History SuddenDownerEnding / WesternAnimation

-->'''Bojack''': [[LampshadeHanging We might have gone too dark on that series finale]].

* ''WesternAnimation/ReBoot'': The episode "Game Over" looks like young Enzo will triumph over the User and save the day yet again... Until the User ''claws out his eye'' and defeats him in a GoryDiscretionShot, leading to the ominous "Game Over, User Wins" line and Dot breaking down with a BigNO as Megabyte cackles evilly. The results of this downer ending are explored throughout the rest of the season.

** Played for BlackComedy as "Total Rickall" seems to end on a triumphant note as Beth shoots the final parasite, Mr. Poopybutthole...only for it to be revealed that he was actually ''real''. The episode ends with Beth having a chillingly realistic [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone nervous breakdown]] and the rest of the family panicking as they desperately try to save Mr. Poopybutthole. Although it ends up being a Sudden BittersweetEnding, as Mr. Poopybutthole survives, but is shown [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome to need months of painful rehab in order to get back to functioning again]], and having his nurse turn Beth away when she tries to visit him in the hospital.

** [[WesternAnimation/Animaniacs2020 The 2020 reboot]] utilized this in its final segment as well, with [[EndOfSeriesAwareness the Warners becoming aware of]] [[ScrewedByTheNetwork the show's sudden cancellation]] and being [[SurprisinglySuddenDeath abruptly killed]] [[CometOfDoom by a meteor]] shortly afterwards. Stay safe, sweeties.

* The infamous ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'' episode ''Jurassic Bark'' shows one of the few positive things about Fry's life in the 20th century: the stray dog Seymour Asses who he befriended and adopted, and centers around him wanting to use the dog's remains to revive it. He ultimately comes to the conclusion that it would be wrong, since the dog lived its natural lifespan and probably forgot all about him. It seems like it's heading for a BittersweetEnding as Fry decides to let his friend rest in peace...and then the credits sequence shows that Seymour waited the rest of his natural life in front of the pizza parlor for Fry to come back, not only because he loved his master that much, but also because Fry's last words to him were [[UndyingLoyalty "stay here, I'll be right back".]] Made less depressing by the events of ''Bender's Big Score'', in which a second Fry created via TimeyWimeyBall is revealed to have taken care of Seymour all those years in the past...and [[YouAlreadyChangedThePast Bender causes the parlor to collapse, fossilizing him]].

* "Chicken Little", from the ''WesternAnimation/ClassicDisneyShorts'' plays like a normal Cat-and-Mouse cartoon...until the end, where despite the Narrator's assurance to the audience that everything turns out alright, Foxy Loxy catches and eats all the chickens, turkeys, and ducks, smiling smugly all the while. "Hey, wait a minute!" the Narrator exclaims. "This isn't right! That's not the way it ends in my book!" Foxy, leaning against his "[[Literature/MeinKampf Psychology]]" book, responds with "Oh, yeah? Don't believe everything ya read, brother!".

* The infamous ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'' episode ''Jurassic Bark'' shows one of the few positive things about Fry's life in the 20th century: the stray dog Seymour Asses who he befriended and adopted, and centers around him wanting to use the dog's remains to revive it. He ultimately comes to the conclusion that it would be wrong, since the dog lived its natural lifespan and probably forgot all about him. It seems like it's heading for a BittersweetEnding as Fry decides to let his friend rest in peace...and then the credits sequence shows that Seymour waited the rest of his natural life in front of the pizza parlor for Fry to come back, not only because he loved his master that much, but also because Fry's last words to him were [[UndyingLoyalty "stay here, I'll be right back".]] Made less depressing by the events of ''Bender's Big Score'', in which a second Fry created via TimeyWimeyBall is revealed to have taken care of Seymour all those years in the past.

* The infamous ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'' episode ''Jurassic Bark'' shows one of the few positive things about Fry's life in the 20th century: the stray dog Seymour Asses who he befriended and adopted, and centers around him wanting to use the dog's remains to revive it. He ultimately comes to the conclusion that it would be wrong, since the dog lived its natural lifespan and probably forgot all about him. It seems like it's heading for a BittersweetEnding as Fry decides to let his friend rest in peace...and then the credits sequence shows that Seymour waited the rest of his natural life in front of the pizza parlor for Fry to come back, not only because he loved his master that much, but also because Fry's last words to him were [[UndyingLoyalty "stay here, I'll be right back".]] This ending was so depressing that the writers [[AuthorsSavingThrow ended up retconning it]], and had a second Fry created via TimeyWimeyBall who took care of Seymour all those years in the past. Unfortunately, ''Bender's Big Score'' managed to {{Retcon}} this by having Bender destroy the pizzeria, the resulting fire and dust from the collapse causing the fossilization.

* ''WesternAnimation/RickAndMorty'': "Total Rickall" seems to end on a triumphant note as Beth shoots the final parasite, Mr. Poopybutthole...only for it to be revealed that he was actually ''real''. The episode ends with Beth having a chillingly realistic [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone nervous breakdown]] and the rest of the family panicking as they desperately try to save Mr. Poopybutthole. Although it ends up being a Sudden BittersweetEnding, as Mr. Poopybutthole survives, but is shown [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome to need months of painful rehab in order to get back to functioning again]], and having his nurse turn Beth away when she tries to visit him in the hospital.

* The infamous ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'' episode ''Jurassic Bark'' shows one of the few positive things about Fry's life in the 20th century: the stray dog Seymour Asses who he befriended and adopted, and centers around him wanting to use the dog's remains to revive it. He ultimately comes to the conclusion that it would be wrong, since the dog lived its natural lifespan and probably forgot all about him. It seems like it's heading for a BittersweetEnding as Fry decides to let his friend rest in peace...and then the credits sequence shows that Seymour waited the rest of his natural life in front of the pizza parlor for Fry to come back, not only because he loved his master that much, but also because Fry's last words to him were [[UndyingLoyalty "stay here, I'll be right back".]] This ending was so depressing that the writers [[AuthorsSavingThrow ended up retconning it]], and had a second Fry created via TimeyWimeyBall who took care of Seymour all those years in the past.

* ''WesternAnimation/CampLazlo'': The ending of the last episode "Lumpus' Last Stand" reveals a humongous plot twist - Lumpus was never really the scoutmaster, he was a ''literally insane'' man who had locked the real scoutmaster away (Namely, an older version of Heffer from ''WesternAnimation/RockosModernLife'') presumably for the duration of the entire show, to steal his life. He is sent to an asylum. This twist is so dark and downright shocking that the entire cast except Lazlo can do nothing but stand in silence for a moment. WordOfGod claims that Jane Doe busted him out afterward and married him, but it's still an AssPull.
* "Chicken Little", from the ''WesternAnimation/ClassicDisneyShorts'' plays like a normal Cat-and-Mouse cartoon...until the end, where despite the Narrator's assurance to the audience that everything turns out alright, Foxy Loxy catches and eats all the chickens, turkeys, and ducks, smiling smugly all the while. "Hey, wait a minute!" the Narrator exclaims. "This isn't right! That's not the way it ends in my book!" Foxy, leaning against his "[[Literature/MeinKampf Psychology]]" book, responds with "Oh, yeah? Don't believe everything ya read, brother!".
* ''ComicBook/TheSnowman'', which remains upbeat until the final moments, which reveals first that the Snowman has melted and died, then that it definitely wasn't a dream, and the main character breaks down and cries. Supposedly this was to teach viewers about [[CarpeDiem treasuring time with loved ones because of how these things don't last]], but that still makes the ending a downer and a gut punch.
* ''WesternAnimation/DerSchneemann'' ("The Snowman") is a 1944 German cartoon that basically has the exact same ending. A [[{{Snowlems}} snowman that comes to life]] sees a picture of summer in July and decides to wait in an icebox until July comes so he can enjoy summer. One might expect, given the light, whimsical tone of the cartoon, that the snowman would eventually go back to his icebox, or somehow escape his fate, but he still melts at the end.
* The classic ''WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes'' short "WesternAnimation/WhatsOperaDoc" is mostly a goofy parody of opera tropes combined with WesternAnimation/BugsBunny's typical slapstick and AttractiveBentGender gags, and ends with Elmer going into a rage and killing him. Bugs does [[BreakingTheFourthWall break the fourth wall]] long enough to deliver the last line, though:
--> "Well, what did ya expect in an opera--a happy ending?"

* If any episode of ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' has any character change in a positive way or gain something nice, and they keep it near the end of the episode -- [[YankTheDogsChain expect it be suddenly yanked away]] soon afterward. [[StatusQuoIsGod The Status Quo]] ''must be preserved''. That being said, there were only a few notable exceptions: Barney recovering from his alcoholism (although the writers eventually undid this), Lisa telling Homer that she'll never be happy with her body image (though the whole thing about Lisa being insecure with her body hasn't been mentioned since that episode), and Milhouse's parents staying divorced (though they did get remarried in "Little Orphan Millie").

* ''WesternAnimation/DrawnTogether'' ends with one of the main characters dying a brutal, tragic death, and then ''reality itself'' being {{RetGone}}d due to Spanky's idiocy.

-->'''Bojack''': [[LampshadeHanging We might have gone too dark on that series finale.]]

* ''WesternAnimation/RickAndMorty'': "Total Rickall" seems to end on a triumphant note as Beth shoots the final parasite, Mr. Poopybutthole...only for it to be revealed that he was actually ''real''. The episode ends with Beth having a chillingly realistic [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone nervous breakdown]] and the rest of the family panicking as they desperately try to save Mr. Poopybutthole. Although it ends up being a Sudden BittersweetEnding, as Mr. Poopybutthole survives, but is shown [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome to need months of painful rehab in order to get back to functioning again]], and having his nurse turn Beth away when she tries to visit him in the hospital.
* The Russian animated short [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ejJNX_BUzL0 Mountain of Dinosaurs]] portrays the Age of Dinosaurs as a SugarBowl, but ends with their extinction.

** In Episode 118, when the AlphaBitch Pretty posts humiliating pictures of Kaeloo, Stumpy, Quack Quack and Mr. Cat on social networking site [[BlandNameProduct "Fakebook",]] they get revenge on her, and then the fight escalates until the four of them use DisproportionateRetribution to punish her. At the end of the episode, they decide that they were too harsh and go to apologize and give her some presents, but before they can, they find out that she wrote a book revealing all of their embarrassing secrets and already published two million copies. They decide to leave without saying anything and accept that they'll never change her.

* The final episode of ''WesternAnimation/TheAmazingWorldOfGumball'' was largely about [[MediumBlending a live-action antagonist]] trying to integrate the cartoon kids into the real world [[HumanityEnsues by turning them into humans]], only to be thwarted by Gumball and Darwin. In the closing moments of the episode, the villain, who turned out to be recurring character Rob, laments that he was unable to explain that he was trying to save everyone from the Void, [[BolivianArmyCliffhanger which begins to suck in all of Elmore at the very end]].
* In ''WesternAnimation/TheCrumpets'' season 3 finale "Va te catcher vilain!", Caprice and Cassandra, who are substituting an injured Triceps in a televised wrestling match and [[SharingABody wear a costume of her together]], are beaten up by their gargantuan opponent. This is when the episode suddenly concludes, too, and this is very shocking for a season that is somewhat lighter than the earlier episodes.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Hilda}}'': Season 2 ends with everyone safe home in their beds, and Hilda has finally patched up her relationship with her mother...only for the last minute of the episode to have Hilda [[ForcedTransformation turned into a troll]] and teleported far away from Trolberg.

* ''WesternAnimation/PixelPinkie'': The last episode opens with an unusually sad narration from Nina's journal entry, foreshadowing Pixel Pinkie's departure from her life and states that she will never see her again. Pixel Pinkie divulges to Nina that genies only get a certain number of wishes and that Nina only has 19 more wishes left. After some escapades that led to most of the wishes being wasted, Nina and Anni give Pixel Pinkie a chance what she wishes for, which is for Nina and Anni to visit the digital genie world, and so Nina wishes it for her. Whilst making the most of their visit in Pixel Pinkie's world, the wish (as per usual) wears off and Nina and Anni are transported back to the real world, ending the episode and the series as a whole.
* ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'':
** "Dreamscaperers" ends with Bill Cipher defeated, the deed to the Mystery Shack defended, and Dipper finally understanding Stan's treatment of him and bonding. Everyone lives happily ever after for about three seconds, whereupon Gideon blows open Stan's safe with dynamite, steals the deed, and begins demolishing the building, which continues in "Gideon Rises".
** "Dipper and Mabel Vs. the Future" ends with Mabel upset that Dipper is leaving her, taking the wrong backpack, and being tricked into handing the interdimensional rift to Bill Cipher, who breaks it and brings about TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt, leading to the epic "Weirdmageddon" finale.
* ''WesternAnimation/StarTrekLowerDecks'' season two ends with the crew of the ''Cerritos'' saving the crew of the ''Archimedes'', Captain Freeman performing her first FirstContact and ultimately deciding to forego her promotion to captain of another ship -- only for a group of Starfleet personnel to arrest Freeman under the assumption that she caused the destruction of Pakled Planet and conspired with Klingon extremists to do so.