# What is the single best episode of any TV series that you have ever seen? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 3, 2003, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-single-best-episode-of-any-tv-series-that-you-have-ever-seen/179309 "2003-06-03T04:31:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Silentgoldfish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@Silentgoldfish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silentgoldfish)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2003, 8:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-single-best-episode-of-any-tv-series-that-you-have-ever-seen/179309/101 "2003-06-04T08:10:19Z")
From Futurama “Jurassic Bark.” Fry finds the fossilised remains of his dog and attempts to resurrect it. The ending of the episode got me all chocked up and made my sister cry. He decides not to resurrect the dog since he only had it as a puppy and it probably eventually forgot him and went on to have a great life with a more caring owner. The episode ends with a montage showing the dog spending the rest of its life waiting outside his old pizzeria for him to come back. ---
**Author:** ![Dawne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Dawne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dawne)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2003, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-single-best-episode-of-any-tv-series-that-you-have-ever-seen/179309/102 "2003-06-04T19:22:13Z")
I absolutely loved the episode of Coupling (i don’t know the name) with the woman called Giselle. It was so clever! ---
**Author:** ![MSU\_1978](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac8455/32.png) [@MSU\_1978](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MSU_1978)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2003, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-single-best-episode-of-any-tv-series-that-you-have-ever-seen/179309/103 "2003-06-04T19:50:39Z")
Another vote for Twin Peaks, but not the pilot. I give the nod to the show where we find out Laura’s killer. First a scene where Mrs. Palmer sees the white horse, then later Cooper and the Log Lady are watching the singer (Julee Cruise?), when they are bathed in a white light. The giant replaces the singer and says “It is happening again”. Cut to the Palmer house, the record is skipping on the phonograph and Leland looks in the mirror and BOB looks back! Second place to Are You Being Served?, where Captain Peacock is defending his honor in the kangaroo court about having an affair with Mr. Rumbold’s secretary. “I was checking to see if there was any current in the battery” “I thought the currants were in Grainger’s ears” ---
**Author:** ![Bruce\_Daddy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/85f322/32.png) [@Bruce\_Daddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bruce_Daddy)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2003, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-single-best-episode-of-any-tv-series-that-you-have-ever-seen/179309/104 "2003-06-04T19:53:55Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Turek \* > \*\*That’s “The Inner Light,” which, for those of you playing along at home, was my nominee. 🙂 \*\* Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Loopus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loopus/32/15343_2.png) [@Loopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loopus)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2003, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-single-best-episode-of-any-tv-series-that-you-have-ever-seen/179309/105 "2003-06-04T20:14:59Z")
I don’t know about “best,” but one of my favorite sitcom episodes was the Seinfeld in which George does the opposite of everything he would normally do, and gets a great job and a beautiful girlfriend. Hilarious! “Hi, I’m George… I’m unemployed and I live with my parents.” I also really liked the last episode of Cheers. “We’re closed.” ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2003, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-single-best-episode-of-any-tv-series-that-you-have-ever-seen/179309/106 "2003-06-04T21:17:33Z")
Shows that I’ve wanted to rewind and watch them again because they were so good: The premiere of “Frasier.” It had me in stitches. And I was all ready to hate it because I didn’t think the character Frasier could carry his own show. “Employee of the Month” in Season 3 of “Sopranos” where Jennifer is raped. The ending went somewhere completely different than I thought it would. Great story. “I Only Have Eyes For You” of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. What a creative way to reunite, if only temporarily, the long lost lovers. ::sigh:: The “Donny” episode of Just Shoot Me was hysterical. Charlie and Kirsten’s wedding in “Party of Five” had me in tears. And finally, the episode of Andy Griffith where Andy is ashamed of Opie for not giving money to charity and it turns out Opie had literally given the little girl the coat off his back. Awwwww, someone give me a hankie! ---
**Author:** ![capacitor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e47774/32.png) [@capacitor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/capacitor)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2003, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-single-best-episode-of-any-tv-series-that-you-have-ever-seen/179309/107 "2003-06-04T21:40:53Z")
_Married with Children_: the three part episode where Kelly Bundy gets her TV Show, and inadvertently showed real Grrrl Power years before it became a fad, before producers forced her to tone the show content waaaaaaaaaay down. “Milk!” Milk??? What happened to “Sex?” It was the climax of a real turnaround of Kelly’s character. _The Facts of Life_: the episode where Jo rudely brushed aside would-be suitors: “Keep walking”. _Twilight Zone_: A Game of Pool. Featuring Jack Klugman as the pool shark who wanted to be better than the late all-time champ played by Johnathan Winters. The dead guy came back and played him for his soul. _Buffy_: Hush. Risky premise that worked. Without it, there would be no musical. _Xena_: A Day in the Life. _Star Trek:TNG_: The Best of Both Worlds. Picard kidnapped and assimilated by the Borg. Riker is forced to fire on the ship Picard is on. Classic _Trek_: The Trouble With Tribbles. Best funny show in a drama series ever. ---
**Author:** ![shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ab992/32.png) [@shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shrew)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2003, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-single-best-episode-of-any-tv-series-that-you-have-ever-seen/179309/108 "2003-06-04T22:32:06Z")
Favourite series of all time: Northern Exposure. Favourite single episode: Joel and Maggie’s epic journey that leads to Joel returning to New York…or maybe the episode where Chris (John Corbett) flings a cow. Tough choice. ---
**Author:** ![shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ab992/32.png) [@shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shrew)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2003, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-single-best-episode-of-any-tv-series-that-you-have-ever-seen/179309/109 "2003-06-04T22:37:54Z")
Whoops, make that “flings a piano”. He was going to fling a cow, but it had already been done. D’oh. ---
**Author:** ![MsWhatsit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eb8c5e/32.png) [@MsWhatsit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsWhatsit)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2003, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-single-best-episode-of-any-tv-series-that-you-have-ever-seen/179309/110 "2003-06-04T22:45:18Z")
The _West Wing_ where Mrs. Landingham died, and the subsequent episode (I believe “Two Cathedrals”) that someone already mentioned. I had no idea it was coming, and it really blindsided me. I burst into tears while watching the show, which has never happened before or since. “Bill Moves On” from _NewsRadio_ was another great episode, and very moving in a non-schmaltzy way. That episode of _Futurama_ with the dog was unbelievably sad, and the rest of the episode had been typically light-hearted and jokey, so the ending came out of nowhere. I wouldn’t rank it as one of the best episodes of a TV show I’ve ever seen, but it was definitely memorable and depressing. ---
**Author:** ![Optihut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/edb3f5/32.png) [@Optihut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Optihut)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2003, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-single-best-episode-of-any-tv-series-that-you-have-ever-seen/179309/111 "2003-06-04T22:57:40Z")
“Seinfeld” - “The Soup Nazi” “Next Generation” - “Tapestry” “Angel” - “Lullaby” “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” - “Lover’s Walk” “Transformers” - “The Return of Optimus Prime” ---
**Author:** ![Ryan\_Liam](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ryan_liam/32/3965_2.png) [@Ryan\_Liam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ryan_Liam)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2003, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-single-best-episode-of-any-tv-series-that-you-have-ever-seen/179309/112 "2003-06-04T23:01:58Z")
Moments of transistion on Babylon 5 ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2003, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-single-best-episode-of-any-tv-series-that-you-have-ever-seen/179309/113 "2003-06-04T23:10:07Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Nichol\_storm \* > Several years back, I’d occasionally watch _Transformers: Beast Wars_ before leaving for school, and my absolute favorite episode was the one where the evil immortal robot (I think his name was Rampage) adopts a little malformed robot. He protects and guides his new friend, and genuinely cares for it. Unfortunately, the Maximals, who are good robots, assume Rampage is trying to hurt or abuse the little malformed robot, and try to “rescue” him. Rampage and the Maximals get into a huge fight, which only ends when the little malformed robot dies to stop them from killing each other. At the end Rampage is holding the charred remains of the only being that ever loved him. For the record, the episode is called “Transmutate.” You also forgot the subplot where the Maximals argue with each other about whether it’s better to let Transmutate live as a malformed being or not – you don’t usually see such morality debates in American “kiddie” shows… ---
**Author:** ![Agrippina](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8797f3/32.png) [@Agrippina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Agrippina)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2003, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-single-best-episode-of-any-tv-series-that-you-have-ever-seen/179309/114 "2003-06-05T00:46:51Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by MsWhatsit \* > \*\*That episode of _Futurama_ with the dog was unbelievably sad, and the rest of the episode had been typically light-hearted and jokey, so the ending came out of nowhere. I wouldn’t rank it as one of the best episodes of a TV show I’ve ever seen, but it was definitely memorable and depressing. \*\* Another touching episode is the one about Fry and his brother, Yancy. Throughout most of their early lives, Yancy had copied Phillip. Phillip finds out that another Phillip Fry was the first to walk on Mars and he thinks that it was his brother who stole his name. They go to the grave of the “first Martian” and it’s revealed that Phillip Fry, who walked on Mars, is really Yancy’s son, named after his missing uncle. The last shot shows Fry staring at his nephew’s statue with the Simple Mind’s song, “Don’t You Forget About Me” playing. Another great episode was when the head of Richard M. Nixon wins as President of the World. “And I’ll feed childrens’ organs to zoo animals!” ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2003, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-single-best-episode-of-any-tv-series-that-you-have-ever-seen/179309/115 "2003-06-05T01:10:11Z")
“Oh my God, they’re turkeys!” WKRP: We miss you. ---
**Author:** ![missbunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/76d3ee/32.png) [@missbunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missbunny)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2003, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-single-best-episode-of-any-tv-series-that-you-have-ever-seen/179309/116 "2003-06-05T03:03:26Z")
Wow, lots of good memories in this thread! Some of my nominees have already been mentioned and some haven’t: “The Inner Light” from ST:TNG “Ivan” from Magnum: PI Jose Chung’s _From Outer Space_ from The X-Files Clyde Bruckman’s Final Repose from The X-Files The Marriage of Heaven and Hell (first-season first-story-arc finale) from Wiseguy. Actually, pretty much every episode from the first season. Amazing writing and acting. The Homicide episode with Vincent D’Onofrio Big Man on Mulberry Street from Moonlighting “The Opposite” episode from Seinfeld “Out Where the Buses Don’t Run” from Miami Vice. ---
**Author:** ![Quack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e99b99/32.png) [@Quack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quack)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2003, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-single-best-episode-of-any-tv-series-that-you-have-ever-seen/179309/117 "2003-06-05T03:46:52Z")
“The Quality of Mercy at 29K” from _Sports Night_. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Goofballz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e4f/32.png) [@Mr.Goofballz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Goofballz)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2003, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-single-best-episode-of-any-tv-series-that-you-have-ever-seen/179309/118 "2003-06-05T03:55:57Z")
Due South - Victoria’s Secret A woman Fraser had arrested comes back for revenge. The most touching story of love and betrayal I have see on TV. ---
**Author:** ![Zenster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/cdc98d/32.png) [@Zenster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zenster)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2003, 7:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-single-best-episode-of-any-tv-series-that-you-have-ever-seen/179309/119 "2003-06-05T07:40:47Z")
**Demon With a Glass Hand** _ **THE OUTER LIMITS** _ By: **Harlan Ellison** Starring: **Robert Culp** One of the finest made-for-television science fiction works ever produced. Set in Los Angeles’ fantastic art deco Bailey Building, the suspense is terrific and the villains all too credible. Decades after it was made, this one episode still stands out as a masterwork of direction, effects and camera work. I’ve not read through the entire thread to see if this one was mentioned already. Even if it has been noted before, it merits being posted again. Back in the early 1960’s, **The Outer Limits** had a budget of $100,000 per episode, an equivalent of well over one million dollars in today’s money. Some of the plots were schlocky, but the overall tenor of the series was rivaled only by **The Twilight Zone** for total quality. ---
**Author:** ![Jello](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f05b48/32.png) [@Jello](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jello)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2003, 12:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-single-best-episode-of-any-tv-series-that-you-have-ever-seen/179309/120 "2003-06-05T12:01:02Z")
**The West Wing** : “The Stackhouse Filibuster.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-single-best-episode-of-any-tv-series-that-you-have-ever-seen/179309.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-single-best-episode-of-any-tv-series-that-you-have-ever-seen/179309.md?page=7)