We all know what a cliffhanger is. Most of us probably already know that the term comes from movies in the 1920s and 1930s. In those days, you would go to the movies every week (or every couple of weeks) and get a new chapter of the same story. In order to keep you coming back, the hero was left in peril, driving you to return to see the same chapter. Two of the most common endings were seeing our hero dangling off the cliff or seeing our heroine in peril, often tied to a train track. That’s why they’re called “cliffhangers,” although you could just as easily call them “traintrackers” I guess. I don’t know why people don’t.
We all know about the famous cliffhangers
If you’re over 50, you probably think the most famous cliffhanger is “Who Shot J.R.” Yep, that was a big one. If you’re a millennial you might be thinking of the hatch opening at the end of the season on Lost, or you might think of end of, well, several Harry Potter movies. It doesn’t matter what the most famous one is. The real point is that they don’t work.
I was inspired by this video. Its owners won’t let me embed it here. That’s their right. By the way, shout out to the folks at WatchMojo. I don’t know how they make enough money to turn out the massive amount of content they do. It’s super impressive.
In that video that I can’t show you, they list some of the biggest TV cliffhangers that never got resolved. And that’s the point. Simply resorting to a trick like a cliffhanger doesn’t guarantee your show is going to get picked up. Heck, it won’t even help you finish your film series. Summit Entertainment spent a huge amount of money to adapt the Divergent series on film, only to bail on the fourth installment. I’ll admit the films weren’t good at all, but I think audiences deserved some sort of closure after plodding through the first three films.
Why cliffhangers don’t work anymore
It’s simple: they’re overused. You thought it would be something more complex than that?
The idea of a cliffhanger is that people become invested and will be willing to pay to see the next installment. But in reality if a show’s ratings are really poor or if a previous installment hasn’t made enough money, it’s going to be canceled. All this does is make the small but loyal fanbase upset.
The Big Bang Theory is one of those shows people love to hate, but this clip really illustrates the problem.
Using a cliffhanger doesn’t guarantee viewers will come back, and if it doesn’t work at all, you alienate your most ardent fans. In a day when fans make or break a project, that’s not a smart move.
Will cliffhangers go away?
The funny thing is I doubt they will. At this point I think everyone more or less knows they don’t work. They won’t help your show get renewed, especially in these days of declining budgets. But, a cliffhanger ending is easier than creating a whole season full of quality TV, and I think that’s why writers keep doing it. And, they will keep doing it until enough people start to crow about it.
I’m just one of the first to bring it to the forefront in this way. Back in November I recapped an article from five years ago. In it, I was one of the first to say that the Marvel Cinematic Universe should just go away. Superhero fatigue is a known quantity now. Everyone talks about it. But I was on the forefront of it. I’m glad to be able to say it. I don’t think I really moved the needle. I’m not that egotistic. But, I do think with enough blogs and videos saying the same thing, it did make a difference. So I’ll take some credit.
And, I’m trying to do it again. I’d like to see the end of the cliffhanger. Its days have come and gone. Will it work? Well, you’ll have to tune in and find out.
(I’ll see myself out.)
