Top 10 Most Unexpected Character Returns

After seven seasons of portraying a more complex, morally gray version of Lex Luthor than we’d seen before, actor Michael Rosenbaum left “Smallville.” After a blowout between Lex and Clark Kent, the character disappeared and was assumed dead. We thought he was too until he suddenly reappeared for the series finale. Through a bit of cloning, Lex is revived, although his memories are ultimately wiped. In a flashforward, we also learn that he is elected president. Yikes. Fans were surprised but happy to see Rosenbaum come back to the role. For his part, Rosenbaum said he made the return for fans of the show.

Charlie Sheen was dropped from his sitcom “Two and a Half Men” in March of 2011. Sheen’s character, Charlie Harper, was subsequently killed off and replaced with a new character played by Ashton Kutcher. But the series finale, titled “Of Course He’s Dead,” got fans speculating as to whether Charlie Harper would return to our screens. Well, yes and no. As it turns out, Charlie wasn’t dead. He was actually imprisoned by Rose in a dungeon for all those years. In the finale, he escapes, but is later killed by a literal falling piano. We never see Charlie from the front, and Sheen didn’t actually come back to play him. But the whole thing is a pretty funny send-off.

Throughout its seven-year run, “Pretty Little Liars” was filled with twists and turns, including the fact that Alison DiLaurentis was alive the whole time. But no return from the dead shocked us more than that of Mona Vanderwaal. In Season Five, Mona is apparently the victim of a murder. But a few episodes later, the liars meet a very much alive Mona. Turns out, Mona was drugged and kidnapped by A, and then held captive for months while everyone thought she was dead. By this point, Mona had already been through a lot with the liars, and it made sense that this would be her final moment. We were shocked to see her back.

While Delphine Cormier starts as a sort of adversary to Cosima and the rest of the clones, she ends up being a beloved character and love interest for Cosima. So, when Delphine died at the end of Season Three, we were devastated. While there were hints of Delphine’s return throughout the run of Season Four, her gunshot wound was so serious we didn’t dare hope. But, at the end of that season, she shows up alive and well. Her reunion with Cosima is one of the sweetest in television history.

Throughout the run of “Battlestar Galactica,” Kara “Starbuck” Thrace was one of the most intriguing and magnetic characters on the show. She struggles terribly during Season Three, culminating in a moment when she dies in an explosion while chasing a Cylon raider. It’s a devastating moment and one that seemed pretty definitive. It’s hard to survive an explosion. But just a few episodes later, Starbuck miraculously reappeared as if nothing had happened. The return was shocking at the time, but ultimately ties in well with the show’s expiration of religion and destiny.

Is it really a resurrection if a guy who sometimes materializes as a cloud of black smoke takes over your body? We’re going to say yes. In Season Five, one of the main characters from the first episode, John Locke, is murdered by Ben. Ben stages the murder to look like John’s own doing, and for a while, we’re left to think that’s it. But when the Oceanic Six decide to return to the island, bringing Locke’s corpse with them, he is miraculously resurrected. That’s not even really the most surprising part. His body is being used as a cipher of sorts for the Man in Black, setting up the major conflict of the rest of the show.

When David Duchovny left “The X-Files,” we weren’t really sure if we would ever see him again. Duchovyn’s character, Agent Fox Mulder, was abducted by aliens at the end of Season Seven and remained long gone for 14 episodes. Even when he came back, it was in the form of a dead body. They had a funeral and everything. But in the episode “Deadalive,” Mulder comes back for good. Duchovny really seemed adamant about leaving the show, so audiences were shocked at the sudden return. Whatever it took, we were happy to have Mulder and Scully teamed back up again.

Michael Cordero’s death mid-season on “Jane the Virgin” is one of the most shocking television exits of all time. The only thing that beats it? His return from the dead. After he dies from complications due to a gunshot wound, we really thought that was the end of Michael and Jane forever. Then, just as Jane was really moving on with Rafael, we learn that Michael’s ”death” was orchestrated by Sin Rostro, and he’s actually very much alive. What’s worse, he has amnesia and doesn’t even remember who Jane is. Straight out of a telenovela, right?

Throughout “24’s” run, Tony Almeida was one of the show’s most beloved characters. As Jack’s right-hand man, he could be counted on for everything. His death in Season Five was a real turning point for the show, and proof that no one was safe. But then, after giving us an entire season to get over Tony, he returned from the dead in Season Seven. What’s more, he’s back and actively working for a terrorist organization, turned by the man who faked his death. The whirlwind of emotion we felt at having Tony back only to realize he was one of the bad guys now cannot be replicated.

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.

Buffy Summers, “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” (1997-2003)
You Can’t Keep A Good Slayer Down

Phil Coulson, “Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” (2013-20)
In the Marvel Universe, No One Ever Really Dies

Sara Lance, “Arrow” (2012-20)
White Canary Rises From the Dead

Victoria Grayson, “Revenge” (2011-15)
Just When You Thought You Had Seen the Last Of Her

“Dallas” is one of the most famous television shows of all time, and is responsible for some of television history’s craziest moments. Including this one. At the end of Season Eight, Bobby Ewing is run down in a car by his sister-in-law Katherine and dies. The entirety of season nine focuses on the aftermath of Bobby’s death, in particular how it affects his ex-wife Pam. A season’s worth of plot happens, but the first episode of Season 10 wipes it all away. Pam wakes up to find Bobby in the shower. The last season was all just Pam’s dream, and she and Bobby are together again. Frankly, wild behavior from these writers.

If we missed any of your favorite shocking returns, let us know in the comments below!