The Devastating TV Breakups We Still Can't Get Over

Jo & Alex on 'Grey's Anatomy'

First season original Alex Karev (Justin Chambers) and ninth season newcomer Jo Wilson (Camilla Luddington) begin their flirtation during her first year at the hospital, him in his first attending year and her a fresh faced intern. They get together in season 10, though like most Grey's romances, the two endure a bumpy relationship timeline featuring breakups, multiple proposals and even two marriage ceremonies.

But the knot they tie is completely unraveled by the end of season 16, when Dr. Karev disappears from Seattle, claiming he has to visit his mom in Iowa. She fears the worst when his absence continues without any word, and a final letter from her husband confirms that he had left for good.

Alex's letter to Jo, one of several sent to his fellow doctors at Grey-Sloan Memorial Hospital, explains that he learned he shared two children with his ex, Izzie Stevens (played by Katherine Heigl from seasons 1-6), and he'd chosen to go live with them. The heartbreaking goodbye is accompanied by divorce papers, marking the end of their romance and Alex's seasons-long journey on Grey's Anatomy.

Pacey & Joey on 'Dawson's Creek'

Childhood friends turned high school sweethearts Joey Potter (Katie Holmes) and Pacey Witter (Joshua Jackson) finish their senior year with a heartbreaking fallout. The pair fail to reconcile their incompatible goals for the future and break up at prom, leaving viewers gutted by what seemed to be a fiery and final end to Joey and Pacey.

The actor behind Pacey himself took the couple's grim outlook especially hard. Speaking to Entertainment Weekly in May 2022, Jackson opened up about his campaign for Dawson's Creek creator Kevin Williamson to have Pacey and Joey end up together after all.

"I had a whole conversation with Kevin about this," said the actor, nearly two decades after the show wrapped. "Like, 'Look, I get it. This is the idea that you had in your head, but I'm just gonna ask you to watch the tale of the tape and this is the more interesting end for these characters.'"

In the end, Jackson got his way – the finale season ends with Pacey and Joey together, living in New York.

Alexis & Ted on 'Schitt's Creek'

From the moment the Rose family moved to Schitt's Creek, Annie Murphy and Dustin Milligan's characters, Alexis Rose and Ted Mullens, shared some major chemistry. The town veterinarian even winds up proposing to the former heiress, which she rejects, though they do reunite as a couple and remain steady in the fifth season.

Their relationship begins to fray when Ted departs for a professional opportunity on the Galápagos Islands. After a failed attempt at long distance, their romance meets its demise on amicable terms, as Ted encourages Alexis to pursue her career dreams closer to home while he follows his abroad.

That said, Alexis and Ted's partnership wasn't always meant to end. In conversation with Entertainment Weekly, Schitt's Creek co-creator Dan Levy shared that his character's wedding was meant to be a double ceremony shared with Alexis and Ted. Murphy was so pleased with this ending that when it fell through, she "was furious" and "threatened to quit the show."

But Levy maintained his reasons for cutting off his on-screen sister's relationship. "Alexis needed to come out of this show liberated in a way that wasn't necessarily attached to a guy," he said. "I felt like it would be more fulfilling to that character to have loved and lost and been set on a track that is leading her into her future rather than settle with someone at the end of the show."

Ted & Victoria on 'How I Met Your Mother'

After an on-and-off romance starting in season 1, the romance between Ted Mosby (Josh Radnor) and Victoria (Ashley Williams) came to a heartbreaking halt in season 8. Their split followed a proposal and an ultimatum: The pastry chef would only agree to marry Ted if he ends contact with Robin (Cobie Smulders), his longtime friend and sometime fling. Knowing that he couldn't cut off someone who was like family to him, the two end it for good.

Connell & Marianne on 'Normal People'

In Normal People, Paul Mescal and Daisy Edgar-Jones' characters spend some of their most formative, pivotal years together as they finish up secondary school in Ireland and begin university at Trinity College. The two endure seemingly endless obstacles during their relationship, between family issues, ex-romances and their differing life goals. However, towards the end of the miniseries, Connell and Marianne seem like they've finally got the timing right.

Then Connell gets accepted to an MFA program in New York, though he's hesitant to move and risk his future with Marianne. The final episode ends with their solemn decision to separate, with Marianne encouraging Connell to go abroad and pursue a higher degree in writing.

Fleabag & Hot Priest on 'Fleabag '

It wasn't meant to be for "Hot Priest" (Andrew Scott) and titular character "Fleabag" (Phoebe Waller-Bridge). After a season full of touch-and-go flirtations between the two, the British dramedy ends with their admission of mutual attraction punctuated by a heavy farewell. Though the Priest expresses his love for Fleabag and did break his vow of celibacy an episode earlier, he ultimately chooses his faith over what could have been in Fleabag's series finale.

Jess & Rory on 'Gilmore Girls'

Things start to go south for Jess Mariano (Milo Ventimiglia) and Rory Gilmore (Alexis Bledel) towards the end of their senior year, as the couple deal with Rory's jealous ex, Dean (Jared Padalecki), trying to break them apart. Jess is also secretive, withholding crucial information about his future: He's not only failing high school; his very presence in Stars Hollow is crucially at stake. What Rory doesn't know is that Jess's uncle, Luke, will only permit him to stay in town if he can graduate.

With tensions high due to Jess' unwillingness to confide in his girlfriend, he and Rory get into an explosive fight. The following day, Jess meets his estranged father for the first time and ends up leaving town without giving Rory notice at all, meaning he doesn't take her to prom or come to graduation. Though they briefly encounter each other again in later seasons, their final break comes as Rory speaks to a wordless Jess on the phone, saying goodbye with a heartbreaking revelation: "I think I may have loved you, but I just need to let it go."

Toby & Kate on 'This Is Us'

The end of "KaToby" (fans' couple name for This Is Us characters Kate Pearson and Toby Damon) ended an era that stretched as far back to the NBC show's pilot episode. Chrissy Metz's Kate and Chris Sullivan's Toby endeavored on their weight loss journeys together, they got married and they had a son, Jack Jr., who was born blind. When they divorced in season 6 due to constant fighting and debates over where they should live, even the actors felt the sting of their romantic end.

"[Kate's] ready to put herself first," said Metz, speaking to PEOPLE about her experience co-writing the breakup. "If [Toby] gets to do what he wants to do, which means staying in San Francisco and having his own life, she wants to stay in L.A. and have the career that she's always dreamt of."

Luckily, This Is Us assures its fans that Toby and Kate end up on good terms. At the end of the episode in which they finalize their divorce, a flash-forward scene shows the exes together, watching their grown-up son singing on stage with their new partners.