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> Endings, It's what can ruin a good story or redeem a horrible one
MorriganAensland
post Sep 21 2010, 4:30 PM
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Yes, yes yes. I know it's vaguely hypocritical for someone who has yet to release the epilogue for his current story to be talking about story endings but what can I say? Yahtzee wrote a nice article and I'd like to post it here.

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/v...tion-On-Endings

Endings are, as Yahtzee's said, probably the most important part of the story. It's where everything comes together and you conclude everything. And Yahtzee's definitely right; a story's ending can redeem it even when parts of it are subpar.

I'd like to call attention to a certain show I'm going to be watching soon enough: Kamen Rider Blade. Blade starts very slowly, and nothing of real importance happens until at least episode 10 (for some people it's episode 20!). There's not many worse ways to begin a story; the beginning is where you hook the viewer's attention and you have to make it exciting or at least emotionally intriguing.

That said, once the show got over that hump its quality skyrocketed, leading to what is possibly the best ending a Kamen Rider show has ever had in its 40-year-history. Two friends, forced by things beyond their control, must fight for the future of the planet. Neither of them wants to do it but neither of them have any say in the matter. The textbook tragic ending is for the hero to eventually bring himself to kill his friend and they patch things up while the latter's on the deathbed. The melodramatic tragic ending is for the hero being unable to fight and getting killed, following with possibly the friend taking his own life instead. The excessively dark ending is for their friendship to be forever destroyed and killing each other in battle.

But Kamen Rider Blade didn't do any of those. It'd be too standard and ultimately mediocre.

Instead, the show and the hero take a third option, exploiting a rule about how and why the world has to end (it makes sense in context and was previously a plot-point as early as 15 episodes previously, if even earlier). The long and short of it is that nobody has to die and the world doesn't end. Both the hero and his friend are free to live their lives and be happy... except with the stipulation that they can never again meet because if they do then fate will intervene and they'll have to fight again.

To me, this stands out as an incredible ending. It was an unexpected solution to the classic "friends are forced to fight" scenario and still gives us a fulfilling if bittersweet ending. It's the kind of ending that, even if you've read about it, you still want to sit down and watch just to experience it for yourself.


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P-girl
post Sep 21 2010, 4:46 PM
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Endings are really important, it's no surprise that a bad ending can ruin the story entirely.

I personally hate the 'Aftermath' ending or the 'Where are they now'? Usually because they feel tacked on. Digimon 02, Harry Potter, even my favorite book of all time, Misery, suffers from it (Stephen King in general). Dude, I don't need to know where he is now. Fortunately, those endings usually have a really high 'I just skip it' rating. (Seriously, stop after the penultimate chapter and you wouldn't have missed a thing)
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DeadInside
post Oct 20 2011, 6:30 AM
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QUOTE
I personally hate the 'Aftermath' ending or the 'Where are they now'? Usually because they feel tacked on. Digimon 02, Harry Potter, even my favorite book of all time, Misery, suffers from it (Stephen King in general). Dude, I don't need to know where he is now. Fortunately, those endings usually have a really high 'I just skip it' rating. (Seriously, stop after the penultimate chapter and you wouldn't have missed a thing)

I know this topic is from about a year ago, but if you happen to pass over here, would you explain what's wrong with the aftermath thing? I've been thinking of a story since a long time and the aftermath was part of the end since I plan it, ofcourse I've seen some lame aftermaths, but that doesn't mean that they are always a bad writing tool, am I right?


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P-girl
post Oct 20 2011, 6:56 AM
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That's more of a personal gripe then anything else. Mainly because it tends to happen to stories I really like. Usually in a bad, clunky way. Like I said, Misery suffers from it. I just stop reading that book after the penultimate chapter and it's all the better for it if you ask me.
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DeadInside
post Oct 20 2011, 9:11 AM
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LOL, Ok... You mention Stephen King, I know based-off movies mostly and don't really remember endings... I just recently watch 1408 and it has something like an aftermath... not really a bad one because it archived one point but still kinda non needed and close you from interpretation... I agree that mostly of the aftermath itself or show you something that is not really relevant for the story or explain something just in case someone don't get (you know... its worst when you have to explain it)

As I said in my case, it was plan this way... even when Im thinking my ending over and over... i just don't want it to look like desperate move to not show a (even more) lame ending...
I don't see as a clever thing openly talk about my story's ending, despise how good or bad it is... but In a quick speech, my story is a bittersweet one with a bad thing at the end, the consequences of it are as good as bad in some way, but i need to show at the very end how good the things turn out, in order to have a real "happy ending" even when the "struggle" could be maybe a decent end, it would be sad in some way... not that it cannot be that way and be good, but for the nature of the story i would ratter have "complete" one... reading it like this sound like the "everyone's excuse" for a aftermath.... but anyway...
The Aftermath seems to me the only way i could do this... (as lame as my ending might look for anyone... even without the Aftermath thing)

...anyway it would take me like 5 years to actually get at the ending part (if i get there....) so i have time to think about it....

"There is 2 kind of people, those who like the happy endings and the liars.... Ok, maybe there is a 3rd kind but that would be sick"(talking about animation, but it may apply to other stuff)


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P-girl
post Oct 20 2011, 9:27 AM
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Yeah.... I read the actual 1408 story. Again, not bad at all, but he once again gives it an epilogue that wasn't really needed.... I think this is an issue with me because.... well, it's horror. One of those genres where less is more.
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