Top 10 TV Episodes of All Time

These are TV Episodes that left an impact on me

I recently watched Netflix’s recent sensation Adolescence and was totally blown away by it. This had me thinking, “what are my ten favorite TV episodes of all time?” So today I am counting down my ten favorite TV episodes of all time. A disclaimer, I only did one episode for each show, or else this list would probably be filled with episodes of Twin Peaks and The Muppets, let’s be real with ourselves. Also, I haven’t seen every TV Show in the world and have a lot to catch up on, if there’s a notable episode of television missing here - I probably haven’t watched the show. (I know I’m going to love Severance when I watch it!)

Onto the countdown!

10. Whenever You’re Ready: Season 4 Episode 13: The Good Place

I will be frank here - this is the last time you’ll see a Michael Schur show make this list. I admire what the man does as a creative but I don’t love a show like The Office or Parks and Recreation like others do. However, his weird sitcom side project The Good Place is my favorite sitcom of all time. I think it does transcend the genre of sitcom. When I heard this show was sitcom about life or death, morality and predestination it peaked my interest and I became fully engaged with the show. I think the characters are funny and the its questions about morality and theology are thematically stirring. It’s great television and the final episode of this show is one of the best I’ve ever seen. It’s a brilliant conclusion and one that you will be wiping tears away while watching. One of the final sequences scored by a track from composer Carter Burwell’s masterful score Where the Wild Things Are is just icing on the cake for me.

9. The Stars of Star Wars: Season 4 Episode 7: The Muppet Show

You already know that I had to include an episode of The Muppet Show on this list. You might be surprised it’s this low on the list, but The Muppet Show works more as a variety show than a narrative making it harder to rank individual episodes against others. I almost included the hysterical Steve Martin episode where they cancel The Muppet Show and hold auditions when he shows up - but I had to go with my heart and choose the Star Wars episode. This episode is just epic- the talents of George Lucas and Jim Henson on full display to see. It’s wacky, hysterical and creative. The pinnacle of what The Muppets can do at their best. The episode ends with The Muppets and cast of Star Wars singing “When You Wish Upon a Star” parodying Disney cooperate. Only if they knew what was in their future.

8. Adolescence Episode 3

Here’s the episode that inspired me to make this list. I just watched this episode last night and I was absolutely shook by it. This series is a grappling exploration of the darkest aspects of childhood and how social media can warp this generations sensibilities and this episode is a stirring exploration of exploitation, trauma and evil. Owen Cooper plays a troubled kid named Jamie in this show and in this episode, he shows his true acting chops. This episode (like every episode in the series) all takes place in one shot and mostly takes place in a single room. The way he is able to portray the mind of a truly sick and evil kid and his personal pathos is nothing short of exceptional. The script here is airtight as well, creating dialogue that is reminiscent of Aaron Sorkin or Sidney Lumet. I don’t want to spoil much more about the episode or the show in general and just leave you with the fact that it’s an absolute future classic.

7. Ozymandias: Season 5 Episode 14: Breaking Bad

I know including Ozymandias in my favorite tv show episode list is like saying The Godfather or Citizen Kane is one of the best movies ever made. This episode of TV set the bar, it’s what they still teach you in production classes on how to properly execute an hour of television. Even the director of the episode, Rian Johnston, was so acclaimed from his direction of this episode alone he got to direct a Star Wars movie (which everyone loved and there’s no reason to discuss it further moving on-). Johnston does a fantastic job of subverting expectations and he does so perfectly here. There’s three or four of the most jaw dropping and jarring twists on television in this episode. Not to mention, one of the harshest cold openings to an episode ever on television. It’s cemented itself in pop culture for a good reason, they simply don’t make them better than this.

6. Chapter 9 “Into the Unknown”: Over the Garden Wall

I watch Over the Garden Wall every single year and always think “what is my favorite episode of this show?” They are all perfect in their own ways, but I’m partial to the ninth episode. It’s the episode where pieces start to come together. I still find Wirt to be one of the most relatable characters in media and here he does reflect an aspect of my own awkward adolescence. I love the way show creator Patrick McHale is able to capture the atmosphere of a Halloween night. It’s so cozy and beautiful. The whole show is a masterpiece but this episode in particular just resonates with me.

5. Finding Frances: Season 4 Episode 8: Nathan for You

Finding Frances is hard to pin down. Some people consider it an episode of Nathan for You, some people consider it a movie. If it’s a movie, it’s one of my favorite movies. If it’s a television show, it’s one of my favorite television shows. It’s one of my favorite things ever made period. This two hour episode of Nathan for You was also the conclusion to the show. Nathan for You is the funniest show I’ve ever watched. I still go back to it and cannot contain laughter in some episodes. Nathan Fielder is certainly one of the people who have had the most influence on me as an artist and my own comedic sensibilities. The way he combined real life people juxtaposed with playing an exaggerated version of himself, creating an arc throughout the show is pure genius. This all escalates in Finding Frances, where he goes on a road trip with a Bill Gates impersonator he befriends throughout the show through the midwest to find his long lost love. In this trip, Nathan finds out a lot about himself and his perception on loneliness and the need for connection. Not only is this episode hilarious (I still will one day drive through Dumas Arkansas) but it’s a thoughtful and poignant piece of filmmaking I still think about to this day.

4. Mouse of Silver: Season 1 Episode 8: Midnight Gospel

I love movies, music and shows about how large the world is, our part in it, the existence of God, theology and all the big questions. There isn’t a show that gets across these huge and broad concepts better than Duncan Trussell and Pendleton Ward’s opus Midnight Gospel. The show is an animated version of Trussell’s podcast where he would (usually get high) and talk about all the big questions of the world. I used to listen to him when he was on the Joe Rogan Experience (which I would listen to on a regular basis until Rogan sold out to the right wing) and thought he was an interesting character to say the least. This show is downright trippy and bizarre in every way. Imagine the art exhibit Meowwolf as an entire television show. Pendleton Ward, who’s trippy and surrealist masterwork Adventure Time took over pop culture in the early 2010’s- provides a lush and beautiful framework for Trussell to get his high concepts across. This show is a lightning in a bottle moment, we will never get something like this again. The final episode is taken from a podcast where Trussell interviews is own mother, who was a few weeks out from dying of cancer. It is genuinely one of the most introspective, inspiring, tragic, life affirming and beautiful pieces of animation I have ever seen. This one never fails to get me tearing up and getting all sorts of existential afterwards. It’s a masterpiece.

3. Pilot: Freaks and Geeks

It was hard to single out one episode of the cult classic series Freaks and Geeks. I have to be honest though, I revisit the pilot episode the most. The show, created by Judd Apatow and Paul Feig, set to make a show about teenagers who actually looked and sounded like teenagers unlike the shows that were coming out around the time. This show was the response to shows like Dawson’s Creek that were so popular around the time. Freaks and Geeks is one of my personal favorite shows and one I saw a lot of myself in when I watched it. My personal clique in high school was a mixture of freak and geeks and I found some of these episodes to be very resonate and reflective of my own life. Sam and Lindsey Wier and two of my favorite characters in media and this episode is a perfect hook to show how to make a show that’s equally funny but doesn’t shy away from the dark and introspective aspects of growing up. It’s the perfect start to a perfect series.

2. Free Churro: Season 5 Episode 6: Bojack Horseman

Bojack Horseman is another one of my all time favorite shows. The show is able to take the adult animation genre and become a dissection of it. What happens when you have consequences to the poor behavior being presented in these shows? How does someone become problematic? Are some people too far down to become good again? Bojack Horseman is a self destructive narcissist that makes everyones lives around them worse, but the show is able to portray his own personal pathos. How awfully he was raised and how much he tries to improve his life but keeps getting in the way of doing so. This is all presented perfectly in the episode Free Churro, which ends up being a twenty minute monologue where Bojack explains trauma in his childhood and how he has to live every single day with the fact that he feels like he’s never truly been loved. It’s incredibly tragic and moving while still being able to be funny- it’s a miracle of an episode. I still argue that Will Arnet should have won The Emmy for this performance. He’s able to covey so much emotion just through his voice alone- it’s incredible.

1. The Pilot and Season 3 Episode 8: Twin Peaks and Twin Peaks The Return

Probably no surprise to anyone who knows and follows me, but Twin Peaks is my favorite show of all time. I cheated here a little bit and have decided to include two episodes, one from the original series and one from the revival. The original series pilot is my favorite episode of television of all time. I will never forget watching it for the first time, totally transfixed by something I had never felt before. This show is inherently bizarre, but rooted in a small town’s loss of innocence. The lack of understanding that bad things happen anywhere, even in the most idealistic of places like the quirky small town aesthetics of a place like Twin Peaks Washington. The series is one that has meant a lot to me over the years creatively and emotionally. The Return episode 8 is also one I have to include. It is one of the most surrealist and striking pieces of filmmaking I’ve ever seen. Lacking much dialogue or narrative, it reminds me of the type of elation I had watching 2001: A Space Odyssey for the first time. It’s a creative masterwork from the master himself David Lynch, may he rest in peace.

That is my list! Comment below some of your favorite episodes!