Is the Smalltown Teen Drama Era Over With the End of ‘One Tree Hill?’

You're probably saying "Wait, 'One Tree Hill' is still on?" Well, not anymore. The CW teen drama that never ends has finally said "farewell" last night, long after several of its biggest stars moved on.

After nine seasons and the departures of original stars Chad Michael Murray and Hilarie Burton in the show's seventh season, 'One Tree Hill' came to an end with a highly rated (for The CW) two-hour finale.

The first hour featured interviews with the cast and the show's creator, Mark Schwahn as they looked back on the show's nearly decade-long history.

As for the finale episode, it delivered all that's expected of a smalltown coming-of-age series; reunions, marriages, babies and a Gavin DeGraw performance. Even Chad Michael Murray returned to send the show off that made him a star. (A star...?)

With the end of 'One Tree Hill' and The CW veering towards edgier fare like 'Nikita' and 'The Vampire Diaries," one has to wonder if the days of the smalltown teen drama are finally over. 'Dawson's Creek' ended back in 2003, the same year 'One Tree Hill' began. And as Schwahn pointed out in last night's first hour, the show's success was a bit surprising.

"Considering where we came from and considering the huge odds against us, there are not many more greater underdog stories than us," said the 'One Tree Hill' creator.

Indeed, it seems like nowadays, a story about a close-knit group of teens growing up together doesn't hold viewers interest, unless they're vampires or made to kill each other in a post-apocalyptic survival competition. With the end of 'One Tree Hill,' we have may seen the last of the pure teenage love story for some time.