Sybil/Matthew Crawley – Downton Abbey
Conventional wisdom says that on a show like Downton Abbey, you keep the popular characters around for as long as you think you can get away with it. What you normally don’t do is execute two well-loved characters in the same season, which is part of the reason why audiences were so shocked at the events of the third season. Sybil was the youngest Crawley daughter, a kind-hearted girl who was determined to be more than just another debutante. She had neither the prickly temperament of Mary or the self esteem issues of Edith, and we loved her for it.
So, of course, she had to die, abruptly and painfully, afflicted with eclampsia while giving birth to her daughter. After that happened, we kind of thought that was going to be it for major deaths in the third season. But then there was Matthew. Deliriously happy after the birth of his son with Mary, he gets into a car accident and dies on the scene. Ouch.
While logistical issues were at play there (Dan Stevens wanted to leave the show and they needed to write him off somehow), it was nonetheless a jarring loss that made us wonder how many characters we’d be losing in season four.