# 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:** 7
**Author:** ![Snake\_Plissken\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bc79bd/32.png) [@Snake\_Plissken\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snake_Plissken_1)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2019, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/121 "2019-06-21T17:06:04Z")
Why ---
**Author:** ![songsearch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b77776/32.png) [@songsearch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/songsearch)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2019, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/122 "2019-06-21T17:33:06Z")
> [@TonySinclair](#): > > It’s quite dated now, but at the time, _City on the Edge of Forever_ (Star Trek TOS) was amazing. Exactly what I was thinkin’ ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2019, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/123 "2019-06-21T18:26:51Z")
> [@GreysonCarlisle](#): > > Twin Peaks episode 14 where [Leland dances with his niece](https://youtu.be/5TkHDAygVbs?t=77). “It is happening again.” I could have added **Episode 8** from the new season. A truly great cinematic experience and an all-time classic episode of TV. Even if you did not watch the rest of the new season, you should check that one out. “Got a light?” ---
**Author:** ![zimaane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a3d4f5/32.png) [@zimaane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zimaane)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2019, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/124 "2019-06-21T18:45:59Z")
> [@TonySinclair](#): > > It’s quite dated now, but at the time, _City on the Edge of Forever_ (Star Trek TOS) was amazing. I still think it’s one of the best. I’d add: The Return of the Archons - an alien world that is truly _alien_ Mirror, Mirror - an alternative universe where the Enterprise is evil, even Mr. Spock ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2019, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/125 "2019-06-21T19:04:18Z")
I know “Jurassic Bark” gets a lot of love, but personally my picks for _Futurama_ are “The Sting” and “The Devil’s Hands are Idle Playthings”. ---
**Author:** ![GreysonCarlisle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a87d85/32.png) [@GreysonCarlisle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreysonCarlisle)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2019, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/126 "2019-06-21T19:29:28Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > I could have added **Episode 8** from the new season. A truly great cinematic experience and an all-time classic episode of TV. Even if you did not watch the rest of the new season, you should check that one out. > > “Got a light?” That episode was a mind-blower. I’d add Scrubs season 3 episode 14, _My Screw Up_, to the list. [_Where do you think we are?_](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znd_5VO81hw) ---
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2019, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/127 "2019-06-21T19:42:45Z")
Greatest is a tough one, especially given how so many shows these days are approaching filmic quality, but the one that has stuck with me more than any other is [ST:TNG S6E14 “Tapestry”](https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS6E14Tapestry). There is such a valuable lesson here – one that I never really did learn. If I had to choose one Breaking Bad Episode, it would be [S2E12 “Phoenix”](https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Recap/BreakingBadS2E12Phoenix). After that, Walter White was essentially irredeemable. ETA: How could I forget? M_A_S\*H: “Tuttle”. ---
**Author:** ![Royal\_Nonesutch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ecb155/32.png) [@Royal\_Nonesutch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Royal_Nonesutch)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2019, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/128 "2019-06-21T20:09:06Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > It was at the end of the second season. When she came back at the beginning of the third, she had hooked up with Frasier, who was treating her after she’d had a breakdown. It looks like I was totally off base on that one. Thanks for the Straight Dope. There are only 2 other specific Cheers episodes that I can remember, both kind of serious for a Sit-Com, one was when Coach’s daughter confronted her Dad, telling him that she was unhappy and thought she was ugly, and Coach told her she was beautiful, and that she looked just like her Mother (actually very poignant, I thought) and the other was when Sam, who was of course a recovering alcoholic, had the bottlecap for the last bottle of beer he ever drank, that he kept as a kind of talisman to him, reminding him of how much that alcohol had messed up his life, and then he somehow lost the cap, and was tempted to fall off the wagon, but he kept the faith, grabbed a random cap out of the garbage, and said, (to himself) “Oh, there it is…” and closed up the bar for the night, sobriety in tact. ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2019, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/129 "2019-06-21T20:13:20Z")
> [@GreysonCarlisle](#): > > I’d add Scrubs season 3 episode 14, _My Screw Up_, to the list. [_Where do you think we are?_](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znd_5VO81hw) I was going to pick season 5 episode 20, “[My Lunch](https://youtu.be/RzDoqGGs1IM)”. ---
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2019, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/130 "2019-06-21T20:40:02Z")
> [@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. You had to go there, didn’t you? Seriously, this is the perfect example of how to communicate difficult subject matter to kids. They hit it out of the park with this one. On less profound notes, I’ll add: Columbo: “A Case of Immunity” Columbo: “The Conspirators” Blackadder: “Goodbyeee” (it is my sig line, after all) It is difficult to single out one episode of The Prisoner. “The Chimes of Big Ben” was the first one I ever saw, so I’ll go with that. And “Arrival”. **aurora maire** , thank you for reminding me of “Far Beyond the Stars”. Excellent. ---
**Author:** ![GreysonCarlisle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a87d85/32.png) [@GreysonCarlisle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreysonCarlisle)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2019, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/131 "2019-06-21T20:42:29Z")
> [@WildaBeast](#): > > I was going to pick season 5 episode 20, “[My Lunch](https://youtu.be/RzDoqGGs1IM)”. Also excellent! I might add the two-parter from _House_, [House’s Head](https://youtu.be/QOJfIb7U4lY?t=102) and [Wilson’s Heart](https://youtu.be/-cNo5NlxP_I?t=105), to the list, but the best episode has already been mentioned: > [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](#): > > _House_: “Three Stories” > > House takes over a diagnostics class for a day and presents the class with three case studies of leg pain. As House tells his story and the class gradually fills up with listeners, the class learns a lot about how to be better doctors, and Chase, Foreman and Cameron learn some important details of House’s past. ---
**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 21, 2019, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/132 "2019-06-21T21:39:55Z")
> [@Royal\_Nonesutch](#): > > Coach’s daughter confronted her Dad, telling him that she was unhappy and thought she was ugly, and Coach told her she was beautiful, and that she looked just like her Mother (actually very poignant, I thought). He had objected to the creep she planned to marry out of desperation. She then decided to end the engagement because she wanted a man as good as her father. My favorite episode too, because of that scene. It was beautifully written and wonderfully acted. ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2019, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/133 "2019-06-21T21:51:41Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Frank’s Place- Where’s Ed I love that whole series, but this episode FREAKED my niece out. She was about 6 or 7. ---
**Author:** ![E-DUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/e-dub/32/403_2.png) [@E-DUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-DUB)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2019, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/134 "2019-06-21T23:14:23Z")
Twilight Zone (Eightie’s edition)-“Paladin of the Lost Hour” Harlan Ellison story-Danny Kaye’s penultimate performance, solid second lead in Glynn Turman. ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2019, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/135 "2019-06-21T23:56:31Z")
> [@GreysonCarlisle](#): > > I’d add Scrubs season 3 episode 14, _My Screw Up_, to the list. [_Where do you think we are?_](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znd_5VO81hw) > [@WildaBeast](#): > > I was going to pick season 5 episode 20, “[My Lunch](https://youtu.be/RzDoqGGs1IM)”. Simply outstanding. So many great Scrubs episodes, but those two are among the best. Before seeing either of these posts, if someone asked me for the best Scrubs episode I would have said Cox’s brother (My Screw Up), but after remembering My Lunch I think that’s the winner. Absolutely devastating. ---
**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 21, 2019, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/136 "2019-06-21T23:58:15Z")
> [@StusBlues](#): > > \ ETA: How could I forget? M_A_S\*H: “Tuttle”. “Yankee Doodle Doctor,” and, “The Longjohn Flap,” give, “Tuttle,” a run for the money. ---
**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 22, 2019, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/137 "2019-06-22T01:15:10Z")
> [@carrps](#): > > I love that whole series, but this episode FREAKED my niece out. She was about 6 or 7. Laughter usually needs company. That is one of the few episodes of tv I remember laughing historically at alone in an empty room. The beauty of that show is how the tone shifted from episode to episode. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Peyote\_Coyote](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/5f8ce5/32.png) [@The\_Peyote\_Coyote](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Peyote_Coyote)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2019, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/138 "2019-06-22T03:17:16Z")
Thought of another one. Futurama: “Hell is Other Robots,” though there are a lot of great Futurama episodes. Tony Sinclair, I saw it last weekend, and I think “The City on the Edge of Forever” is still a first-rate piece of work. It’s a pity it didn’t use the line that James Blish used in his adaptation: “Always remember, Jim, no other woman was really offered the universe for love.” ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2019, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/139 "2019-06-22T05:12:03Z")
**House** , “Three Stories.” **The Big Bang Theory** , “The Adhesive Duck Deficiency” and “The Bath Item Gift Hypothesis” **Frasier** , “Flour Child” **Doctor Who** , “Blink” or “Midnight” (Tenth Doctor), “Hell Bent” or “The Zygon Inversion” (Twelfth Doctor) **Lucifer** , “A Priest Walks Into a Bar” ---
**Author:** ![K364](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k364/32/5_2.png) [@K364](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/K364)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2019, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764/140 "2019-06-22T06:15:34Z")
Frasier: An Affair To Forget [https://youtu.be/9K6SVkJn6Gk](https://youtu.be/9K6SVkJn6Gk) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-episodes-of-television-ever/835764.md?page=8)