Lexa
(Alycia Debnam-Carey)
from CW’s “The 100”. A fan favorite character who first appeared in
Season 2 of the hit series, Lexa was a groundbreaking character for
the queer community as she sparked a romance with the lead
character Clarke (Eliza Taylor),
thereby confirming her queerness and Clarke’s bisexuality. As the
young leader of her people, Lexa was fiercely strong and capable,
which made her death all the more shocking. Moments after reuniting
with Clarke, Lexa was killed by a stray bullet to her stomach. In a
show where characters can be stabbed straight through by a spear
and survive, this felt like an affront to the LGBTQ viewers who
felt seen by Lexa’s strength. 

 

 

 

2.
Logan from “Veronica Mars”

Few series
have tarnished their legacies quite like “Veronica Mars”. “Veronica
Mars” originally ran from 2004-2007 before it was abruptly
cancelled, only to return for a crowd-funded movie in 2014 and a
fourth (and, so far, final) season in 2019. After 4 seasons of
buildup saw the titular Veronica (Kristen Bell) and her
reformed bad boy boyfriend Logan Echolls (Jason Dohring) tie
the knot, Logan is suddenly killed off-screen by a bomb left behind
by a killer who had already been brought to justice. His death is
deeply shocking, and it serves no narrative purpose, adding a sour
and depressing final note to the series as Veronica drives off,
seemingly forever alone. Logan went through years and years of
character development and growth to get to the point he reached in
Season 4, and the idea that he will never reap the rewards of that
work is too dark of a thought for a teen detective show from the
early-2000s. 

 

 

 

3.
Enzo from “The Vampire Diaries”

“The Vampire
Diaries” is quite familiar with character deaths, but killing
someone off without even a hint of resurrection is a rarity.
Unfortunately, this was the case with the vampire Enzo (Michael Malarkey),
who became a consistent character in the later seasons of “The
Vampire Diaries”. Enzo becomes even more relevant when he falls in
love with the witch Bonnie Bennet (Kat Graham), a
character who was infamously mistreated and deprioritized. Their
relationship makes it feel like Bonnie is finally allowed to be
happy and that someone sees her for the incredible person she is.
That is, until Enzo gets his heart ripped out by a humanity-less
Stefan (Paul Wesley). Stefan
is ultimately forgiven, and Enzo is treated like an unimportant
casualty even as his death gives you a sense that Bonnie lost her
soulmate. Enzo’s death was clearly an attempt to raise the stakes,
but the emotional consequences clearly ran deeper than what was
expected. 

 

 

 

4.
Villanelle from “Killing Eve”

When Lexa
died on “The 100”, it caused a reckoning as audiences realized how
many lesbian characters are killed off without a second thought.
That’s why it was so disappointing when, years later, Villanelle
(Jodie Comer) was killed off in the series finale
of “Killing Eve”. Much like the other entries on this list,
Villanelle was finally happy, as she found her ending in the arms
of Eve (Sandra Oh), the woman she had hunted (and
been hunted by) for all 4 seasons. The two had found safety in each
other despite their violent instincts, which made it all the more
disappointing when seasons of slow burning between the two women
ended in bloodshed as Villanelle was shot and killed. This death
proved that it will take a lot more than a trend for LGBTQ women to
be treated fairly on television.

 

 

 

5.
Anya from “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”

Speaking of
lesbian character deaths on TV, Tara (Amber
Benson) from “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” certainly makes
that list. However, it was ex-demon Anya’s (Emma Caulfield
Ford) death in the series finale that felt like a true
punch to the gut. Anya was a part of the ensemble cast from Season
4 to Season 7, going from demon to human to demon and then back to
human over that time. She was unceremoniously killed off the last
act of the finale, providing nothing new to the episode other than
a bad taste in your mouth. 

 

 

 

 

 

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