27 Utterly Devastating TV Scenes People Don't Talk Enough About

    "Please, just hold me."

    Hannah Marder
    by Hannah Marder

    BuzzFeed Staff

    Recently we asked the BuzzFeed Community to tell us the underrated sad TV scenes they think should be talked about more. Here are some of the best!

    WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!

    1. On 9-1-1: Lone Star, when Grace connected an astronaut to his family so he could say goodbye as he died:

    the astronaut tells his daughter that he'll always be up in space looking over her, and Grace cries, then the astronaut's daughter asks "Daddy? Are you there?" but the astronaut is dead
    Fox

    "Grace, the 911 operator, gets a call from an astronaut in space, and she listens as he says goodbye to his family on Earth, since he knows he's about to die. I've never cried harder at a scene."

    —kgilroy96

    2. On Grey's Anatomy, when Lexi broke down in the bathroom:

    Lexi tells Meredith that Mark is moving on and then breaks down crying after Meredith asks her, "Isn't that what you wanted?" and Lexi says, "It's great...that's perfect"
    ABC

    "Grey's Anatomy has so many scenes to make you cry, so nobody talks about this one, but the scene where Lexi realizes that Mark is moving on and she breaks down in the bathroom in front of Meredith. Chyler Leigh, who played Lexi, is just so good, and she lets out this little whimper that makes me lose it every time."

    —grace29227

    3. On Doctor Who, when the Tenth Doctor had to erase Donna's memories:

    Donna says she was going to be with Ten forever and begs not to be sent back, and Ten apologizes and said they had the best time before erasing her memory
    BBC

    "People always talk about the 'Doomsday' episode of Doctor Who, where Ten and Rose are separated, but I find 'Journey's End,' when Ten wipes Donna's memory, to be much more devastating. She literally lost all of the open-minded personality that she developed on her travels and she saved the entire universe, only to forget that she was ever important."

    —colleend9

    4. On Sherlock, when Eurus forced Sherlock to try to get Molly to say she loved him:

    Molly tells Sherlock to say it like he means it, so Sherlock says he loves her twice, then begs her to say it back, which she finally does
    BBC

    "The scene where Sherlock tells Molly that he loves her. She thinks he's making fun of her (again), even though he's just trying to save her life. So she makes him say it first. There's this moment of realization before he says it the second time. Then he destroys the coffin. For some reason, it really got to me."

    —GeekGirl1990

    5. On Merlin, when Arthur died in Merlin's arms:

    Arthur asks Merlin to hold him and then thanks him for everything Merlin has done for him and Camelot
    BBC

    "The raw emotion portrayed with Merlin losing his best friend and feeling like he failed his friend and his destiny. And to make matters worse, they released the episode on Christmas."

    —sarah2431

    6. On Teen Wolf, when Stiles was in the hospital and Melissa tucked him in, and he called her "Mom":

    Melissa tells Stiles to get some rest, and Stiles says, "Thanks, Mom"
    MTV

    "SUCH A HEARTBREAKER."

    —cheyennem45537dd38

    7. On M*A*S*H, when Radar told the others that Henry Blake's plane had been shot down:

    Radar says, "Henry Blake's plane was shot down over the sea of Japan. It spun in. There were no survivors"
    CBS

    "This is an oldie, but the scene in M*A*S*H when the colonel finally gets to go home. The whole episode is built around his leaving, and then you find out his plane was shot down. The fact that the actors weren't told that was the end of the script until the character Radar reads the letter makes it even better. There's just silence, a noise offscreen, and then they go back to work because there's no time to mourn in an OR. It's so heartbreakingly real and poignant."

    —taylynngabbey

    8. On The Umbrella Academy, when Klaus came back from the Vietnam War:

    Klaus crying and clutching the briefcase on the bus, then getting off and collapsing on the floor screaming and sobbing
    Netflix

    "The way the scene was done, you kind of have an idea of what happened, but when you get the full story later on, it just gets all the more heartbreaking."

    —SquidSquad

    9. On Outlander, when Claire gives birth to Faith, but she's stillborn:

    Claire asks where her baby is, then screams, "Bring me my baby!"
    Starz

    "In Season 2 of Outlander when Claire recounts her miscarriage to Jamie, and it flashes back to the aftermath when she finds out the baby didn't survive. The whole episode is heart-wrenching, and Claire's pain becomes your own; I cry every time I watch the episode. Caitriona Balfe and Sam Heughan are amazing actors and are the reason I love that show."

    —emilyljo91

    10. On Buffy the Vampire Slayer, when Buffy reveals she was in heaven, not a hell dimension, when the Scoobies resurrected her:

    Buffy sings, "There was no pain, no fear no doubt 'til they pulled me out of Heaven. So that's my refrain. I live in hell, 'cause I've been expelled from Heaven. I think I was in Heaven"
    The WB

    "I cried enough when Buffy told Spike about it, but the look on Willow's face was just abject horror and despair."

    —kayblu02

    11. In Pose, when Candy died and Pray Tell spoke at her funeral:

    Pray Tell says there's so much they want to say to Candy that they can't now, and that's their burden to bear, and they must live through this tragedy so they can fight their hardest to protect their sisters
    FX

    "Candy's death episode in Pose. So many trans women (especially Black trans women) are killed every year in America, and that episode really was a blow to the chest for me. It not only made me tear up because a favorite character died but also made me confront the alarming statistics of trans women's deaths in America."

    —Nirupam Dhakal

    12. On Glee, when Burt, Kurt, and Carol went through Finn's stuff after he died:

    Burt says he wished he hugged him the last time he saw him and Kurt takes Finn's jacket saying it made him look like Superman and Carol talks about the pain of losing a child and wondering how she's going to do it
    Fox

    "Everyone forgets about it, but it has me BROKEN every DAMN time!!"

    —Queenie

    "What hit me most about that scene was when Burt began to cry. The thing with Burt is, he's usually the stoic one, so for him to break down as well really hit me."

    —hobbitgirl96

    13. And when Santana broke down in the middle of singing "If I Die Young" in the same episode, screaming and running out of the room:

    Santana starts to cry while singing, then says "No no no" as Mike and Mr. Shue stand to comfort her, but then she screams and runs away
    Fox

    "That wasn’t even scripted; that was real. It makes it even sadder now that Naya Rivera is gone."

    —jessicam41c056c1c

    14. On How to Get Away With Murder, when Annalise lost her baby and blamed herself:

    the nurse tells Annalise she's sorry, then Annalise holds her baby crying — later, she tells Wes it's her fault the baby died
    ABC

    "I was 5 months pregnant when it was first on, and to say I was devastated is an understatement. I still get upset thinking about it."

    —snibble

    15. In The 100, when the show flashed back to Clarke breaking down in the sand:

    Clarke screams that she's done and has lost everything and everyone, and now has nothing left
    The CW

    "When she just collapses on the sand and screams that she can’t take it anymore, I tear up every time! Especially because she's someone who has always lived for everyone else, and then suddenly she's all alone. Eliza Taylor did such an amazing job in that episode."

    —carolinelee7185

    16. On The Haunting of Hill House, when Nell's ghost was in the funeral home, but no one could see her:

    Young Luke tells Nell not to go away again and promises he won't let her go, and Young Nell replies that she was there the whole time but no one could see her, and the camera pans to show that in the present Nell's ghost is next to her body
    Netflix

    —lnsgoodmorningveitnam

    17. On A Million Little Things, when Rome and Regina find out they aren’t getting the baby:

    Eve tells Rome and Regina that she's sorry, and they've been nothing but kind, but all the support has made her realize she can raise the baby on her own
    ABC

    "You see them both deal with the pain separately. I was holding out hope that the mom would change her mind! Thinking about it gets me misty-eyed. Don’t sleep on this show."

    —mj2005

    18. On Once Upon a Time, when the Mad Hatter talked about his daughter:

    Emma: You think she's your daughter? Mad Hatter: "I don't think, I know. I remember. She has no idea who I am. Our life together. Where we come from. I do. That's my curse. What good is this house, these things, if I can't share them with her?"
    ABC

    "This is probably the most niche moment ever, but in Once Upon a Time, there is a character arc with Sebastian Stan as the Mad Hatter. He is in a few episodes tops, but his storyline is all about how he was trapped in another world away from his daughter because of Regina and still can't get back to her. Seb is an amazing actor, and the raw emotion when he loses his daughter gets me every time. It wasn't an important moment in the show, but it breaks my heart every time."

    —shawnmendesisthebest

    19. On One Tree Hill, when Julian was trying to save Brooke after the car crash, and she begged him to save Jamie first:

    Brooke tells Julian to help Jamie because he's just a boy as Julian protests that he can get her out, and finally he stops and Brooke tells him again to save Jamie and then her, and that they both love him
    The CW

    "She makes him get Jamie first and says, 'He's just a boy...' That whole episode is a sobfest, but there's something about that moment that breaks me!"

    —laraterryr

    20. On The Flash, when Barry tried to hold his daughter:

    Barry tries to pick up his daughter but his arms go through her. He begs to be able to hold her, even though he knows it's not real, because he wants to pretend
    The CW

    —c_someone_m

    21. On Sherlock, when Mrs. Hudson talked about how her maid of honor left her wedding early, and then in that same episode, when Sherlock left John's wedding early:

    Mrs. Hudson talks about how her maid of honor left her wedding early and it was sad, then later Sherlock leaves John's wedding
    BBC

    "On Sherlock, 100% when Sherlock leaves John’s wedding. Especially because nobody seems to notice or care. Acted to perfection by Benedict Cumberbatch. I still can’t listen to 'December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night)' without thinking of this scene and just tearing up!"

    —notadisneyprincess

    22. On Gossip Girl, when Blair had a miscarriage after the car crash:

    The doctor tells Blair that she lost the baby and Blair cries
    The CW

    "The show and the fans overlooked it. I was sobbing."

    —imafangirl54

    23. On Breaking Bad, when Jesse saw Todd kill Andrea:

    Todd tells Andrea it's not personal then shoots her, and Jesse screams, gagged in the car
    AMC

    "Jesse had already lost everything and everyone he ever loved, and then he watched Andrea get shot in the head. That scene was so heartbreaking because you just sat and wondered when his suffering was gonna end and if he was ever gonna find happiness."

    —Daniella

    24. On Scrubs, when Dr. Cox realized that Ben was dead:

    JD asks Dr. Cox where he thinks they are, then they walk across the graveyard to Ben's funeral
    NBC

    "In Scrubs, when Dr. Cox realizes that Ben has been dead the entire time and he’s at his funeral. You may hold it together as long as you can, but when J.D. says to Cox, 'Where do you think we are?' Done."

    —tjod316

    25. On Orange Is the New Black, when Tiffany died not knowing that she'd passed her GED:

    Taystee finds Tiffany's body and screams help, and her body is taken away — we then see Tiffany walking in the snow before fading away
    Netflix

    "Knowing that Tiffany passed the test but had an accidental overdose just made me cry to a TV show for the first time."

    —moizsg

    26. On ER, when Mark died and then was shown walking around the empty hospital while "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" played:

    "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" plays and we see Mark walking around the empty hospital
    NBC

    "Whenever I hear that version of 'Somewhere Over the Rainbow,' I think of this episode."

    —Alexa Dronkowski

    27. And finally, on Supernatural, when Ellen stayed behind to die with Jo:

    Jo says "no" but Ellen says she won't leave her alone and that she'll always love her
    The CW

    "When Ellen sacrifices her life to save Sam and Dean, but also to stay with her dying daughter. That scene when she is on the floor holding her dead daughter is so gut-wrenching."

    —charmed101

    Got any more that didn't make the list? Let us know in the comments below!

    Note: Some submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.