‘I definitely needed a lie-down after that!’ The most gripping episodes of TV ever
Spooks – I Spy Apocalypse (2003)
The show kicks off with the MI5 agents confined during a training exercise about a potential terror incident, monitored by two government representatives. As the situation develops, it becomes clear a real incident has taken place and a chemical weapon has been unleashed. The tension ratchets up as messages indicate a crisis unfolding beyond their walls, and intensifies as the boss appears to be infected, and the two Home Office officials attempt to leave, forcing Matthew Macfadyen’s character to choose between firing at them or allowing them to leave and endangering the sterile MI5 environment. Given it’s Spooks, his decision is predictable.
Threads from 1984
The production was inexpensive but arguably the most terrifying series I have viewed because of the stark reality and bleak government data. Watched it about a month ago after seeing the first airing; I often attended the bar in Sheffield shown in the series which underscored the actuality and the offhand factual official statements that aired. Remaining completely frightening 35 years later.
Severance – The We We Are from 2022
The first season finale of Severance has to be right up there in terms of gripping installments. I was throughout the episode actually sitting tensely, pushing alongside Dylan to keep his hands on the levers that sustained the Innies’ extended time, while screaming at the Innies to get their truths out there. The final climactic moment – “she survives!” – felt like an explosion.
The 2024 Industry episode White Mischief
The fifth episode of Industry’s third season caused my heart to pound. I was compelled to halt and rise and depart the area multiple times owing to the vast degree of the deliberate ruin I saw. Rishi Ramdani is in deep shit professionally and personally – buried in financial obligations to illegal creditors owing to his uncontrollable gaming, taking such risks on a wager involving sterling that might cost his firm millions. So of course, he goes on a gambling spree, does tons of drugs and drink and experiences wins and losses, gets beaten to a pulp. Each instance you believe the situation cannot deteriorate further, it deteriorates. Redemption seems possible at the end of the episode but he squanders the opportunity, with horrifying consequences in the season finale. Definitely needed a lie-down after that!
The 2007 Peep Show episode Holiday
Peep Show itself isn’t necessarily a stressful show. Yet the installment Holiday includes such amounts of embarrassment that it’ll have you standing up throughout the entire episode, filled with nervousness. The tension escalates when Jeremy and Mark realize having to lie about the dog they accidentally run over and later efforts to get rid of it. You then occupy the remainder of the episode questioning whether it truly can be worse than incineration, and it turns out to be!
The 2001 The West Wing episode The Two Cathedrals
Nothing I’ve watched has been more intense compared to my initial viewing the second season finale of The West Wing. The show opens with the fallout of the demise (in a car crash) of the president’s confidential aide and escalates to a高潮 with a crisis in Haiti, and the repercussions of the secrecy of the president’s MS diagnosis, along with affirmation of his plan to run for another term. Excellent TV. Unsurpassed.
Bodyguard – episode one from 2018
The opening of the British series Bodyguard, with the hero aboard a train alongside his juvenile boy, ranks among the most gripping episodes I’ve seen. He notices a Muslim female heading to the toilet and knows something is off. The bomb squad is alerted, get on the train, and attempt to convince the woman to remove her explosive vest. Anxiety builds to a practically unendurable point, until, indeed, the vest is disarmed.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer – The Body from 2001
Buffy arrives at her residence to find her mum has passed away from natural reasons, which is the least common kind of passing in this supernatural show. The installment lacks any soundtrack, a gloomy atmosphere, and we witness the episode via the perspective of Buffy’s astonishment upon finding her mother.
The Sopranos – Made in America from 2007
The final scene of the final episode of the program was incredibly anxious. And if you watched it when it originally aired, you – initially – were uncertain of the reason. Tony’s adversaries, actual and perceived, had all been defeated. Doesn’t this resemble the season one conclusion? “Recall the minor details.” But the mood is bizarrely ominous. Approaching Twin Peaks-esque horror. The clan sits in an eatery. Meadow finds a parking spot. Tony sadly tells Carmela problems are brewing with another member of his team working with the government. Meadow secures a parking space. Strange people enter the restaurant. Look at Tony(?) Meadow is parking. Tony plays a track on the music machine. Meadow parks. The bell rings, someone enters the restaurant. Can’t be Meadow, she’s still parking. Tony raises his gaze. Don’t stop. It halts. My spirit fell roughly 20 minutes after.
The 2016 The Walking Dead episode The Last Day on Earth
I remained awake to view this installment in the early morning. It was incredibly tense after the buildup of bad guy Negan discovering the characters, cruelly taunting his victims and then leaving the victim unknown (concluded with a suspenseful moment). The point-of-view shot from the victim and the subdued noises – argh! {We then had to wait for season seven|We then needed to await season
