What is a ‘Tank Ending’?
Who better to start this explanation than their eponymous originator himself, Tank Wilson! Tank writes:
“What has become referred to as a Tank Ending actually just started out because of my whining. I was working on Dark Revelation and it was taking on a life of its own. I was not a person inclined to write a long story (I’m more the vignette type) but this one just kept going and going, so I kept threatening to use an atomic bomb to put a quick final end to the story. As a joke I actually included the atomic bomb ending at one point followed by a nerve gas attack at the next instalment. Needless to say these were thrown out as jokes.
As time went by the Tank ending morphed into a more complex form and generally included massive death and destruction. Somehow I’d gotten a reputation for mayhem (just because a guy urges a few Whams in his comments to other stories he gets a rep), and the Tank endings reflected that. They’ve grown from little one and two line throw-aways to complete instalments snuck in on an unsuspecting readership. I may have been the progenitor of the form but, like everything else, others have taken on the cause and have brought it to such absurd heights as to be nearly unrecognizable to the humble beginnings.
As in all fanfic, Tank endings are merely another form of entertainment. They are the one liners of fanfics, the joke you want to tell but know it won’t be appropriate. But most of all, they are meant to be fun.
Tank.”
So these endings, whether to stories or episodes, tend to contain as much death, destruction or mayhem as possible, but are most definitely not intended to be taken seriously. We’ve collected as many as we possibly can, and – massive thanks to Anne – brought them together on this site.
Enjoy! And remember – Not To Be Taken Seriously!
EPISODE TANK ENDINGS are grouped by episode. Some files contain two or more Tank Endings, although most contain just one. The author of each is listed in the file.
STORY TANK ENDINGS are listed by story. All Story Tank Endings contain information as to where to find the original story, either on this site or on the Fanfic Archive at http://www.lcfanfic.com.