29. OMAR LITTLE (Michael K. Williams), The Wire (2008)

There was a whole lot of bloody death on The Wire, but what makes this one so particularly shocking is its frightening randomness. For five seasons, Omar was the god of war on the mean streets of Baltimore, practically invincible (he jumped out of a building!). Given his career choice, Omar's demise was just a matter of time, but it was still surprising, and heartbreaking, when he got shot in the back of the head not by a gangbanger or a policeman, but by the adolescent Kenard. —Darren Franich

Click here if you want to skip the next screen's SPOILER from Downton Abbey's season 3 finale (first aired in the U.S. on Feb. 17, 2013).