How to Cope When Your Favorite TV Show Ends
Whether it’s the end of your favorite show’s season or the end of an entire series, this is a time of mixed emotions.
You’ve become emotionally invested in the lives of your favorite characters over the past years or months. You’ve set time aside to watch the show each and every week. And the show has been the topic of your conversations at work, home or school.
What will you do now that the show has ended?
Here’s a look at a few ways to fill your time until a show returns, or you find your new favorite drama after a series finale.
- Take a break from TV
Watching several shows throughout the week can consume a lot of your time in the evenings. Now that your shows have ended for the season or permanently, you might consider a break from TV.
Not to say you can’t watch TV. But with more time on your hands, this is the perfect time to explore or discover other activities. Maybe you’ve been putting off starting a new hobby or reading a book.
You could use the extra time to start exercising and get into better shape. Plan game night with your family, take a class or start a home project. If you’re grieving the end of a sitcom or drama, do whatever it takes to take your mind off the show.
- Start over and re-watch the season
What if you don’t want to take your mind off the show? Another option is to start over and re-watch the entire season from the beginning. You might pick up little details that you missed before or gain a better understanding of a plot line. Plus, when you re-watch a season, you’re more likely to remember details that carry into the show’s next season.
- Watch the entire series from the beginning
Once your favorite show has had its series finale, go back and watch the entire series from the beginning.
If the show aired for many years, maybe you didn’t start watching until several seasons in. In this case, you likely missed a lot of its earlier episodes and storylines. Now’s the perfect time to go back and see how the characters developed over the years.
Even if you’ve watched reruns of the show over the years, chances are you haven’t seen every single episode. To make it more exciting, invite someone to watch the entire series with you. Maybe you have a friend who’s never seen the show, but you’ve been telling them good things about the show over the years. Binge watching together is not only fun, it’ll provide another way to bond and connect with this person.
- Host an end-of-the-season party
The end of a season or series can be a sad time. To lift your mood, host an end-of-the-season party. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy or elaborate. Invite a few friends or family who also enjoy the series, and provide simple snacks or hors d’oeuvres.
This is an excellent way to bond with friends or family, and it provides an opportunity to chat and share your thoughts about a show’s finale.
Bottom Line
TV shows don’t last forever. But while the end of a show can be a sad, depressing time, shows never actually go away with the power of streaming and reruns. Keeping this in mind might keep a smile on your face whether you decide to re-watch a season, watch the entire series from the beginning, or kill time with other activities until a new season starts again.
