The idea that "crime doesn't pay" has become something of a cliché in the world of film and TV. For decades upon decades now, entertainment has reinforced this idea, again and again in crime-related entertainment. This makes it all the more surprising that the writers and filmmakers of the world are still finding new, shocking ways to drive the basic concept home.
Take the world of television, where the golden age of TV - and its dark storylines and tormented antiheroes - can show the journey of a criminal lifestyle in detail. It can depict a dramatic rise and a fall, or an entrenched life of illegal activity eventually undone by a series of unforeseen hiccups and slip-ups. For a variety of reasons, here are seven truly devastating episodes from some of TV's best crime shows, all of which give an overview of how much tragedy and emotion can come from TV shows that explore the darker, angrier, greedier aspects of humanity.
Breaking Bad - "Ozymandias" (2013)
Walter White's downfall was years in the making, and while various things went wrong for Walt throughout the show, it was Breaking Bad's third last episode, "Ozymandias," where everything truly imploded. Walt's intentions may have been sympathetic early on, where his cancer diagnosis led him to feel like he needed to cook and sell crystal meth to fund his treatment and provide for his family, should he pass. But as the series went on, his desire for more wealth and power grew, and he hurt many in his quest to get it all.
In "Ozymandias," Walt gets his brother-in-law and another DEA agent killed, ensures his protégé, Jesse, gets captured by neo-nazis, loses most of his fortune, and estranges himself from his family. He loses just about everything, and has no one to blame but himself. Still, the emotional beatdown he and the other characters in this episode receive (the ones lucky enough not to outright die) may evoke some sympathy, ensuring Walt's efforts to earn some redemption in the final two episodes are earned (if potentially a little too clean).
The Sopranos - "Long Term Parking" (2004)
The Sopranos wasn't shy about killing off characters, sometimes (arguably) doing so too quickly. But out of all the characters who didn't make it to the end of the show, no loss hurts as much as Adriana La Cerva in the season 5 episode, Long Term Parking, as she was one of the few decent, undoubtedly sympathetic people in the entire show.
The long-time girlfriend of the troubled, loud, aggressive, and violent Christopher Moltisanti, Adriana gives the impression she never wanted to be wrapped up in the criminal lifestyle, but her genuine love for Christopher meant she became a part of that world without realizing it until too late. When targeted by the feds and asked to give them inside information or face a prison sentence for drug possession, she has no choice but to comply. From there, it was only a matter of time before the family found out and had her killed, owing to the no-tolerance policy when it came to "rats". Her loss was shocking and sad, and despite there being multiple episodes of The Sopranos that are emotionally devastating, none are quite on the level of "Long Term Parking."
Dexter - "The Getaway" (2009)
It's commonly accepted that Dexter didn't end all that well, but at least its early seasons were good, especially season 4. The high point of Dexter's best season was its finale, which makes it the best (and also most emotionally devastating) episode of the show about the serial killer who kills other serial killers.
John Lithgow made for a fantastic antagonist throughout Dexter's fourth season, and in the finale, he managed to hurt Dexter more than anyone else ever did by murdering his wife, Rita. All of Dexter's efforts to protect one of the only people he loved failed, and regardless of how you feel about what he'd done throughout the show to that point, you have to feel bad for him at that moment. The emotional low point for the character happened to be the high point of the entire show, and nothing that came after ever lived up to "The Getaway."
The Wire - "Clarifications" (2008)
It's hard to pick the most devastating episode of The Wire. It's just an overall devastating, brutally realistic (and fantastic, of course) show. But a contender for the hardest-hitting episode would have to be "Clarifications," which is the eighth episode of the show's last season.
Why does it leave such an impact? It's the final appearance of fan-favorite character Omar Little, played by the magnetic Michael K. Williams, as the show's legendary lone wolf is killed off in the episode with little fanfare or buildup. To have such a likable and otherwise death-defying character meet his end so suddenly and anticlimactically doesn't feel right, but that's the way the world of The Wire operates, and it's true to life, where death can strike at any time. It's a shocking and maybe even anger-inducing episode, and stands as one of the show's grimmest and most notorious hours.
Hannibal - "Mizumono" (2014)
Hannibal's most memorable hour is also its most shocking. Season 2's finale, Mizumono, shows the character of Hannibal Lecter unleashed and untethered in all his violent glory. The episode ends with a shocking bloodbath, where Hannibal reveals his true colors to most of the main cast before attacking them one by one, seemingly leaving them to die before escaping.
Of course, a third season shows many survived, but the impact at the time of watching is hard to shake. And despite more near-deaths than actual deaths, it forever changes the direction of the show going forward into its third season (and presumably a fourth, should fans ever get it). Mads Mikkelsen was always one of the best parts of the show, but his performance here is terrifying, as are the violent acts Hannibal commits on characters viewers have come to care about.
Twin Peaks - Episode #2.7 (1990)
In hindsight, Twin Peaks resolved its central mystery too early. The network wanted it that way, even if the writers didn't, and by solving the mystery of who killed Laura Palmer at about the halfway point of the show's second season, the rest of the show suffered from a lack of direction and urgency.
But at least the resolution - even if it was too early - was bold, brilliantly executed, and haunting. The way the reveal plays out like something from a nightmare, the revelation it was Laura's father all along, and the fact he also murders Laura's cousin, Maddy Ferguson, right after the reveal is all genuinely disturbing and surprising, even if you know it's coming. It's one of Twin Peaks' finest episodes, but fans will forever wonder how the show might have benefited had it all played out at a later time.
The Shield - "Family Meeting" (2008)
In The Shield, Vic Mackey and his squad of corrupt police officers did a ton of shady and/or illegal things for seven seasons. In the show's very last episode, everything comes crashing down for good, with karma delivering a depressing end for Vic and his squad.
Rather than facing the consequences for his actions, Shane kills his family and takes his own life, while Vic rats on his one living friend in his squad, Ronnie, in exchange for immunity from prosecution. Then, Vic's family desert him, and the policeforce ensure Vic is given the most boring job possible, at a cramped office cubicle, doing endless paperwork. It's a brutal and hard-hitting ending to a show where a tragic finale always seemed inevitable, and while Vic had it coming, some may still find it hard to stomach.