Featured Image Credit: BBC America
Topics: Killing Eve, BBC, TV And Film
Isobel Pankhurst
This article contains spoilers for the final episode of Killing Eve
Viewers were left shocked and heartbroken as the finale of spy thriller Killing Eve finally hit UK screens on Monday.
The show's final moments show Eve and Villanelle embracing, after defeating The Twelve, when a bullet rips through Villanelle's shoulder.
The pair jump into the River Thames, where Eve watches helplessly as Villanelle is riddled with bullets, sinking to the riverbed as she continues to bleed out.
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Since the episode was dropped on BBC iPlayer this morning, fans have been taking to Twitter to share their frustration at the demise of their beloved character.
One fan of the show wrote: "the most heartless finale ever. villanelle’s death was a disrespect to the creator of the character and to the fans. how cruel do you have to be to give this queer character hope only to end it all in the most unnecessary death scene?"
Another added: "killing eve has overthrown game of thrones for having the worst ending of any show ever made in the history of television"
Fans are disappointed, not just because of the lack of happy ending, but because they feel that this ending buys into the 'bury your gays' trope.
According to TVTropes 'bury your gays' is "the presentation of deaths of LGBT characters where these characters are nominally able to be viewed as more expendable than their heterosexual counterparts."
Other shows accused of this include The 100 and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
One fan tweeted: "Shooting and killing the lesbian character after she finds true happiness? Just like in The 100, Buffy, etc? The same tired sh*t you’ve been doing since the 90s? #killingeve"
Another tweet reads: "i still can't believe killing eve S4 managed to pull at the same time both a game of thrones in ruining a nationally loved and acclaimed show in a single season and a the 100 in the bury your gays at their happiest trope it's ASTONISHING #killingeve"
One fan wrote: "can’t believe they really pulled bly manor on killing eve"
Although some have argued against this comparison saying that The Haunting of Bly Manor doesn't truly fit the trope.
Many have argued that Bly Manor's ending was "beautifully done" and that the death in that show was necessary for the plot, as opposed for shock value like Killing Eve, The 100, etc.