15 TV Storylines That Were Traumatic And Completely Unnecessary

    "I understand that Crystal Reed wanted to leave Teen Wolf, but in my opinion, it was so unnecessary to just randomly kill her off the way they did."

    Ajani Bazile-Dutes
    by Ajani Bazile-Dutes

    BuzzFeed Staff

    We asked people of the BuzzFeed Community to tell us what traumatic TV stories were unnecessary. Here's what they had to say:

    Warning: This post mentions sexual abuse and eating disorders.

    1. When Logan was murdered by a car bomb in Veronica Mars.

    Logan stepping outside the house and then a sudden explosion
    Hulu

    "I have always been a fan of the show. I was overjoyed when it was revived and was happy that Veronica got her happy ending with Logan. As someone who always related to Veronica’s sardonic, jaded attitude built as a defense mechanism, I felt a sense of hope in seeing her get a happy ending. It was a reminder that something like that is achievable for those of us who have had messed up lives, while still observing that it doesn’t magically 'fix' a person…and then, at the last minute, for pure shock value, Logan is killed and it undoes all that character progression for Veronica and was a discredit to everything that Veronica and Logan had been through over the years. I still love the show, I’ve watched the first three seasons and the movie since, but I haven’t been able to watch the fourth season since I first watched it."

    —clarencelewis


    2. When McKay was sexually assaulted by members of the frat he was pledging on Euphoria.

    HBO Max

    "It was never mentioned again…like what was the reason???"

    —barbieletsgoparty

    3. When Justin died soon after learning he had HIV-1 which had progressed to AIDS on13 Reasons Why.

    A person laying in a hospital bed
    Netflix

    "I mean anything after Season 1 shouldn’t really exist, and the whole show is traumatic but Justin’s death was 100% not necessary. It was almost laughable how far the writers went to shock the viewers. HIV and AIDS are no laughing matter and they didn't handle the topic well."

    —nicy2


    4. When Kitty encouraged Marley to develop an eating disorder on Glee.

    Fox

    "It caused Marley so much stress and anxiety to the point that she PASSED OUT at Sectionals. Santana confronted Kitty in front of everyone and instead they blamed Marley. Kitty wasn’t kicked off the team or expelled. And Marley’s eating disorder was brushed under the rug after that. The storyline was handled poorly and should have been cut if they weren’t going to take it seriously."

    —msjsa


    5. When Mickey's dad forced him to have sex with a sex worker to "make him straight" and made Ian watch on Shameless.

    a beat up Ian and Mickey sit on different couches while Mickey's dad brings in a sex worker
    Showtime

    "That was fucking horrifying."

    —repumore

    6. When Mr. Turner got into a mortorcycle accident on Boy Meets World.

    Sean sitting beside Mr. Turner who is in a hospital bed with casts on his arm and head
    ABC

    "He was the closest thing Shawn had to a father."

    —ssmith7


    7. When Tyler was graphically sexually assaulted on 13 Reasons Why.

    Tyler crying in a public bathroom with blood on his forehead
    Netflix

    "You can still have impactful storylines about what happened to the victims without depicting it on screen. Especially the attack on Tyler, which was very traumatic to watch. When he was able to share what happened to him by just recounting it and the emotion he gave while recounting it was way more impactful than watching the assault. But overall, the SA depictions on that show were all very traumatic and did not need to be fully shown in order to show the impact on the characters."

    —annaparis16

    8. When Allison was killed on Teen Wolf.

    Allison telling Scott she loves him as she's dying
    MTV

    "I understand that the actress, Crystal Reed, wanted to leave the show but in my opinion, it was so unnecessary to just randomly kill her off the way they did. And the whole moment where she was talking about how she's in the arms of her first love was heartbreaking but in my opinion, they could've done something different with her character instead of completely killing her off."

    —beckichino

    9. When Leah and Shaun lost their baby on The Good Doctor.

    Leah crying on the hospital bed with Shaun by her side
    ABC

    "They spent so long building up the plot of them being parents just to kill their baby off after multiple agonizing episodes of being unsure what would happen. It was so painful and unnecessary, especially because Shaun has already lost so many people over the course of the show. They also didn’t take any time to let Shaun and Leah process their grief. They just had them go back to normal almost immediately, never mentioning the baby again."

    —broadwaybby

    10. When Trey tried to sexually assault Marissa at the beach on The O.C.

    trey assualting Marissa and then later marissa shooting trey
    Fox

    "I've been rewatching The O.C. lately, and I feel like they put Marissa through so much unnecessary trauma. One example that especially sticks out to me is when Ryan's older brother, Trey, attempted to sexually assault her on the beach. Even though it gave us that iconic 'mmm whatcha say' scene, I think the storyline itself was 100% unnecessary. This poor girl had already been through so much — her dad losing all of their family's money and then basically abandoning her, nearly killing herself via overdose in Tijuana, her mom having an affair with her ex-boyfriend, the Oliver scenario, and her obvious issues with alcohol. The storyline led to her having to shoot Trey to save Ryan's life, which in turn resulted in her getting kicked out of school and going on a total downward spiral that eventually led to her death. Plus, they barely focused on how Marissa felt in the aftermath of the assault — it was mostly about how it impacted Ryan."

    — Kelly Martinez

    11. When Quinn was texting while driving and got into a car accident that paralyzed her from the waist down on Glee.

    Quinn in a wheelchair going up a ramp
    Fox

    "Quinn's accident was basically an excuse for them to perform Elton John's 'I'm Still Standing.'"

    —c4b44fa98b


    12. When Sansa was raped by Ramsay on their wedding night in Game of Thrones.

    Ramsay asking Sansa why she's still a virgin
    HBO

    "I didn't even watch it. There's a long list of sexual assault scenes against women in that show, but I hate the trope of a woman having to go through that trauma to 'gain strength.' It doesn't even happen to Sansa in the books, so the showrunner and writers have no excuse."

    —re89245

    13. When Isadora was raped by several boys while she was passed out on Elite.

    Isadora talking to detectives saying she needs to report a rape
    Netflix

    "Elite used to be one of my absolute favorite Netflix shows, but I was so disgusted with how they handled the topic of sexual assault in Season 5, particularly the scene where Isadora is horrifically raped by several boys while she's passed out. Not only was the scene unnecessarily graphic, but the storyline was also used as a way to try to 'redeem' Phillipe, who had previously assaulted Cayetana and several others. It was absolutely awful and never should have happened."

    — Kelly Martinez

    14. When Mike was shot dead on Desperate Housewives.

    Susan saying Mike is in a better place at his funeral
    ABC

    "I literally pretend it didn’t happen. it wasn’t needed at all."

    —kaylawhiteside


    15. And lastly, when Tyra was attacked and Landry killed her attacker on Friday Night Lights.

    Landry grabbing a blunt object and hitting a man's head with it
    NBC

    "It was awfule because they dropped it in two seconds flat. It was never addressed again."

    —rbk6791

    Submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.

    What are other traumatic TV storylines you felt were not needed? Let us know in the comments.