Top 10 Shocking Times Characters Came Back from the Dead

Jimmy was a breath of fresh air in Fiona Gallagher’s life. Between basically raising her siblings and trying to keep her father from destroying their lives, she was able to have a sense of normalcy with him. We’re not saying he was perfect by any means, but still. So, fans were understandably crushed when he appeared to have died toward the end of season 3. However, a post-credit scene in the following season’s finale revealed he was alive and living under an assumed name. His reunion with Fiona was hilarious, touching, and surprisingly violent, as she lost her cool on him in the middle of a busy Chicago street.

Given that Agent Phil Coulson died on movie theater screens just a year before, Marvel fans probably tuned in to “Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” just to see how he managed to lead a TV series. Fans thought Coulson might be done for when Loki killed him in “The Avengers.” While he did actually die, Coulson was apparently brought back to life under the orders of Nick Fury and a mysterious substance with some potentially nasty side effects. Coulson returned to lead the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents through battles with more bad guys, this time on the small screen. However, he had, well, feelings about how he was resurrected.

The arrogant but heroic Captain Kara Thrace, known as Starbuck, apparently died when she deliberately flew her viper into a violent storm system. Her ending was thought to be a fitting climax to her emotional character arc. Although she was a fan favorite, viewers had no reason to think she was coming back after watching her aircraft explode. Three episodes later, she reappeared in that same aircraft, seemingly unharmed. Viewers were relieved, and Starbuck’s sudden and inexplicable return sparked an entire season’s worth of drama over whether or not she was an evil agent.

The feud between the brilliant detective Sherlock Holmes and his villainous equal, Professor Moriarty, ended much the way it did in Arthur Conan Doyle’s original stories. Though the details differ from the source material, their tête-à-tête eventually ends with both men seemingly dying. The second season finale concluded with the revelation that Sherlock was indeed still alive, but viewers had to wait roughly two years to learn more about how he potentially pulled it off. The storyline has received a mixed reaction from fans, but many would say it seems perfectly in line with the ingenuity of the show’s iconic lead character.

The show’s TV movie continuation, “Prison Break: The Final Break,” ended with Michael Scofield sacrificing himself to save his wife. Well, when the series was revived in 2017, Scofield would return as well. The writers found an appropriately bonkers way to explain how he survived being electrocuted involving cover-ups, blackmail, and a shady terrorist organization. It’s not the first time a “Prison Break” character made something of a miraculous return, either. Scofield’s wife, Sara, was thought dead before she was revealed to be alive in the series’ fourth season.

This ‘resurrection’ was as shocking as the apparent death that preceded it. Jane’s happiness as a newlywed was tragically short-lived when gunshot wound complications led to Michael’s demise. Killing him off was a huge left turn for the series. This made it doubly shocking when it was revealed he hadn’t died at all. The season four finale explained that not only did he survive, but his death was faked by a nefarious crime boss who zapped his brain and triggered memory loss. Though the memories returned, the romance ultimately didn’t last. Fans remain divided on the plot point, especially for what it meant for Jane and Michael’s relationship.

The amount of times characters on this dark fantasy CW series died, came back to life, or traversed the afterlife would be hard to count. But the show’s biggest emotional gut punch had to be when the Winchester brothers’ dad came back to life in the show’s fourteenth season. Having accidentally summoned a past version of their deceased father via an enchanted pearl, the Winchesters were thrilled to reunite their family. They also inadvertently created problems in the timeline that needed repairing. It came out of nowhere, but fans were thrilled and surprised to see actor Jeffrey Dean Morgan, who hadn’t made an onscreen appearance on the show since its second season.

When Jon Snow was stabbed by his own men and left to bleed out as the credits rolled on the show’s fifth season finale, viewers didn’t know what to think. After all, “Game of Thrones” made its name by killing off unexpected characters. Jon’s own adoptive father of sorts was arguably the protagonist of the show until he met a gruesome end at the end of the first season. Was history repeating itself? Viewers had to wait until the end of the next season’s second episode for their answer. Ultimately, a magical ritual brought Jon back to life, allowing him to seek vengeance.

Federal agent Jack Bauer and his team specialized in thwarting terrorists and would-be terrorists. But in the show’s seventh season, the danger came from within. Indeed, it was his good friend and colleague, Tony Almeida, who was thought to have been killed in season five. However, not only was his death faked, but the enemy turned an embittered Tony against the U.S. government. His conflict with Jack wasn’t just a political one – no, it became personal. Once one of his closest allies, Tony became Bauer’s dark other half. Both lost the most important people in their lives due to the shady machinations of the government that employed them. Jack continued to fight for them, but Tony joined the other side.

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

Sara Lance, “Arrow” (2012-20)
Initially Killed Off in the Pilot, Sara Returned as a Vigilante in Season Two

Bart & Evelyn Bass, “Gossip Girl” (2007-12)
Both of Chuck Bass’ Parents Faked Their Deaths for Wildly Different Reasons

Charlie Harper, “Two and a Half Men” (2003-15)
His Return Was Pulled Off in an Appropriately Bizarre Fashion

In the golden age of primetime soaps, “Dallas” ruled. Its season-capping cliffhangers became the stuff of TV legend. Ask anyone of a certain age “Who shot J.R.?” and they’ll know exactly what you’re talking about. But one of its most audacious and controversial cliffhangers was the season nine finale’s revelation that Bobby Ewing was not only alive, but in his fiancée’s shower. When actor Patrick Duffy wanted to branch out career-wise, his character was written off via a deadly car accident in the previous season’s finale. Ultimately though, Duffy returned to the show as other opportunities weren’t panning out, and “Dallas” reportedly needed a boost. The writers made sense of Bobby’s absence by dubbing the ninth season an extended dream.

Which of these returns surprised you the most? Sound off in the comments.