# Shows that were great from the first episode... and those that weren't **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** tv-shows-scripted\ **Created:** [May 2, 2021, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-that-were-great-from-the-first-episode-and-those-that-werent/941250 "2021-05-02T22:46:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![DavidNRockies](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidnrockies/32/6279_2.png) [@DavidNRockies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DavidNRockies)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2021, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-that-were-great-from-the-first-episode-and-those-that-werent/941250/21 "2021-05-03T12:40:37Z")
Any time I re-watch the pilot of “West Wing,” I realize how incredibly well-written it was. All of the early seasons, in fact. Sharp, punchy, high-minded, subtle, fast-moving, and fresh. And while some shows seem to want/need to tweak the essence of the main characters to help them find their equilibrium, it feels like “West Wing” S1:E1 was WYSYSIG for the next few years. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2021, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-that-were-great-from-the-first-episode-and-those-that-werent/941250/22 "2021-05-03T13:04:18Z")
The first episode of The Wire was not my favourite, but it didn’t take too many more episodes to get sucked into the story. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2021, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-that-were-great-from-the-first-episode-and-those-that-werent/941250/23 "2021-05-03T13:13:11Z")
**Twin Peaks** was off the charts great from the pilot onward. ---
**Author:** ![Smid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/838e76/32.png) [@Smid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smid)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2021, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-that-were-great-from-the-first-episode-and-those-that-werent/941250/24 "2021-05-03T13:13:15Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > Firefly was great from the first episode. Star Trek TNG was not. This one is arguable, because the broadcast first episode was not the real first episode, and fox rearranged it so it made absolutely no sense to anyone, starting in effect a few episodes in. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2021, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-that-were-great-from-the-first-episode-and-those-that-werent/941250/25 "2021-05-03T13:36:24Z")
> [@EinsteinsHund](#): > > The first season of the Simpsons was interesting, but kind of meh (in hindsight of what was to follow anyway). I don’t have the exact time line down anymore, but I seem to remember that the second season got better, but that the series only really took off in the third season. I remember feeling sort of the same about Futurama. The first couple of episodes didn’t do much for me. I was amused but, if it wasn’t on right after the Simpsons, I probably wouldn’t have turned on the TV for it. After that, though, it surpassed the Simpsons in shows I was looking forward to. Didn’t take a couple seasons to get there though (and I agree that Peak Simpsons starts around Season 3+) ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2021, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-that-were-great-from-the-first-episode-and-those-that-werent/941250/26 "2021-05-03T13:41:07Z")
**The Good Place** was awesome from the start, and pretty much held up through the entire run. **Community** took about half a season, but IIRC that was deliberate on the part of Dan Harmon - he pitched it to the network as a fairly standard sit-com and then slowly worked his magic. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2021, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-that-were-great-from-the-first-episode-and-those-that-werent/941250/27 "2021-05-03T14:10:06Z")
**Rick & Morty** was extremely high quality from the beginning. **Batman: the Animated Series** ditto. **Dead Like Me** personally I didn’t care for it for at least 3 episodes. Normally that wouldn’t be a problem, but since it got cancelled after only two seasons that’s over 10% of the entire show. I _still_ don’t like those first few episodes. ---
**Author:** ![SurrenderDorothy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/surrenderdorothy/32/1221_2.png) [@SurrenderDorothy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SurrenderDorothy)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2021, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-that-were-great-from-the-first-episode-and-those-that-werent/941250/28 "2021-05-03T18:57:01Z")
> [@zbuzz](#): > > Heroes is one of those potato chips shows where you can’t stop at just one episode, you have to keep going. Unfortunately, that only applies to the first season. Once you get into season 2 you’re like what is this I don’t even. Agree 100%. I remember how great it was that first season. Have you re-watched it? How does it hold up now that every third show on Netflix and what feels like 85% of all current movies are superhero-related? ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2021, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-that-were-great-from-the-first-episode-and-those-that-werent/941250/29 "2021-05-03T19:34:58Z")
**Lost** **Taboo** **Rick & Morty** All great from the first moment. My current addiction is **Misfits** , but the first episode has cheesy CGI and the character setup and dialogue is a bit clumsy. Well worth sticking with it though. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2021, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-that-were-great-from-the-first-episode-and-those-that-werent/941250/30 "2021-05-03T19:38:22Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > **Twin Peaks** was off the charts great from the pilot onward. **Twin Peaks: The Return** is the exact, evil opposite. Utter crap from the first second ---
**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:** [May 3, 2021, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-that-were-great-from-the-first-episode-and-those-that-werent/941250/31 "2021-05-03T19:43:01Z")
The aforementioned _Breaking Bad_ had me hooked from the first episode, as did _The Americans_. _Orange Is the New Black_ and _Watchmen_ I thought were “meh” after the first episode, but managed to pull me in after a few more episodes. I thought _Disenchantment_ was just ok for about the first six episodes, but I thought it got better around the second half of season one (although from past threads I know there are some here who feel the opposite). ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2021, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-that-were-great-from-the-first-episode-and-those-that-werent/941250/32 "2021-05-03T19:44:56Z")
Queer as Folk, the American version, was amazing from the very first epsilon, in particular the start of the Brian/Justin plot. An oldie but still a goodie, Soap definitely also started off hilarious. Will and Grace definitely stumbled out of the gate and took a while to get going. I happen to like Buffy season one, admittedly there are some clunkers in there, but each season has a few stinkers. ---
**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:** [May 3, 2021, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-that-were-great-from-the-first-episode-and-those-that-werent/941250/33 "2021-05-03T20:19:50Z")
**Lucifer** was awesome from episode 1. There were a few klunker episodes, but not many, and even those were fun if you’re a fan. **The Good Place** was wonderful from beginning to end. I just watched the first episode of **The Goldbergs** last night, and I wasn’t impressed. ---
**Author:** ![gonzoron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a6a055/32.png) [@gonzoron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzoron)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2021, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-that-were-great-from-the-first-episode-and-those-that-werent/941250/34 "2021-05-03T20:53:30Z")
> [@SurrenderDorothy](#): > > My contribution, to get the thread started, is Orphan Black. Funny, I came into the thread to post this one, and there it was in the OP. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![River\_Hippie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/river_hippie/32/26_2.png) [@River\_Hippie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/River_Hippie)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2021, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-that-were-great-from-the-first-episode-and-those-that-werent/941250/35 "2021-05-03T21:00:58Z")
**Justified** hooked me not just in the first episode but in the first scene. Overall not on my list of the _best of the best_ shows but pretty solid. ---
**Author:** ![TheCuse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thecuse/32/2854_2.png) [@TheCuse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheCuse)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2021, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-that-were-great-from-the-first-episode-and-those-that-werent/941250/36 "2021-05-03T21:14:04Z")
I think “Leverage” was great from day one. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2021, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-that-were-great-from-the-first-episode-and-those-that-werent/941250/37 "2021-05-03T21:36:56Z")
The British version of _Coupling_ was great from the beginning. Other UK shows that started with a bang were _Misfits, Crazyhead_ and _Green Wing_ ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2021, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-that-were-great-from-the-first-episode-and-those-that-werent/941250/38 "2021-05-03T21:55:17Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > **The Good Place** was awesome from the start, and pretty much held up through the entire run. > > **Community** took about half a season, I completely agree with The Good Place. The only downer was as the show was winding down, but that’s because it was deliberately winding down, they planned (in advance) to end it so they had time to wrap up the story lines. However, I disagree with Community. It’s one of my go to ‘what should I watch next’ shows. Specifically because it hits the ground running and doesn’t veer too much from it’s initial heading. I usually feel confidant telling people that if they don’t like the first episode, they’re not going to enjoy the show much, because it’s pretty much that…except more (and more meta). The two that come to mind for me are: -Better Off Ted. I usually refer to it as “Arrested Development Lite”, and not just because of Portia De Rossi. It has a similar style of comedy but it’s much more accessible, if that makes sense. -Six Feet Under. Another one that hit the ground running. For those that don’t remember all the way back to the first episode, it was when Nate Sr gets killed, Nate Jr comes back and Claire just happened to try meth for the first time before hearing about this and now has to spend the rest of the day hanging out with her family while tweaking. Wait, one more… -Santa Clarita Diet. Timothy Olyphant married to the recently undead Drew Barrymore who struggles to find ways to eat human flesh without attracting too much attention. Really fucking funny show (and a ton of great actors throughout the series). ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2021, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-that-were-great-from-the-first-episode-and-those-that-werent/941250/39 "2021-05-03T22:57:22Z")
I’m going to say that the SciFi (Pre-syfy) original Farscape was amazing from the first episode. It’s not to say that season 1 didn’t have stumbles, or that _every_ episode was amazing, but overall I was happy from beginning to end. Even when there were characters I disliked (I’m looking at you Noranti and Sikozu) I enjoyed watching almost every episode. And for certain values of _great_ I found that Invisible Man (I-Man) from SciFi was also amazing fun from the first episode. It’s premise wasn’t amazing, and many of the episodes were flat out goofy, but the cast/character interaction made it a personal favorite of mine. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-that-were-great-from-the-first-episode-and-those-that-werent/941250/40 "2021-05-04T00:57:36Z")
> [@SurrenderDorothy](#): > > My contribution, to get the thread started, is Orphan Black. > [@River\_Hippie](#): > > **Justified** hooked me not just in the first episode but in the first scene. When this thread winds down, maybe it’ll be time for a thread titled “ **Shows that hooked me in the first scene**.” For me, that was Orphan Black, Lupin, Altered Carbon, Arrested Development, Portlandia, Alias, Chuck, and Community. Still love them all, and am rewatching some of the older series. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-that-were-great-from-the-first-episode-and-those-that-werent/941250.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-that-were-great-from-the-first-episode-and-those-that-werent/941250.md?page=3)