Comingsoon.net is taking a look at some anti-climactic showdowns that left us wanting more. Check out our picks in the galley below!
A “boss” in video gaming refers to a significant CPU enemy. When you’re up against a boss, it typically means you’ve reached the end of a level—the climax of a particular section. In the fight, everything you’ve learned is put into practice as you have to conquer a presence that has been lingering over however many hours of play. In a movie or on television, those hours usually amount to 1 or 2 and the boss is that “big bad” who’s been bothering the protagonists.
Viewers spent a lot of time anticipating showdowns with various “big bads,” often over the course of multiple episodes and films. When one has to wait for more than one entry in a franchise to find out which character will be victorious (and how), expectations are high. It goes without saying, you can’t please everyone. Here are some showdowns that not only didn’t please but left a lot of people feeling robbed of a satisfying boss battle.
Anti-Climatic Boss Fights in Television and Film
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The Night King, Game of Thrones (2011-2019)
Seasons upon seasons of foreshadowing all for nothing. Everyone in Westeros thought Jon Snow (or at least someone) and the Night King were going to duel, but not before we got a better look at the Night King as a character. Ayra sniping this baddie was a nice twist, however, it was at the expense of some well-deserved closure. The Night King is just an ice monster.
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Darkseekers, I Am Legend (2007)
Anyone familiar with Richard Matheson's I Am Legend was disappointed with this adaptation's ending. Instead of a philosophical gut-punch, we received a contrived self-sacrifice (which really didn't make any sense). If the film's alternate ending is any indication, the filmmakers weren't sure how to fight the darkseekers either.
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Batman & Superman, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)
Two of the biggest comic book characters of all time pitted against each other, make peace over the utterance of one name, "Martha."
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Snoke/Kylo Ren, Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi (2017)
This film found itself in the unique position of possessing two heavily anticipated boss battles...and it ran out of lives faster than you could frantically scream cheat code. Fan backlash was the result of Snoke's swift demise and a nonexistent fight between Luke [enter antagonist here].
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Negan, The Walking Dead (2010-?)
There are many reasons season 8 of The Walking Dead didn't really work, not the least of which is its mismanagement of the "All Out War" arc from the comics and an anti-climactic confrontation with Negan.
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Anton Chigurh, No Country for Old Men (2007)
No Country for Old Men brought us one of the most memorable sociopaths in cinematic history. Ripe with an intertwining narrative, it seemed only a matter of time before a showdown between Javier Bardem and Tommy Lee Jones...that didn't happen.
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President Coriolanus Snow, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 2 (2015)
President Snow needed to die, and he did. One expected he'd become a voice of reason in the process.
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Sauron, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
The anti-climatic vibe here might have something to do with the film's inability to end...Regardless, Sauron never embodied anything more than an eye; while the battle was climatic the boss was anything but.
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Michael & Lucifer, Supernatural (2005-2020)
Supernatural's creator, Eric Kripke originally intended to end the show after 5 seasons. Everyone had the battle between Michael and Lucifer (and possibly God) to be the battle to end all boss battles. It's hard to shake the anticlimactic feeling here; the original ending obviously being altered in order to warrant a 6th season.
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The Aliens, War of the Worlds (2005)
H.G. Wells' ending to War of the Worlds is infamously anti-climatic. In Speilberg's lackluster adaptation it is made even more so; the abrupt demise of the invaders due to disease feels nonsensical within a blockbuster narrative.
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Agent Smith, The Matrix Revolutions (2003)
The real boss should've been the machines, period. Agent Smith seems like a scapegoat, an easy solution to writing oneself into a wall. The machines were the villains of the entire trilogy, but once Agent Smith becomes the boogeyman, they become an ally.
