Be a part of the community.
It's free, join today!
Heh, I was going to post that episode next. I have a pretty strong stomach, but that rape scene is horrific, right there with Tracee's beating death in "Whoever Did This".
I may take this to its own thread, but I have a question that relates. Out of these three show, which should I watch first: Breaking Bad, Deadwood, or Justified. I put these three on the list because I own all three, but, outside of the pilot for Justified, have not watched a single episode. Obviously, Justified and Breaking Bad are still in progress, but I wondered if that should really impact the decision.
I've also never seen The Wire or (all of) The Sopranos, but since those are less readily available to me, I figured I should start with these.
Many people take a slice of pizza and wait to see what everyone else in the room does. Some folks can't help themselves and load up.
Wait, what?
I'm not saying that they are inferior because they are animated, just that as good as "Heart of Ice" is, I couldn't honestly say that it is a superior episode of dramatic television to any single hour of The Wire, or Breaking Bad or Deadwood. And then there's 50 each of BSG and The Shield and The Sopranos and Buffy I would put ahead of it, and 20 Justifieds and Losts and Homicides and West Wings and Games of Thrones and Mad Mens, to say nothing of the scattered greatness from all kinds of other, less consistent shows. Taking the thread topic literally, I wouldn't put "Heart of Ice" anywhere near the top 100.
On the one hand, it would be sort of pointless to make a list that was just every episode of The Wire and I see the point of including animation at least nominally in the name of diversity. On the other, an episode could be in the top 1% of the best drama ever aired on television, and still be 950 places from belonging on this list. I don't mean to single you (or animated TV) out, since I have nothing against either, and I don't think half of the episodes named belong anywhere near such a list. And I don't want to hector anyone about something as subjective as personal taste, but a thread like this is supposed to at least aspire to some sort of objectivity and it becomes hard to suppress incredulity when I see three episodes each of Bablyon 5 and Star Trek TNG to a single Deadwood.
Honestly, hadn't seen the other Babylon 5 nominations. I'll stump for mine though, I think it deserves inclusion subjectively.
Some shows have obvious examples (like Magnum, PI...which is by no means as good a show as Deadwood). When they peak, it is pretty obvious. As I mentioned with Justified, when shows have sustained runs of greatness, it is hard to parse out specific episodes which make a #100 list. I've added two shows to this thread, neither from my favorite shows of all time, but both of which I felt merited inclusion. While I would stack "Love's Labor Lost" against any single hour of drama (it was my first thought when I saw the thread title, and I tired of ER after the second or third season), "Limbo" (my Magnum addition) is an episode absolutely relying on the seven seasons before it. It is not something that could compete with penultimate Wire episodes or Deadwood on a weekly basis.
This is a great list, and variety plays a part. But I think if we racked and stacked the list at the end, it wouldn't be anything near the order it has now. I get excited when someone posts one of my favorite episodes (Like Buffy S2's "Passion" above).
Part of the fun.
I may take this to its own thread, but I have a question that relates. Out of these three show, which should I watch first: Breaking Bad, Deadwood, or Justified. I put these three on the list because I own all three, but, outside of the pilot for Justified, have not watched a single episode. Obviously, Justified and Breaking Bad are still in progress, but I wondered if that should really impact the decision.
I've also never seen The Wire or (all of) The Sopranos, but since those are less readily available to me, I figured I should start with these.
All 5 shows you mentioned are great, with Justified being just a notch below the other 4. I'd put the other 4 and Mad Men as the 5 best dramas ever.
I wonder if some it comes down to how the shows we pick were originally consumed. For example, I devoured The Wire and Breaking Bad on DVD. So it didn't feel like I was watching individual episodes, but more like one long narrative, since I didn't have a week to let what I'd just seen settle in, and to wait for the next dose. Therefore, a single outstanding episode is harder for me to bring to mind than for something I watched as it aired, since in that case, the episodes were more singular experiences.
Heh, I was going to post that episode next. I have a pretty strong stomach, but that rape scene is horrific, right there with Tracee's beating death in "Whoever Did This".
That was from "University," but yeah, another fucking harsh episode, and it literally aired TWO episodes after "Employee of the Month." Season 3 is arguably the best Sopranos season....AND one of its most disturbing.
80. Star Trek TNG: "Best of Both Worlds" Part 1
Arguably more cinematic than any of the actual TNG based movies that came out, this is the first time a season finale made me wish I could sleep the summer off and wake up to watch part 2. The Borg has never been more scary than in this episode.
Remember this?
Me (10 seconds after it aired): "FUUUUUCK YOUUUUU SHOW"
I wonder if some it comes down to how the shows we pick were originally consumed. For example, I devoured The Wire and Breaking Bad on DVD. So it didn't feel like I was watching individual episodes, but more like one long narrative, since I didn't have a week to let what I'd just seen settle in, and to wait for the next dose. Therefore, a single outstanding episode is harder for me to bring to mind than for something I watched as it aired, since in that case, the episodes were more singular experiences.
I do think that this statement probably has some merit, though I would add I think that many of these shows are harder to pick out singular episodes because the creators design them as more singular narrative. As I mentioned up above, I haven't seen Breaking Bad or The Wire, but I have watched enough of The Sopranos to see that a creator like David Chase, while still creating excellent singular episodes, is more concerned with creating a master narrative. This seems to both be part of a new trend in television storytelling, and also a byproduct of the cable television model. Lost, Buffy, and Angel were all lauded for their storytelling, but they were still tied to the yoke of network television. As such, they necessarily have some "filler" episodes that can range from spectacular (Angel's "Smile Time") to atrocious (Buffy's "Go Fish"), but all fill the role of padding out the episode count. Individual episodes are easier to pick out because the shows are designed around individual episodes.
Wait, what?
Just trying to make an observation about the internet and how it facilitates lack of impulse control.
With threads like this, everyone has different styles, and come into it thinking it will be a race to the finish or gentlemanly roundtable or bar fight or whatever they usually do online.
I may take this to its own thread, but I have a question that relates. Out of these three show, which should I watch first: Breaking Bad, Deadwood, or Justified. I put these three on the list because I own all three, but, outside of the pilot for Justified, have not watched a single episode. Obviously, Justified and Breaking Bad are still in progress, but I wondered if that should really impact the decision.
I've also never seen The Wire or (all of) The Sopranos, but since those are less readily available to me, I figured I should start with these.
You cannot go wrong, but I would say that Justified is the "easiest" of the 3 to watch. It's great drama but frequently fun in a way the others aren't. However, I think watching Olyphant as Raylan for a few seasons might make it more difficult to see exactly what they are doing with Bullock in Deadwood.
Breaking Bad is probably the darkest, most consistently intense television experience there has ever been, so binging on it on DVD (while tempting, as it is incredibly gripping from one episode to the next) could become exhausting and drain some power from the later episodes. To that end, I'd recommend taking breaks between seasons for pallette cleansers. So if you own them all, I'd go BB 1-2-->Deadwood--> BB 3 --> Justified --> BB 4
I wonder if some it comes down to how the shows we pick were originally consumed. For example, I devoured The Wire and Breaking Bad on DVD. So it didn't feel like I was watching individual episodes, but more like one long narrative, since I didn't have a week to let what I'd just seen settle in, and to wait for the next dose. Therefore, a single outstanding episode is harder for me to bring to mind than for something I watched as it aired, since in that case, the episodes were more singular experiences.
I think that's definitely a big part of it, and with heavily-serialized shows as opposed to more episodic ones as well. I think heavy serialization makes for a better experience, but it makes it harder to pick out standout episode.
81. Star Trek "City On The Edge Of Forever" S01E28 (1967)
Harlan Ellison. No further description necessary.
"See that slow moving glimmer? That's my ship. I'm gonna bang you on it later"
The key moment:
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
Employee of the Month chills me. Easily the most disturbed I've ever been by a TV show.
Employee of the Month chills me. Easily the most disturbed I've ever been by a TV show.
What makes it even more chilling is that you spend the whole episode just begging Melfi to set Tony loose on that guy....and then you're relieved when she doesn't. It really highlights how Melfi is literally the one character on the show with a moral compass.
83. Mad Men- S-01, Ep-13, The Wheel
Wraps up one of the greatest seasons of TV with two of the strongest moments of the season.
This: Don makes a perfect pitch that connects to everyone, including himself, emotionally.
Followed by this: We realize why the episode is titled The Wheel, instead of The Carousel. Don's family is slipping away, and he's not going to be able to stop it. For all the beauty of the pitch, the irony of the fantasy it portrayed, juxtaposed with Don's reality is a bitter pill indeed. Plus, a perfect use of Dylan.
"There is the rare occasion when the public can be engaged on a level beyond flash." Yes, it's called Mad Men.
85. The Prisoner "A, B, & C" (BBC, 1967)
In a brazen move, a desperate Number 2 attempts to force Number 6's secrets from his mind by drugging him & observing his dreams in a dangerous three step maneuver "A, B, & C".
The key moment:
When Number 6, asleep & partially drugged, turns the tables on a startled Number 2. The moments that follow are mesmerizing & chilling, to say the least.
Duplicate. Nevermind.
28. Magnum p.i. Season 3 episode 2: Did You See the Sunrise?
This defined so much of what Magnum was all about; the intense relationship between Magnum, TC and Rick, the respect for veterans of Viet Nam, the show's ability to veer from excellent light character moments to some very heavy moments of violence and emotional upheaval, the excellent guest stars. Probably the first popular media to deal even-handedly and personally with Viet Nam veterans, as opposed to reducing them to some ham-fisted geo-political talking point or object lesson, this was the first episode of network tv I ever saw that matched cinema for sheer emotional impact. The final scene is defining for both the show and for Selleck, who has never been better.
I always find it interesting topair this episode with Unfinished Business, that great season 8 episode which desrves to be on this list. Magnum struggles with killing the man who took what was most special to him, knowing it will ruin an MIA exchange. Powerful stuff, knowing Magnum did have it in him to shoot an unarmed, helpless man.
86. The New Twilight Zone "A Little Peace & Quiet" S01E01b (1985)
I haven't seen this episode in over 25 years but I think of it often. It haunts me.
Directed by Wes Craven, this ep is the story of a stressed out housewife who finds a magic locket that stops time & freezes people in their place whenever she says, "Shut up!". With this newfound power, she can solve previously impenetrable everyday dilemmas with ease & finally gives herself some peace when dealing with her four wild kids. & dim husband.
The key moment:
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
Now, this being the Cold War 80s, things take a turn for the worse when the Russians launch nuclear missiles at the US. Desperate, the housewife uses the locket to stop time & freeze the world and everyone in it in their place. Forever doomed to an existence alone in an endless, silent sea of living statues, we're left with the final haunting image of the Russian missile as it hangs motionless & for all time in the evening sky.
Saw it not too long ago. Aside from the cheap special effects, it holds up brilliantly.
There are a couple episodes on the list already, but I'd be remiss if I didn't nominate my favorite episode from one of my all-time favorite series.
87) Friday Night Lights - S1E17 - "I Think We Should Have Sex"
This episode is packed with the things I love about FNL, from little character moments to major emotional breakthroughs, and contains almost no actual football. While I don't have any problem with the football portions of the show, this episode is a terrific example of how the show is much, much more than a show about a high school football team.
There's just so much to love in this episode. Coach Taylor's conversation with Buddy at the bar ("You know how it is" "No, Buddy, I don't know how it is!"), Herc's antics, that quintessential FNL moment where Tim gets himself beat up while a Ryan Adams song plays in the background (has any show ever had better and more appropriate music choices?), and Matt's nervousness at the prospect of having sex with Julie. This last bit produces one of my all-time favorite FNL moments, when Matt is getting advice from Tim:
"You remember the first time you drove a car?"
"Yeah, I crashed my grandma's car and now Landry drives me around."
"...Good luck to ya, 7"
There's also the excellent Riggins storyline, with Tim finally seeing his dad for who he is. In a lot of ways, the episode is about trust, trust that kids place in their parents and trust that parents place in their kids. Tim's misplaced trust in his dad has harsh consequences, but Tim also learns that he does have family that he can trust in, people that will protect him, and a coach that, inexplicably, does treat him with respect and trust (both scenes between Tim and Coach Taylor in this episode are excellent).
Ultimately, though, this is Connie Britton's episode. It's an absolutely fabulous performance, and a perfect example of how Tami Taylor is the all-time great TV mom. That conversation she has with Julie, the desperate, pleading tone in her voice as she realizes that she can't control her daughter, the way her voice breaks when Julie giggles about the term "make love", it's such a raw, true moment. Then there's her confession to Eric that neither of them really know what they're doing with this whole parenting thing, but she just wants her daughter to be able to talk to her. FNL is a show that wore its heart on its sleeve, and never moreso than here, where two parents (and great parents at that) have to admit that they don't have all the answers. All in all, it's a very different teen sex story, told through the eyes of two teens who eventually don't feel the need to go through with it, and two parents who desperately want to know how to keep their daughter safe without alienating her. It's a tremendous episode of television that shows off all the reasons Friday Night Lights (particularly in its first season) is one of TV's all-time great dramas.
"You did tell her that if he touches on hair on her we're sending her to a nunnery in Rome, and I would rip his head off."
Along a similar vein as my other submission...
88. Battlestar Galactica (2004) - Flesh and Bone
Starbuck interrogates a captured Cylon, to only learn about differences in theology that rattle her to her core.
Can't find YouTube moments currently, but:
ETA Moments? Well here's one:
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
Who is the true villain? Interrogator, or Interogatee?
True moments of post-9/11 paranoia personified.
It can't be a coincidence that both my entries are written by Ronald D. Moore.
86. The New Twilight Zone S01E01b (1985)
I haven't seen this episode in over 25 years but I think of it often. It haunts me.
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
I watched an episode from 80's TZ last night that had haunted me since it aired, and it DIDN'T hold up, so you lucked out. I really remember the William Friedkin episode "Nightcrawlers" being incredibly intense when I first saw it, but I didn't hold up on a second viewing.
Heh, I was going to post that episode next. I have a pretty strong stomach, but that rape scene is horrific, right there with Tracee's beating death in "Whoever Did This".
Tracee is killed in season 3's University. I know this because my friend and I find sick pleasure in the way Ralphie pronounces "whore" as "hoo-uh."
Not to continually laud The Sopranos here, but I had to add:
90. The Sopranos Season 6, Episode 2: Join the Club (March 19, 2006)
An episode that has a resounding personal connection, in that my father died when I was six, and the grief and despair seen in the family as Tony recovers from being shot by Uncle Junior is devastating, and the way the family comes together following the incident tugs at my heart profoundly. Coupled with his existential coma dreams and fear of dying and the afterlife, it's easily the episode that brought me the closest to tears, something hard to do especially with a TV series for me.
91. Deadwood Season 2, Episode 1
"A Lie Agreed Upon, part 1"
There's nowhere near enough Deadwood on this list. I could pick virtually half the episodes produced for it, but I've always thought that if I had to single out one stand alone episode that showed the show at it's best, it would be the Second Season opener (which is ironic, as it's the first half of the only two-part episode the show ever did). The giant setpiece moment of the episode, and possibly the series, is Bullock and Swearengen finally beating the shit out of each other, first in private, and then falling over the railing into the mud-drenched thoroughfare, just in time for Bullock's wife and son to arrive in a stagecoach. During which Sol and Charlie Utter both get shot. And it's as terrific a scene as you could hope for. It's McShane at his profane best.
It's also got a British Office-calibre awkwardness comedy sequence when Alma comes to visit an injured Bullock in the Hardware store and meets his wife, where it couldn't be more clear to everyone present that this is the woman Bullock's been fucking. It's got Al's spot-on impersonation of Farnum. And it's got some of the best acting of Powers Boothe's career, as Cy Tolliver spends the hour barely containing himself from exploding in violent rage at a departing Joanie, leading to several of the most hilariously evil passive aggressive, and aggressive/agressive, lines I've ever heard, including such gems as "Better get packed. Don't forget to bring the rag you wipe the cum off with", and "You've never seen a good woman til you've seen one with maggots in her eyes". And it's got the great sequence of Bullock playing detective at Tom Nuttall's bar, sorting out the idiot chain of events that lead to Slippery Dan getting shot because Bummer Dan tried to take a piss into a shot glass. It's not the most thematically interesting episode of the show, but the character work and dialogue is at it's absolute best.
"Welcome to fucking Deadwood! Can be combative!" is one of the greatest things ever uttered on a TV screen.
I watched an episode from 80's TZ last night that had haunted me since it aired, and it DIDN'T hold up, so you lucked out. I really remember the William Friedkin episode "Nightcrawlers" being incredibly intense when I first saw it, but I didn't hold up on a second viewing.
I immediately thought of that episode after Art's post, but it's been years since I've seen it.
Sadly, I have only Season 1 of Deadwood under my belt, but I plan to remedy that this summer. Anyway, here's my Deadwood episode for the pile.
92. Deadwood, Season 1, Episode 12: "Sold Under Sin".
What a fucking fantastic finish to the first season. So many things come together. Seth beats the shit out of Alma's asshole father, they finally sleep together, and he assumes the responsibility of Sheriff. Al gains a new ally of sorts in Silas (the wonderful Titus Welliver). The town is finally beginning to integrate into the United States. And a good man, a man of God in a godless camp, dies because those around him no longer wish to see him suffer.
Key moment: Doc Cochran is at the end of his wits, and launches an angry tirade against God: "Did you need to hear their death agonies to know your omnipotence?" But he ends it with prayer, begging the Lord to grant Reverend Smith a quick death. Meanwhile, across town, Al suffocates the Reverend in a strange fit of mercy.
I was surprised to see Brad Dourif playing a cranky-but-goodhearted Doctor McCoy type in this series since I've only ever seen him as creeps, assholes, killers, or all of the above. But he fucking nails Cochran, especially in that pivotal speech, one of the best in Season 1. And Ian McShane is goddamn astounding as Al Swearengen; there's an odd sort of tenderness to the way he mercy kills Reverend Smith (Ray McKinnon, whose excellent acting job became increasingly heartbreaking), and while I'm sure some of that's on the page, McShane brings it home.
FYI, there's a great Titus Welliver interview up at the AV Club. Come for the insight, stay for his David Milch impression.
93. I, Claudius - Episode 10 - Hail Who?
Who said there was no great drama in the '70s?
The Caligula episode with John Hurt giving it his all as Derek Jacobi simply tries to do his best in the midst of all the craziness. All before the Praetorian guard decides they've had enough and assassinate Caligula. And his whole family.
Key moment: After the assassination of Caligula's heirs, the guard finds Claudius in the palace. And, against his wishes, decide to place him on the thrown as emperor.
Great Deadwood choices. Damn, what a great, great show.
Much appreciated. I can't wait to see what's in store for Seasons 2 and 3.
I immediately thought of that episode after Art's post, but it's been years since I've seen it.
The chintzy 80's synth score really hobbles it.
94. Torchwood "Children of Earth: Day Four" (BBC, 2009)
Between the mediocre first two seasons & the utter shit 4th season, sits this gloriously intense & masterfully creepy 5 episode run where aliens threaten to wipeout humanity lest a percentage of Earth's children be given up to them. The 4th episode is where everything comes to a head, where things get as bad as they can get, & where the series achieves a sense of palpable dread unmatched in it's run.
The key moment:
The "456" finally reveal the reason why they want Earth's children. It's pretty fucked up.
95. Breaking Bad - S3 Ep12 "Half Measures"
My favorite episode, in what is, for my money, the best drama ever put on television. From beginning to end this one reeks of excellence. We start off with a nice peppy look into the life of a meth whore. We have Mike's fantastic story about his days on the force with his half measures speech. All building to the above where Jesse is seemingly going to his doom.
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)The way the score builds into the sound of the car engine as Walt runs down the two gang bangers and finishes the one off.
Seemed a turning point for me, Walt never seemed to be able to go that far before. "No more half measures" indeed. Just a brilliant episode.
96. The Sopranos, "The Blue Comet" (S6E20, 2007)
While the final scene of the finale is what everyone seems to remember, it was the episode before, "The Blue Comet", that sticks with me as a whole. Melfi dropping Tony as a client, Silvio being shot in the parking lot, the murder of Bobby at the toy store and that final shot of Tony on the bed, holding the gun, waiting for the storm to come. It certainly feels like the war to end all wars will break out in the finale.
What the fuck? "Hush" isn't on here???? Let's fix that shit!
97. Buffy the Vampire Slayer (S4, Ep 10) - "Hush" (1999)
One of the landmark episodes of the show and easily the scariest. "Hush" wipes away the bullshit notion that Whedon used cutesy dialogue as a crutch and delivers a near-silent masterpiece. Works both as a great stand-alone, while still advancing the season arc (this was the episode where Buffy and Riley discover each other's secret identities AND the episode that introduces Tara). Beautifully paced, creepy and funny as hell, this is my all-time favorite episode of a brilliant show.
Slightly off-topic, but this thread has inspired me to hunker down and finally watch some of these shows. I've got the discs for Justified's first two seasons, the rest of Deadwood, Game of Thrones, and Rome in my Netflix queue, with Breaking Bad and Mad Men bringing up the rear in the Instant queue.
Maybe after all that, I can finally get to watching The Wire. Or maybe The Shield...
What the fuck? "Hush" isn't on here???? Let's fix that shit!
97. Buffy the Vampire Slayer (S4, Ep 10) - "Hush" (1999)
One of the landmark episodes of the show and easily the scariest. "Hush" wipes away the bullshit notion that Whedon used cutesy dialogue as a crutch and delivers a near-silent masterpiece. Works both as a great stand-alone, while still advancing the season arc (this was the episode where Buffy and Riley discover each other's secret identities AND the episode that introduces Tara). Beautifully paced, creepy and funny as hell, this is my all-time favorite episode of a brilliant show.
Eh, as huge of a Buffy fan as I am, I have always felt that this episode is ridiculously overrated. Yeah, it is neat that Whedon effectively tells a Buffy story with about 2/3 of the episode not having any dialogue, and the Gentlemen are one of the more effective "Monster of the Week" creatures. However, it has always felt the most "gimmicky" of the Buffy special episodes. "Hush" just feels like Joss Whedon trying to prove he is just as an effective visual storyteller a he is dialogue writer - something I never needed proven to me. I just don't think it effectively uses the characters as a "Once More with Feeling" or "Restless".
98. Doctor Who "The Doctor's Wife" (BBC, 2011)
Neil Gaiman's incredible, moving one-off masterpiece.
The key moment:
The TARDIS, alive in the form of a woman, reveals to the Doctor that it was she who stole him away to adventure throughout time & space, not the other way around.
"My Doctor..."
Jesus tapdancing Christ....now I'm going to have to pull up some Doc Who. Shit.
99. Doctor Who, Season 12, Episode 15, "Genesis of the Daleks: Part 5"
Since there's been a lot of new Doctor Who, I think it's only fair to go old school. Season 12 introduced Tom Baker to the role and ultimately crossed over to be a cult hit in America. So much of this era still defines Doctor Who. In the middle of the season they went for their most ambitious story in the history of the show to date, Genesis of the Daleks, and mostly hit it out of the park in a grim story which evoked Nazi Germany and the moral quandry of "if you could kill Hitler as a child, would you?" It also introduced one of Doctor Who's key villains, Davros, creator of the Daleks.
Key moment: The Doctor tries reasoning with Davros to get him to see the consequences of his experiments, using the metaphor of a destructive virus.
#100 Cowboy Bebop "Pierrot Le Fou" (1998) (Japanese Voices)
In recent years television has come to be shot and constructed in a more cinematic fashion. Cowboy Bebop was always ahead of the game in that regard, as it was in many others. In terms of what's in the frame and the rhythm with which each of shot hits us the majority of even the most lauded modern television can only match Bebop and rarely tops it. In terms of the storyline - a mixture of the playful and the downbeat - Bebop preceded the decade or more of "dark" American dramas which have followed it.
What makes this a great single episode of dramatic television is the combination of that atmosphere with high stakes action. Where animation can most easily rise above live-action is that the budget for an animated series may not constrain either design or action scenes to anywhere near the same extent as it does for live action. One reason "Pierrot Le Fou" rises above the average is that in these areas it is masterful. It's a surreal and nightmarish kung fu/sci-fi horror gem that's almost as much Lynch and Melville as it is Bruce Lee and Blade Runner. From the outset the air is uneasy. Spike's calm, almost sleepy pool game cuts up against the mad chaos of Mad Pierrot's one-man devastation of an entire team of bodyguards along with their client. Before we know it our hero is standing there in the same air as someone (something?) as apparently menacing as you could hope to see on a screen. When they fight the movements of the combatants are unchoreographed and reactive - playful even - but as the fight continues they're shot through with threat of the highest order.
All of that style would be for nought if there were no substance at the core of it and the core of the drama though is simply that Spike, until now a man we see as one of the best fighters in this universe, appears to have no answer to Mad Pierrot's chaotic and apparently superhuman attack. By the time the final confrontation is had we've learned how Pierrot came to be and unlike many villainous backstories this one makes him even more terrifying than the unstoppable force we met in the opening scenes. The stakes are life and death and for the first time it becomes a genuine question because it feels like Spike really could be wiped out by this monstrosity of deadly combat.
Only six episodes (and a movie) remained after this one and because of what we'd learned in this episode Spike's fatalistic nature came to weigh even more heavily whenever he was in danger. Pierrot Le Fou changed Spike and Cowboy Bebop forever.
(As always with Cowboy Bebop I have to qualify this as my opinion of the original version - with the Japanese voice actors. This is perhaps the most contentious series when it comes to subs vs dubs, to the point claims are often made that the show's creator prefers the English dubs (although I've never seen proof). Nevertheless, for me the Japanese voice actors give the characters a genuine gravitas and understated humour which is utterly absent from the cheese-laden English dub. If you've only ever tried the English version and found the series lacking I don't blame you. I find that version lacking myself.)
There's a disturbing lack of Justified and Boardwalk Empire on this list.
Shall we go to 150??
It'd be rude not to.
Got plenty of Doctor Who though.
100 is arbitrary anyway, right? It's not like we're ever going to agree on a list.
I'm just happy that NYPD Blue didn't make the 100. Fuck that show.
ETA: Phooey, I could have sworn this wasn't on the list.
101. (75.) Lost (S1, E4) "Walkabout"
Some people claim that Lost peaked somewhere around its third season, and maybe in the long term it's true. But the show never delivered a more perfect single hour than right at the beginning. Taking advantage of the fact that we know virtually nothing about John Locke except that he's one of the only survivors who seems happy to be marooned on an uncharted island, Walkabout teases us with deceptive revelations about his past. Is he a military man? Is he a criminal? Does he have a family? Is that his girlfriend? What's with the knives, and where did he learn to hunt? Not for the last time, Locke is systematically reduced and belittled until we have to ask-- what's left, and why doesn't he mind? Terry O'Quinn's performance is open, angry and vulnerable, and we understand the source of his frustration, and later, his joy. Or we think we do, up to the stunning revelation we've been so carefully directed not to consider.
"DON'T TELL ME WHAT I CAN'T DO!"
