There’s nothing like a fantasy ending that lingers in my mind longer after I’ve finished it. As a young adult who loves storytelling more than anything, I’ll commonly cite fantasy tales like The Lord of the Rings movie series and the Harry Potter books as the foundation for what’s become my life and career. These stories provide needed escapism while also allowing me introspection and perspective on various aspects of real life, and it’s the narratives that come to an emotional close that have the longest-lasting impact.
Between original novels, television adaptations, and original fantasy films, there are so many stories in the genre that have stuck with me. To me, the most powerful endings are those that are bittersweet, like Brandon Sanderson’s Mistborn trilogy or the aforementioned Lord of the Rings. I enjoy sad art. But I’ll also add fantasy books that gave me inspiration with their endings, maybe through storytelling ingenuity or through an ending that was actually profoundly happy, or fantasy books with insane plot twists that blew my mind.
10 The Way Of Kings
The First Book Of Brandon Sanderson’s The Stormlight Archive
With Wind and Truth just a couple of months away, it seems strange to cite the first book in Brandon Sanderson’s The Stormlight Archive as having the ending I can’t stop thinking about. And yet, 2010’s The Way of Kings holds such a special place in me. I’ve detailed why Words of Radiance is largely considered the best Stormlight Archive book and the author’s magnum opus, but as an enormous Kaladin fan, the first volume is the one that holds my personal affinity.
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Few authors can compare to Sanderson in his ability to make you care so deeply about his characters. The Way of Kings gets off to a slow start, but that slow-burn narrative allowed me to subconsciously build a meaningful, empathetic connection to Kaladin and his plight, to where his save-the-day moment in the climax caused me to grin ear to ear in celebration. I was ready to weep the moment he led Bridge Four to rescue Dalinar, but what really seals the deal is how the Kholin highprince responds to it, exchanging his invaluable Shardblade for Kaladin’s freedom.
9 His Dark Materials
The Final Season Of HBO’s Philip Pullman Adaptation
Recent years have seen numerous attempts to recreate the magic of Game of Thrones by bringing a beloved fantasy work to life on television. Ironically, the only one that’s actually been widely acclaimed by critics and audiences is the one that’s received the least attention, and that’s His Dark Materials. The show’s three seasons establish a massive, multi-dimensional, world-altering conflict, but the essence of the story comes down to Lyra, the main character.
“The Botanic Garden” received some criticism for being far less climactic than the penultimate war episode, but I found it to be a beautiful conclusion to Lyra’s arc, which was always the emotional core and centerpiece of the show. By the end, the plot is a bit convoluted, but what the HBO adaptation does so excellently is tease the possibility of a happy ending before ripping it away, leaving behind a bittersweet but necessary conclusion.
8 The Hero Of Ages
The Third Book Of Brandon Sanderson’s Mistborn Trilogy
Brandon Sanderson proved to be a master of endings with the Mistborn trilogy, delivering twist after twist throughout the climax until the fateful conclusion. Something I’ve always been impressed by about his work is how he continuously increases the stakes with more powerful enemies to the point where the antagonist is essentially a god, and yet, it never feels shoehorned in when the hero comes out on top. He’s excellent at laying out mechanics so that loopholes, like Vin’s earring, are carefully plotted and believable.
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Of course, what’s most notable about the hero’s victory in The Hero of Ages is the sacrifice that comes with it. Vin and Elend’s romance is steadily built throughout the trilogy, making it extremely devastating to hear that they both die in battle and are buried next to each other. The visualization of them lying dead in a flowerbed has remained with countless readers and has been the subject of some wonderful pieces of fan art, and it speaks to the level of care Sanderson puts into each character.
7 Jade Legacy
The Third Book Of Fonda Lee’s The Green Bone Saga
If you’re not caught up on Fonda Lee’s The Green Bone Saga, now is the time to do so. It’s far from the typical fantasy based on medieval Europe, but rather a fictional East Asian-inspired realm that combines an incredible magic system with mid-twentieth-century technology in a plot centered around gang warfare. This saga is the perfect representation of modern fantasy and proves that the genre has infinite possibilities when not confined to the restrictions of being Tolkien-esque.
Like with Sanderson’s stories, Fonda Lee is an absolute pro at making the reader feel a deep emotional connection with her characters. By Jade Legacy, Lee creates a feeling of intense anxiety building toward the trilogy’s ending, and the final events, while worthwhile, will have the reader grieving in a way that very few fantasy series can rival. I greatly admire Lee’s ability to create such a soul-crushing narrative, as her work has been ingrained in my head since.
6 The Wizard Of Oz
An All-Time Classic Movie
The Wizard of Oz is the first movie I remember seeing, so nostalgia is certainly an element at play here. Regardless, I still find it to be one of the most aesthetically pleasing, gorgeous movies ever made and a foundational fantasy story. The Wizard of Oz is one of those films that’s managed to remain timeless, with a simplistic but beautiful story about home and belonging that’s been used as the blueprint for numerous movies that have come after it.
Dorothy and each of her companions offer something to say about life and self-belief, and the euphoric, dream-like world of Oz translates those ideas in a profoundly magical way
The ending of The Wizard of Oz offers a rather straight-forward life message; there’s no place like home. Its message can be rephrased in so many different ways, but Dorothy and each of her companions offer something to say about life and self-belief, and the euphoric, dream-like world of Oz translates those ideas in a profoundly magical way. Its universal themes make it an outstanding piece that has something different to offer for viewers of all ages, and it never loses its charm.
5 Last Argument Of Kings
The Third Book Of Joe Abercrombie’s First Law Trilogy
While Brandon Sanderson’s Mistborn trilogy ending was bittersweet, Joe Abercrombie’s The First Law series brought me almost nothing but dread. While there are still several books after Last Argument of Kings, it delivers a feeling of finality through helplessness. Abercrombie challenged everything I thought I knew about what fantasy books could be, and his third volume felt like betrayal through subversion in the best way possible.
As I said, I enjoy sad art, and even more than that, I like to be challenged by what I’m consuming. Whatever expectations I’d grown to have about fantasy from characters like Gandalf and Aragorn were hurled upside down by Abercrombie’s Bayaz and Logen Ninefingers. Rather than someone stepping up to save the day, Last Argument of Kings suggests that everything is bad, and therefore, everything will stay bad. Yet, it’s made worthwhile by Abercrombie’s beautiful studies of humanity throughout, that distinguish his work as being cynical rather than outright nihilistic.
4 The Half-Blood Prince
The Sixth Movie In The Harry Potter Series
I could easily talk about the prominence of the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows book as an ending to the whole series and how much of an impact those novels had on my life and the fantasy genre. There’s certainly something to say about the weight of so many character deaths in the final volume. But for the purpose of variety, the film adaptation of The Half-Blood Prince movie rattled me in an entirely different way.
When so many massive movie franchises feel identical in each installment, the disparity between the installments in the Harry Potter film series is incredibly impressive. There’s gradual change throughout, but The Half-Blood Prince has the most drastic shift in tone, as it’s the first one where Hogwarts no longer feels safe. Not only do we lose Dumbledore, but there’s a feeling of betrayal from Snape and Malfoy that made me realize how dark of a series it really was.
3 Howl’s Moving Castle
The Beloved Studio Ghibli Animated Film
The films of Hayao Miyazaki are some of the best cinematic portrayals of the fantasy genre, and Howl’s Moving Castle stands out as my favorite. Based on the book of the same name by Diana Wynne Jones, the film truly embraces the aesthetic beauty of a strange, mystical world, keeping its magical elements and world-building largely mysterious so it can instead prioritize the characters.
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Howl’s Moving Castle’s ending has stuck with me for decades as one of the most visually stunning and heartfelt pieces of fantasy fiction out there. It’s the type of story that’s so grandiose and epic at times that it feels like it might have a more powerful, complex message. In essence, Miyazaki’s film is a love story; it’s a fairly simplistic fairytale that touches the heart in a potent way, and it’s a story every fantasy lover will enjoy for its artistic richness and sentimentality.
2 Game Of Thrones – Season 6
The Acclaimed HBO Adaptation’s Best Finale
Alright, so the Game of Thrones season 6 finale, “The Winds of Winter,” obviously isn’t the show’s ending, but it is an ending. This episode came at a very particular in-between time for the iconic HBO show, as season 6 was after the show had passed the books in material but before viewers realized that was going to be a problem. While I was mildly aggravated about Dorne at the time, Game of Thrones was still my favorite ongoing show and I had every hope for what was to come. The season 6 finale totally blew my mind.
maybe it’s because it was the last time
Game of Thrones
was truly great.
This is undoubtedly the best finale in the Game of Thrones universe, from the Sept of Baelor’s explosion to the reveal about Jon’s parentage to him becoming King in the North to Daenerys finally heading to Westeros. It’s got everything and posed such high promise at the time. Perhaps it still lingers with me because it’s the closest thing to The Winds of Winter I have. Or maybe it’s because it was the last time Game of Thrones was truly great.
1 The Return Of The King
The Third Book Of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord Of The Rings Trilogy
I’d like to preface my explanation for The Return of the King by briefly stating that Peter Jackson’s LOTR trilogy was, in many ways, my introduction to the genre and one of my longest-lasting loves as a movie fan. By the time I got around to reading Tolkien’s original books, I was already a massive fan of the story, which can be either advantageous or unfavorable when turning to the original source material. In this case, my preexisting admiration and deep-rooted connection to the characters contributed to TRotK being one of the most emotional journeys I’ve ever had with fiction.
From “Mount Doom” to “The Grey Havens,” there’s scarcely a prolonged segment that doesn’t make me well up with tears.
It’s hilarious to me that The Return of the King’s movie ending is often teased for having so many endings. That’s nothing to the six enormous epilogue chapters that follow the destruction of the One Ring in the book, detailing the Fellowship’s long journey home. From “Mount Doom” to “The Grey Havens,” there’s scarcely a prolonged segment that doesn’t make me well up with tears. Tolkien’s third novel provides the perfect, bittersweet conclusion to one of the most beautiful studies of friendship ever written, and its ending solidifies it as a story that will inspire me forever.
