A cliffhanger or cliffhanger ending is a plot device in fiction which features a main character in a precarious or difficult dilemma or confronted with a shocking revelation at the end of an episode of serialized fiction. A cliffhanger is hoped to incentivize the audience to return to see how the characters resolve the dilemma. Some serials end with the caveat, "to be Continued" or "the end?"; in movie serials and television series, the following episode sometimes begins with a recap sequence.