i thought it was a good idea and a crazy twist when it first started to happen. like when doyle died in the episode Hero on Angel. that was the first time i can remember where something was planned out like that from the start. when that happened i knew right there that anything could happen and would. i can understand killing of a cast member that chooses to leave a show. some producers just don't want you crawling back after a while and thinking you can slink back into your old job when things didn't go as expected. this has now grown into a fad and like all good things, it has grown out of control. now if you don't kill somebody off, you aren't keeping up with the Jones'. it was a crazy, out of the box idea in the beginning. now i just wait for someone to bite it in everything i watch.