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The polar opposite of a [[Grand Finale]]: a series ends abruptly, without resolution of its basic premise, due to some unplanned event such as [[Cancellation]] or [[Author Existence Failure]]. The story does not end, it simply stops ''in medias res'', possibly with a [[Cliff Hanger]]. In a few lucky cases, [[The Resolution Will Not Be Televised]], but goes directly to DVD. In even luckier cases the series will be able to [[Wrap It Up]] with a miniseries or theatrical film. More often than not, however, there is no final resolution.
Even more frustratingly, often shows create [[Myth Arc
Sadly common in [[Web Comics]], since these are often one man shows, and hobby ones at that, and [[Real Life Writes the Plot]] (or doesn't, to be accurate) when the authors get too busy to continue. Moreover, quite a few television shows had also got cut short by The Writer's Strike of 2007. Some did manage to continue, but others were left in the dust.
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* The anime version of ''[[Ai Yori Aoshi]]'' ended at volume 12 or so of the manga, leaving the "Kaoru and Aoi" plot thread unresolved. (The manga ran for 17 volumes and did have a proper ending.)
* ''[[Gantz]]'', or rather the anime version: due to the very slow updating of the source manga, only the first three arcs were adapted before a [[Gecko Ending|confusing filler ending]] concluded the series.
* The ''[[Love Hina]]'' anime finished its first season, began setting up a second...before getting canceled a few episodes in and with zero resolution. Eventually, a few [[OVA
* ''[[Berserk]]'' notoriously ends at the conclusion of "Band of the Hawks", a very long flashback that explains [[How We Got Here]] for the first few episodes. Not only does this leave the series with a massive [[Downer Ending]], it isn't clear how they'd get out (even though you ''know'' they do because of the opening episodes), {{spoiler|because the Skull Knight - who rescues Guts and Casca in the manga - isn't in the anime}}.
* ''[[Rozen Maiden]]'', whose anime [[Overtook the Manga]] and whose manga tragically ended (but now it's starting again) with a [[Deus Ex Machina]] (and an apology) following a dispute between the producers and the publishers.
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** Ditto ''[[Mx0]]''. How the guy was able to continue illustrating after those is an incredible feat altogether.
* ''[[Double Arts]]'', a [[Shonen]] manga,had just finished setting up its premise, characters, the [[Big Bad]], even debuted the titular fighting style,and it was really starting to distinguish itself from its generic beginnings... [[I Should Write a Book About This|when the person writing the tale closed the book saying, "I may continue it... some other time"]].
* Ditto ''[[To Love Ru]]'', which had a very very unsatisfying ending due to the [[Creator Breakdown]] the artist went
** Even though the story has taken a rather drastic change in tone and major characters, it has seemed to successfully subvert this trope and is now continuing.
** Now Kentaro Yabuki might try to fire back at his ex-wife with ''[[Mayoi Neko Overrun]]''.
** ...which has ben
* The second series of ''[[Genshiken]]'' stops at a point in the storyline just before the eighth manga volume begins. It had previously added to and extended the manga's material in order to have enough for a third series.
* The ''[[Narutaru]]'' anime ended at about halfway through the manga's story, giving next to no closure.
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* The ''[[Katekyo Hitman Reborn]]'' anime ended this way, right after the Future Arc when they come home, all they do is say that Tsuna needs more training before coming a boss and just stare at the sky right when the credits roll. The manga is still ongoing.
* ''School Zone'' ends with the lead characters discovering what they have to do to put an end to the thirteen ghost stories... and ending the current crisis at the school as they start on it. It ends without their actually finishing their new task... and without fully resolving the subplot regarding the mystery of twins Mako and Miko.
** The author seems to have a thing for
* Ero-manga story ''Junk Story'', featured in Eros Comix's ''Silky Whip Extreme'' ends with the heroine captured, waiting for a rescue by a character who appears to have been [[Killed Off for Real]]. This would just be a [[Downer Ending]] combined with [[No Ending]], except for the fact that it ''leaves every single plot thread unresolved'', and even introduces ''new plot threads that will never be resolved.''
* ''[[Final Fantasy Unlimited]]'' was cut short from the original 52 episodes to 24, resolving the latter parts with voiced dramas, books and a web novel that [[No Export for You|never see the light outside Japan]].
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== Literature ==
* ''[[The Mystery of Edwin Drood]]'', [[Charles Dickens]]'s last novel, was
* This appears to be the fate of the [[Erast Fandorin]] series of Russian mystery novels, at least for English-speaking readers. Thirteen books have been published in Russia but book #10, ''The Diamond Chariot'', is the last to be translated into English.
* Although the principal story is resolved, many, ''many'' plot points are never answered in ''[[A Series of Unfortunate Events]]''. This is especially noticeable because the author makes the books constantly remind you of these points, and never answers most of them, actually making "you can never know all the answers" a major theme of the last book.
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* ''[[John Doe]]''
** The last episode before the cancellation reveals that one of the leaders of the Phoenix Organization appears to be John's best friend. [[Word of God]] claims that this is false, though, and the man was supposed to have been revealed an impostor who underwent plastic surgery.
* The original series of ''[[Battlestar Galactica Classic]]'' got cut short after the final episode ''The Hand of God'', although it did get a follow up of sorts with ''Galactica 1980'', which original series fans [[Fanon Discontinuity|prefer not to talk about]]. Then it got [[R Emake|re-imagined]] into the [[
* ''[[Sliders]]'' was canceled at the end of its fifth season on a [[Cliff Hanger]], after a [[Psychic Powers|Psychic]] had just told the heroes that [[Everybody Dies|Everybody Is Going To Die]]. Fans were not exactly broken up about the finale, as the show [[Jump the Shark|hadn't been worth watching for years]] anyway.
* The last episode of ''[[Carnivale]]'' left multiple plot threads unexplained, as well as introducing a [[Heel Face Turn]] and a resurrection in the last few minutes.
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* ''[[Defying Gravity]]'', after being [[Screwed by the Network]], ends just as everything appears to be reaching a climax of sorts. The sets were destroyed by the time the episodes were shown, dashing all hopes of a revival. While by that point the identity of {{spoiler|Beta}} was revealed, this only raised more questions than it answered. [[Word of God]] helped fill in some of the blanks but not enough to get an idea of where the show was going.
* ''[[Drive]]'' only lasted 6 episodes with the final episode showing the main characters robbing a bank and one of them getting shot and bleeding badly.
* ''[[Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior]]'' ends on a particularly cruel [[Cliff Hanger]]
* ''[[Gilligan's Island]]'' never got a finale in the show itself. There were, however, a few TV movies that tried to wrap up the series.
* ''[[Keen Eddie]]'' [[Too Good to Last|only got thirteen episodes]], and only a handful were aired before it was canceled. Watching the rest of the episodes, especially the last, shows they were building up to something, and while there thankfully wasn't a cliffhanger, none of the character-arcs were even kinda resolved.
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== Western Animation ==
* ''[[Samurai Jack]]''. For that matter, pretty much ''every single'' Western animated series with a series-long plot arc. It'd be easier to just list those that ''weren't''
* ''[[Spider-Man Unlimited]]''
** ''[[Spider-Man: The Animated Series|Spider Man the Animated Series]]'' also suffered from this, cancelled entirely due to a Fox employee's fit of pique. While we did get something of a workable final episode, a few plot threads had to be forgotten; most notably the real Mary Jane was never rescued from limbo.
** Seeing how it's confirmed, another example is ''[[The Spectacular Spider-Man|The Spectacular Spider Man]]''.
* ''[[The Pirates of Dark Water]]'' was ended before they could gather all 13 [[McGuffin
* The two American-made [[Humongous Mecha]] [[Animated Series]] from [[The Nineties]], ''[[Exo Squad]]'' and ''[[BattleTech]]'', both end with unresolved [[Cliff Hanger
* ''[[Duckman]]'', which went three seasons without a single [[Cliff Hanger]], ended its run with an episode where the title character (a talking duck, private detective and widower) remarries only to have the wedding disrupted by the return of his dead wife, Beatrice. She asks why he didn't wait for her. He says he thought she was dead. She asks why Cornfed (Duckman's partner) didn't tell him the truth. Cornfed says he can explain everything. And [[To Be Continued]] pops up on the screen. Naturally, the one time they ended the season with a [[Cliff Hanger]] expecting renewal, the show was canceled.
* ''[[Clone High]]''. At least it was some kind of resolution since it was supposed to be the season finale, but it was a [[Cliff Hanger]].
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* Obscure 1980s cartoon ''[[The Bluffers]]'' centered around a [[Gang of Critters]] trying to find out the secret of a villain named Clandestino. It got canceled before they could say what his secret was.
* ''[[Hey Arnold!]]!'' never did explain what happened to Arnold's parents on their final mission, all because the show's creator couldn't agree with Nickelodeon over the necessary contract extension. Result: no extension at all. There was going to be a Jungle Movie which would have resolved practically everything - Arnold goes back to San Lorenzo to find his parents, and he probably hooks up with Helga. Sadly it never got produced.
* ''[[King Arthur and the Knights of Justice]]'' was unexpectedly cancelled after two seasons and 26 episodes, with its premise (collecting all the [[MacGuffin
* ''[[Western Animation]]/ymBionicTitan'' which was cancelled solely because they could not interest toy companies, despite it being a widely loved show.
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