‘I definitely needed a lie-down after that!’ The most gripping television episodes of all time
Spooks – I Spy Apocalypse (2003)
The episode begins with the MI5 agents restricted while undergoing a drill concerning a fictional terrorist event, overseen by two Home Office officials. As things progress, it appears that there really has been an attack and a chemical agent deployed. The suspense builds as incoming communications show a crisis unfolding beyond their walls, and escalates when the leader seems contaminated, and the government agents endeavor to depart, forcing Matthew Macfadyen’s character to choose between firing at them or permitting their exit and endangering the sterile MI5 environment. As this is Spooks, his decision is predictable.
Threads from 1984
Threads was low budget yet among the scariest shows I’ve ever seen because of the stark reality and grim official statistics. Watched it about a month ago having watched the original; I used to visit the pub in Sheffield from the programme which underscored the actuality and the offhand factual official statements that were transmitted. Remaining completely frightening decades on.
The 2022 Severance episode The We We Are
The concluding episode of Severance’s debut season ranks highly in terms of gripping installments. I was throughout the episode literally perched nervously, straining every sinew with Dylan to hold the switches that sustained the Innies’ extended time, while shouting to the Innies to get their truths out there. The ultimate peak – “she survives!” – felt like an explosion.
Industry – White Mischief (2024)
The fifth episode of Industry’s third season had my heart racing. I needed to stop and stand and exit the space repeatedly owing to the vast degree of the wanton self-destruction I observed. Rishi Ramdani is in deep shit at work and home – buried in financial obligations from unscrupulous lenders because of his compulsive gambling, engaging in dangerous ventures with a gamble on the pound which could lose his company millions. So of course, he goes on a gambling spree, consumes excessive substances and alcohol and experiences wins and losses, is brutally attacked. Whenever you assume it can’t get any worse, it does. There’s hope of redemption by the episode’s conclusion but he misses the opening, resulting in dreadful effects in the concluding part of the season. Definitely needed a lie-down after that!
The 2007 Peep Show episode Holiday
Peep Show is not inherently a tense series. But the episode Holiday contains such levels of cringe that it’ll have you standing up for the full show, riddled with anxiety. It all ramps up as Jeremy and Mark discover needing to deceive regarding the dog they unintentionally hit and subsequent attempts to dispose of it. You subsequently use the rest of the installment doubting if it can actually be more terrible than burning, and it can be!
The West Wing – The Two Cathedrals from 2001
No other viewing has been as gripping as when I first saw the second season finale of The West Wing. The installment begins with the consequences of the passing (in a road incident) of the president’s private assistant and escalates to a高潮 involving a Haitian emergency, and the fallout from the non-disclosure of the president’s MS diagnosis, coupled with verification of his aim to seek re-election. Superb programming. Unsurpassed.
Bodyguard – episode one (2018)
The opening of the British series Bodyguard, with the hero aboard a train alongside his juvenile boy, is personally a top tense installment. He observes a woman in Islamic attire heading to the toilet and knows something is off. The bomb diffuser experts are called, enter the train, and endeavor to coax the woman to take off her suicide vest. Suspense rises to a practically unendurable point, until, indeed, the vest is disarmed.
The 2001 Buffy episode The Body
Buffy arrives at her residence to discover her mother has died of natural causes, which is the least common kind of passing in this supernatural show. The installment lacks any soundtrack, a sullen tone, and we view the installment through the lens of Buffy’s astonishment upon finding her mother.
The 2007 The Sopranos finale Made in America
The ultimate sequence of the series finale of the series was extremely nerve-wracking. And for those who saw it during its initial broadcast, you – at the start – didn’t understand the cause. Tony’s foes, genuine and fictional, were all vanquished. Doesn’t this resemble the season one conclusion? “Think about the small elements.” But the mood is bizarrely ominous. Nearly Twin Peaks-like fear. The clan sits in an eatery. Meadow parks. Tony sadly tells Carmela problems are brewing with yet another of his crew collaborating with the authorities. Meadow secures a parking space. Unfamiliar individuals come into the diner. Look at Tony(?) Meadow parks. Tony plays a track on the music machine. Meadow finds a spot. The bell rings, someone enters the restaurant. It cannot be Meadow, she is still parking. Tony looks up. Keep going. It halts. My heart dropped from my mouth around 20 minutes subsequently.
The 2016 The Walking Dead episode The Last Day on Earth
I remained awake to view this installment in the early morning. It was so intense after the establishment of antagonist Negan finding the group, cruelly taunting his victims and then leaving the victim unknown (finished with an unresolved situation). The first-person perspective of the victim and the muffled sounds – ugh! {We then had to wait for season seven|We then needed to await season
