Six Feet Under Is A Must-Watch HBO Drama With A Perfect Finale

24 years after its series finale, the HBO drama Six Feet Under is a must-watch, as the series finale is still beautiful, moving, and haunting. The critically acclaimed show is one of the best HBO dramas, and it tells a compelling story about the members of the Fisher family, who are in charge of Fisher & Sons funeral home.

When deciding which older shows to sit down and watch, it’s helpful to know which ones have satisfying final episodes. So much can go wrong when tying up the loose ends of a show, but when you get to the last moments of Six Feet Under, you’ll be impressed — and will likely shed a few tears, too.

20 Years After Its Debut, Six Feet Under Is Still A Show Everyone Should See

The premise is what makes Six Feet Under so incredible, even two decades since it premiered on HBO in 2001. You might think that a show about a family who owns a funeral home would be a bummer, but instead, it’s a memorable story that captures the random nature of death and how hard it is to accept the inevitable.

The tone switches from humorous to dark, often in the same scene, and it has a particularly cool narrative structure. A character dies in the first scene of each Six Feet Under episode, often in disturbing ways. But even though you know these scenes are coming, they’re still shocking.

Six Feet Under has been celebrated for its incredible cast, and many have starred in other popular family dramas since then, from Parenthood to Brothers & Sisters. However, it was this special mix of cast members that made the show work so well.

Lauren Ambrose, Michael C. Hall, and Peter Krause played the Fisher siblings Claire, David, and Nate, and you really feel the anguish they each deal with. Frances Conroy’s work as Ruth Fisher, who is mourning the loss of her husband, Nathaniel (Richard Jenkins), is especially solid. Supporting actors are also amazing, including Mathew St. Patrick and Patricia Clarkson.

The inciting incident establishes that this won’t be an ordinary soapy drama about love stories, career changes, and all the typical problems that TV characters face. The Fishers deal with death day in and day out because of their family business, but they’re still completely unprepared when their patriarch passes away.

That’s a great starting point for a story, and it’s easy to want to give the Fishers a hug and tell them that everything will be okay, despite Ruth’s prickly nature. But the development is top-notch here, and Ruth is a carefully thought-out character who is scared of big feelings.

Six Feet Under Has One Of Television’s Best Endings, Making It A Rare Gem

The main characters in the Six Feet Under finale — The main characters at a funeral on Six Feet Under

While Six Feet Under has many strengths, the excellent series finale is what really cements its legacy. While the episode has big life moments like Nate’s love interest Brenda (Rachel Griffiths) having their baby girl named Willa, the story brilliantly comes full circle, and you learn how each main character dies.

Instead of simply showing these deaths, however, the series keeps cutting back to Claire driving to New York City from Los Angeles. This emphasizes that, while everyone dies, there’s still so much life to experience. The Sia song “Breathe Me” is a great choice, too. The Six Feet Under actors are consistently impressive, but Lauren Ambrose is especially amazing here.

The deaths themselves feel natural and work for each character. Ruth is with her loved ones at the hospital when she’s 78, which is heartwarming, since she knows they care about her despite tough times. And while it’s sad to see David die, it’s nice to imagine him together with his late husband, Keith Charles (Mathew St. Patrick), again.

Claire and Nate’s deaths are perhaps the most powerful and beautiful. Claire is 101 when it’s her time to go, and it’s inspiring to learn that she became a successful photographer. Nate’s death from an illness is the most tragic since he’s still fairly young.

However, this is an important storyline since, this time around, the family is more equipped to handle such a big loss. Many of the death scenes in the finale also show the characters seeing ghosts of loved ones, which drives home the emotional message that death is not the end of love.

The most memorable TV series finales have meaning, emotion, and maybe some laughs, but the Six Feet Under finale makes you think about your own life, the people you hold close, and what might happen at the end. These aren’t easy things to contemplate, but the show reminds you that life is full of heavy but beautiful moments.

Where To Stream Six Feet Under In 2025

Michael C Hall as David Fisher and Matthew St. Patrick as Keith Charles at the altar on their wedding day in Six Feet Under — David and Keith getting married on Six Feet Under

You can stream the series on HBO Max and Netflix. Since Six Feet Under has five seasons, you get to spend a lot of time with the Fisher family, and it’s impossible not to love them and want them to find everything they’re hoping for.

After getting to the epic and impressive finale of Six Feet Under, you’ll be glad you had this emotional experience — and might even rewatch the last episode a few more times to let it fully sink in.