# Greatest episodes of television ever **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 19, 2019, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764 "2019-06-19T18:37:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2019, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/81 "2019-06-20T13:46:02Z")
The Big Bang Theory - The Staircase Implementation. The flashback scenes are done so perfectly, and the tale of how the elevator got broken is nerd-vana. Penny: Of course he was crazy. He was living with Sheldon. Leonard: Yeah, it makes sense. NOW. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2019, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/82 "2019-06-20T13:48:15Z")
The Ren and Stimpy episode which included **Stimpy’s Invention** , one of the greatest pieces of animation ever created. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2019, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/83 "2019-06-20T13:53:14Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > The Big Bang Theory - The Staircase Implementation. The flashback scenes are done so perfectly, and the tale of how the elevator got broken is nerd-vana. > > Penny: Of course he was crazy. He was living with Sheldon. > Leonard: Yeah, it makes sense. NOW. I was thinking of this one too. The “time-travel” scene never fails to crack me up! 😛 ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2019, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/84 "2019-06-20T13:56:03Z")
> [@E-DUB](#): > > Night Gallery has been mentioned but my favorite episode of that is “A Question of Fear”. (In which Leslie Nielson and Fritz Weaver star). \ This was my fave from first showing. Years later, I caught it in syndication run and 10 or 15 minutes had been cut for time. :eek: Made not a lick of sense. ---
**Author:** ![Fuzzy\_wuzzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a8b319/32.png) [@Fuzzy\_wuzzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fuzzy_wuzzy)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2019, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/85 "2019-06-20T14:01:31Z")
Fargo, S2, ep 8, I think. The episode where Peggy and Ed kidnap Dodd. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2019, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/86 "2019-06-20T14:45:45Z")
> [@Fuzzy\_wuzzy](#): > > Fargo, S2, ep 8, I think. The episode where Peggy and Ed kidnap Dodd. “Ya gotta quit stabbin’ him, hon.” 😃 ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2019, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/87 "2019-06-20T15:09:32Z")
If for nothing else than the river rafting skit, Portlandia S2E1 “Mixology”. [_ **A-O River!** _](https://youtu.be/KJXAV52ODTw) ---
**Author:** ![Teuton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/teuton/32/3864_2.png) [@Teuton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Teuton)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2019, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/88 "2019-06-20T15:22:57Z")
I’m going to mention. **Red Dwarf** ’s _Back to Reality_, which had me genuinely wondering if they were going to change the setup of the entire series. ---
**Author:** ![pythonzzz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9e8a1a/32.png) [@pythonzzz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pythonzzz)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2019, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/89 "2019-06-20T15:25:51Z")
Quantum Leap - M.I.A (must be with the original Georgia on My Mind) Married with Children - A Period Piece ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2019, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/90 "2019-06-20T15:27:08Z")
I see “Pine Barrens” got love previously, but I still feel that “Funhouse” is the best episode of _The Sopranos_. Every time I watch it I marvel at how amazing it is. ---
**Author:** ![pythonzzz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9e8a1a/32.png) [@pythonzzz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pythonzzz)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2019, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/91 "2019-06-20T15:33:36Z")
Oh, and Titus - Insanity is Genetic ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2019, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/92 "2019-06-20T15:50:00Z")
The episode of _ **Hill Street Blues** _ where the two hoods rape and murder a nun. In the real-life incident on which that episode was based, even the Mafia dropped everything to look for the killers. They were lucky the cops found them first. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2019, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/93 "2019-06-20T15:54:57Z")
Dick van Dyke, “That’s My Boy?” With guest star Greg Morris, got the series’ loudest, longest laugh ever. That was very daring in the year it was shown. Dick: Why didn’t you tell me? Greg: And miss seeing the look on your face? ---
**Author:** ![Death\_of\_Rats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a6a055/32.png) [@Death\_of\_Rats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Death_of_Rats)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2019, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/94 "2019-06-20T16:01:05Z")
\*\*Sesame Street \*\*episode #1839 - This is the episode where the cast helps Big Bird understand the death of Mr. Hooper (after the real life death of actor Will Lee). One of the most poinient epsiodes on a show that has dealt with a lot of real life situations and provides powerful tools for helping pre-school age kids understand death and its permanence. Not as funny or dramatic as some other entries on this list, but one that has stayed with many of the kids who watched it. ---
**Author:** ![Dropo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ce7236/32.png) [@Dropo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dropo)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2019, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/95 "2019-06-20T16:01:38Z")
> [@BrotherCadfael](#): > > (I’ll add my own rolleyes to “Elaan of Troyius” This is literally the first time in fifty years of Trek fandom that I have ever heard that one held out as even one of the best TOS episodes, to say nothing of THE best.) Apologies for the hijack. There are many ways to assess _TOS_ episodes. For me, one of the more important ones is visual effects; in particular, starships maneuvering through space and firing beams. “Elaan of Troyius” has more such action than (almost?) any other _TOS_ episode. Along with miscellaneous other efx, it also has the greatest transporter effect of any episode, a close-up with (what looks like) 4 or 5 glitter passes on Ms. Nuyen as she beams down. Another important _TOS_ consideration is of course space babeage. Ms. Nuyen looks great, has some of the best hair of the series, is awesomely costumed (a series hallmark) and makes a superb “space bitch.” It’s easily the best performance of hers I’ve ever seen…and I’ve seen at least five of her 63 credits listed on IMDB. While Mr. Shatner, et al are in their usual fine form, the stand-out performance in the supporting cast comes from creepy Jay Robinson. It was one of his first credits following a drug bust in the late ‘50s that effectively ended his movie career for several years. Admittedly, he complains a lot in the episode, yet somehow never comes off as too obnoxiously whiny (e.g., imagine Jonathan Harris in the role). Plot-wise, the episode weaves action, romance, humor, mystery and political intrigue in the best _TOS_ manner. There is a palpable sense of dramatic escalation and tension in the climactic space battle. I think one of the more subtle reasons these sequences work as well as they do is the music. I am sure the sample used was reused in other episodes, but it was not as overused as much as certain other music samples associated with the series. It is also unusually well edited/integrated into the episode. The biggest criticism I can make of the episode is that when Kirk says “fire phasers,” the stock shot which follows has the Enterprise firing photon torpedoes (note that this mistake is recreated in the “remastered” version of the episode with CG torpedoes). It is annoying. I hope whoever was responsible for it got a lengthy session in the Agony Booth. Comparison to other alleged “best _TOS_ episode” candidates is revealing. “City on the Edge…” has Joan Collins in soft focus, and perhaps a greater dramatic impact, but it can’t compete in terms of visual efx, action or tension; “Amok Time” has even fewer efx and too much lame-ass Vulcan ritual (and Dr McCoy’s a cheater…I hate cheaters). “…Tribbles” is perhaps funnier, but comes up well short in terms of space action and babeage. I have never understood why this episode is not more highly regarded. I know I have read some criticisms, but I don’t recall what they were. I obviously did not find them as compelling as the case for regarding “Elaan of Troyius” as the “best _TOS_ episode.” ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2019, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/96 "2019-06-20T16:04:45Z")
> [@KneadToKnow](#): > > I see “Pine Barrens” got love previously, but I still feel that “Funhouse” is the best episode of _The Sopranos_. Every time I watch it I marvel at how amazing it is. I was on the edge of my seat watching the episode in which Adrienne got whacked. Holy crap, you could feel the terror she was experiencing as she was dragged from the car! :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2019, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/97 "2019-06-20T16:08:28Z")
> [@Death\_of\_Rats](#): > > \*\*Sesame Street \*\*episode #1839 - This is the episode where the cast helps Big Bird understand the death of Mr. Hooper (after the real life death of actor Will Lee). One of the most poinient epsiodes on a show that has dealt with a lot of real life situations and provides powerful tools for helping pre-school age kids understand death and its permanence. Not as funny or dramatic as some other entries on this list, but one that has stayed with many of the kids who watched it. [The Muppets Celebrate Jim Henson](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Muppets_Celebrate_Jim_Henson) had me in tears. Best episode ever. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2019, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/98 "2019-06-20T16:15:21Z")
> [@Dropo](#): > > Apologies for the hijack. > > There are many ways to assess _TOS_ episodes. For me, one of the more important ones is visual effects; in particular, starships maneuvering through space and firing beams. “Elaan of Troyius” has more such action than (almost?) any other _TOS_ episode. Along with miscellaneous other efx, it also has the greatest transporter effect of any episode, a close-up with (what looks like) 4 or 5 glitter passes on Ms. Nuyen as she beams down. > > Another important _TOS_ consideration is of course space babeage. Ms. Nuyen looks great, has some of the best hair of the series, is awesomely costumed (a series hallmark) and makes a superb “space bitch.” It’s easily the best performance of hers I’ve ever seen…and I’ve seen at least five of her 63 credits listed on IMDB. > > While Mr. Shatner, et al are in their usual fine form, the stand-out performance in the supporting cast comes from creepy Jay Robinson. It was one of his first credits following a drug bust in the late ‘50s that effectively ended his movie career for several years. Admittedly, he complains a lot in the episode, yet somehow never comes off as too obnoxiously whiny (e.g., imagine Jonathan Harris in the role). > > Plot-wise, the episode weaves action, romance, humor, mystery and political intrigue in the best _TOS_ manner. There is a palpable sense of dramatic escalation and tension in the climactic space battle. I think one of the more subtle reasons these sequences work as well as they do is the music. I am sure the sample used was reused in other episodes, but it was not as overused as much as certain other music samples associated with the series. It is also unusually well edited/integrated into the episode. > > The biggest criticism I can make of the episode is that when Kirk says “fire phasers,” the stock shot which follows has the Enterprise firing photon torpedoes (note that this mistake is recreated in the “remastered” version of the episode with CG torpedoes). It is annoying. I hope whoever was responsible for it got a lengthy session in the Agony Booth. > > Comparison to other alleged “best _TOS_ episode” candidates is revealing. “City on the Edge…” has Joan Collins in soft focus, and perhaps a greater dramatic impact, but it can’t compete in terms of visual efx, action or tension; “Amok Time” has even fewer efx and too much lame-ass Vulcan ritual (and Dr McCoy’s a cheater…I hate cheaters). “…Tribbles” is perhaps funnier, but comes up well short in terms of space action and babeage. > > I have never understood why this episode is not more highly regarded. I know I have read some criticisms, but I don’t recall what they were. I obviously did not find them as compelling as the case for regarding “Elaan of Troyius” as the “best _TOS_ episode.” A good analysis and defense of your position. 🆒 While “Elaan” is (IMHO) far from the best episode of the series, I’ll grant you it’s far and away better than the real stinkers of the third season (like “Plato’s Stepchildren”). Just for the sake of argument, phasers \*can \*be fired in short bursts that resemble the launching of photon torpedoes, as in “Balance of Terror” (I think this also remained unchanged in the remastered version). ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2019, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/99 "2019-06-20T16:23:53Z")
> [@teela\_brown](#): > > \ > **The IT Crowd** : _The Work Outing_. Roy at his finest ("I’m disabled!), ably assisted by Moss and Jen.\ Have to agree with this choice. For a show that was funny from beginning to end, this episode stands out as not missing a single beat. Jen sees Roy in a wheelchair, then turns around and there is Moss as a bartender. I’ve since watched a ton of British quiz shows with Richard Ayoade in them (as well as “Travel Man”), and he may be the funniest man alive. 🙂 > [@snfaulkner](#): > > Blue Harvest was great but the robot chicken star wars episodes were way better. Or at least the funny bits were way funnier even if the less funny bits were just meh. “Aluminum Falcon? What the hell’s an “Aluminum Falcon”?!?” > [@Ukulele\_Ike](#): > > I’M A BUSY MAN. I have no time to waste when I want to waste time! Sig line. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2019, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/100 "2019-06-20T16:44:08Z")
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